Tuesday, February 24, 2015
Prezume using Prezi
Prezi is a free site that allows you to create a presentation that is very visually appealing and it moves! You do have to pay if you want your presentations not to be available to the public.
You can click on the link below to visit the site:
Prezi Site
Prezi definitely transforms the way we can present information to an audience. New goals can be achieved with this software if you are comparing it to PowerPoint (SAMR model).
This was actually quite fun to do! I will be playing with it more to see how to change the colors and such. I like that you can rearrange the slides and you control how it is viewed by double-clicks on the page.
Monday, February 23, 2015
Numbers 1.6 Ethnicity and Reading
I was able to export the information from the NAEP website. Here is a link to my excel worksheet:
Excel Worksheet McBride
Here is a screen shot of my use of the online tool.
The p value is less than .05 which means we must reject the null hypothesis. There is a statistically significant difference between the NAEP mean scores of Black and Hispanic students on the 4th grade reading assessment.
Learning to export information from another source enhances and improves what we used to have to do by hand. I would not say we are modifying the task in anyway, just doing it more quickly and easily. (SAMR model).
Teachers need to use this skill for their own assessments and evaluations, but students need to know how to use these tools also. (ISTE, NETS-t, IIIC, IVB).
Excel Worksheet McBride
Here is a screen shot of my use of the online tool.
The p value is less than .05 which means we must reject the null hypothesis. There is a statistically significant difference between the NAEP mean scores of Black and Hispanic students on the 4th grade reading assessment.
Learning to export information from another source enhances and improves what we used to have to do by hand. I would not say we are modifying the task in anyway, just doing it more quickly and easily. (SAMR model).
Teachers need to use this skill for their own assessments and evaluations, but students need to know how to use these tools also. (ISTE, NETS-t, IIIC, IVB).
Friday, February 20, 2015
Google Maps
The link for google maps is below:
Google Maps
Below is the link to my website where I show how students can use their new knowledge about animal behaviors by observing those behaviors on a trip to the National Zoo.
Trip to Smithsonian National Zoo
Below is a link to my Google Map for the Smithsonian National Zoo:
Map for Smithsonian National Zoo Trip
Click on "Open Original Map" and then you should be able to zoom in and see the sites listed. There is also a walking route planned out so the students stick to the itinerary. I have also put an attachment on the page showing the chart the students should use for their observations.
This was an interesting assignment for me. I had just finished a lesson plan on animal behaviors for another class. This went very well with that lesson. It would be great if I would be able to take the students on a field trip and have them see these behaviors in the field.
This tool is definitely transforming the way we use maps in the classroom. Students would probably be able to get this on their phones or tablets and could just follow the path that way. Easy and they don't lose a piece of paper along the way! I would consider this a modification of map technology according to the SAMR model.
Google Maps is definitely a tool that allows a teacher to "apply technology to increase productivity." Though it was difficult for me to realize when I was saving the map I wanted, I finally figured it out. (ISTE, NETS t V, C).
Google Maps
Below is the link to my website where I show how students can use their new knowledge about animal behaviors by observing those behaviors on a trip to the National Zoo.
Trip to Smithsonian National Zoo
Below is a link to my Google Map for the Smithsonian National Zoo:
Map for Smithsonian National Zoo Trip
Click on "Open Original Map" and then you should be able to zoom in and see the sites listed. There is also a walking route planned out so the students stick to the itinerary. I have also put an attachment on the page showing the chart the students should use for their observations.
This was an interesting assignment for me. I had just finished a lesson plan on animal behaviors for another class. This went very well with that lesson. It would be great if I would be able to take the students on a field trip and have them see these behaviors in the field.
This tool is definitely transforming the way we use maps in the classroom. Students would probably be able to get this on their phones or tablets and could just follow the path that way. Easy and they don't lose a piece of paper along the way! I would consider this a modification of map technology according to the SAMR model.
Google Maps is definitely a tool that allows a teacher to "apply technology to increase productivity." Though it was difficult for me to realize when I was saving the map I wanted, I finally figured it out. (ISTE, NETS t V, C).
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
Google Sheets and Hypothesis Testing Revised 02.20.15
Below is the link to my Google Sheets page showing how we performed a t-test on data collected from a survey given to students on the Ebola virus.
Google Sheet McBride
The hypothesis (or question) being asked was "Did a presentation given to the students on the Ebola virus have an influence on (or change) student responses to a survey?"
