Helpful technology for school.

Block and focus:

I’m just going to start off with what i think is hands down one of the best ways to help someone focus. I always find myself trying to start my homework early, only to stare at my screen for a few seconds before temptation kicks in and i take a multiple-hour long “break” only to realize that I’ve wasted another day i could have used to get my project done. This is a problem i think many students, and even adults, are all too familiar with, and i think that block and focus solves this problem in the most brilliant way possible.

Block and focus is an extension for chrome, and it takes a list (blacklist or whitelist) to restrict your web browsing and make you more productive. Then, whenever you try to visit a website while you are working, if it is something that will distract you, it instead gives you a motivational quote. This is great for me because often the hardest thing about working is getting started (at least in my opinion) and block and focus makes it as easy as just clicking a button.

I find this particular method of keeping on task especially effective when working on projects that require the internet, because whenever i am on the internet i find myself easily tempted and sidetracked, and often find myself wasting hours that could be used to work. As well as keeping you on task, block and focus has included break periods where it unblocks websites for a period of 5 minutes or so to allow you a small break to refresh yourself for more work. This is especially great for large projects because it allows you to tackle large chunks of work at once without feeling overwhelmed because of the small breaks you are allowed.

Quizlet:

Quizlet is another great piece of technology for learning, and is one that i have been using for a while now. Quizlet makes studying easier with it’s creative approach to flash cards. The problem with just standard flash cards is that they take so much time to create, and are incredibly tedious and boring to look over to the point that it doesn’t even feel worth it. However Quizlet makes this process much easier.

Although you still have to go through the process of entering all the information into Quizlet so that it can make your flash cards, it is a little bit easier because on a computer you can type faster and you can also copy/paste information. On top of that (and this is where i think Quizlet really shines) Quizlet makes the studying process infinitely easier and more engaging with the multiple unique approaches that they bring to the studying process. Quizlet has multiple different studying ‘modes’ which make the process much more interesting than just staring at digital flash cards (though if that works for you, they have that as an option). This is great for me, especially for learning languages because i often find that just staring at a word and it’s English translation doesn’t usually work out that well for me.

Each different way of studying is unique, so if i find that some part is giving me particular trouble, i just choose a different mode and often is solves the problem. Or in the case of a word or concept that i am continuously getting wrong, regardless of the way i am studying it, Quzlet solves that as well by tracking your progress. Then, Quizlet will look at the certain concepts that you get wrong more often, and will test you more than other concepts that you may get right instantly.

Desmos:

Desmos is a great online software that works well as a graphing calculator, but also has a few extra features which make it great for math class. In addition to graphing equations for you, Demos has creative games that can be fun while teaching you about graphing. Desmos has games which require you to create graph equations to solve puzzles, or require you to draw graphs based on a small animation you see. Not only that, Desmos also an option to create interactive graphs where you can modify different parts to see what they do. This would be especially useful in my math class because we are currently getting into different sinusoidal graphs, and this would make is so much easier to learn how equations can be modified and morphed by adjusting certain values.

Remind:

Lastly, remind is one of the most useful tools by far for teachers and students alike. If i were a teacher i would be sure to use this because it would almost eliminate any students forgetting about assignments. Remind is a great software that allows teachers to send mass reminders to each of their students manually, or automatically, using either the students phone number, or a messaging app made by remind. This allows teachers to send out mass messages about a change in deadline of an upcoming project, or clarify something about a project, or remind students that there is a test coming up. Not only that, remind can also allow students to individually contact the teacher with any questions or concerns about the class, which can make the students learning experience much easier as well.

 

 

 

Proctastination/Effective learning project

Recently in IDC ICT, we (the class) did a project regarding procrastination on projects, and effective learning in class. In class we discussed different personalities and learning types, and how each unique learning type can decrease procrastination and increase learning productivity. In this project we were asked to choose one or more of the points made in either of the presentations and research them further in depth. After, we were required to create a way of conveying our findings in an interesting and engaging way.

