Tiger Tech Magazine

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An Innovation and Technology Magazine April 2012 | Vol 1 - Issue 2

logy tury o n h Tec 1st Cen s f o e orld n the 2 rity fix w e su aginary cceed i ne secu s I is the im th to su ith Ni h w d a t In Beyon dent’s p- arrives • Stu e 18 A m

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American Nicaraguan School www.ans.edu.ni - Managua, Nicaragua - 2012

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I think Google should be like a Swiss Army knife: clean, simple, the tool you want to take everywhere.

- Marissa Mayer

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April 2012 Content

Resources

Edu Tech

Support

Table of Content Main Article Beyond the imaginary world of Technology Pg. 4 Top Five Most used Tools Tools used by ANS teachers and students Pg. 5 Opinions A student’s path to succeed in the 21st Century Pg. 6 Tech News Chrome 18 - Arrives with 9 Security Fixes Pg. 7 Opinions My Experiences with Technology Pg. 8 Students Express Special Robotics Course Pg. 9 Xtra! Xtra!

Quotes, Jokes and more...

Pg. 10

Tiger Tech Magazine Editing Team

Creativity Team

Contributors

Michael Parrales

Rosselyn Porras

Noel Rios

Xavier Rivas

Vince Hernández Vivian Caldera Sergio Sánchez Norman Huerta Yvonne Nix Isabel Jang

Director of Innovation & Technology Editor

Educational Technology Coordinator Designer

imaginary

Beyond the

world of

T

Technology

oday’s world demands more use of technology to effective teaching and learning. As educators, we face more challenges on how to integrate the different tech applications or “gadgets” in our daily classes and prepare our students for the 21st century. When students are using technology as a tool or a support for communicating with others, they are in an active role rather than the passive role of recipient of information transmitted by a teacher, textbook, or broadcast. The student is actively making choices about how to generate, obtain, manipulate, or display information. Technology use allows many more students to be actively thinking about information, making choices, and executing skills than is typical in teacher-led lessons. Moreover, when technology is used as a tool to support students in performing authentic tasks, the students are in the position of defining their goals, making design decisions, and evaluating their progress. The teacher’s role changes as well. The teacher is no longer the center of attention as the dispenser of information, but rather plays the role of facilitator, setting project goals and providing guidelines and resources, moving from student to student or group to group, providing suggestions and support for student activity. ANS has taken a leading role in the use of technology in classrooms. I strongly believe that technology maximizes learning and give

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Tiger Tech Magazine | April 2012

Main Article Vince Hernandez

Chemistry Teacher - High School

more opportunities to keep us updated with our teaching.

Keeping these ideas in mind, I took the challenge of asking my students to design a Google Site plus a wiki (web page creation tool that allows anyone to be able to create a team oriented site where multiple people can collaborate and share files) for this 2012 ANS Science Fair. It turned out that it was an empowering tool to my students. Learning how to use Google Sites enhanced their self-esteem. I observed a much more facilitating atmosphere because my students helped each other so much. Some students did more stylistic things in terms of how they wanted to emphasize their ideas so creativity was also accomplished. I told my students that their Google Sites will serve as reference for other ANS students in the future and they will be available to anyone in the world. Amazing!

On April 1st 2012, Google launches a yearly event http://google.com/events/ sciencefair/ where students submit their Google Sites to win cool prizes: a scientific trip to the Galapagos Islands with National Geographic Explorer, unique scholarships and reallife work opportunities in iconic science centers of excellence like CERN in Switzerland. My students will submit their sites to compete in this year’s edition.

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Top five Google Sites

Most used Tools

is a free and easy way to create and share webpages. Add different media into it, connected to all Google Services easily.

Dropbox is a free service that lets you bring your photos, docs, and videos anywhere and share them easily. Never email yourself a file again!

Google Sites Dropbox

Interactive transforms any whiteboard, or projection surface, into an interactive teaching tool. MimioTeach, MimioVote, MimioView, MimioPad ...

Mimio

Presentations never remain static. Pull in live tweets or blog feeds, insert an interactive map, add audio notes or stream videos.

Weebly

Projeqt

Weebly for Education is a special version of Weebly for teachers and students. Create a free class website and let your students build sites too.

Sharing Docs Dropbox

On March 20th, I asked students to put their Google Sketch-up of Ancient Rome in their Drop-box folder.

I made a folder for each student. It takes time to make a folder for each individual student, add their ANS email to the shared folder. Students also have to check their email, accept their invitation. But that’s the hardest part of the Dropbox folder.

