EDTC 6432-Computer Authoring: Journal 10

As I wrap up my last week for the quarter, reflect back on everything I have learned and everything I still have to learn.  It is only proper that this weeks articles are about future technology and how it applies to the classroom.

The 2009 Horizon Report: K-12 Edition presents six “technologies to watch” as they become more popular.  I understand that collaborative environments are beneficial to teachers and students because it is increasing in the workplace.  Tools that foster this type of leaning through online collaboration are also important.  Online communication tools are important to students because they use them on a daily basis outside the classroom-teachers need to tap in to this resource to “keep up with the times”.  This also goes for different types of mobiles.  Cell phones are becoming increasing more advanced with applications that use GPS, internet-streaming and multi-sensory applications.  I can see how smart objects could be useful in the classroom–some are able to “combine the ability to sense themselves and their surroundings with the ability to control a computer or access online content” (pg.5).  This would almost serve as your own personal classroom assistant!  It is also interesting how popular the personal web is becoming.  This allows users to create personal webpages with content linked to their interests.  It would be interesting to see the variety of content for any given classroom of students.  The only technology that I did not understand was cloud computing. Is it a mass storage device or some sort of large online database?  They used examples like Flickr, Google and YouTube but I am still confused about how these “clouds” work and how they could be used for educational purposes…

The second article, The Horizon Report, outlined six more “technologies to watch” and put them on a scale of when they could be put to use.  Within the next 12 months we can expect mobile computing and open content.  These allow students to have constant access to their class through the internet.  In the next two to three years we can expect electronic books and simple augmented reality.  The electronic book craze has caught on widely with the Kindle from Amazon and the iPad from Mac.  It would be awesome if every student had access to one of these products during the school year.  I had never heard of simple augmented reality, but the concept of “blending virtual data with what we see in the real world for the purpose of enhancing the information we can perceive with our senses” seems like a very unique and enriching idea (pg. 21).  Four to five years away we can expect things like gesture-based computing and visual data analysis.  Gesture-based computing will allow students to easily work collaboratively while engaging more of their senses.  I am still unclear about what visual data analysis is, but if it truly “augments the natural abilities humans have to seek and find patterns in what they see” then this will be a very valuable tool in many subjects (pg. 30).

I have enjoyed my time in this class learning about different technologies and how I can apply them to my classroom someday.  Below are three examples of work I have done this quarter in which I have learned a new technological skill:

A customized webpage I designed for a future class

A screencast of how to use the customized website

A webquest project I created as part of a geography unit

References:

Johnson, L., Levine, A., Smith, R. & Smythe, T. (2009). The 2009 Horizon Report: K-12 Edition. Austin, Texas: The New Media Consortium.

Johnson, L., Levine, A., Smith, R. & Stone, S. (2010). The Horizon Report. Austin, Texas: The New Media Consortium.

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