It should be noted here that only 6 questions (they were really statements) from the survey were analyzed. There were 103 students that took the survey on the Ebola virus before the presentation and then they were given the same survey after the presentation.
Each of the statements only had 4 possible answers ranging from "strongly agree" to "strongly disagree."
The independent variable in this experiment was the presentation. The dependent variable was the post survey responses.
The null hypothesis in this analysis would be that there was no statistical difference in the responses of the students to the survey after they saw the presentation. Any difference seen would be due to error in measurement or chance.
If the P value is less than .05, the null hypothesis must be rejected which would mean that there was a statistically significant difference between the survey given before the presentation (pre) and the survey given after the presentation (post). It was not chance or error. The presentation did make a difference in survey responses of the students.
If the P value is greater than .05, the null hypothesis cannot be rejected which would mean that though there is a difference between the pre-presentation and post-presentation survey results, that difference was caused by chance or error and is not statistically significant.
The results show that only questions 29 and 31 showed a statistically significant difference in the pre and post responses which would mean that the presentation did influence the students on those two questions.
Google Sheets are not as easy to use as Excel, but they are easier to share so that is a plus in education. Besides, it is easy to calculate in Excel and just copy and paste to Google Sheets.
I did learn how to add formulas in Google Sheets. When I put the equal sign in the formula line, and the first letter of the formula I wanted to use, choices showed up and I was able to choose most of the actions allowed in Excel.
Because we can cut and paste from Excel into Google Sheets which allows us to share our work, this would be considered an enhancement according to the SAMR model.
This would also be a useful tool when you are trying to analyze your data and share with your colleagues or the administration. (ISTE NETS t, IV B).
Google Sheet McBride
The hypothesis (or question) being asked was "Did a presentation given to the students on the Ebola virus have an influence on (or change) student responses to a survey?"
It should be noted here that only 6 questions (they were really statements) from the survey were analyzed. There were 103 students that took the survey on the Ebola virus before the presentation and then they were given the same survey after the presentation.
Each of the statements only had 4 possible answers ranging from "strongly agree" to "strongly disagree."
The independent variable in this experiment was the presentation. The dependent variable was the post survey responses.
The null hypothesis in this analysis would be that there was no statistical difference in the responses of the students to the survey after they saw the presentation. Any difference seen would be due to error in measurement or chance.
If the P value is less than .05, the null hypothesis must be rejected which would mean that there was a statistically significant difference between the survey given before the presentation (pre) and the survey given after the presentation (post). It was not chance or error. The presentation did make a difference in survey responses of the students.
If the P value is greater than .05, the null hypothesis cannot be rejected which would mean that though there is a difference between the pre-presentation and post-presentation survey results, that difference was caused by chance or error and is not statistically significant.
The results show that only questions 29 and 31 showed a statistically significant difference in the pre and post responses which would mean that the presentation did influence the students on those two questions.
Google Sheets are not as easy to use as Excel, but they are easier to share so that is a plus in education. Besides, it is easy to calculate in Excel and just copy and paste to Google Sheets.
I did learn how to add formulas in Google Sheets. When I put the equal sign in the formula line, and the first letter of the formula I wanted to use, choices showed up and I was able to choose most of the actions allowed in Excel.
Because we can cut and paste from Excel into Google Sheets which allows us to share our work, this would be considered an enhancement according to the SAMR model.
This would also be a useful tool when you are trying to analyze your data and share with your colleagues or the administration. (ISTE NETS t, IV B).
Friday, February 13, 2015
Jeopardy Labs
Jeopardy Labs is a great free website! It is difficult to get used to wording the answers correctly but I am sure a teacher would get the hang of it with practice.
It would be a good idea to write down your jeopardy answers as you go through a unit. I am working on an Ecosystems Unit for my curriculum class. I had assessment questions, but they weren't always usable in a Jeopardy format.
Here is the link to Jeopardy Labs: Jeopardy Labs
You can go to my Ecosystems Jeopardy Game with the following link:
Ecosystems Jeopardy
Jeopardy Labs is an augmentation (SAMR model). This makes it easier to use than designing the template by hand so it improves function, but there really isn't any transformation going on here.
This is a great way to assess and evaluate whether or not your students understand the material or not, but I do feel you have to be very clear in your "answers" for this. Not an easy task for teachers. (ISTE, NETS t IV, C).
