Policies are very important for a school to regulate and function efficiently with emerging technologies. With more students bringing their own devices and having access to internet within the school setting, schools have the responsibility of creating a safe environment for all students (Winske, 2014). Emerging technologies are very important and have some things to consider including affordability, reliability, availability, and customizability (Hess, Sazber, & Hochleitner, 2013). After talking with the technology director for my district, some additional factors to consider are employee safety, cyber bullying, and appropriate usage for students.
Because technology can create experiences for students that they otherwise would have access to, I believe availability is one of the most important factors for creating solid policies for emerging technologies. Hess, Sazber, & Hochleitner (2013), say “Technology makes more things more available. Without technology, few of us would see the live World Series final or the parachuting Queen of England at the Olympics. A student in Brooklyn can now get one-on-one tutoring via an iPad, 24 hours a day, from a Mandarin speaker in Beijing or from someone with a doctorate in mathematics in Boston.” With BYOD creating more access and availability for students to use technologies at school, policies need to exist to keep parties safe. Winske (2014), talks about cyber bullying and how it can be combatted by saying, “you have to just recognize it as bullying. A lot of this is underground. It’s stuff that people don’t talk about and don’t confess to being bullied or to bullying. I actually think one of the things that might happen if you open these resources (social media, YouTube, etc.) to use in schools is not necessarily that you’re going to see more bullying, but that you might create an opportunity for a teacher to see something and say hey what’s going on?” Our students live in a new age and experience the world far more within the realms of technology than previous generations. Policies can help moderate this and create citizenship and appropriate usage throughout the school. References: Hess, F. M., Saxberg, B., & Hochleitner, T. (2013, October). E-Rate, Education Technology, and School Reform. Retrieved July 27, 2017, from https://www.aei.org/publication/e-rate-education-technology-and-school-reform/ OBrien, A. (2013, June 20). How to Build Support for Education Technology. Retrieved July 27, 2017, from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/building-support-education-technology-anne-obrien Winske, C. (2014, February 14). Tips for Creating Technology Policies for K-12. Retrieved July 27, 2017, from https://techdecisions.co/compliance/creating-an-acceptable-use-policy-for-mobile-learning-initiatives/#
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With copper wire, batteries, and lights, young students have access to many different creative outlets that utilize this dimension. Leah Buechley describes and shows some ways electronics can be used to craft with. She also talks about how many electronics are often slow, expensive, limited, small, square, flat, hard, and not attractive (Ted, 2012).. With some creativity, electronics can be a great addition to multimedia projects for students. Some of the ways, but not limited to, include drawing, sewing, wearing, pop-outs, and painting. One of the best ways to allow students to explore with electronics and crafting is to first let them explore with circuits and learn how they work, then give them materials so they can create!
I have seen teachers use circuits and lights for art projects in my school. One project is similar to the ones seen in the Interactive Light Painting (Qi, 2012) and Chibitronics (n.d.) where students draw and you can light up the picture by pressing on a certain spot. One teacher posts hers in the hallway and the other students can light up the pictures by pushing on a “press here” spot that completes the circuit. Seeing students play and learn by “crafting” is very motivational and they are so excited to learn about electronics. Another mode of crafting with electronics is through wearable art. Becky Stern created the FLORA wearable electronic platform. It lights up by programming through GPS, motion, or light. I could see students becoming very excited about sewing these into any project within the classroom. Many teachers teach students how to sew in the classroom and this could be a great extension for our 21st century learners. Some ideas that have been created are purse lights, necklaces, spike decals, jewelry, heart lights, ironman lights, shoe lights, skirt lights, light up pillows, and GPS lights for pets (Terranova, 2014). Allowing our students to create expands their minds and could give way to fabulous new ideas! Ted. (2012, November 15). Retrieved July 20, 2017, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTBp0Z5GPeI FLORA - Wearable electronic platform: Arduino-compatible. (n.d.). Retrieved July 20, 2017, from https://www.adafruit.com/product/659 Qi, J. (2012). Interactive Light Painting: Pu Gong Ying Tu (Dandelion Painting). Retrieved July 20, 2017, from https://vimeo.com/40904471 Terranova, A. (2014, July 15). 10 Fabulous and Fashionable Wearable Projects from Becky Stern | Make:. Retrieved July 20, 2017, from http://makezine.com/2014/07/15/10-fabulous-and-fashionable-wearable-projects-from-becky-stern/ Welcome to Chibitronics. (n.d.). Retrieved July 20, 2017, from https://chibitronics.com/ Through taking education technology classes, I have learned about students using their own devices in the classroom. Other teachers at my school have done Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) days as a reward for their students. Only scratching the service of the idea, I had never thought about the policies behind BYOD. Honestly, I thought primarily that it wouldn’t work because of the questions behind students bringing their own devices: do all students have their own devices? Will they be required to download certain apps? Do parents allow students to know passwords and ID’s to download on the devices?
