Jing didn't work on my computer so I am blogging about how I would use it and its benefits.
One thing that I really would like to do when I begin my teaching career is to start a guitar workshop at the school where I teach. Most schools do not offer guitar instruction since it is not a concert instrument, but the demand is out there. After veiwing examples of the video tutorials which use the software Jing, I can see its application in the guitar workshop.
I teach a guitar class at YMCA where I work now and in this class, I mainly teach chords on the guitar (a chord is more than one note at a time). I usually teach the chords in class and make sure my students have the gist of how to play them. Then I send them home to practice the chords for the next class so we can use them in a song. But using Jing, a can save class time by showing them how to play the chords with a video tuorial.
I would import a picture of a guitar ( mainly the upper part of the neck). Using audio I would introduce myself and say the name of the chord that I was about to teach them. Then I would draw a number on the picture of the guitar, over the strings. Numbers 1-4 would represent the fingers on their left hand. The numbers would go over the strings where I want them to place that finger. As the numbers appear on the string of the guitar, I would record myself playing that note, so they can hear the sound of the note while they visually see where it is played on the neck.
This is much better than sending them home with just a picture of the guitar with the finger placements on it. Now they can hear if they have it right. So many times I have had students come to me and say "I got the chord" and then they play it and it's not right. But more importantly, this will free up time in my class for applying the chords they have learned and plugging them into songs, which is the main goal.
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Monday, April 18, 2011
Integrated Lesson Plan
For my lesson plan, which I believe is more like a unit plan, my class will be learning about the music of Africa (sub-Sahara). This unit, which I believe will take 8 classes, will cover the history of African music, traditional rhythms, what events they are used at (weddings, etc), compositional techniques, traditional African instruments and their culture. Assessments will include a mid-unit test, which will include vocabulary and recognition of instruments, rhythm and form. And a final project, which will be a composition of an original piece written, performed and recorded by the students.
The technology that will be used in this unit, will be 1. research 2. veiwing /listening and 3. recording. Within the unit, the students will watch you tube video's (which I have selected) of songs from different parts of Africa showing performers who use traditional African instruments. Also, students will split into groups and research an instrument and one country which we heard a musical example from, in an effort to learn about their culture. The students will also get a brief lesson in garage band so that we can record their final performance.
Some of the essential questions that I want to answer in this lesson are - What characterizes African music? How does it compare to western music? What is the history of African music? What is the culture/social relevance of African music? Are there different types of African music?
I hope this brief overview of my lesson is clear and detailed enough to give you an idea of what's to come. If there is anything else that you would like to know at this point, please let me know.
The technology that will be used in this unit, will be 1. research 2. veiwing /listening and 3. recording. Within the unit, the students will watch you tube video's (which I have selected) of songs from different parts of Africa showing performers who use traditional African instruments. Also, students will split into groups and research an instrument and one country which we heard a musical example from, in an effort to learn about their culture. The students will also get a brief lesson in garage band so that we can record their final performance.
Some of the essential questions that I want to answer in this lesson are - What characterizes African music? How does it compare to western music? What is the history of African music? What is the culture/social relevance of African music? Are there different types of African music?
I hope this brief overview of my lesson is clear and detailed enough to give you an idea of what's to come. If there is anything else that you would like to know at this point, please let me know.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Sexting
This week I learned about the term "sexting" which means to text sexual content. I didn't know it had it's own catchy phrase. After reading the article and watching the videos on Hope Witsell and Jesse Logan sexting, I learned about the problems that can occur when teens get involved in this. In both cases, the girls sent a provocative picture message of themselves to one recipient, which ended up in the hands of all of the students in thier schools. The classmates taunted and teased the girls so badly that suicide seemed to be the only way out.
My first reaction is to try and let these teens, who feel like they are in a hopeless situation with only one way out, know that there is hope. I want to tell them that things get better, that in hindsight, this is not that dire of a situation. But I know that adolescents don't have the ability to see things the way we do; to them nothing is more important and never will be more important than what is happening to them right now. It's such a sad situation.
The question has been asked what is the schools responsibility, if any, so schools have to use technology responsibly? First of all, one of the mothers mentioned that there was a law broken here, so that should be addressed. But are schools responsible for teaching students every law? If there is a moral question on how technology is used, who is the school to say what moral and what's immoral?
I think the easy way out for a school is to say it's not their responsibility, but I also believe that they would be doing a diservice. Schools are not just places for students to learn the core subjects and then go home. In schools, children learn how to interact with other people, communication, social behavior, basic life skills. Schools are where adolescents learn about the world around them, on a social and profesional level. If a school wants to provide the best education, technological responsibilty should be in the lesson plan.
My first reaction is to try and let these teens, who feel like they are in a hopeless situation with only one way out, know that there is hope. I want to tell them that things get better, that in hindsight, this is not that dire of a situation. But I know that adolescents don't have the ability to see things the way we do; to them nothing is more important and never will be more important than what is happening to them right now. It's such a sad situation.