Once, it’s established, students can easily put their items in the shared Dropbox folder. It curious, because of the novice of the folder, students ask, “Can you check the folder if it’s there?” Yes, it’s there.

In my short time with experimenting with it. It’s easier than adding the attachment.

It’s easier to open the projects than downloading them from an email. It has larger capacity.

By: Sergio Sánchez Social Studies Teacher High School

An Interactive Classroom

M

Vivian Caldera Second Grade Teacher

y teaching life changed the day I got my hands on the interactive whiteboard (mimio). I really cannot picture myself teaching (math specially) without it. The use of the interactive whiteboard has given me the opportunity to present information to my students in a variety of ways. I use it to project the book and work on the problems together, show videos and word problems with bar models using colors, get a quick assessment on who is getting it and who is not getting it through personal whiteboards. Use other teacher’s lessons to help support my teaching. It also gives the opportunity for kids to come up and show their knowledge to the class. It helps them to be engaged.

I recently purchased an iPad. I use to record my conferences with kids, analyze their work through pictures and to keep a digital portfolio of each of the kids. It also allows me to show their work through pictures in my web page. I also use it for small group or one on one tutoring. There are several applications like notability and Singapore math that support my teaching daily. The incorporation of the iPad in my teaching life has helped me to show my student’s work in a variety of ways.

technology.ans.edu.ni | Tiger Tech Magazine

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Opinions A student’s path to succeed in the 21st Century Michael Parrales

Director of Innovation & Technology

21

st

Century technology development has triggered a new educational concept composed with new learning styles and requirements and with several tools and resources intended to significantly improve students learning, almost of all them were not conceivable in the early 90’s. At the present time students are referred as ‘digital natives’ due mostly to their capacity to learn and interact with new technologies and devices ever since they are very young. I have seen several examples of one year old kids making use of Tablets in a very impressive way, without ever being taught to do so. This is meaningful and makes us realize that things are changing and that educators can’t continue teaching in the same way they were educated.

21st Century is also conveying other sets of new concepts, not only in education but also in the work place. The quantity of new careers in Universities is impressive, so is the variety in job positions. I remember when I was in school, there were only a few careers offered, now the options are much wider.

With all these new approaches and concepts available, there’s something that has caught very much my attention, and is the fact that employers are now looking not just for University accreditations or experience in the particular field, but also for employees with a specific set of skills. Most of those new required skills are becoming part of the standards for students in many schools around the world.

Among the most recognizable are the ones created at ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education), which are: communication and collaboration, creativity and innovation, research and information, critical thinking, digital citizenship, and technology operations.[1] According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, employers rate ability to work in teams, ability to verbally communicate with others in the organization, ability to make decisions and solve problems, ability to obtain and

process information, ability to plan, organize and prioritize work, as very important skills and qualities candidates must have when applying for a position. Technical knowledge related to the job emerges after all of these.[2] Without a doubt developing these 21st century skills is essential for a student to succeed not only in college but also in the work environment. Technology integration in education should collaborate and assist in these endeavors.

Based on the evidence presented by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, the question that surfaces is if having those skills is more important than the core subject’s content itself. Probably, in careers not related to health and law yes; however, there has to be a balance between skills and content to be nurtured together through the school years.

According to Kay, K(2010,p.20) 21st Century Skills Rethinking How Students Learn, a 21stcentury education must be tied to outcomes in terms of proficiency in core subject knowledge and 21stcentury skills that are expected and highly valued in school, work and community settings.

A good combination of both skills and content will outfit the path for student’s success in the future.

Conversely, my perception is that developing 21st century skills is a little bit more important for the reason that students will be prepared to communicate ideas, collaborate with others, solve problems, analyze and think critically, work in teams and being creative and innovate and this approach will definitely make them much more competitive.

1 ISTE(2011) ISTE International Society for Technology in Education.

Avalable at: http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-students.aspx (Accessed March 8, 2012)

2 NACE(2011) the National Association of Colleges and Employers.

Available at http://www.naceweb.org/s10262011/candidate_skills_employer_ qualities/ (Accessed March 8, 2012).

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Tiger Tech Magazine | April 2012

Chrome 18

Tech News

Arrives with Nine Security Fixes

G

oogle on Wednesday released Chrome 18 to its Stable channel complete with several new features and fixes for nine security vulnerabilities.

Officially named version18.0.1025.142, the new version of Google’s open source browser offers improved graphics performance on both new and older hardware as well as closing numerous security holes, including three high-severity ones.

“Today’s web brings beautiful, rich experiences right into your browser,” wrote Vangelis Kokkevis, Google’s “Chrome Graphics Olympian,” in a blog post on Wednesday announcing the new release. “With Chrome’s most recent Stable channel release, we’ve sped up graphics and drawing performance for users on capable hardware, and enabled fancier 3D content for other users on older computers.”

