Week 13

- When and how do teachers act as designers?

Teachers act as designers when they plan their lessons around sparking their students’ interest. A well planned lesson does not merely impart information to the students, it inspires them to continue learning about the subject once the lesson is over. The trick of designing a lesson is so that it can hold the students’ interest, impart the needed information to them, and instill a desire to learn more.

- Select one of the followings and explain what it is and how it can be used in classroom: SketchUp, Trebuchet Simulator, Model Car Design, Scratch, iStopMotion, Impromptu. 

iStopMotion is an intriguing tool that allows even amateur filmmakers to generate professional grade stop-motion films. The benefit to the classroom could be enormous as it would allow instructors to create their own films to supplement their lessons rather than relying on existing films. Letting the teacher make the film themselves would allow them to tailor it to their lesson plan rather than trying to tailor the lesson plan to whatever films are available to them. It can also allow the students to learn more about a subject when they use the media to create their own film about it.

- Explain "Digital Storytelling by Kate Kemker." What do you think it would work in your classroom?

Digital Storytelling is no mere presentation like what I was assigned when I was in high school. It is submersive, calling on the student to plan and learn extensively about their assigned subject. It also calls upon the student to impart their knowledge to others, in effect teaching the rest of their class, and gives them a deeper understanding as a result. I believe that this would work very well in my classroom.

- Mathematics is one of the most abstract subject-matter domains. Helping students to visualize mathematical concepts is very useful in helping students make math real. What other methods suggested in the textbook will also help make math more real to students?

Any method that is highly interactive would help make math more real to the students. Programs like Mathematica that the student can use both at school and at home would be a great aid.

- Is it possible to learn from TV alone?--that is, learn how to do something merely from watching TV instruction? 

Yes, it is indeed possible to learn from watching TV instruction. A well planned and detailed television show can be every bit as informative as a live class lesson. The major downsides are that the instructors in a television program are rarely accessible for further questions if the student requires them.