Because of the many questions around BYOD, I believe that every school needs a BYOD policy. Some other considerations around BYOD include consistent access to devices for students and teachers, bandwidth available in the school, protection against viruses, and blocking access to restricted apps (Martini, n.d.). Many of these factors are brand new to schools and the conversation is quite young among educators. Not long ago, personal devices were banned from many schools because they were a distraction (Holeywell, 2013). With changing times, however, students have access to devices that schools often cannot afford to provide for each child in the district. BYOD (2017) reports that ⅔ of students prefer using their own devices for learning over school provided devices. When students use their own devices, it creates greater access to school devices for students who do not own their own devices. Terry Heick, (2016), states, “By allowing students to bring in their own devices for learning–rather than insisting that they learn both content and device in school–there is an important opportunity to connect with not just their personal lives, but their natural way of doing things.” BYOD can create incredible opportunities for students to learn authentically in the digital age that they live in. Because they are used to their own devices, it eliminates the learning curve of using a new device and students can learn efficiently and effectively. Policies need to be in place for this to be safe and practical within the educational system. References: BYOD. (2017). Retrieved July 13, 2017, from https://www.k12blueprint.com/toolkits/byod Heick, T. (2016). The Brutal Authenticity Of BYOD. Retrieved July 13, 2017, from http://www.teachthought.com/the-future-of-learning/byod-is-shortest-path-to-student-centered-learning/ Holeywell, R. (2013, September 3). BYOD Policies, Growing More Popular, Create Challenges for Schools. Retrieved July 13, 2017, from http://www.governing.com/blogs/view/gov-byod-policies-create-school-challenges.html Martini, P. (n.d.). 4 Challenges That Can Cripple Your School's BYOD Program. Retrieved July 13, 2017, from http://www.teachthought.com/the-future-of-learning/technology/4-challenges-can-cripple-schools-byod-program/ Games are an excellent way to get students engaged in the classroom. They provide room for creativity, strategy, and metacognition. Games in the classroom, if planned appropriately, can reach cross curricular subjects and provide students with a rounded learning opportunity. There are a few games that I have played or seen that I think could be beneficial in the classroom. Although there are many, the three I’d like to focus on are Minecraft, Galactic Mappers, and Settlers of Catan. Minecraft is a game that I have only personally played a handful of times. It is a game that, “exists for you to build it and transform it into anything and everything imaginable” (How to Play Minecraft, n.d.). This alone allows for a plethora of activities for students to participate in that help them learn. Andrew Miller (2012) suggests a variety of options on ways to incorporate Minecraft in the classroom, some of these include creating history replicas, teaching digital citizenship, a tool for writing, create visualizations for reading comprehension, and address problem solving in math. I could see Minecraft used daily in the classroom and a focus of a larger unit that encompasses all subject areas while keeping students motivated and engaged.
The last game is Settlers of Catan. This is not a game that I have seen in the classroom, but it is one that I play often and can see many benefits of children learning and playing it. Settlers is a game about resources and points. The goal is to earn resources through rolling dice on a set game board. With the resources (brick, wheat, ore, and sheep) you can build roads, settlements, cities, and development cards. Each is work a certain amount of “victory points” and the first to 10 victory points wins. This game takes not only strategy, but also forces students to work on cooperation and conflict (Samzuhlke, 2013). This game could teach kids about the organization of people, places and environments within this, a class discussion about where people settle in the world could show how people move and settle on Earth. I would introduce this game in the middle of the year, once students know each other and have all students learn the game and have a discussion about resources. AFter that, this game could be a great free choice activity for students. Flatt, C. R. (2014, May 13). How a Classroom Game Becomes an Embedded Assessment. Retrieved July 06, 2017, from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/classroom-game-becomes-embedded-assessment-ross-flatt
How To Play Minecraft. (n.d.). Retrieved July 06, 2017, from http://www.minecraftopia.com/how_to_play_minecraft Miller, A. (2012, April 13). Ideas for Using Minecraft in the Classroom. Retrieved July 06, 2017, from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/minecraft-in-classroom-andrew-miller Samzuhlke. (2013, October 29). A Resource Management Lesson: Settlers of Catan. Retrieved July 06, 2017, from https://blog.education.nationalgeographic.com/2013/08/29/a-resource-management-lesson-settlers-of-catan/ 3D printing has so much to offer for the education of our students. From flutes to medical models, items can be printed that will benefit students in a variety of ways (Voo, n.d.). With this new technology, students no longer will have to only look at pictures to try and understand or visualize complex concepts, they can be printed. 3D printers also give students hands on learning, capture their interests, stimulate interaction, and create tangible examples (3D Printers for Schools).
One way 3D printing will change the way we think about education is to be more cautious with what we share online. Designs can be shared and potentially stolen online by bypassing copyright with illegal downloads (Federico-O'Murchu, 2014). Also, dangerous designs such as guns could be shared online and easily 3D printed by anyone (Voo, n.d.). Teachers need to talk to students about online citizenship and how to avoid situations such as these when they encounter them online. Overall, 3D printing has many benefits for the future of education with our students. Our students are growing up in a technology world, they are the ones who will be able to create products with no waste, working organs, and maybe even food one day (Federico-O'Murchu, 2014). Using and learning this technology will not only allow students to work with hands on models, but give them the opportunity to create and be forward thinkers! References 3D Printers for Schools, Universities & Education| Leapfrog 3D Printers. (n.d.). Retrieved June 30, 2017, from https://www.lpfrg.com/en/professionals/education/ Federico-O'Murchu, L. (2014). How 3-D printing will radically change the world. Retrieved June 30, 2017, from http://www.cnbc.com/2014/05/09/will-3-d-technology-radically-change-the-world.html Voo, B. (n.d.). 20 Amazing Creations You Can Make With 3D Printing. Retrieved June 30, 2017, from http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/3d-printings/ |