Payton's ePortfolio

I never have had knowledge or experience of coding until now. I truly never even heard of it before! Coding is defined as “the method of communicating with a computer” (Bonfligo, 2022). I did find coding a bit difficult to get the hang of and understand what it was that I am doing but it does and will have great benefits by learning the process of coding. In Bonfligo’s article she explains how coding has many benefits from academic to life skills and then eventually into the workforce. 

I chose to do the Minecraft hour of code. Well starting my hour of code, there were instructions on how to code and videos you could watch. I found this very helpful as I am very new to this. I did have a few struggles where I kept getting it wrong and unsure what I was doing wrong. But once I started to re-read and analyze it deeper, I soon found my solution. 

Throughout the Minecraft hour of code, I learned how to navigate obstacles to get to the goal point. Each stage did get more difficult or complicated and some did take more thinking than others. By following the instructions and steps it was pretty easy to navigate and find your way through the code. It did make me realize how coding is very important. It gives you the ability to problem-solve quickly and determine the solution.

I would 100% offer my students an opportunity to explore coding in my classroom. I has many benefits and can positively affect the students. This website offers coding in different ways such as Minecraft, Frozen or Flappy Bird which many students already play these games or watch the movies so that is another way it may spike the students attention and interest.

Resources:

Chontelle Bonfligo (2022, December 8). Why Coding is Important 

8 Reasons Why Every Child Should Learn to Code

As a future teacher, digital literacy is a topic I find that is very important to be taught in the classroom. In the world today, there is so much fake news being shared and how will we ever know what is true and what is not true. Giving your students the opportunity to learn about digital literacy and all the things it entails is a very important factor you should address. Although it may be hard to teach it to younger students, there is always a way but it will look different and help the younger students understand better and easier. The grade range I hope to be teaching is anywhere from Kindergarten to Grade 3 so that is what I will focus on when discussing digital literacy. 

I chose to look at the Grade 1 English Language Arts curriculum. By looking through the outcomes, I found that digital literacy could be integrated into all four outcomes. Students can google their communities and look through pictures tryna find if they have seen these images somewhere around their community. We can also do read alouds, stopping to discuss each part and what it means. For the CR1.4 outcome, well reading or looking at pictures we can discuss who is in it, what it is, when it took place, where it happened and why. We can use the curriculum as a guide on how we can integrate digital literacy into our classroom. 

In Couros and Hildebrant’s article they discussed some ways as teachers we can help our students navigate their way around fake news. Here are some points they explained: 

• Move beyond traditional and often ineffective information evaluation checklists
• Prioritize helping students develop investigation techniques 
• Teach students to identify bias
• Bring real world fake news examples that we encounter everyday into the classroom 

These four points are very helpful tips to help you teach digital literacy in your classroom. 

In the article, “It’s Easier To Call A Fact A Fact When It’s One You Like”, Domonske explains how one is to believe a statement more when it aligns with their beliefs. When teaching about digital literacy we as teachers need to make sure we are teaching the facts and have evidence to back up what we are saying. Everyone will have their own opinions and may considerate a fact if they believe in it. In Couros and Hildebrant’s article they discuss how people are more drawn to their own beliefs and opinions than they are factual truths. This is something that we do need to state to students, the difference between a fact and an opinion. Their parents may have an opinion on something but the facts may state something else. 

 “Ultimately, in a world where it is increasingly dangerous to simply trust what we read and see, it is critical that students are taught to approach the world around them with a healthy sense of skepticism to avoid being misled, duped, or scammed.” by Couros and  Hildebrandt, 2018 

By incorporating the goals of the NCTE framework we are keeping the networked world alive and available in the classroom. To do this I will have the students be engaged in the online world and explore the advantages/disadvantages and positives/negatives. Giving them the chance to recognize themselves and also guiding them along the way is one of my goals in a way to meet the NCTE framework goals. 

I found a great website called “MediaSmarts”. It is an online resource for teachers or parents to use when trying to find a way to navigate through teaching digital literacy to younger students as well as older students. It offers Kindergarten to Grade 12 resources and lessons. I found it pretty neat! Here’s the link to check it out: Digital Media Literacy Framework – Grades K-3 | MediaSmarts

References:

Dr. Alec Couros and Katia Hildebrandt (2018, September 6). How Do We Teach Students To Identify Fake News 

How do we teach students to identify fake news? | EdCan Network

Camila Domonoske (2018, June 19). It’s Easier to Call a fact a Fact When it’s One You Like

It’s Easier To Call A Fact A Fact When It’s One You Like, Study Finds : NPR

National Council of Teachers of English. NCTE. (2019, November 7). Definition of Literacy in a Digital Age 

Definition of Literacy in a Digital Age – National Council of Teachers of English

Digital identity is your identity that is out there floating around on the internet. It is created and usually infiltrated from digital technology such as social media and internet based activities. Well reading the “Split Image” article I read a sentence that really stuck with me, “Everyone presents an edited version of life on social media. People share moments that reflect an ideal life, an ideal self”. In this article they discussed Madison Holleran’s life and how it looked ideal. But in reality her life was not ideal. Social media hid the reality of her life and only showed her happy moments and accomplishments. This story brings the realization how everyone truly does or can just show an ‘edited version of life’.

