June Edition of Twitter Tweecap - 30+ LINKS!

Been a few weekends since I posted some resources that I have received from Twitter.  This is a pretty good list.  My Instapaper account was packed with links I needed to look at.

1.) 30 Post about Free Educational Technology Tools and Resources from the Emerging EdTech Blog.

2.) 19 Educational Uses for Google Wave - I have a Wave account.  Now that everyone has one maybe I should look back into the account since so many members of my PLN have a Wave account as well.

3.) A Prezi presentation about inserting animation into Prezi.

4.) A Wiki for a place to showcase student work and innovations.

5.) 100 Web 2.0 Tools for Teachers

6.) Find Lesson Plans for all grade levels and all subjects!

7.) A great Wiki Walkthrough for teachers new to Wiki's

8.) 6 Recommendations for Teaching with FLIP video cameras

9.) 9 Uses for Backchannel chat in Education\

10.) 50 Really Cool Online Tools for Science Teachers

11.) 5 Genuinely Useful Twitter Tools

12.) Hey Teachers!  This is How I Learn!  - Interesting Blog Post from TeachPaperless

13.) Twiducate - A site for Twitter integration in Education - Social Networking for Schools

14.) A video for Explaining Creative Commons, Hundreds of Reviewed Math Resources, Sculptris: 3D Modeling Software, Conceptua Math Resources - From Free Technology for Teachers

15.) A great Mind Map for ways to Play and Learn in Education.

16.) A Great list of Twitter Tools to share with teachers new to Twitter.

17.) 22 Social Media in Education Infographics - I really like these!

18.) Making your own Infographic - Been looking for this information!

19.) What Will You Learn this Summer?  35 Professional Development Resources

20.) WebQuest Generators

21.) Learn It In 5 - A Great Website for learning Web 2.0 Tools for classroom use.  Each video is 5 minutes long.

22.) PDF about Teacher Merit Pay

23.) Article on Cell Phones in the Classroom - Good read.

24.) Google Forms - Creating a Quiz or Test that Grades Itself!

25.) Critical Thinking Wiki - From this past weeks #edchat

26.) Digital Citizenship Continuum - Been looking for something like this too!

27.) The Ultimate Twitter Guidebook for Teachers and the Best 210 Websites to Help Teachers Make Learning Fun from EduDemic

28.) BrightStorm - 2000+ free videos for Math

29.) Good article by a teacher in the Washington Post - The Right Way to Assess Teacher's Performance - Liked the idea of a 90% attendance rule

30.) Blogs as Web-Based Portfolios - A PDF and great read.

Top 100 Technology Blogs for Teachers

A while back I received a comment on the Blog Post Common Misconception #4 from a reader who was putting together a list of technology blogs for educators.  I responded to the comment and found out that it was a legit list and not a marketing campaign (no offense and you can never be to sure these days!).  To be included on this list with so many other great educators and bloggers is a tremendous honor!

Online Degrees is a website dedicated to providing a portal to information about universities and programs offering online programs for degrees.  Part of the site is a blog dedicated to helping educators.  The most recent post is the Top 100 Technology Blogs for Educators.  They also have several other blog post related to blogs that you might be interested in.  Top 25 eLearning Blogs and Top 20 Teacher Blogs.

If you are searching for some blogs to add to your Google Reader or add RSS Feeds to an email account, this is a GREAT starting point.  Or if you are new to my blog and want to add it to your reader or RSS feeds, you can click here.

"Kid's These Days"

I am huge believer in Twitter and the power of a Personal Learning Network (PLN).  One of the people that I follow on Twitter is http://twitter.com/thenewtag and she is passionate about "Sharing new ways to engage, motivate, reach and teach the young people in our lives."  She also writes a quality blog worth looking into offering tons of resources and ideas for education.

Recently, she decided to take a huge step.  She is participating in the contest on Oprah to find the next big star and the opportunity to host their own show.  Her show concept “Kids These Days” features the things that are making a difference in young lives and the ways kids are impacting and being impacted by their worlds. But it’s not just a show; like so many of Oprah’s projects, “Kids These Days” is a game changer, a transformative resource available to every parent, educator and kid in the country and it’s going to reshape the way we perceive and engage youth in America

In order to help show support, take a few minutes to visit her audition site.  Watch her video, and then vote for her and "Kid's These Days"

Common Misconception #8 - Student's Know More About the Technology Than I Do

My Students Know More About the Technology Than I Do.

Most kids in this generation do know more about technology in general, but the idea that they know more about a technology resource you are trying to integrate is completely false.  Kids in this generation are capable of learning how to use a resource easier then most teachers, but they DON'T KNOW how to use the resource as it relates to the content you are trying to teach them.  That is where YOU come along to assist in the use of the resource.

Most teachers will tell you that they fear the idea of a student knowing more about technology.  If anything, that fear should make teachers want to learn more about technology so that they can be a step ahead of the students.  I personally relish the idea that a student might have more knowledge on how to use technology.  Why?  1.) Because they will be able to help me better understand it and 2.) I have someone in the classroom that can help me assist other students.  It is like free help.  How many teachers turn down a peer tutor in a classroom?  Not many, because that peer tutor is a very valuable resource in a classroom.  Think of the student that knows more about the technology as a peer tutor.

