Magistro,+Stephanie

[|HTML page]
 * This is the HTML page I created in ISTC 301:**


 * This is the Voki I created in ISTC 301:**

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[|Experiential Learning Theory]
 * This is the Glogster I created in ISTC 301:**


 * Reflection to Learning Styles and CAST Website Resources**

In completing the learning styles survey, the information confirmed that I am a tactile/kinesthetic learner. Some of the suggestions are things that I already do, such a sit in the front of the classroom, jot down key words, and make flash cards to help in studying. However, one suggestion that was offered for improving my study skills that I have not considered before was walking back and forth with textbooks or note cards in hands while reading the information out loud. Since I already read my flashcards out loud, I am wondering if walking back and forth will further my understanding of the information I am studying. Also, listening to audio tapes on a tape player while exercising is another strategy I have never considered using while studying. I am not too keen on listening to lectures, and would much rather read textbooks but I am curious about whether or not I will benefit from listening to audio tapes in my leisure time. I am very interested in how the implementation of these suggestions will affect my overall understanding of concepts.

The CAST website was unbelievable. I will definitely refer to this site when I enter into teaching. The model lessons will be very beneficial to me in my first years of teaching to ensure that I am meeting the needs of all of my students. I think it’s incredible that this site is free and easily accessible for all teachers to use and implement in their classrooms. I am going to be a special education teacher, so this site is exceptionally beneficial for me because students with disabilities learn in several different ways and I need to be prepared to accommodate all of their needs. This site has made me very excited to start teaching and prepared for the challenges I may face in my classroom in the near future.


 * //Teaching Every Student in the Digital Age//** was a very interesting and helpful electronic book in regards to the universal design for learning. One piece of information I found interesting was that increasing access to information could actually //undermine// learning. As teachers, we think “the more information that is available to the child, the easier it will be for them to learn.” However, I learned that easy access to lots of information reduces the challenge that is essential in learning. There were many things I learned and plan to incorporate into my teaching in the near future. In Chapter 6 I learned the importance of having various methods of teaching. These include providing multiple examples, highlighting critical features, and providing multiple media and formats. These different methods are all crucial in supporting recognition learning for all the different types of learners. Since there is an increase in the number of special needs students in general education classrooms, its imperative to display information in many different ways to accommodate for the various ways in which children learn. Another positive thing about providing multiple representations though media, organization, patterns, levels of detail and degree of depth gives the learner the opportunity to choose their style of learning which works best of them, and also offers redundancy. Redundancy and choice is important for children with disabilities. Redundancy helps the child grasp a concept, and choice helps the child access the information in different ways depending on what they feel comfortable with. . Since I am going to be a special education teacher, it is important for me to learn the ways in which my students learn best so that I can incorporate many different methods of teaching to adhere to everyone effectively.

I thought the activities gave great insight into my personal strengths and talents. I thought it was great that each activity laid out the goals for each individual and gave them a chance to reflect on their strengths as well as their challenges. For example, in the first activity I chose cooking an Indian dinner. My strengths were that I love cooking; I am familiar with kitchen tools and responsibilities. But my challenges were that I am unfamiliar with Indian spices/recipes. This is a great way for students to challenge themselves with a new goal, and reward themselves by acknowledging their talents. Activity 2 was very interesting. I was able to identify all of the objects in the picture. However, I had difficulty identifying the ages of the people in the picture, the time period and how the people were feeling. These activities were an outstanding way of recognizing strengths and challenges of each individual. As a teacher, I can take the results from my student’s activities and accommodate lessons to work around their strong points, and what they have some difficulty with to enhance their learning.

I believe the approach to developing differentiated instruction used in the materials of CAST is significantly beneficial in a child’s learning process. My favorite part of the CAST website is the book builder. I wish I had this technology when I was a child because it would have helped me be engaged and excited to read. I like that difficult words are underlined so that the child can look up the definition to guide them in understanding what the book is about. Being able to hear the words out loud as the words are being highlighted helps students to read. This website does a fantastic job recognizing the needs of all the different types of learners and provides teachers the tools they need in order to accommodate for these needs.

I would like to know more about how often CAST updates their sites. As the number of special needs students into general education classrooms increases, how often does CAST need to modify their lessons and acitivies based on Universal Designs for Learning.


 * Virtual Fieldtrips in Education: **

I was blown away by all of the virtual websites there are out there. Not only are they great tools for learning, but they help out those families who can not afford to take their child to the museum. I wish I knew about these sites when I was in middle school. I remember having to do presentations on something we researched. My mother had to drag me to the library to find a book about the subject I chose and I had to read the book in it's entirety to pick out the important details I would present to the class. However, if I knew these virtual fieldtrips existed, I would be excited to explore through an interactive museum to learn more about whaling, or how people dressed in colonial times. There are so many teachers who still "stick to the old ways" of teaching, and they neglect to realize that they are hindering their student's ability and enthusiasm to learn. They should be taking advantage of these tools that are free and easily accessible, and promote interactive learning!

Since I will be teaching Special Education, these virtual fieldtrips are a great idea to engage my students in different subjects of learning. Since it may be difficult for me to take all of my special needs students to a museum where inappropriate behavior is looked down upon, I can bring the fieldtrip to the classroom so my students don't feel left out when they hear that their friends are going to the museum. Also, since many of special needs students are visual learners, they will be more interested in a subject on dinosaurs if they can view their skeletons, and living environment virtually rather than just reading about it in a book. The fact that all of the sites are interactive is a great way to get students excited about learning!


