Create your own mind maps at MindMeister

Today we had a chance to share where we feel we stand now one week into the course and what are some potential inquiry questions we have. Sandy and I are in a similar situation in that we are both teachers-on-call and do not necessarily know what kind of class we’re walking into each day. This led us to the inquiry question of how we could incorporate ICT to benefit substitute teachers and the students in the class. The ideas of creating something to do with community and an online community was initially discussed, but there is already an abundance of materials available online. What we feel we need is a more specific resource that takes advantage of technology to assist in engaging with students.

Using Mindmeister, we’ve decided to create a checklist (a work in progress) for a TOC or teacher entering a new school. With this list, the goal is to quickly figure out what technology is available. If a Smartboard or projector is already set up, the teacher can easily access materials, websites, a personalized blog, etc. in the class to hook in and engage the students at the start of the day. This could be incredibly useful if the classroom teacher has not left a day plan or to just connect with the students.

However, a major problem is the disparity of technology available in schools, and even amongst classrooms. Sandy and I hope to find solutions and perhaps create a database to find ways in which we can utilize technology in the classrooms we visit.

In the case that nothing is available and one is dead-set on using technology as a resource, there are some products that are available. Purchasing a 3g subscription for a device, tethering to your phone’s data, or even looking into mini-projectors could potentially substitute a trolly full of books.

The issue is it comes down to money and how much teachers are willing to spend for their traveling bag of tricks. Another concern is how fragile these devices are and the risk of damaging or losing them when traveling from school to school. While it could be viewed as an investment, I would like to consider other cost effective avenues first. Hopefully some practical solutions will become evident as we further explore this idea.