The Classroom Website

Hi Everyone,

As teachers and educators we need to make sure that whatever we post on a website is clear and concise and easily accessible to our students and parents.  How frustrating is it for you when you go to a website that is so hard to navigate?  Or you get lost because the links take you somewhere completely different than you intented?  Or the color design is hard to read?  Or what if your mouse dies in the middle of reading something important for school, what do you do if the site does not have a feature that allows you to continue on?  These are all things that we need to keep in mind when designing our website for use in our classrooms.

This article talked about five steps to creating a website that is accessible to the whole audience including individuals accessing the site using non-traditional means such as not using a mouse, the visionally impaired and the hearing impaired. 

The five steps include:

1.  Organize for easier navigation - Here it talked about using "headers to identify new sections, not creating pages that are too large for the screen, avoiding red and green, and not using colors that are difficult to distinguish in grey scale."
2.  Navigation without a mouse - Using the tab key allows for easier navigation around the site without a mouse.  To do this one would need to "include the access key attribute in the link code."  Since I am not a pro at web design I really have know idea what that means, but I do know by using the tab key allows one to move around without the mouse.
3.  Text explanations for images - This is like describing something without someone actually seeing it.  One needs to find a good balance though because too much information can be overwhelming for the viewer.
4.  Using text that makes sense - One needs to elaborate on what it means to "click here." The reader will need to know what they are clicking here for and where it is going to take them and what information they will gain by doing so.
5.  Web validators - These are individuals or companies that will look over the website and give feeback about its usefulness

By taking these steps into consideration when creating a webstie for whatever reason it will make the site more user friendly to all that come to visit.

See you all on Tuesday,
Sheila


Amundson, Lind.  5 Steps to an Accessible Classroom Website.  From the ISTE website Learning and Leading with Technology Volume 37 (2009) November (No.4)

Computing in the Cloud

This article talked about "The Cloud" as a better way of using technology in the classroom and for personal use.  The Web based applications that are available in the cloud are generally free and are comparable to the full versions of software but may not be as comprehensive.  Because these applications are on line and stored elsewhere than on your hard drive it frees up your computer to run faster and allows it not to be as big of a unit.  It also allows you to work from anywhere.  No longer will you have to actually bring your flash drives with you or worry about having the latest versions or the right software to open a document.  As long as you have Internet access you will be able to bring up the document you were working on.


According to the article "cloud computing has the potential to offer staff and students better services at a lower cost than the technology deployment models they're using now."  The down side to this for students and parents is how to acquire the equipment needed to be utilized in the classroom.  The article stated that the author "was asked to purchase a $100 graphing calculator when his son was in high school."  He goes on to ask "how big a stretch is it to ask parents to provide a $250 netbook computer today?"  My answer to that is it is a huge stretch for many parents' pocketbook.  With unemployment still being high, gas prices continuing to climb, food costs going up, foreclosures and bankruptcies continuing to occur to ask a parent to fork out money they don't have is unreasonable.  And of course the schools do not have the extra cash just laying around either as the state continues to cut the education budget.  I can see how this would be an effective teaching tool with students already being techo-savvy, but but not everyone can afford all the newest gigets and gadgets. 


There also still needs to be some type of regulation or standardization as to how these types of things would be incorporated into the classroom setting.  Even the author mentioned this when he stated "As an organization we need to have some standardization."  Then there is the issue of security and privacy of the files.  Even though there have not been problems with this as of yet, doesn't mean it cannot or will not happen.  There are plenty of hackers out there looking for something to do. 


This author believes "change is coming."  I do not doubt that but I do not believe it will be anytime soon.


See you all on Tuesday,


Johnson, Doug.  Computing in the Clouds.  From the ISTE website Learning and Leading with Technology Volume 37 (2009-2010) December/January (No.4) 

To Blog or not to blog. That is the question for the day.

Hi Classmates,

There are many pro's and con's when it comes to blogging.  But I believe the pro's outweigh the con's if it is used properly.  On the personal side with families being so spread out nowadays blogging can be a great way for distant relatives to stay in touch and up-to-date with what is going on in different parts of the family tree.  For us grandma in Denver can log on to our blog and see current pictures of the granddaughters and read what they are doing in school, girl scouts, church events and other events as they occur.   Even families that live closer to us can log on and see what they may have missed.  It is a great way for the girls to get involved with communicating in a different way.  It allows them to practice their typing and spelling skills and putting thoughts down in words.


On the professional side blogging can be a great way for teachers to connect and network within the industry;  share ideas for classroom management, lesson plans, creative ideas, things that worked and didn't work; and to get students interested in using technology to learn.  Technology is engaging and fun to use. Students are using it more and more each day and as educators we need to keep up with the times and start using it as well.  


As the article stated "we need to model for our students habits of communication that are positive and productive even outside the bounds of the subjects we teach."  He goes on to say "what better way to illustrate to our students that effective communication requires us to consider the effects our words might have on our listeners or readers.


I support blogging just like any other means of communication such as twitting, facebook and even regular email.  As people we have a desire and need to be in contact with one another. We were not created to go through life alone. With technology staying in contact with one another has gotten easier. No longer are the days where you have to wait for a letter to arrive in the mail for weeks on end.  Instead we can receive instant responses and information in the palm of our hands.


Talk to you soon,
Sheila Lowe

1. Maxlow, James and Lisa Nielsen.  Point/Counter Point is Blog Worth the Risk.  Retrieved from the ISTE website Learning and Leading with Technology, May 2009

The beginning

This is the beginning

Learning is so much fun.  :)  Let's learn together.