Reflection #3

After reading about cyber bullying, one understands why this has become another worry for parents of children who have become computer literate. It was bad enough when television brought questionable topics and images into America's family rooms, but today the computer has the power to bring the world into our children's bedrooms. In addition, the telephone once could frighten us with its "heavy breathers". Today, cell phones can transmit voices, photos, and videos that are real or distorted with software, such as Photoshop, to create cruel messages so disturbing to youngsters that individuals, such as Megan Meier, have committed suicide to escape the pain. An executive from Westchester County in New York State explained how difficult it is for the courts to make a judgment on the cyber bullying cases. “It’s a delicate balance of free speech, child protection and parental supervision,” says Andrew Spane. (Swartz)

Free speech is protected in the U.S. Constitution. Citizens know that what they say is their responsibility. However, the Founding Fathers never could anticipate the anonymity offered via the internet. Kids may find it easier to ridicule their victims since they don’t have to reveal their identity or see the results of their cruelty face-to-face. In this way they have no empathy as a consequence of their bad behavior. A feeling of invincibility is already a part of the teen mindset. How tempting it must be to have the power to be so invisible as well.

At a time when insults can be so hard on children, pre-teens, and teens, it is also when many of them have computer access to internet social sites. In an effort to keep children up to date in his 21st century technology, parents, school districts, and libraries offer the world at their children’s fingertips. Their computer skills far exceed the ability to judge social situations and the consequences of using the written word, photos, or videos to injure another child. Psychologists have witnessed the “devastating damage…even as it is not always obvious to parents and teachers”. (Swartz) Children may not share their distress with a parent or other adult because the result may include restrictions on internet or cell phone use.

Neither parents, nor teachers are capable of supervising their children for all the hours they would like to spend online or texting. However, some attempt must be made to have some ground rules and expectations communicated to children prior to allowing them to use technology. Here, parents and teachers need to be a team in getting the message across. Just as bullying is not tolerated, neither will cyber bullying be allowed. Educating both adults and children is the answer.

Following are links to valuable websites, to educate parents, educators, and students alike, that I found helpful in understanding the seriousness of the problem and to effectively counter the growth of cyber bullying.

 Judge Acquits Lori Drew in Cyber Bullying Case, Overules Jury http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2009/07/drew_court This site explains a case of cyberbullying that ended with a suicide and a court case that explains how difficult it is to adjudicate this new social crime.

 Cyber Bullying Organization http://www.cyberbullying.org/ This Canadian website is easy to navigate and offers a wealth of information and S.M.A.R.T. acronym of advice.

 Help Put an End to Cyber Bullying http://www.online-bully.com/index.html This site offers the answer to what cyberbullying is, where it happens, and recommends monitoring software to record internet activity on your PC.

 Schoolyard Bullies Get Nastier Online http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2005-03-06-cover-cyberbullies_x.htm Author John Swartz quotes authorities from all over the country who have been involved with cases of cyberbullying. He includes a list of options if you become a victim of cyberbullying.

 A Thin Line http://www.athinline.org/ Author John Swartz quotes authorities from all over the country who have been involved with cases of cyberbullying. He includes a list of options if you become a victim of cyberbullying.

 Bullying: School, Texting and Cyber Harassment is Emotional Assault http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michelle-renee/bullying-school-texting-c_b_437476.html  Michelle Renee offers commonsense advice as a mother of a teen-age girl who was a victim of cyber bullying; even the comments that follow her article are worth reading.

 Cyber Harassment of Children on the Rise http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/02/23/cyber-harassment-of-children-on-the-rise/11637.html Rick Nauert writes authoritative research-based information in an easy to read format. He warns parents to move from being naïve to showing interest in the internet sites visited by their children.

• How to Handle Cyberbullying http://Bullies2Buddies.com/How-to-Handle-Cyberbullying Izzy Kahlman offers an alternative way to handle bullies, including cyberbullies, using video role-playing and lists of ways to neutralize the power of bullies without escalating the problem by involving adults and the law.


• Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use http://csriu.org/ Nancy Willard offers resources for training children to use the internet responsibly.

• McGruff’s Blog: Cyberbullies http://www.mcgruff.org/Advice/cyberbullies.php This is an excellent site for younger students with entertaining games to practice strategies to diffuse peer pressure and promote safe internet use.

Reflective Blog #2

These are some articles on technology used in classrooms that I found informative for any science teacher.

Cavanagh, S. (2009). Web Connects K-12 Students with Scientists. Education Week, 29(11), 12-13.
            Retrieved February 25, 2010 from EBSCO Host Academic Search Complete.

Technology is being used effectively, by bringing together students in K-12 and scientists, in a live webinar. The article describes the topic of H1N1 flu pandemic as it was presented to exceptional students. Two scientists from John Hopkins University presented information in an entertaining way that so captured the attention of their audience that questions and comments poured in. One student from Auburn High School in Rockford, Illinois, commented favorably on this medium for education.

Putman, S.; Kingsley, T. (2009). The Atoms Family: Using Podcasts to Enhance the Development of
          Science Vocabulary. The Reading Teacher, 63(2), 100-108. Retrieved February 25, 2010 from
          EBSCO Host Academic Search Complete.