It is a misconception to believe that students know everything or more about technology.  They don't.  They might know how to use their cell phones in ways we don't.  They might know how to use the Internet and other software more then we do, but they don't.  It SEEMS like students know more because THEY SPEND TIME USING TECHNOLOGY WITHOUT FEAR.  If teachers want to know more about technology they must start using it more within their daily lives, not just between the hours of 8-3 or 3-10 for those of us that use it at home, but not at school.

What is true is that even though students might know how to use it, the majority of students do not know how to use the technology to make a quality product.  They don't know how to manage their time in order to create a quality product using technology.  They don't know correct ways to cite sources when creating a product using technology.  They don't know how to organize information on a web page or Power Point. 

Why is all this true?  Because the majority of teachers THINK students know how to use this technology and they don't.  I remember the first Power Point project I had my students do.  They were AWFUL.  Why?  Because I assumed they knew how to create a Power Point presentation.  I realized that my first lesson should have been how to use Power Point.  The lack of knowledge about how to use Power Point by my students negatively impacted the effectiveness of relaying the content within the presentation.

Assuming students know how to use technology WITH the content is a huge misconception. We must teach students how to use the technology first, then teach them how to integrate the technology with the content. From there, it is my opinion that students will have the best opportunity to understand the content because they are using the content for a purpose greater than a presentation in the classroom.

If there is one thing you can take away from this post it is this: For this generation and future generations of students, it is/will be critical for teachers to have an understanding of how to integrate technology in order to better teach CONTENT to students.  Students don't know how to integrate technology with the content being taught and must be taught both the technology and the content for successful retention of information.
 
Remember, students might know about technology, but students don't know about EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY.

Common Misconception #7 Knowing Everything in Order to Integrate Technology

I Have to Know Everything About the Technology in Order to Integrate it in the Classroom.

The great thing about so many of the new technology resources available to educators is that generally each resource offers so much and so many different options that we don't have to learn everything about it before we use it.

I can think of a personal experience when I discovered Prezi.  I really did not grasp the idea of a 3D infinite canvas.  I put all my notes on the same "plane" and in a circle and then presented the presentation I created in a meeting.  It did not get a good reaction, but teachers did see an alternate to Power Point.  I went back to Prezi after it changed its editor and learned more about it.  I used it as it was intended, and the reaction to the software was much better.  I did not know everything about it, but enough that I felt comfortable enough to use it and present with it.  Now Prezi is one of my favorite new tools.

So often with many of the Web 2.0 tools I try it, find a way to use it, and while using it discover something new about it that makes the resource even better.  Originally, with the social bookmarking site Diigo, I hated the extra features of post-it notes and highlighter.  I just wanted to save links, so I went with Delicious.  After switching to Diigo recently, I realized how much more it offered me and how much more I could use it other than just a way to save links.  I needed to use it first to realize everything it could do that I could use.

If you wait till you read about it, watch videos about it, and wait for someone else to use the resource the opportunity for integration will pass you by.  THE BEST WAY to learn how to integrate technology is to just step out and start using it.  Once you use it, it will become more comfortable.  Fear of failure or mistakes because you don't know everything means that you could miss out on new and innovative ways to use technology.  We learn from our attempts and our failures.

Through my position I have had the opportunity to share several Web 2.0 resources with teachers.  The ones that jumped in and started integrating the tools had the most success.  I found it easier for them to start using it and then ask questions, then for me to try to explain everything and then they use it.  Since I explained it to them and they took notes, they were intimidated to ask for more help.  The teachers that jumped right in are also the same teachers who ended up using the same tools and other tools for future projects with their students.  The teachers who feared the technology and were unsure of everything ended up having less success with the resources and generally struggled with integrating technology in their classroom.  Technology integration REQUIRES self-reliance on your part.

Technology is constantly changing.  You cannot know everything about a technology resource.  Since most of the software is fairly new, companies are constantly updating and tweaking their product.  If you wait to learn everything about a resource it will change before you ever get started.  If you have an understanding of the resource, adapting to the constant change makes things easier.  I look back at my Prezi experience.  When they changed the editing tool and other options, I found myself liking it more and being more comfortable using it.

There is a reason that I titled this Blog, "The Pursuit of Technology Integration Happiness."  It is difficult to be completely happy when it comes to technology integration.  There is one thing you can count on with technology and that is that it is always changing.  This change creates a constant pursuit in finding successful ways to integrate technology.  Happiness in technology integration is a willingness to work at learning new things.  I don't have to know EVERYTHING about technology integration to be happy.  It is the pursuit of successful technology integration that creates happiness; because once that light bulb goes off in a teacher/student, or a project is enhanced using technology, there is no greater feeling for a person in my position.

Teachers, YOU WILL NEVER KNOW EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION AND RESOURCES.  The great thing is, you don't need to know 100% about the resource when you only plan on using 25% of its capabilities.  Remember, learn how to use the resource to meet your needs, then allow for exploration.

What are your thoughts and experiences when it comes to teachers feeling the need to have an understanding of EVERYTHING when it comes to technology integration?