Connected Classrooms and the Information Age Lauren Cifuentes
Dec 31, 2015
Connected Classrooms and the Information Age
Lauren Cifuentes
DISTANCE LEARNING
Your activities/assignments: Computer Conferencing Online Mentoring Cultural Connections Activity Web Workstation
DISTANCE LEARNINGBe able to: define provide examples of classroom
applications discuss issues
A Definition:
Distance learning is composed of three criteria--
participants separated by geographic distance
at least two-way interactive communication
technology facilitating the process
Varieties of Delivery Systems
•print or video through mail
•one-way audio and video
• instructional TV
•2-way audio and video conferencing (DVC or lg. group)
•networking with computers
Critical questions to ask when designing instruction--
Will distance learning tools enable students to do something they couldn’t do otherwise? or
Will distance learning tools enable students to do something much better?
Activity Structures
By Judy Harris, UT, Austin
1. Interpersonal Exchange
2. Information Collection
3. Problem Solving
1. Interpersonal Exchange• Keypals• Global Classrooms• Electronic Appearances• Telemonitoring• Question and answer activities• Impersonations
2. Information Collection
• Information exchanges• Database creation• Electronic publishing• Telefieldtrips• Pooled data analysis
3. Problem Solving• Information searches• Peer feedback activities• Parallel problem solving• Sequential creations• Telepresent problem solving• Simulations• Social action projects
URL of examples of each activity structure
http://virtual-architecture.wm.edu//
PBS Mathline is just one example of year long curriculum in the content areas
Exemplifies integrated distance learning--–teachers connected on-line
–mailed videos model teaching excellence
–video conference for national discussion
Networking with Computers
Access to information Access to world-wide activities Access to knowledgeable
people Access to each other
Subscribe to mailing lists:
Online discussion groups “listservs”--100,000+
Two types:–moderated: an administrator reads all incoming posts and sends only “good” ones to subcribers
–unmoderated: computer program sends all incoming posts out to the subscribers automatically
How to subscribe to a list:
1. Create a new e-mail message.
2. Address it to a mailing list.
3. Type subscribe in the body, or subcribe <listname> <your name> i.e. subscribe EDNET Jane L.Doe
To sign off a list, do the same except type unsubscribe instead of subscribe.
ERIC Search
WWW to:
http://ericir.syr.edu/Eric/
keyword, author, title, journal searches
Check out the lesson plans
TrackStar
URL= Http://hprtec.org
Locate TrackStar as an easy tool for Web Activity development.
Locate lessons already developed in TrackStar
Benefits of Integrating Distance Technologies into Your Classroom
Immediacy Increased critical thinking Improved dialogue for multiple
perspectives Individualized activity Active learning Connection to the world
Provocative Questions to Discuss at Parties:
How might teachers and students’ roles change now that students have easy access to information unknown to the teacher?
How can we control plagiarism in
this age of easy access?
What will textbooks look like?
What things now are crucial in an
optimum teacher/student relationship
that must not be lost?
How will telecommunications
technologies help a
teacher be more productive?