I personally chose to conduct research into procrastination, specifically, how impulsiveness has an effect on procrastination, and how to prevent impulsive behavior to reduce procrastination. Ironically enough, i am an impulsive person, and found myself procrastinating until the day before due to my inability to prioritize starting the project over other, more “attractive” options. However, despite me procrastinating, i feel like i ended up putting forth my best work for the project. I did not find myself having to cut any corners, or omit/modify parts of my project to get it done in time. I worked on each part of the project fully in depth until i was 100% satisfied with the result, and i can honestly say that i do not feel that i would have done anything extra had i started sooner. That being said however, i did end up loosing out on a little bit (okay a lot a bit) of sleep.

We were given plenty of time to complete this assignment, multiple class periods dedicated to work, over the course of about a week, however i did not really find myself on task for any of the periods. I feel like this is partly due to the fact that my impulsive nature makes it difficult for me to get on task (though, when i do manage to get on task, i find i can focus for long periods of time), partly due to the fact that i was not particularly worried about the workload of the project, and partly due to the fact that i find it easier and more efficient to work under the stress of an immediate deadline (though i feel like this could also just be and excuse i use to justify procrastination to myself).

Relating the assignment to the the three points in the procrastination presentation (Expectancy, value, delay), i can say that i was probably set up to procrastinate from the beginning. I expected to do pretty well on the project, but i didn’t value it enough for it to seem urgent for me to complete, so i felt i could (and did) leave all the work off to the weekend because i wasn’t in any particular rush, and i wasn’t worried enough about doing poorly on the project to panic me into being productive.

Having the knowledge that there will be many other tasks in this class that will be structured similarly (loose guidelines, work periods, etc.), does not really worry me in the slightest. As long as i have a good understanding, and am confident of what is generally expected of me for the project, i have enough information to work efficiently and to the best of my abilities to complete the project.

 

Idc Ict PEDs Project Reaction

IDC ICT is a great course where myself an the other students get to learn by practical application rather than the usual lectures or lessons that other classes utilize. For me, this makes it infinitely easier to learn and be engaged with the course because, even though I’ve never had trouble learning through lectures, i always find i learn more efficiently and just learn more in general when i get to have a hands on experience when learning. That being said, the first project we have received as a class is a project regarding the promotion of the use of PEDs (Personal Electronic Devices) in classroom environments. I find this to be a great project because this directly effects all the students involved so it provides reason for us to get attached and passionate about the project, which leads to a better quality of work.

My group is working on giving teachers ideas for the implementation of PEDs in a classroom setting in order to help them become more open to the idea that PEDs can be a great way to enhance student’s learning experience. Currently, i just finished work on the survey which we will use to gather information on what the students think of the use of PEDs in the classroom, and which PEDs they have access to. Once we have that data, we will use it to determine possible effective activities that can be created to engage the students using PEDs.

One of the concerns that i have for this project  is that i fear students may use the opportunity to use PEDs as an excuse to be distracted. But i am a little less bothered by this because i realized that no matter what, if a student really doesn’t want to focus on learning, they will find a way to distract themselves. There is also the concern that we may not be able to implement all the PED activities that we would want to implement in the class simply because we do not have the resource/access to the PEDs to be able to implement them. However, this is also not of much concern to me because we will survey students at the beginning so we know which PEDs we can be sure we have access to. Also, if we can prove that PEDs can significantly help students learn, and teach effective ways to utilize PEDs  for learning, then hopefully sometime down the road the school/school board might allocate more funding to allow more students to have access to more types of PEDs for learning.

Should this entire project go smoothly, i hope that we will be able to convince many, if not all teachers, of the benefits that PEDs bring to the classroom. I am hoping that we will be able to show a positive correlation between the marks and success of the students in the class, and the amount of access that they have to different types of technology. If we can manage to show this, then i feel like it would be a great step towards improving the overall quality of education by using our project as an example for the learning possibilities with proper use of technology.