My Jeopardy Template
It would be a good idea to write down your jeopardy answers as you go through a unit. I am working on an Ecosystems Unit for my curriculum class. I had assessment questions, but they weren't always usable in a Jeopardy format.
Here is the link to Jeopardy Labs: Jeopardy Labs
You can go to my Ecosystems Jeopardy Game with the following link:
Ecosystems Jeopardy
Jeopardy Labs is an augmentation (SAMR model). This makes it easier to use than designing the template by hand so it improves function, but there really isn't any transformation going on here.
This is a great way to assess and evaluate whether or not your students understand the material or not, but I do feel you have to be very clear in your "answers" for this. Not an easy task for teachers. (ISTE, NETS t IV, C).
My Jeopardy Template
Tuesday, February 10, 2015
Self-Portrait by Phyllis McBride
The site I went to for the self-portrait was Picasso Head. When I saved it, they sent me an email to my link on the site.
Phyllis McBride Self-Portrait
Next I clicked the Share button and had it posted to my blog, but that didn't seem to work. If you click on the link, it is a portrait someone else created! I wrote the following and the link below it is what showed up on my blog post:
Below is my self-portrait I created on www.picassohead.com!
Self-Portrait by Phyllis McBride
I do not think I will use this with my students, but it is good practice to learn to link and embed items. I am going to use Jing to embed the portrait so you can see it. That seems to be the easiest for me to do.
I will say that this tool could be a transformation for many students, especially those students with disabilities. I can see where they could be successful here but not in a standard art class (SAMR model).
This tool would fall under II of the ISTE NETS t standards - "Teachers plan and design effective learning environments and experiences supported by technology."
Phyllis McBride Self-Portrait
Next I clicked the Share button and had it posted to my blog, but that didn't seem to work. If you click on the link, it is a portrait someone else created! I wrote the following and the link below it is what showed up on my blog post:
Below is my self-portrait I created on www.picassohead.com!
Self-Portrait by Phyllis McBride
I do not think I will use this with my students, but it is good practice to learn to link and embed items. I am going to use Jing to embed the portrait so you can see it. That seems to be the easiest for me to do.
I will say that this tool could be a transformation for many students, especially those students with disabilities. I can see where they could be successful here but not in a standard art class (SAMR model).
This tool would fall under II of the ISTE NETS t standards - "Teachers plan and design effective learning environments and experiences supported by technology."
Creating a Poll
I don't think I saw the email in time to vote. I would have voted for common core standards!
I did sign up and create my own poll. It will only be up for one day.
Poll McBride
Not sure if this link will work or not. It does work if you copy and paste in your browser though. And I did see where you can put it in a PowerPoint Presentation. You can also email the link which would work well with parents.
I did sign up and create my own poll. It will only be up for one day.
Poll McBride
Not sure if this link will work or not. It does work if you copy and paste in your browser though. And I did see where you can put it in a PowerPoint Presentation. You can also email the link which would work well with parents.
Hypothesis Testing
The hypothesis we were testing for this assignment was: Is ethnicity a factor in 8th grade reading performance?
The Null Hypothesis in this case would be that there was no statistically significant difference between each ethnic group of students' test scores. If the P-value is less than 5 % (0.05), it signifies that there is a statistically significant difference in their performances and we must reject the Null Hypothesis.
This means that if we were to do these exams again, all things being equal, we would get the same results. The differences would not be from chance or from an error in the measurement of their reading performance. I think people need to understand that when you are measuring values, you are just measuring numbers and how the numbers relate to each other. This does not answer the question of WHY there is a difference.
Below is the comparison between White and Black students. The P-values are shown to be zero which is less that 5%. This means that the difference between the values recorded for the two ethnic groups were statistically significant and could not be attributed to chance or an error in measurement.
The next two charts show the same results for White/Hispanic comparisons and Black/Hispanic comparisons. The difference between the reading performances recorded for White and Hispanic and the difference between the reading performances recorded for Black and Hispanic students was statistically significant. The difference in their scores was not due to error or chance.
I had always used Excel at work but never used the formula functions. My husband is an engineer and he said he used the functions often to let Excel "do the math" for him. I plan on teaching Middle School Science so this is a useful tool to use and introduce to students.
In the SAMR model, this tool is an augmentation that substitutes for what we used to have to do by hand or with a calculator when conducting experiments. This Excel tool definitely enhances the final product (looks professional) and the improvement is the speed. Excel saves us time!
