Mike+--+Diffusion+Project+Page

Click on the link below to view the paper that I wrote Week 1. The three innovations that I surveyed were one-to-one computing, IWBs (interactive whiteboards), and ePortfolios.
 * Week 1/Week 2: **

Mike are there economical implications concerning the use of whiteboards vs eportfolios? The one barrier in my work environment for one-to-one computing is the implementation of new pedgogical practices. One way to overcome this would be socialization and communication of the new practice. (Val)

Hi Val... I think that the main economical implication for IWBs would be determining if the investment in the technology will produce educational returns (not only in terms of how and what students learn but also in terms of changing pedagogy). I think that the barrier you mentioned for one-to-one computing is probably a similar barrier to just about any new technology. I am also taking EDUC 8111 right now; the book by Tryack addresses some of the issues that have plagued public education and the difficulty of changing a system that has been pretty indoctrinated into a particular structure. It will be interesting to see how things play out in the next 5-10-15-20 years in education.

Mike, Hi, I took 8111 last year and read the Tyack and Cuban (1995) and compared what they stressed to John Dewey's work. I did get an A but it wasn't a labor of love. Feel free to discuss any assignment with me. Val

Click on the link below to view the paper that I wrote for Week 2. The innovation that I will be focusing on for my diffusion project will be the use of IWBs (interactive whiteboards) in the classroom. In particular, I want to focus on using IWBs in the mathematics classroom.
 * Week 3: **



Mike you are fast. I feel IWBs will become popular especially in math. Here is a short journal article by Hall & Higgins (2005) on the perceptions of students using IWBs. Your paper looks good and although I have not considered using IWBs I am learning from you. You can probably access this article using the Walden Library any other method requires you to pay.

Hall, I & Higgins, S. (2005). Primary school students' perceptions of interactive white boards. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning. 21(2). 102-117.

Hi Val... Thanks for sharing the journal article. I will definitely check it out. I do have a portable IWB in my classroom. It has been interesting to learn how to use it and to explore the various ways that it can be used in the classroom. I think that one of the biggest challenges has been figuring out how to escape the tendency to keep things teacher-centered as opposed to moving toward more student-centered approaches. Tapping into student-centered strategies, in my mind, is one of the critical steps to making learning more interactive. I think that the work I do in this class will be a learning experience for me as well!

Hi Mike, I agree with you I am playing around with a math multiplication video game calledtimez Attack from a small software shop called Big Brainz. I loaded it on 5 PCs and had some of my 3rd grade children play with it and discovered that they loved the game and the tool helped them improve their multiplication skills. I run an after school program so their regular math teacher explained the multiplication process. So I just reinforced what was taught. I received email recently from Big Brainz that they were providing a similar math tool for addition and subtraction very soon. The web is [|http://wwwbigbrainz.com]

On a different note. Please provide your comments in the document text. It is much easier to see what you are pointing out to me. Also I have been playing around with the iPad and reviewing technical comparisons on this product as well as other Tablet PCs.

I look forward to hearing everyone's comments and feedback!


 * Week 4: **

Click on the link below to view the beginning of my IWB storyboard. I am a little behind in getting the development of my storyboard put together. IWBs in the classroom are posing an interesting problem in the sense that the jury is still out with regard to whether or not IWBs are having a positive impact on student achievement. As I continue to review the research, it will be interesting to see what develops.



Mike, It appears as though you are off to a good start. You will be adding images at some point too? Regards, Jason

Mike, I read your storyboard and it is good. I am also doing my research in applied, academic and basic but I am not finding a lot of previous work on the diffusion of Tablet PCs since this product is very new. Concerning the insertion of a video clip let me know how you will insert it. I am trying to determine how I should make the transition from voice-over PowerPoint to the video demonstration of how the iPad Language Arts application. Also do you know how long the presentation should be in terms of number of slides and length of time? Val