Module Reflection #10

After putting my ePortfolio together, I am in awe of how much we have completed and learned in this short amount of time. Even though we had tons of new things to learn and execute, the pacing of this course was just right. We had two weeks to complete each module, but it did not take two weeks (at most, it was like 3 days to complete the module). Thanks to Professor Rubal, we were pushed to learn new technology concepts like Computational Thinking and how Technology should be used in the classroom. Since I grew up in the generation of technology, most of the assignments we had to do were not completely new, but I am glad I got to explore it more in-depth. I cannot wait to use what we learned in this class, in my classroom. For example, using Google Sheets for grade book documentation and having formulas easily map out the averages and statistics of the whole class. Or having everything in QR codes, so students can easily navigate classroom materials. With the multitude of resources out there, I am glad this course provided the essentials. The last assignment ✓, the last class ✓, the first semester of Masters ✓.

Module Reflection #9

For my game/puzzle assignment, I chose to use the online PuzzleMaker, because I have used all the other game sites and want to use something new. I have never made an online puzzle before, so this was pretty cool to learn. The site was pretty easy to use and navigate around. The only thing I didn't like about this was how it did not allow for two words. For example, in the word search, I could not have the word "Ski Jumping" because it would be separated into "Ski" and "Jumping". If I really wanted them to be together, I would have done "skijumping" but it just looked messy in the words area. Also, the puzzle kinda looks lame and dull. 

This Google Form activity was pretty straightforward. I have used Google Forms many times before, and I just love how easy it is to use and how it compiles all the information for you in the spreadsheet. I did my survey on Code.org and was fascinated by the number of backers from the Tech World. Since they are a non-profit organization, they function off of donations. Some of their biggest backers ($10,000,000+ contribution) include Microsoft, Facebook, and Amazon. 

We have made it to the final assignment, the ePortfolio! For my EDIT 4510 class, I also made my ePortfolio on Google Sites. So this assignment was not too bad since I already had practice navigating around it. 

Module Reflection #8

I love using the Adobe Suite, but I have never used Adobe Spark. After checking out Adobe Spark, I have found that it is an all-in-one platform! You can design logos, make videos, posters, and more. I love how Adobe Spark Video helps you choose your theme and helps you structure your videos. I chose the Story Theme, and it had 7 questions to help piece my story together. I went to Strawberry Picking for my boyfriend's birthday last week, and because of this assignment, I was able to put a small video together. Other video creating platforms I have used include iMovie, Adobe Premiere, and Filmora. 

I love love love spreadsheets! Literally, my Google Drive is filled with Google sheets of all things! I made a stock tracker, a habit counter, student attendance, birthday sheets, you name it. The first spreadsheet assignment was pretty simple. I think I should be an account... anyway, I love it when technology and formulas do all the work for us! The second spreadsheet assignment was pretty interesting. Since we had to do it ourselves, it was a little bit more tricky. I kept wondering, "am I doing this right???". I didn't overthink it, literally just followed the directions, and remembered how to type in the formula from spreadsheet 1. Overall, it was fun and I think I should look for a job that involves computational thinking! 

Module Reflection #7

30 of The Most Popular Trends in Education

The resources under the new directions were really helpful. I could see myself bringing these technology resources into the classroom. I was pretty surprised to see growth mindset as the most popular trend in education. The first time I heard about this was in high school when my AP Psych teacher had us learn about 'GRIT'. I enjoyed reading the top resources of Maker Learning. With many people wanting to switch their classroom into Project-Based Learning, these resources (Card Game, Unique Ideas, Maker Movement) give teachers ideas of what to do. 

      

I have actually used multiple different audio recorders before. My church used to use Audacity to record sermons and so I got a taste of that. On QuickTime player, they also have an option to create new movie/audio/screen recording. During the pandemic, in my last credential class, my professor always sent us audio recordings through Vocaroo and it was easy to use. Lastly, I've been playing around with GarageBand on the Mac to make music and it is also a great audio recorder. I would say Audacity and GarageBand are similar because you can cut stuff out easily whereas, in QuickTime and Vocaroo, you would have to start the entire recording over if you messed up. My favorite teacher quote is also the same as the professors! "Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." When I interviewed my older sister for a class, that was the quote she left me with. I recorded this assignment with QuickTime and my issue with that was having to convert it to mp3 since it was an m4a file before turning it in. 