If students want to go into the STEM fields, they will need to know how to use this tool (ISTE NETS, IB). The tool is also useful for teachers especially if we conduct our own studies of student performance in the classroom (ISTE NETS, IVB).
I did find out that you can reference a blog post in APA style. For this post, it would look like this in the text (PMcBride, 2015). The reference section would look like this:
PMcBride. (2015, February 10). Hypothesis Testing [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://phyllismcbride.blogspot.com/.
If you are going to reference data from a table or graph in another publication, you have to be sure to put the page number where the table is located.
The Null Hypothesis in this case would be that there was no statistically significant difference between each ethnic group of students' test scores. If the P-value is less than 5 % (0.05), it signifies that there is a statistically significant difference in their performances and we must reject the Null Hypothesis.
This means that if we were to do these exams again, all things being equal, we would get the same results. The differences would not be from chance or from an error in the measurement of their reading performance. I think people need to understand that when you are measuring values, you are just measuring numbers and how the numbers relate to each other. This does not answer the question of WHY there is a difference.
Below is the comparison between White and Black students. The P-values are shown to be zero which is less that 5%. This means that the difference between the values recorded for the two ethnic groups were statistically significant and could not be attributed to chance or an error in measurement.
The next two charts show the same results for White/Hispanic comparisons and Black/Hispanic comparisons. The difference between the reading performances recorded for White and Hispanic and the difference between the reading performances recorded for Black and Hispanic students was statistically significant. The difference in their scores was not due to error or chance.
I had always used Excel at work but never used the formula functions. My husband is an engineer and he said he used the functions often to let Excel "do the math" for him. I plan on teaching Middle School Science so this is a useful tool to use and introduce to students.
In the SAMR model, this tool is an augmentation that substitutes for what we used to have to do by hand or with a calculator when conducting experiments. This Excel tool definitely enhances the final product (looks professional) and the improvement is the speed. Excel saves us time!
If students want to go into the STEM fields, they will need to know how to use this tool (ISTE NETS, IB). The tool is also useful for teachers especially if we conduct our own studies of student performance in the classroom (ISTE NETS, IVB).
I did find out that you can reference a blog post in APA style. For this post, it would look like this in the text (PMcBride, 2015). The reference section would look like this:
PMcBride. (2015, February 10). Hypothesis Testing [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://phyllismcbride.blogspot.com/.
If you are going to reference data from a table or graph in another publication, you have to be sure to put the page number where the table is located.
Friday, February 6, 2015
Google Sites
I did create a Google Website for my portfolio for another class. This one is open to all students at Shenandoah University. I did create another one for my professional portfolio that only my professors can see.
I put my website as a gadget link on my blog. I have not been able to link my blog to my web page yet, but I am working on that to see if it can be done.
I did learn that in order to upload a document to a page, you have to change it to a google document. My resume, professional reflection paper, and philosophy of education paper were word documents. They would not link unless they were changed to google docs.
It was not really clear what was meant in the assignment for item 4, but I did add pages and uploaded documents to those pages. Below is the link to my Google Sites:
Google Sites McBride
This is the link to my website:
Website Phyllis McBride
Google Sites really is a very easy tool to use. Teachers should be guiding High School students to create professional websites that have their resumes and exemplary school work they would want colleges or employers to see. This is the future and they need to know how to create a personal web site.
I would consider Google Sites as an enhancement of the old portfolio idea where an artist or other professional would have a book of their works to show. Same idea but more people can have access to it.
Having students create a portfolio site is a good way for teachers to assess and evaluate their students also (ISTE NETS IV). These sites can also be shared with parents.
I put my website as a gadget link on my blog. I have not been able to link my blog to my web page yet, but I am working on that to see if it can be done.
I did learn that in order to upload a document to a page, you have to change it to a google document. My resume, professional reflection paper, and philosophy of education paper were word documents. They would not link unless they were changed to google docs.
It was not really clear what was meant in the assignment for item 4, but I did add pages and uploaded documents to those pages. Below is the link to my Google Sites:
Google Sites McBride
This is the link to my website:
Website Phyllis McBride
Google Sites really is a very easy tool to use. Teachers should be guiding High School students to create professional websites that have their resumes and exemplary school work they would want colleges or employers to see. This is the future and they need to know how to create a personal web site.
I would consider Google Sites as an enhancement of the old portfolio idea where an artist or other professional would have a book of their works to show. Same idea but more people can have access to it.