 * Article Reading and Reflection:**

The article I read discussed integrating technology for Special Education students in the content area of Social Studies. The teacher, Vera Williams, wanted to incorporate a historical fiction unit into the curriculum for her students, but was aware of the accommodations she had to make to help boost their motivation to get involved in the activities. The lesson Williams thought would be most interesting for her students was regarding the adventures of the Oregon Trail.

To accommodate for the students who have very low reading levels, Williams incorporated audio files using a free podcasting web site, Podomatic. The students were able to listen to the prompts independently and were encouraged to create their own podcasts. Since the reading level of the prompts was still high for her students, Williams was able to identify the appropriate reading level in Word and simplify the language in order for her students to understand the content.

Since special education students have many different needs, Williams needed to apply the technology to visual learners as well. In order to do this, Williams used PowerPoint to animate a map of the Oregon Trail so the students were able to see where they would be traveling for each different scenario. This simple tool made the lesson much more interactive and allowed the students to grasp an idea of what they have accomplished and what they still have to look forward to. To provide a deeper understanding of vocabulary pertaining to the lesson, Williams also added pictures and hyperlinks for the students to explore at their own discretion.

To add to the interactive aspect of the Oregon Trail lesson, Williams created many collaborative elements to allow the students to discuss different topics with their teacher and peers. Using the program, Writeboard, Williams created an interactive discussion board in which they assumed a character from the Oregon Trail and shared their own experiences with their peers as well as commenting on other student’s experiences. For those students who have difficulty reading, Williams allowed them to use Universal Reader, in which students are able to participate in the discussion board with the use of headphones and a screen reader. The discussion board was a way for students to incorporate prior knowledge, interact with their peers, and present their findings to their classmates.

As a future Special Education teacher, I found this article to be very comforting and helpful. Growing up, Social Studies was my least favorite subject; it simply did not interest me. Reading this article made me optimistic about teaching Social Studies to my students and validated my decision of becoming a teacher. Had the technology been around when I was in school, there is a strong possibility that I would have liked Social Studies.

With that being said, the use of technology in the classroom is imperative for students in the new generations to learn effectively. Technology has opened so many doors for disabled and/or learning disabled children. Being able to have material presented in several different ways stimulates the brain and allows for new information to be understood and processed. Having a disabled child in your classroom should no longer be a burden since new technology has made accommodations to meet the specific needs of all Special Education students.

Sometimes I worry if I will be able to handle working with Autistic children, and sometimes I feel as if I won’t be able to make an impact in their development. It’s a worry that is constantly running through my mind, yet I am still yearning to pursue a career in which I can help disabled children. Reading this article comforted me tremendously and relieved that continuous fear. Being able to have the technology to assist in meeting the needs of all of my students is truly an incredible thing!

Williams, V. (2008, December). Technology on the oregon trail. //Learning and Leading with// //Technology, 33-34//


 * Reflection to Assistive Technology Assignment:**

From visiting the websites and viewing the videos in the first part of this assignment, I was amazed by all of the products available for disabled individuals. I was amazed by the amount of resources and products available I was particularly impressed with Kathy Schrock’s Special Education page. As a future Special Education teacher I will definitely use these resources to assist in my teaching and engaging my students to learn and participate. I learned a lot abut assistive technology in my Special Education class but being able to go through the pages and pages of products available to disabled individuals blew me away!

Of all the products, the one that stood out the most to me was communication device used by non-verbal children. It touched me to see Ellen, the young girl in the video, be able to communicate with her family. I can’t even fathom how heartbreaking it would be for a parent to never be able to communicate with their child, but years ago, before technology was this advanced-that was the harsh reality. Not only does it provide the parent’s with a sense of comfort and confidence of their child’s potential, it provides the disabled individual the opportunity to do things they never sought possible has technology not existed.

Technology provides students with diverse learning needs the ability to reach their dreams. One person comes to mind when I think of how effective assistive technology can be- Dan Keplinger. Dan has cerebral palsy and a gift he thought he would never be able to share with the world. He was an incredible artist but his motor coordinator made it impossible for him to be able to draw and paint. He was given a special head piece that not only allowed him to explore his artistic abilities, but he was able to type as well. Without this technology, his true abilities and talents would have never been noticed and a gift that special should never be ignored.

Over the summer I was a nanny for a 5 year old, severely Autistic boy named Shane. Shane was non-verbal and extremely aggressive. He had a stroller that functioned like a wheelchair to keep him to sit still. His parents are constantly worrying about him getting out of their site and trying to run away, so this stroller was perfect for keeping him under control. As for communicating, he had a board with different pictures (for example- I’m hungry, I’m tired, It’s too loud) and when he pressed the button he wanted it would speak those words. Sometimes he would try to mimic the words the board said so it promoted communication and also allowed him to express how he was feeling to his family.

Being a future special education teacher I am grateful to have had to do this assignment because it opened my eyes to the amazing products that will be available to my students to help them learn. I am constantly worried about my ability to make a difference in development of my students, especially those with severe disabilities, but this site comforted me to know there is technology out there to help assist me.


 * This is my Annotated Web List that I completed in ISTC 301:**


 * This is the Movie I made in ISTC titled The Boy Who Changed My Life:**

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