How do NASA, STEM, and PBL meet the needs of 21st century education?
NASA, STEM, and PBL can all be effective tools for helping to meet the needs of learners as educators work to prepare them for the 21st century workplace. STEM encompasses all the necessary areas that students will need to be successful in the 21st century, NASA provides many resources for educators and students to help prepare them, and PBL allows students to develop the necessary problem solving skills to be successful.
STEM involves the teaching of science, technology, engineering, and math, all of which are areas which will be advancing rapidly in the 21st century. STEM allows students to learn these content areas which will allow them to be successful when they enter the 21st century workplace.
NASA offers multiple resources and opportunities to both teachers and students to allow them to explore the STEM content areas. NASA has worked to ensure that all learners have access to opportunities in the STEM areas.
PBL, or problem-based learning allows students to develop the necessary problem solving skills that they will need to be successful in the 21st century. PBL provides students with a problem or question (which could be related to any of the STEM areas, or other content areas as well) and requires that they come up with a solution to that problem or question. This is a skill which is important today, but which will be even more important as our students graduate and move into their future careers.
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Web 2.0 Tools
Which Web 2.0 tools did you explore and how might they be used in the classroom to promote communication and/or reflection?
When completing my course assignments, I explored the use of blogs, podcasts, media sharing, and social networking as classroom tools. I believe that each of these could be beneficial when teaching about global climate change and when teaching about all STEM topics.
Blogs would be especially beneficial for lessons/topics in which students needed to share information to be reviewed by their peers. Blogs could also be used by the teacher in order to inform students of necessary course information, links, etc.
Podcasts seems like a fun idea that students would love! Students could create their own Podcasts using software such as iMovie and share them with classmates. Students could create Podcasts to teach about an assigned section, or simply to present independent research.
Media sharing could be used in Biology as a way for students to share photographs of lab results with their classmates and teacher. For example, students could photograph a bacterial culture at specified intervals and upload photos in order to create a comparison over time.
Social networking is the final web tool which I explored. Students are already actively participating in social networking outside of the classroom so it only makes sense to use it for educational purposes. Teachers could create a Facebook or Twitter page for their class and use it to communicate with students and to allow students to communicate with each other regarding the course.
When completing my course assignments, I explored the use of blogs, podcasts, media sharing, and social networking as classroom tools. I believe that each of these could be beneficial when teaching about global climate change and when teaching about all STEM topics.
Blogs would be especially beneficial for lessons/topics in which students needed to share information to be reviewed by their peers. Blogs could also be used by the teacher in order to inform students of necessary course information, links, etc.
Podcasts seems like a fun idea that students would love! Students could create their own Podcasts using software such as iMovie and share them with classmates. Students could create Podcasts to teach about an assigned section, or simply to present independent research.
Media sharing could be used in Biology as a way for students to share photographs of lab results with their classmates and teacher. For example, students could photograph a bacterial culture at specified intervals and upload photos in order to create a comparison over time.
Social networking is the final web tool which I explored. Students are already actively participating in social networking outside of the classroom so it only makes sense to use it for educational purposes. Teachers could create a Facebook or Twitter page for their class and use it to communicate with students and to allow students to communicate with each other regarding the course.
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