Having students create a portfolio site is a good way for teachers to assess and evaluate their students also (ISTE NETS IV). These sites can also be shared with parents.
Screencast-O-Matic
This was one of the more challenging assignments for me! I am not comfortable recording anything because I always seem to mess up. I think I have to do the phone message machine 5 times before I get it right!
So this time, after I designed the PowerPoint and got the visuals to work, I wrote out a script. I had to practice it numerous times, but also had to practice with the PowerPoint presentation at the same time so the timing was right.
Creating instructional videos can be time consuming, but it is fun. I suppose it is like anything else - easier the more you practice.
So what does a teacher do if their voice is horrible or they don't speak clearly enough. Perhaps, for future teachers, we will be required to take a class on speaking and voice modulation!
I uploaded the video to You Tube, but honestly I have not viewed it yet. Hope you find it amusing.
Screencast-O-Matic is great because you can pause it as you record. That's the best tool ever for me! I did just review the video and it wasn't too bad! I listed the link to Screencast-O-Matic along with my other favorite websites.
I did have difficulty getting screencastomatic accepted by You Tube but I finally figured that out, but then I realized that I had to embed it. It turned out that YouTube allows you to do that when you click on the SHARE button. I was pretty proud of myself for stumbling onto that one!
The more I think about this the more I realize that this tool is a modification in the SAMR model. It allows teachers to create instructional visuals that help your students understand the material in a manner that is an improvement over watching a lecture or reading a text book.
This tool will also help if used by students and screencastomatic is an improvement over screencast.com. You really do have to plan ahead before filming begins though and expect to edit and redo your video a number of times.
Engaging students and teaching them to use this tool is a great way to "use technology to support learner-centered strategies that address the diverse needs of students" and have students "apply technology to develop students' higher order skills and creativity." ISTE NETS III BandC.
I would use it in a cooperative learning setting where students learn a section of the science material and then use this tool to teach the concepts to the rest of the class.
So this time, after I designed the PowerPoint and got the visuals to work, I wrote out a script. I had to practice it numerous times, but also had to practice with the PowerPoint presentation at the same time so the timing was right.
Creating instructional videos can be time consuming, but it is fun. I suppose it is like anything else - easier the more you practice.
So what does a teacher do if their voice is horrible or they don't speak clearly enough. Perhaps, for future teachers, we will be required to take a class on speaking and voice modulation!
I uploaded the video to You Tube, but honestly I have not viewed it yet. Hope you find it amusing.
Screencast-O-Matic is great because you can pause it as you record. That's the best tool ever for me! I did just review the video and it wasn't too bad! I listed the link to Screencast-O-Matic along with my other favorite websites.
I did have difficulty getting screencastomatic accepted by You Tube but I finally figured that out, but then I realized that I had to embed it. It turned out that YouTube allows you to do that when you click on the SHARE button. I was pretty proud of myself for stumbling onto that one!
The more I think about this the more I realize that this tool is a modification in the SAMR model. It allows teachers to create instructional visuals that help your students understand the material in a manner that is an improvement over watching a lecture or reading a text book.
This tool will also help if used by students and screencastomatic is an improvement over screencast.com. You really do have to plan ahead before filming begins though and expect to edit and redo your video a number of times.
Engaging students and teaching them to use this tool is a great way to "use technology to support learner-centered strategies that address the diverse needs of students" and have students "apply technology to develop students' higher order skills and creativity." ISTE NETS III BandC.
I would use it in a cooperative learning setting where students learn a section of the science material and then use this tool to teach the concepts to the rest of the class.
Sunday, February 1, 2015
Numbers 1.3 Scatterplot Chart
I have Excel so I did download the add-on and it was easy to use. It appears that the average score for males across the country was 261.5 and the average score for females across the country was 271.6 which appears to indicate that girls scored higher than the boys on this reading assessment. I really wonder if it is just that girls read more on their own time than boys do at this age.
In Virginia, the stats show that we did better than the national average. The male average was 262.5 and the female average was 272.9. Virginia ranked 24th from the top and 29th from the bottom. I would be curious to learn what Massachusetts and New Jersey do differently from other schools across the nation.
Here is my scatterplot chart:
In Virginia, the stats show that we did better than the national average. The male average was 262.5 and the female average was 272.9. Virginia ranked 24th from the top and 29th from the bottom. I would be curious to learn what Massachusetts and New Jersey do differently from other schools across the nation.
Here is my scatterplot chart:
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