“Her most pressing thought: If she quit, wasn’t she just a failure?” Kate Fagan. (2015, May 7)

In the TedTalk “How One Tweet Can Ruin Your Life”, Ronson states “Voiceless people realized they had a voice”. He talks about how people were posting and shaming themselves and others would comment on how they have done the same. This is using social media negatively. This information about you is now out there forever and it may come back to bite you in the future.

I chose Heidi Spetz to cybersleuth. I first started by searching her name on google and nothing came up for her so then I added where she’s from then more things started to pop up. I learned that she used to play soccer throughout her elementary and high school years. I also learned through google that she was in the Swift Current Regional heritage fair and was one of the finalists in 2017. I found her Edusite and all her posts she had made for this class. I found this interesting as I thought Edusite was more private and not something that would show up from a simple name search. Heidi’s social media accounts also popped up on my google search. I found her Facebook, Instagram, and Vsco. On Facebook I found her birthday, where she is from, where she lives now, and what University she attends. Her Instagram was private so I was unable to find anything on there. After cybersleuthing someone else, I am now realizing that EVERYTHING is truly out there for everyone to see.

Now thinking about how you can be so easily found on the internet is kind of scary. I am already very cautious of the things I post, share, or comment on but now after cybersleuthing someone else, I am now going to be more cautious than ever when it comes to using social media.

References:
https://www.espn.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/12833146/instagram-account-university-pennsylvania-runner-showed-only-part-story

As a future teacher, I find it very important to approach digital citizenship in a positive and encouraging manner. Technology is something that can be scary and intimidating so as a teacher I find it our duty to teach our students how to navigate technology responsibly and wisely. As I grow older, I have really realized how technology has greatly advanced since I was a child. Throughout my childhood, watching TV was the most techy thing it got for me. We weren’t surrounded by technology growing up and in school when it was needed, we struggled to navigate all the challenges it had. In my future classroom I plan to have technology available to my students so that they will have an opportunity to learn what it is, how we use it, and the advantages and disadvantages it may have. In doing this, I want my students to all know and understand when technology should and shouldn’t be used and how to use it both appropriately and wisely. I find it our responsibility to help students on their way to learning how to become confident and capable digital citizens.

As Jason Ohler said “School is an excellent place to help kids become capable digital citizens who use technology not only effectively and creatively, but also responsibly and wisely”.

When it comes to the 9 elements of digital citizenship there are a few ways I could go at approaching them. First would be starting with the three guiding principles; safe, savvy, and social. These three principles will be the stepping stones to teaching your students about being capable digital citizens and start them off on the importance of being responsible. After going over these principles I would slowly integrate each element into the curriculum and give the students a chance to go over and understand the importance of each concept, what it means, and what they can do to follow alongside it. I would help guide students along the way making sure they are understanding and communicating respectfully online to myself, other students, or other individuals.

I find there are so many benefits and helping students approach digital citizenship and the benefit of the student for years to come. As teachers, when we help students how to appropriately and respectfully navigate their way around the internet, we are creating a better environment for them and for everyone they connect and interact with.

I think our changed world and the new culture of participation is giving students the chance to explore these new technologies and become more familiar and aware of all the different technology there really is. As technology is getting more advanced and may be more difficult to locate certain tech tools you need and which one works the best as there are so many, when you do find the right ones they can have a huge impact in your classroom and give teaching a whole different view. I look at it as an asset, it is there when you need it and it has so many benefits.

In class we talked about the different uses of technology and how it has become or advanced now then back in the day. Some things we talked about is technology now has become wireless, it can be controlled through phone, e-transfer (money is digital), and news (newspaper to now on social media). Not only this but technology now offers us the ability to connect and communicate with others through zoom which can be very helpful when working in the classroom. All these things have changed and become more accessible to both students and teachers.

With this changed world and all the new tools it has to offer it gives you as a teacher a much bigger window to explore and create in your classroom. It gives the students an opportunity to express themselves in different ways whether it be through a video, presentation, blog, podcast, etc. The possibilities are endless when it comes to technology. Schooling looks different as we aren’t just sitting at a desk reading book after book to find the information we need, we can explore through the internet to find it which may come quicker or as we are doing this, learn other relevant information to help us learn the topics or themes we are looking at.

Balancing the challenges of the new and approved digital reality today may be very frustrating and difficult at times as it does take time, patience, and learning to get comfortable with using all these new tech tools. Once you get past the ‘beginner’ stage of this new digital reality you will find many benefits and possibilities that it offers. As a future teacher, I find it my responsibility to get comfortable and familiar with all the new tech tools so I will be able to use them in a positive way that will benefit all of my students.