Photo Sharing is an interactive way for students, parents, and teachers to share photos, create projects, and display students work in one central location. Teachers can set up the original photo sharing site and only open it up to parents. Albums can be created for each event related to the photos taken. For example, pictures taken during field trips, sporting events, in-class activities, and extra-curricular activities can be placed in the appropriate album. Parents will be able to load pictures to the albums instead of emailing or burning CDs for the teachers. Along with the photos, anyone can add comments to the message board about the shared pictures. Furthermore, teachers can create virtual projects online using photo sharing. Parents can access the project from home to better understand the project or retrieve the information for a sick child. Teachers also have documentation of projects to use for the next year. Last, photo sharing is a great place to exhibit students work throughout the year. Parents can get online any time and view what their scholar is accomplishing in academics. Parents and teachers can use the message board to communicate in regards to students work. Photo sharing is a great way for teachers, parents, and students to interact in one location.
Photo sharing poses a few concerns about safety. Anyone can view pictures that are open to the public. Students may place revealing photos of themselves with too much information online. Or students may use false profiles with an incorrect age. Predators may discover the location of an individual and act on it. There isn’t a great way to monitor how students use their account other than teachers checking each website every day. Another concern is how the pictures are organized on the website for public view of all photos. When I went to “explore” zoto.com, my pictures were intermingled with someone else’s photos depicting a woman doing obscene things with a Barbie Doll. I don’t want to be associated with those photos. I thought my photos stayed only on my account not out there with other account members.
The benefit of photo sharing is the ability to interact with friends and family through sharing photos and comments in one central location without a hefty cost. You can upload photos to an album and send the link to friends and family to view online. I believe photo sharing will replace sending photos via email or mailing CDs. With unlimited storage, you can store as many images as you like for as long as you want. Anyone from any location in the world at any time can access a photo sharing website to view photos for enjoyment, entertainment, and research.
The authors describe the process of instructional design similar to a lesson plan. I find myself using most of the (ADDIE) characteristics when developing a lesson plan just in different orders depending on the goal of the lesson. (1) I start a science lesson plan with a measurable objective that follows the Michigan standards. (2) I use data from MEAP and NWEA tests to classify students into learning types. (3) For every lesson, I create a related hands-on activity to strengthen the objective. I carefully choose a variety of media for every hands-on activity. I want to touch on all the multiple intelligences to keep every student involved. (4) I supply students with the proper materials to complete projects, activities, and experiments. (5) I end every unit with an assessment. Usually science assessments are not pencil and paper. I use alternate tests such as centers, projects, or experiments. These types of assessments will demonstrate the student’s ability to use the materials to solve a problem.
The differences I found in the instructional design were team effort and lack of live teachers. The authors describe team effort as large groups with complex ideas which include members with specialized skills and a variety of tools. My lessons often use teams or groups of students. The difference is my groups of students are small where everyone tries their best to express “complex” ideas. Each student contributes their own unique skill to enhance the outcome. The author’s description of team effort is too complex for middle school academics. Furthermore, the authors make several references to not having a need for live teachers for students to achieve an objective. I strongly disagree with this statement. No matter how great an instructional design may be a live teacher will always be needed for interaction and guidance. In fact, the authors go on to say that instructional design centers on business, industry, government, and military. I feel education uses instructional design as often if not more than the above mentioned.
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2 comments:
I completely agree with you on the fact that a live teacher is necessary. If you were to leave a group of students in almost any classroom they would not stay on task and would not get everything they could out of the lesson without the guidance of a live teacher giving them support and scaffolding and answering questions. As wonderful as cooperative learning and the idea of students teaching each other are, I believe that the teacher needs to be there as the backbone so that the learning doesn't topple over.
Bobbi
I did not investigate fully, all the functions of Flickr, but was reminded of trying to help a co-worker save 300 pictures from a senior trip to Washington D.C. last fall. I took him to snapfish.com, I was familiar with that photosharing site because of my sister. It wasn't going to end up working for him because he had to send an e-mail to invite people to look at the pictures. That would have been the entire senior class. So, I guess he just ended up buring them on a CD. I also suggested he saved them to our school's website, on his particular teacher page, and create an album. Sometimes it's just easier to do it the old fashioned way. These are the times, I wish there were more hours in the day.
Your feedback on the reading on instructional design not only exists through lesson plans, but in every stage of business and other career sectors, as you mentioned. It is efficient, organized and encompasses team effort moreso than teaching (at times). Your comment on not needing a live teacher brings much skepticism, although I believe at some point, hopefully very far from where we are, this will be the norm.
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