"How to Help Someone Use a Computer"

I recently read an article by Phil Agre that gives some tips for those of us that help people with their computer issues. A couple points stood out to me as important.

The main point I thought was important when helping someone with computer issues was "If it's not obvious to them, it's not obvious". This seems to be obvious, get it? But it is not, it is easy to forget that what seems second nature to you is completely foreign to someone that has not used a computer very much.

Another great point was making it clear that if you don't know exactly how to fix the problem you say that. Then you can demonstrate how you work through computer problems to the person with the issue. Instead of them seeing the solution, they will see the process that generates the solution.

Copyright and Fair Use

Being able to create lesson plans using clip art or music but not being able to share the lesson with other teachers seems to defeat the idea of copyright laws being slack for teachers. If the information is okay for one teacher to teach from what changes if another teacher uses the same lesson?

Using a Disney movie to entertain small children while parents are meeting with teachers seems like a harmless act. The school is not profiting from it and the children are not going to be selling bootlegged copies. It seems that the “public” viewing is stretched too far.

A teacher can use movies to get kids interested in the lessons but it is against the rules to create a compilation of the parts of the videos that you would use. It seems that just by combining more than one video it would do very little to change the use of the material.

I kind of agree with the rules if a school purchases a version of software then teachers cannot purchase alternate versions and also load those on the computers. However I think a school should be able to purchase the software title; no matter how many versions are released they should get the updates until the title of the software is no longer being upgraded.

If a school loads a software program that they bought onto a server more than one user should be allowed to use it at once. There is no chance of them making copies of the program that way and it is cutting down on the amount of waste produced when multiple disks have to be provided.

Having more students than software could be a problem from year to year based on class size. Making back-up disks is allowed but using them to make sure every student has access at the same time is not. It seems old fashioned to only allow one person at a time to use software that has been purchased legally.

Web 2.0 Educator

I read some of Wes Fryer's blogs and am completely impressed. Not only does he seem to be up to date with all areas of technology but he is willing to share his examples. I liked that he is a teacher and talks about how he uses the applications in his classes. He tells you what went well and what could have gone better. It was refreshing to see that even someone that is on the cutting edge of technology in the classroom makes mistakes. I guess it will always be man versus the computer.

Type I and II Technologies

The article introduces us to Type I and II technology applications in a good versus bad format. Type I applications don't enhance the learning, they just incorporate the technology into the learning that is already going on. Pretty much using technology just to be using technology. Type II applications actually add something to the teaching that was not there before the technology was. Therefore the application is actually enhancing the teaching and learning experience.

Type I:

• Laptop Program in Maine- If a good teacher used it then it would be type II but that is not the case in the classes I have been in. When I have subbed for teachers in junior high they did not leave plans that would have the students using the laptops for projects or research. Instead they plans always ended, when they are done the papers, they can play games on their laptops.
• CD ROM Reproducibles-The big books of reproducibles have been put on CD now so the teacher can just print the page she wants and copy that. It doesn't change the way anything is taught but it does make storing the prep work easier.
• Elmo- This type of projector just puts the image of a book or paper on the screen. The same information is being used but it is on the wall. This is effect could be done by making multiple copies or having more than one book.

Type II:

• Laptop program-Every student having access to a word processor at school and at home has made assigning written work easier. Teachers do not have to schedule computer lab time anymore.
• Internet-Before the Internet all the research that was done in schools was done in libraries. Now teachers and students have access to the same information instantly from their desks.
• Smart Boards-The interactive white boards can save images to notes for students to get later. They allow all the students to see the step by step instructions while they are being done. There is also a lot more potential for these boards, I do know one way or another I will be using one.