Blog Assignment #3

Peer Editing
What is Peer Editing, Peer Edit with Perfect Tutorial, Writing Peer Review Top 10 Mistakes are all great videos that reveals what peer editing is and how to be an effective editor. What is Peer Editing and Peer Edit with Perfect Tutorial are both videos that provide step by step instructions to editing. According to both videos, there are three steps of editing, compliments, suggestions, and corrections. When editing someone writing, the editor should give compliments and always remain positive and keep in mind how he or she would feel if someone were editing his or her paper. The second step, which is suggestions, states that the editor should suggest how to improve the writing. Correction is the final step and involves the editor reading the writing sample and looking for errors in grammar, sentence structure, punctuation and spelling. When critiquing someone writing the editor has to remember to stay positive and reread the assignment to check for errors.

Writing Peer Review Top 10 Mistakes is a great video that shows what a peer editor should not do when editing another person paper. The video gave different scenarios and each scene was a good example of what not to do. The video is also a great approach to reach students that are visual and auditory learners. When writing, students are so worried about putting the information on paper or screen that they do not carefully read what they are writing; therefore, proofreading is crucial. As for the editor, the editor has to be careful when proofreading for mistakes to make sure they are in compliance with the three steps of peer editing and not being rude when editing an assignment.

Technology in Special Education

Using technology in the classroom is a great way to help any student, but is an excellent help in special education classrooms as the video shows. Computers and other devices are helping students communicate and read. Technology has helped nonverbal students express themselves and help others to communicate with them. Special needs students are often left out because they are different, but technology has help bridge the gap so students with special needs can have access to the same thing as other students. Bringing technology in the classroom has helped children with disabilities tremendously by building their self-esteem, helping teachers to communicate and educate the students.

I would use every technology that is available for students with a disability. I would use devices that would help communicate with my nonverbal students. I would also use laptops, smart boards, and I pads or other tablets to help my students have an equal access in and outside the classroom. A student with a disability should not receive any less treatment than a student without a disability; therefore, I would fight for the equipment I need to help my students. However, I feel that it will be a hard fight because school districts are always having budget cuts.

Apps for iPad

I am very interested in learning how to include the use of iPads in the classroom and I was amazed after watching How iPad Works for Academics with Autism. I would use the Sign 4 Me app in a special education classroom especially if I had some nonverbal students. The app is a great way to help the student express themselves and communicate by using sign language, which is a visual language to communicate with the teacher and other students. Sign language would help eliminate some frustrations in the classroom when I cannot understand a nonverbal student or a student with a disability. The app teaches ABC's, words, and sentences. This would be a great app in my classroom because I already know sign language and can communicate with the student on their level. I also believe this would be a great app because students are learning a different language.

Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts
Ms. Davis is a teacher in a rural area of Georgia and she has introduced a new learning technique to her students. She has did away with paper and pencil work and let her students learn through technology. Davis allow the students to learn the through their experiences and teach their peers what they have learned. Davis also allow her students to teach her and she is aware that she does not know everything and is willing to allow her students to teach her new things. Davis also started the flatworld classroom project which allows students to communicate with other students.

I truly enjoyed the video because Davis was very inspiring and wants to change the way we teach. I think it is very beneficial to include technology in the classroom and allow students to learn through experiences and teach others. I am thrilled how technology reaches out to students and let the students be creative. What I enjoyed the most about the video is how eager the students were to learning and how they got to see the world outside of their rural area.