Final Technology Reflection

Throughout this semester I have been introduced to numerous technology resources that I could see myself implementing into my future classroom. Of all of the resources we have been introduced too, I think that Google Classroom/Google Drive is the most valuable. At my current placement, we have started administering tests and quizzes via Google Forms. This allows for students to take the assessment on a chrome book and receive their grade immediately upon finishing. More importantly, this allows for teachers to focus on other aspects of being a more effective teacher instead of grading 80 tests.

In my future classroom, the google class resources could be implemented in daily activities that would make my classroom for efficient and productive. As we did in this class, the class discussions can be used so everyone can make contributions and reply to specific posts. This is important because it would likely have more participation versus a traditional class discussion. When I observed a 7th grade social studies classroom at my placement, the students were in groups of four and using google slides to create a presentation. This was really effective since each student could contribute at the same time and previously only one could at a time when using Prezi or Powerpoint.

Google Classroom would be beneficial to high achieving learners. This technology allows for these students to continue working on their projects and assignments from home using a smart device. Additionally, these students could have access to upcoming assignments, review guides, review activities, and other resources to benefit their education. Also, if these students need more of a challenge, the teacher can modify assignments to provide them with more of a challenge and specifically only share the documents with those students. 

Overall, I believe that the wealth of resources available via Google Classroom is extremely valuable for any classroom. The time-saving factor would be appealing to any educator but the collaboration component is the  best part in my opinion. It allows for the educator to share documents immediately with every student and for students to share among themselves. I totally plan on implementing this into my future classroom in order to transform the way social studies is traditionally taught.

Technology Use Policy

I had difficulty adding another page to my site so here is a link to my technology use policy:

Did you know...? Digital Citizenship: Identity Theft

Identity theft is an ongoing issue. Every Spring you will hear reports being made about the risk of having your taxes filed by another individual. I have a family member who just last year was notified that there was an unemployment claim made with their name and social security number. The process is daunting and complex with the numerous scams out there and amount of companies who have your information. If you suspect or discover that your identity has been in fact stolen, you have a lot of work ahead of you.

According to identitytheft.gov, you must do the following:

1. Call the fraud departments at the companies you think it occurred at.
2. Change your pins, usernames, and passwords.
3. Maybe even close or freeze those accounts!
4. Then place a fraud alert on your credit reports, this will last 90 days and is FREE. This will make it harder for accounts to be opened under your name and information. Also, this can be renewed after 90 days.
5. Create an account with the Federal Trade Commission and make a claim for Identity Theft!
6. Next, you may want to consider filing a police report about the incident.
7. After all of this, you now have to close the fake accounts opened, remove false purchases, stop possible debt collectors (for debt you do not really have), clear any criminal charges falsely in your name, and notifying and checking every other account or office associated with your name!

When we think of identity theft, we often only think about it impacting adults but here is the thing... children/students private information is out there and they also can have their identity stolen!

There was an identity theft protection scan completed on forty thousand children and adults. Of those, ten percent of the children had their social security number used by another person. This is in comparison to .2 percent of the adults in the scan! Based off this information, it would seem that children actually have a high risk. Yet, parents and guardians do not think of children being susceptible to identity theft and do not routinely check their child's information. Also, unused social security numbers can be used by scammers and illegal immigrants since their is not name or birth date associated with it. Lastly, children's information is held in school databases and testing databases. If one of those were to be hacked, the thief would have access to thousands of identities!

As a future social studies educator, I believe that this fits right in with the course content and goals. I want my students to be active participants in our communities, government, and fulfill their civic duties of their citizenship. In today's day and age, in order to due so requires some sort of technology! If you want to join and organization, club, check personal information, gain important information about how to do various things.. then the internet is essential! As students learn about their civic duties, law and order, current events, and etc... they can be taught the elements and safety of Digital Citizenship!

Why should we have and use technology transformatively in our classrooms?