Putman is a teacher at Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana, and Kingsley is a fifth-grade teacher at Sand Creek Intermediate School in Fishers, Indiana. They conducted experiments that revealed how podcasts accessed outside of school were useful in reviewing and strengthening science vocabulary skills.  Using creative and entertaining activities, these podcasts were enthusiastically received by all ages.

Qian, Y. (2009). 3D Multi-User Virtual Environments: Promising Directions for Science Education.
          Science Educator, 18(2), 25-29. Retrieved February 25, 2010 from EBSCO Host Academic
          Search Complete.

Dr. Qian is an assistant professor in the School of Leadership Studies at St. Thomas University. She teaches and writes articles on recent learning technologies. Aware of how children learn and play with new game media, she encourages discussion and suggests the use of virtual environments in science education.

Taylor, H. (2010). Teaching in Any Century. Connect Magazine, 23(3), 7-9. Retrieved February 25,
          2010 from EBSCO Host Academic Search Complete.

Heather Taylor began as a teacher in  multi-age classes in Vermont before her present position as editor of Connect Magazine. Taylor outlines four areas that are often spoken about when defining 21st century skills. They are: using digital technology to collect and anylize data, thinking and solving problems creatively, having skills in core areas of education (e.g. math, science, language, history, and the arts), and being able to work collaboratively to produce ideas or a product. However, she regrets that the emphasis for acquiring these skills is to compete in a global economy rather than education for all.

Yoder, M. (2009). S'Cool Tools: 5 Great Tools to Perk Up Your Classroom and Engage Your Students.
          Learning and Leading with Technology, 1(11), 12-15. Retrieved February 25, 2010 from
          EBSCO Host Academic Search Complete.

Maureen Yoder teaches a course in Emerging Technologies that shows ways to promote imagination and creativity . She found products that use software in Lego Robotics, interactive learning centers, virtual environments, and a Google Apps site for worldwide teacher collaboration. (The prices are listed and may appear daunting, but educational grants might be a possibility.) 

Reflective Blog #1

          I am a student that is reviewing educational blogs. Following are some interesting classroom, educational, and teacher blogs that I found especially informative.

Classroom Blogs

Reflective Creations: http://reflectivecreations.wordpress.com/
I liked this classroom blog.The graphics are clean and easy to read and navigate.The poems by students were entertaining. The blog included book reviews by students and a link to Livefeedjit.com that lists the visitors' locations on a world map. Another link takes you to Spellingcity.com where there are spelling lists with games and activities to acquaint students with the words. Unfortunately, the last entry was November 2009, so we have to wait for more recent entries. However, there is much to do while waiting.I found this well worth the time to explore!


Mrs. Buckmaster's Class - Peeler open School for the Performing Arts: http://upperhouse.edublogs.org/

This is another great classroom blog. It has some clips of past performances by the Upper House kids. There are "shoutouts" from all over the world because the site includes a translation of the text. It was fun to read all the comments.The newsletter is from September 2009, but it gives a snippet of what is going on in class.
There are many photos and colorful graphics within a clean looking page. There is a link provided to the internet that also serves as a fundraiser for the school. Everytime you shop online, the school receives funds!
I would recommend this site to other schools with performing arts programs. Mrs. B. encourages classes to write and leave a link so that they can write back.When you communicate with them you can create your own avatar.

Educational Blogs

Science Notebooking: http://www.sciencenotebooking.blogspot.com/

This is a simple blog that includes many photos with explanations of science experiments that have been tried. The teacher has simple ideas to differentiate her lessons. The photos help to picture the projects as they are created.

Betchablog - education + technology + ideas: http://chrisbetcher.com/


Chris Betcher has many ideas about improving education. He currently conducts conferences in Australia and includes creative ways to use technology. I liked his stress on building relationships and trust with our students. He encourages "experiencing the unexpected" as teachers so that our hopes stay alive.One of the postings is a list of five skills that will take us into the 21st century as educators.Chris uses photos sparingly bu effectively in his format to keep it readable.I would recommend this site to any teacher that is reluctant to use technology or that needs warm encouragement.
 

Teacher Blogs

Ask a Tech Teacher: http://askatechteacher.wordpress.com/

I love this blog written by a former college business instructor that now is teaching technology an elementary school.  She offers many websites for kids that have been tried and proven in her own school.
I liked how they were organized into grade levels and topics to make it easier to navigate. Some of the lessons she used have a workbook to accompany them, so she has links to places like Amazon to order a hard copy, or Scribd.com to download an e-book. I recommend this site to anyone working with elementary or middle school students.



High Techpectations by Lucy Gray: http://elemenous.typepad.com/


If you are a classroom teacher who wants to join the global community of educators, this is the site for you. Lucy Gray encourages collaboration among teachers and communication among their classrooms. Not only does she have a wealth of information to share, but she welcomes others to share as well. People from all over the world have sent photos or videos which help to open conversation among the members.
There are members that use Skype to have live conversations. This site makes the world seem much smaller and accessible. Her home page is colorful and even includes a way to translate information so I recommend it to any educator.