I initially thought that it would be really hard trying to create a website. But as long as it’s just the basics, it’s not so bad.
It was really fun playing with the various codes, to try and design the page the way I wanted it to look. At times, it was frustrating to try and match what I see on my page and what I see in my mind, but in the end, with a lot of patience, I was able to accomplish it.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Website of Clyde Hill Elementary School
http://www.bsd405.org/default.aspx?tabid=113
The first thing that popped out to the viewers of this website are the lists of the different ethnic backgrounds of the students enrolled at Clyde Hill Elementary School. Currently there is a 1% population of African Americans, 27% of Asians, 2% of Hispanics, no Native Americans, 61% of Whites, and 9% of Multi-Ethnic groups.
Other aspects of this website include: Clyde Hill’s goal, average class size, average district expenditure per student, condition of the school, their assessments (WASL), their improvement plans, what’s specially offered to students at the school, and how parents can get involved.
That last part was what really got my interest. I already knew that parents can join PTSA (parent-teacher-student association) but I didn’t know things like VIBES (volunteers in Bellevue’s Education system) existed.
For those of you who do not know, VIBES is a volunteer program where parents may volunteer to help out a classroom for an hour. They can either help one specific student the whole hour or go around and help various students in need.
The first thing that popped out to the viewers of this website are the lists of the different ethnic backgrounds of the students enrolled at Clyde Hill Elementary School. Currently there is a 1% population of African Americans, 27% of Asians, 2% of Hispanics, no Native Americans, 61% of Whites, and 9% of Multi-Ethnic groups.
Other aspects of this website include: Clyde Hill’s goal, average class size, average district expenditure per student, condition of the school, their assessments (WASL), their improvement plans, what’s specially offered to students at the school, and how parents can get involved.
That last part was what really got my interest. I already knew that parents can join PTSA (parent-teacher-student association) but I didn’t know things like VIBES (volunteers in Bellevue’s Education system) existed.
For those of you who do not know, VIBES is a volunteer program where parents may volunteer to help out a classroom for an hour. They can either help one specific student the whole hour or go around and help various students in need.
Monday, January 19, 2009
"Adopt or Adapt: Shaping Tech for the Classroom"
I understand why Marc Prensky would feel frustrated at seeing teachers not using technology to its fullest capabilities. But it seems as if Prensky is a bit too enthusiastic about the use and value of technology.
Prensky’s response to the statement that “Some people will no doubt worry that, with all this experimentation, our children's education will be hurt,” was an emphasis on how much faster students will learn if only teachers would implement more technology into the classroom and curriculum. Then Prensky went on stating that, “the faster kids [students who comprehended the lesson faster] would work with and pull up the ones who were behind.”
First of all, Prensky never addressed the issue about students who might get hurt from the experiment of implementing new ways of teaching with technology. Secondly, I disagree with the second part of what Prensky said about faster kids helping the kids behind. I understand that this would be the ideal way of learning but it’s unrealistic to believe that the kids who advance faster than others will willingly help the kids behind. If the students were good natured enough to do this, their parents may not want them to be in a class where they spent their time helping other kids when they can be advancing even more elsewhere.
But I do agree with the fact that technology needs to be implemented into a classroom more and more because the next generation of students are becoming more and more immersed in the world of technology. But I believe that this should be done gradually. A little test here and there to see if something works or not is better than completely changing the way a classroom works and its curriculum.
Prensky’s response to the statement that “Some people will no doubt worry that, with all this experimentation, our children's education will be hurt,” was an emphasis on how much faster students will learn if only teachers would implement more technology into the classroom and curriculum. Then Prensky went on stating that, “the faster kids [students who comprehended the lesson faster] would work with and pull up the ones who were behind.”
First of all, Prensky never addressed the issue about students who might get hurt from the experiment of implementing new ways of teaching with technology. Secondly, I disagree with the second part of what Prensky said about faster kids helping the kids behind. I understand that this would be the ideal way of learning but it’s unrealistic to believe that the kids who advance faster than others will willingly help the kids behind. If the students were good natured enough to do this, their parents may not want them to be in a class where they spent their time helping other kids when they can be advancing even more elsewhere.
But I do agree with the fact that technology needs to be implemented into a classroom more and more because the next generation of students are becoming more and more immersed in the world of technology. But I believe that this should be done gradually. A little test here and there to see if something works or not is better than completely changing the way a classroom works and its curriculum.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Why Teaching?
I really enjoy working with the younger generation. The way their mind works and how they process new information always intrigued me. So, I thought of various careers that would allow me to work with the younger generation. Out of all the possibilities I found that teaching was what suited me best. I started to help out at church with the Children’s Ministry and then moved on to teaching Sunday school and Bible studies.
Sharing about the love of Christ and digging deep in the Word of God with the youth kids was really fun but I felt like something was missing. So during the summer last year I helped out with a Summer LEAP program of 2008 and found out that it was very fun helping the new fourth graders learn in advance what they may learn in the new school year. This experience truly made me realize that this was what I wanted to do.
Sharing about the love of Christ and digging deep in the Word of God with the youth kids was really fun but I felt like something was missing. So during the summer last year I helped out with a Summer LEAP program of 2008 and found out that it was very fun helping the new fourth graders learn in advance what they may learn in the new school year. This experience truly made me realize that this was what I wanted to do.
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