Education is the foundation of everyone's future, regardless if they pursue a post-secondary education. They need the skills and knowledge acquired in order to be successful. Education and the classroom is transforming technologically and will continue for the foreseeable future. I remember when I was in high school and my physics classroom got the schools first smart board. The teacher had been to professional development days to get used to the technology and was mainly learning day to day. It transformed our classroom only slightly but it introduced us to new ways of learning and tools that can be used in the classroom to facilitate our learning.
Technology is not going away and is only going to become more prominent in everyone's daily lives, jobs, and education. With that said, it is our responsibility as educators to integrate the various technologies into their learning experience so that gain familiarity of the equipment and software. This is valuable because not only does it prepare them for their future but also is often more efficient and effective than previous teaching methods and resources.

Additionally, the use of technology should not only be experienced by the wealthy schools but rather every school. The equipment can be obtained via grants and etc that will prepare every student, allowing for them to be competitive with their more affluent peers in other districts. By not incorporating technology, allowing for it to transform every classroom will leave some students more prepared than others, or at a disadvantage.

Technology is used globally, but obviously more or less depending on the region and development. Some regions do not have the resources because they are not higher developed but also because they may not want to integrate technology into their lives. For example, Amish and Mennonites, choose to use technology very limited in comparison to the rest of society. Yet, even Mennonites use quite a bit of technology from industrial barns, tractors, farming attachments, farming equipment, and electricity. Why? Well, because it makes life easier and is more efficient! So why not use it to improve our classrooms? I do not see why we would not.

Digital Storytelling Lesson

Here is a short video about a technology lesson I developed for a 6th grade geography class. This would be extremely beneficial in my future classroom! I could use this to provide students with directions for assignments and even for days that there will be a substitute teacher. This would be valuable for guiding students through projects and for them to create in place of the traditional prezi, poster board, and power point presentation. I really look forward to using this tool in my future classroom!


Mr. Fox's Digital Storytelling

Technology Inventory

At my school placement this semester we have a cart of chrome books in the classroom, an Epson smart projector, an Elmo, and access to a computer lab. The students use the chrome books on a weekly bases in both tech class and on small class assignments, especially Kahoot! Throughout the school there is wifi access but in the classrooms there is wifi specific to that room. From my understanding the chrome books are not heavily monitored but there are some minor restrictions. The teachers can sign up for a cart if needed but some teachers have them permanently in their classroom. The students are not allowed to BYOD and are limited to the chrome books and computer lab. As far as when there are issues, I am not sure who fixes the equipment. I am assuming there is IT support but it very well may not be at this charter school but from another one of the National Heritage Academies. This year they purchased the Geography Alive! textbook for the classroom and it came with software. They have now built their curriculum around the software and is used on a daily basis.

Technology in the Classroom

Blogger would be very beneficial in my classroom. Not only could I post information such as class announcements, assignments, and etc. It would be a new way to interact with the students by having them maintain an online journal by answering daily questions, short writing assignments, peer-reviewing, and etc. Also, a facebook page would be a neat since I could create a class page to post both important information but also to have the students interact with one another. I think blogging and facebook would be beneficial to the classroom by getting students to interact with one another. Although some issues could be students possible limited experience with electronic which could make introducing new programs challenging.

About Me

Hello! I am Bolton Fox and I am a senior at Grand Valley State University. My major is social studies with an emphasis in history and a minor in physical education. I am pursuing certification in secondary education. I am from Belding, Michigan and graduated from the Belding High School in 2011. I began my college career at Michigan State University and was pursuing a degree in kinesiology but had a change of heart. I always was drawn to teaching and upon changing my major I transferred to Grand Valley. I am looking forward to learning more about technology and how to utilize it my effectively in the classroom. I have limited experience with technology but have helped students use their chrome books to use Kahoot as a review game recently. This past August I got married to my wife Kayla and traveled to Riviera Maya, Mexico. One of my favorite things to do it to travel. I have been to Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Florida, and Mexico twice. My favorite place to go is anywhere up north in Michigan and this summer I am planning to vacation in the upper peninsula! And possibly spend a few days backpacking Isle Royale National Park!