Michael Wagner's Chapter 4 Response

Chapter 4
Chapter 4 somehow seemed to be more applicable than three in that it discusses in more detail how to bring technology to the classroom. I like these three ideas from the text, we need to watch out for what we expect students to already know prior to a lesson, we can guide students to use technology for problem-solving, and we should find better ways to use the internet as a research tool.
Expectations - I was once part of a technology planning group at Gardiner where our goal was to come up with a school technology plan. I teach 7th-12th grades and I wanted to be able to expect students entering 7th to do a number of tasks fluently. For example, I felt the students should be proficient at creating folders, using word processors, building PowerPoints and some other tasks. When I received students from our elementary school the students were able to do most of what I expected, but on occasion if it was a new student I could not assume they knew how to use these technologies.
Problem-Solving - There are a number of engineering and design programs where students are able to do some major problem-solving processes. I have them do these same tests in the real world and then compare the results to virtual tests from the software. The students are able to see that they may be able to test more scenarios and designs before actual construction.
Internet – I have used a few research tools in the past for my research portions of technology but I know I am just touching on what is out there. The Using Robotics in Lunar Exploration class offered through the Physics department has opened a huge realm of information via the internet for me. NASA is at the forefront of much of the technology research and the site has an amazing search engine for great material. This is just one location and there is much more of these locations out there.
The idea I like most from this reading is integrating a community based internet tool to collaborate on student designs and ideas. Students could discuss design constraints, outside influences, and much more. One great aspect of this tool is that the student’s ideas are being documented the entire time. In conjunction with this, I like having the students upload graphic ideas onto the internet. A small sketch could describe a lot of what the student’s intentions are.
I always am concerned about copyright and what I can and cannot use in my lessons as material and what the students can and cannot use in their projects. I think the safest bet is citing the source. However, because so much information is available to students, it is difficult to monitor all of the information in projects. I know that it is important to teach students to look for websites with integrity, but making sure copyright laws are followed is still difficult.