Digital Divide

What is the Digital Divide?

The Digital Divide is the lack of access to information that is essential to lives of the poor. It is a reason for the widespread poverty in the developing world and is the technologically rich versus the technologically poor. The digital divide is the developed versus the developing, those who have internet and resources compared to those who do not. 88% of internet users are in industrial countries, but that only makes up 15% of the world. It is the division of those who have technology and those who do not.

 How are people trying to close the Digital Divide?

Some companies and groups of people are trying to close the digital divide by sending news to those underprivileged countries while others are donating the hardware.  Some say that in order to close the Digital Divide we must build an enterprise ecosystem offering end to end solutions for the poor. Some say that we need to formalize the informal economy with technology to bring the poor into established markets. By using new technologies we are empowering the poor just as they now empower the rich.

How might the Digital Divide show up in my classroom and how will I address it?

The Digital Divide may show up in my classroom in many ways. One way that I can think of is through the use of computers for assignments and homework. Not all families have the technology of a computer or have the access to one at all outside of school. This creates a problem because it is dividing those who have the resource and money from those who do not. I can deal with this problem by incorporating computer work in my daily routine in my classroom for those who are unable to use the technology otherwise. I can have my students work in groups with a ratio of 2 students per computer so that everyone can have the peer interaction while still completing work necessary.

Resources:
Edutopia-Digital Divde-Where We Are Today
Digital Divide Institute

Twitter Chat

I tried to participate in the chat Innochat-Talking about Innovation with the hash tag #innochat, Thursday at noon, and can honestly say I was overwhelmed. I had no idea what the terms meant that a lot of people were using, and felt like there was no way I could put any word in. Every three seconds there was a new post, and to me it looked like a majority of them were very similar. I thought it would have been an interesting choice, but was not successful in gaining any real knowledge. I did learn, however, that the next time I decide to participate in a chat, I will look into previous chats and be sure that I will be able to comprehend and understand what is going on. :)

Ipad Apps for the Elementary Classroom

When looking for an Ipad Application that could be used in the elementary classroom, I came across Math Magic. Math Magic is an interactive application for children ages 3 to 8 to practice and improve their math skills. They are shown a screen and then given choices for an answer or pictures to count for the younger ages to add or subtract or do other kinds of math. Sound is used to let them know when they have succeeded and found the right answer. 

Math Magic is great because it uses lots of fun colors and is very vibrant. It is a simple application that all can use and allows great practice with math skills in a fun way. In the classroom this could be used in a math center or even as a whole class if playing games such as around the world or doing a variation of flash cards.

Math isn't always a fun subject and many kids struggle with it or don't like it, so by using Math Magic a teacher would be finding a fun and interactive way to teach math.

Here are a couple of links with screenshots and reviews of the Math Magic Application for the Ipad. 

• Math Magic
• Math Magic Itunes Review

Technology in the Classroom

After looking into many different technologies, I have found that I am a big fan of Ning. Although the host has to pay a fee, I feel that the benefits of using Ning as a classroom resource greatly outweigh this con. Ning is a website where you can set up a social network and do many different things. I love that Ning has a forum and discussion section. I think that this could be a great parent-teacher communication resource. Parents could be updated on what is happening in the classroom and could write about their concerns to the teacher. Also, Ning could be used for fundraising purposes as you can sell products and advertise them in your social network. I believe that in my future classroom, as I want to teacher kindergarten or first grade, I would like to try out Ning as one of my few technologies to use in my classroom to keep parents connected. I believe that parent involvement is key in students' success and this may be a step worth taking.

Technology Integration Article-September 16, 2010

I recently read the article Fifth Graders Soar In the Blogosphere by Cara Bafile. I found this article to be really interesting and inspiring as it talked about the importance and benefits of having a classroom blog. I loved that this article helped me to connect the ideas that we have talked about in class with other examples of teachers doing so in their classrooms around the world. Cara shared thoughts from a classroom teacher in California who came across blogging with her students when modifying her classroom website-another great idea. She developed ways to integrate blogging into the curriculum used and saw it as a great way to engage and excite her students about what they were learning. The teacher, Gillian Ryan, said that blogging helped to motivate and give purpose to her students learning, which is very important in today's society. All students need to have a purpose for their learning and a way to make it applicable to their everyday life. Blogging is one way to do so. I loved that in this article it also talked about how the students got so excited to share their thoughts and ideas with an audience more than Gillian herself. It was so amazing to see that she felt such a difference as a result of using blogging in her classroom and they way that students were able to feel like what they were doing was more "real-world" like, which is a point of view I had never considered before reading this article.

Google Earth

I have been researching Google Earth for my technology to learn and have found some really neat resources and ideas. I recently got a few responses to a tweet I created about using Skype in the classroom, one being about using Skype to communicate with meteorologists during the weather unit. As I started my journey into the world of Google Earth, I thought of how these two technologies could be used together in a cumulative project. I also found different lesson plans, student work samples, ideas, and discussions about how to use Google Earth effectively in the classroom in a site named Google Earth for Educators. Google Earth is a very modern technology that can help teach children different things about geography, the world, and the cultures that they are immersed in. Through its visual components students who are visual learners are benefited and it gives light to a new way of learning for those who aren't. I can't wait to continue to explore Google Earth and its many features.

Myself and Education 109-September 2, 2010

In Education 109 I am learning new things as we go along. It was helpful to have discussions about ways that technology such as Blogger and Twitter can be used poorly in the classroom as well as effective ways to use them to aid in teaching. I feel like I am starting to develop my own ideas and thoughts on how, when, and why to use these tools in my future classroom as well as boundaries I can set for my students when doing so.