Taking Technology Integration to the Next Level
by Jensi Kellogg-Andrus ’84, WHS Biology Teacher
By receiving the grant to buy technology equipment for my AP Biology courses, I have been able to have my students create products that show me what they are learning other than just a paper and pencil test.
Through this grant, I was able to purchase high definition camcorders with video and still picture capabilities, headphone/microphone sets, and digital microscopes.
Examples of how my students have utilized the technology include creating podcasts (audio files) that are uploaded to a wiki (website) or WebCT (online course management system), creating videos to teach their classmates a particular concept, creating videos to be embedded in websites they create, creating videos of simulations of difficult biological processes, and the incorporation of digital images into projects captured by the digital microscopes.
In addition, I have used the equipment to create videos of our classroom discussion that students can use if they have been absent or want to listen and view our discussion again to get clarification.
The headphones also help auditory learners listen to online tutorials to help them learn at a higher level.
At the end of this school year, we will be creating tutorial movies for elementary students based on their grade’s life science standards.
We will distribute these movies to the elementary teachers so they can utilize the movies to help their students preview or review the biological concepts and processes they are learning.
Through this technology project, I want my students to integrate the technology we have received, review biology concepts, and be an academic role model for the younger students in our district.
By receiving the grant to buy technology equipment for my AP Biology courses, I have been able to have my students create products that show me what they are learning other than just a paper and pencil test.
Through this grant, I was able to purchase high definition camcorders with video and still picture capabilities, headphone/microphone sets, and digital microscopes.
Examples of how my students have utilized the technology include creating podcasts (audio files) that are uploaded to a wiki (website) or WebCT (online course management system), creating videos to teach their classmates a particular concept, creating videos to be embedded in websites they create, creating videos of simulations of difficult biological processes, and the incorporation of digital images into projects captured by the digital microscopes.
In addition, I have used the equipment to create videos of our classroom discussion that students can use if they have been absent or want to listen and view our discussion again to get clarification.
The headphones also help auditory learners listen to online tutorials to help them learn at a higher level.
At the end of this school year, we will be creating tutorial movies for elementary students based on their grade’s life science standards.
We will distribute these movies to the elementary teachers so they can utilize the movies to help their students preview or review the biological concepts and processes they are learning.
Through this technology project, I want my students to integrate the technology we have received, review biology concepts, and be an academic role model for the younger students in our district.