The YouTube Closed Captioning assignment was really fun! It was a lot of work to pause and type and rewatch, but the end result was really rewarding. It was only a one-minute and 46-second video and it took me a while to complete. I cannot imagine those who close caption longer videos. I suppose there is Google's auto-transcription but to have to go back and fix Google's mistakes is hard work!

For my Screencast Assignment, I used QuickTime Player because I have used it before, and works really well for me. Since I messed up a couple of times, I was able to put the video through iMovie and cut out unwanted parts. The tricky thing is to line up the video correctly or else it would have awkward splicing. I had to splice three different areas of the video but I think I did a pretty good job at connecting it. 

Module Reflection #6

Starting off, I have never used Twitter. I have other social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, Pinterest, Tumblr, Reddit, and Quora. I was never interested in Twitter because I did not think people would want to follow me and hear my thoughts and opinions, and that is why I never got into it. After looking at the resources like this and this, I see how using social media in the classroom could be beneficial. Using Twitter for the first time during this class opened my eyes to see how easy the platform is to engage in. For my three posts, I did a regular post, a poll post, and a video post. I did not mean to post them all around the same time, but the assignment is due today. When I have my own classroom, I would definitely incorporate Twitter to make easy and fast polls for students and parents to easily vote for and showcase student writing or artworks. 

For my lesson plan presentation, I opted to use Google Slides because I am most familiar with it. Before Google Slides, I used to use Microsoft PowerPoint and Prezi. I feel like in high school, I used Prezi a ton because it was not linear, and it provided a different look to a general rectangle slide. If I was teaching online, I would opt for Nearpod or Peardeck, and if I was teaching history, I would totally use Storyboard That. All in all, making this PowerPoint was not bad... I just had to make sure I had enough and accurate information about my topic. 

Module Reflection #5

We're back with Computational Thinking! When we first went over it during Module #1, I was super excited to learn about this because it was new and interesting. Now in Module #5, we had to watch 3 videos and work on 3 assignments. In the 3 videos, I enjoyed the Google Earth example the most because that is something I use often, and to see the behind-the-scenes with computational thinking was really cool. 

I appreciated the resources for Computational Thinking and cannot wait to use them in my lesson plans. As a future reference for me, I am going to attach the links:

• Google - Exploring Computational Thinking
  
• Code - Unplugged Lessons
  
• Digital Technologies Hub - Lesson Plans
  

With the three Computational Thinking that we had to do, my favorite one was the third one, talking about Algorithm. It was fun to make up my own word and symbol algorithm to create a picture. The only other time that I have heard of the word 'algorithm' was with Youtube. I hear a lot of content creators mentioning commenting and liking their videos for the Youtube algorithm and I could see that by doing so, their videos would get more views and recommended to other people. While doing the first activity, we focused on abstraction and pattern matching. It was really simple and easy to understand. I wish we could go more in depth in it though. 

All in all, I could see how Computational Thinking could logically order and analyze data, create solutions using a series of order steps/algorithm, and has the ability to confidently deal with complex and open-ended problems. 

Module Reflection #4

Before this class, I have never seen the ISTE Standards page. But after thoroughly looking through this website, I could say that this was a really well-made website. Everything was easy and clear to navigate around and find. Usually standards are hard to read and understand but I really liked how the standards on this page was simply laid out and easy to understand.

I really enjoyed all the graphic resources that the Professor linked to us! I actually have not heard of any of these sites,, and I could see myself using them in the future! I am going to be linking the resources here so I can refer back to them. For my logo, I made a winter sports word cloud and filled it with winter sports activities, which I included above. 

• Comic/storyboard
• Image online editor
• PhotoMania
• CoolText
• Web Resizer
• Logo Maker
• Drawing Application
• Cartoon Photos
• Word Cloud Generator
• Avatar

In two of my other educational technology classes, I have to create a literal website using HTML and another Google Site. So, creating a Google Site for this class was not so bad. Since it is not due until the end of the semester, I got a head start and created the page. I have only added an icon to the top and changed the four headings. For a sneak peek, you can click here.