Learning

Learning

           Revising the blog scene has reminded me how much a teacher can utilize a blog to support assignments and create a since of community. It a great way to expand a topic or to create a debate without the pressure of the formal classroom. Also the blog is more personal because we tend to talk in the first person because of this it create a since of community as people open up about themselves in the course. Doing this assignment also reminded me about how easy the blogger is to operate. To be honest I find the blog more user friendly than creating a wiki. 

        This is a tool that every teacher should have in their back pocket because you never know when it can come in handy. In the online setting you could have the students create a welcome for the class by using the blog. Have everyone post their blog link in the discussion form then have the class comment on at least one blog in the blog forum then comment twice in the discussion form. A great way to spice up the online learning!

The Process

The Process

Creating a blog was not difficult for me, because this was not the first time creating one. I already had an account due to assignments in another course. I log in and then created a new blog. I titled this blog Educator1586 to match the twitter account I made. Once I created the new blog I added my first page. This was also very easy. The blog formatting is a lot like word processor. You can copy, paste, edit, add pictures, and links. This assignment required adding the wiki link to the blog. I clicked on the "Link" tab located at the top of the screen then copy, and pasted the web address. 

   I can honestly say I did not find any challenges with creating this blog. I do remember however some of the challenges when I first created a blog. That since of not knowing what I was supposed to do or where to click. It is a scary feeling of not knowing what to do. I had to create a email in a system that I do not use. Then finding my way back to the blog was not an easy task either. 

    This helps remind me that technology use is not always as easy as we think the first time. The second time using this blog was extremely easy because everything was already set up.

Instructional Technology for the online Teacher

Instructional Technology for the online teacher

Creating an environment for the virtual classroom can be difficult. Unlike a traditional classroom the students are at home. This means the teacher must create an environment that is totally web based. This is where instructional technology comes in. Instructional Technology is a field concerned with improving the efficiency and effectiveness of instruction involving: designing instruction. We are going to focus on instructional technology for the online teacher.
 


According to Harasim (2000) a Web-based environment must be customized to support advanced educational practices.
Things a teacher must take into consideration when making a virtual learning environment which is the instructional technology platform:

• The web design
  • Color
  • font
  • pictures
  • video
• Having the knowledge to use the technology
  • online sources
    • wiki
    • Glogster
    • Podcasting
      • Essex (2006) explains how a podcast is a digital “radio show” it can be downloaded anywhere from the web.
• Effective communication skills through the written word
  • discussion forum
  • chat rooms
    • cafe
    • support group sites 
  • Take a moment and look how instructional technology can be used through having an assignment utilizing a wiki  
     
    

 Take a moment and look how instructional technology can be used through having an assignment utilizing a wiki 

https://tradtionalandvirtualeducation.wikispaces.com/Using+Wiki+for+the+classroom 

• References
   Essex, C. (2006). Podcasting: A new delivery method for faculty development. Distance Learning, 3(2), 39-43
  
  Harasim, L. (2000). Shift happens: Online education as a new paradigm in learning. The Internet and higher education, 3(1), 41-61.