The article, “The Importance of Teaching All Students About Tech Accessibility Features” by Toulope Noah, shares much insight about ways that students with disabilities can utilize technology. I chose this article because I work in a middle school self-contained classroom where I teach students how to find ways that they can accomplish their goals and learning how to use technology is part of those goals. For me to provide the best possible education for my students I need to stay current on these types of accessibility features so that these learning barriers are minimal. This article has brought out several features on an iPad that I did not know where there. For example, Safari Reader can be used to remove distracting ads and other unneeded information. This feature will be great for a student that I have that needs minimal information to navigate technology. Perhaps by teaching him how to use each of the iPad features once per week he will experience more independence with technology.
The article, “How to Teach Internet Safety to Younger Elementary Students” by Mary Beth Hertz, talks about the importance of training children to be aware of stranger danger online and how different that looks than in person. The principles discussed in this article are vital for me to teach the students in my classroom because they are more naive than most and do not always understand that some people have intent to harm them or take advantage of them. It is a goal of mine to be more cognizant of these things and teach my students how to protect themselves. A point that the article made that I had never thought about is that strangers look different online than in person and are already in your home even if you did not invite them in knowingly. I plan to show my students the BrainPOP Jr video that the article mentioned to springboard my discussion on internet safety.
Finally, the article, “Fantastic, Fast Formative, Assessment Tools” by Vicki Davis, provided insight on great products to improve feedback from students without embarrassment. A goal of mine is to learn more fun ways to assess my students so that they are learning without even thinking that they are in school. I was unaware of the platforms Socrative and Seesaw and their success with combining gaming with assessment. These tools will be a great addition to my classroom as I like to mix up the types of reviews and assessments that I present in the classroom. By mixing up platforms and methods of assessing I can reach all the students’ strengths and weaknesses to bring challenges to their ways of thinking.
References:
Davis, V. (2017, May 8). Fantastic, Fast Formative Assessment Tools. Edutopia. Retrieved January 21, 2023, from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/5-fast-formative-assessment-tools-vicki-davis
Hertz, M. B. (2017, September 28). How to Teach Internet Safety to Younger Elementary Students. Edutopia. Retrieved January 21, 2023, from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/internet-safety-younger-elementary-mary-beth-hertz
Home. (n.d.). Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/
Noah, T. (2023, January 20). The Importance of Teaching All Students About Tech Accessibility Features. Edutopia. Retrieved January 21, 2023, from https://www.edutopia.org/article/tech-accessibility-features-k-12-schools
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