The question has been asked what is the schools responsibility, if any, so schools have to use technology responsibly? First of all, one of the mothers mentioned that there was a law broken here, so that should be addressed. But are schools responsible for teaching students every law? If there is a moral question on how technology is used, who is the school to say what moral and what's immoral?
I think the easy way out for a school is to say it's not their responsibility, but I also believe that they would be doing a diservice. Schools are not just places for students to learn the core subjects and then go home. In schools, children learn how to interact with other people, communication, social behavior, basic life skills. Schools are where adolescents learn about the world around them, on a social and profesional level. If a school wants to provide the best education, technological responsibilty should be in the lesson plan.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Fair Use
This week I read a few articles about copyright laws and education, this subject is not foreign to me. Being a music major and also having made multiple albums, I have had to deal with copyrights before. But I have to admit that I still am fuzzy on what infringes on other peoples rights when it comes to this, maybe even more so now.
The articles I read had to do with "fair use" within the copyright laws. Fair use is when a copyrighted piece of work can be used for educational purposes as long as these four factors are weighed in and accounted for: 1. purpose of use 2. nature of work 3. amount used 4. effect on the market. The tricky part is assessing whether any of these four factors have actually been infringed on. For example, amount used; you're not allowed to show a whole piece of work but how much is too much? Or purpose of use: who's to say it wasn't for educational use or personal use?
I took a test after reading these articles to see if certain examples were infringing on copyright laws and I did quite poorly. This makes me not want to use any intellectual property out of fear of breaking the law. It seems to me that what is defined as breaking a copyright law changes from one case to another and that scares me.
The articles I read had to do with "fair use" within the copyright laws. Fair use is when a copyrighted piece of work can be used for educational purposes as long as these four factors are weighed in and accounted for: 1. purpose of use 2. nature of work 3. amount used 4. effect on the market. The tricky part is assessing whether any of these four factors have actually been infringed on. For example, amount used; you're not allowed to show a whole piece of work but how much is too much? Or purpose of use: who's to say it wasn't for educational use or personal use?
I took a test after reading these articles to see if certain examples were infringing on copyright laws and I did quite poorly. This makes me not want to use any intellectual property out of fear of breaking the law. It seems to me that what is defined as breaking a copyright law changes from one case to another and that scares me.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Technology Integration Matrix
For this weeks blog I will be talking about the technology integration matrix, which is a tool for teachers that illustrates how teachers can use technology to enhance learning for K-12 students. It incorporates five interdependent characteristics of meaningful learning environments: active, constructive, goal directed (i.e., reflective), authentic, and collaborative.
Today I would like to talk about one of the specific squares in the grid, collaborative at the transformation level. You can find their example here collaborative transformation level.
This example has the student typing a description of their home city in word, then reciting it in garage band (adding sound effects where necessary) and making it into a podcast for students all over the world to hear. Then they see how their counterpart does, if they have a problem guessing the city, the student adds more details to their description.
After viewing this example and reading the National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers NETS for teachers, I found that a lot of these standards are incorporated in the lesson. For example, standards 1a, promotes creative thinking and 1b, engaging students in solving authentic problems using digital tools. Also 4d, develop and model cultural understanding and global awareness by engaging with colleagues and students of other cultures using digital-age communication and collaboration tools, can be seen in this lesson.
This lesson does not seem to be that engaging for the teacher, they are more of a monitor in this lesson. Personally, I believe I am at the adaption/infusion level of integrating technology in the classroom. This is much higher than when I started this class, so I'm headed in the right direction. I feel that I can easily communicate with parents, students or colleagues over the internet in a comprehensive way, thus expanding the walls of my classroom.
Today I would like to talk about one of the specific squares in the grid, collaborative at the transformation level. You can find their example here collaborative transformation level.
This example has the student typing a description of their home city in word, then reciting it in garage band (adding sound effects where necessary) and making it into a podcast for students all over the world to hear. Then they see how their counterpart does, if they have a problem guessing the city, the student adds more details to their description.
After viewing this example and reading the National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers NETS for teachers, I found that a lot of these standards are incorporated in the lesson. For example, standards 1a, promotes creative thinking and 1b, engaging students in solving authentic problems using digital tools. Also 4d, develop and model cultural understanding and global awareness by engaging with colleagues and students of other cultures using digital-age communication and collaboration tools, can be seen in this lesson.
This lesson does not seem to be that engaging for the teacher, they are more of a monitor in this lesson. Personally, I believe I am at the adaption/infusion level of integrating technology in the classroom. This is much higher than when I started this class, so I'm headed in the right direction. I feel that I can easily communicate with parents, students or colleagues over the internet in a comprehensive way, thus expanding the walls of my classroom.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Podcast
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In my podcast, I have given examples from four different time periods: Baroque, Classical, Romantic and 20th Century. The students will be able to listen to and compare the different styles. It's their assignment to think about these differences and come to class prepared to discuss them. If they do so, it will save time in the class and I will have extended the walls of my classroom.
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