An Extra $8,000 Awarded Included among the security fixes incorporated into the stable version of Chrome 18 are measures being taken to address the exploits submitted in the recent Pwnium competition, Google blogger Karen Grunberg noted in a separate post.

Teenage researcher “PinkiePie” is among those credited for uncovering the vulnerabilities, which included five medium-severity and one low-severity bug along with the three high-severity problems.

Specifics about the individual vulnerabilities are being withheld until the majority of users are updated, but in the

Katherine Noyes PCWorld

meantime Google has awarded an extra $8,000 to researchers involved during the development cycle to help make sure the bugs didn’t make it through to the stable version, Grunberg said.

Also included in the stable Chrome 18 is the new Adobe Flash Player 11.2, she added.

A New Software Rasterizer As for the graphics improvements included in Chrome 18, two key changes have been added to enable them, as we already saw back in February, when the software’s beta version was released.

First, there’s the fact that the browser has enabled GPU-accelerated Canvas2D on capable Windows and Mac computers, “which should make Web applications like games perform even better than a pure software implementation,” wrote developers John Bauman and Brian Salomon, in another blog post.

Then, too, there’s TransGaming’s SwiftShader, a software rasterizer that gives users with older hardware configurations access to basic 3D content on the Web. Chrome 18 is now available as a free download for Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X, but users already running Chrome can upgrade using the browser’s automatic update function.

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technology.ans.edu.ni | Tiger Tech Magazine

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MY

experiences with Technology

“O

bstacles are those you see, when you take your eyes off your goals”, I really love that quote and I also apply it to my life.

Indeed, technology is an obstacle for some veteran teachers like me. The hardest part in the process of moving from chalk boards to interactive Mimios is adaptation.

I realized my students were way ahead of me in terms of using technology and I want to catch up with it. As you get into the technological world, you soon discover your life as a teacher is getting easier and easier every day.

In the sense of Lesson Planning, Developing Evaluations, Oneon-one student interaction, ans all those teachable moments you couldn’t have the chance to do it without the use of technology is now a reality.

“

Obstacles are those you see, when you take your eyes off your goals.

”

Find resources in the ANS Tech Learning Hub

technology.ans.edu.ni

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Tiger Tech Magazine | April 2012

Opinions Norman Huerta

Mathematics Teacher - High School

I changed my OHP for a Document Camera, then I moved from Document Cameras to Interactive Boards, and lately I am using a Mimio Tablet one of the best leading edge technology devices. To evaluate my students, I am going almost a 100% green with the use of Google Docs applications.

One of the most useful ones is Exam General or Google Doc Forms, your students are so used to doing things on their computers that they will love to have all kinds of assignments on their computers.

It is unbelievable the available resources we have, which we haven’t had the chance to explore and experience.

I believe we have to get ready to face the issue of dealing with technology, and becoming a tech savvy is just wonderful.

Students Express Isabel Jang

Special Robotics Course

Semester I and II Course Evaluation

12th Grade Student - High School

Semester I Throughout this semester of Robotics, I’ve learned so much about programming and building robots. We first learned the basic concepts of robotics and its components. Then we researched about the Three Laws, engineering in robotics, and computer programing.

After, we began using computer software to learn about programming, our group built and such as MSW Logo and Small programmed the Segway Basics. During this process, we also Rider with light sensor used the NXT Intelligent Brick to test and the mouse trap with out various types of robots, like Line touch sensor.

Follower, Humanoid and Baseball Batter. This course has made all our group members learn to work in team, which is one of the things I liked. Another thing I liked about being in this class is testing and troubleshooting the robots we build. It is fun to see when two group’s robots go against each other, like in the Sumo Bout Competition. One thing I think we could improve is to have more robots, instead of only one each group. In that way, all members could build and program, and not just that one who is assigned to do it. In conclusion, it would be great if there were a continuation of this course so that I could build more, program more, and learn more about this topic.

Semester II This is my second semester having the Robotics Course. Unlike last year, we started the class by finding and exploring any video about robotics which we found interesting. I found a video which talked about the MDS (Mobile Dexterous Social) Robot; it has the ability to move, to grab and hold objects, socialize with people,

and more importantly, they could express their feelings.

Last year, we started using Edmodo to upload our projects and essays; this time, we use it to post our Edmodo entries and share it among our classmates. These entries can be any video regarding new technology or robotics-related topics.

One of the project presentations I did and uploaded on Prezi was about the Robotic Solution and Contribution to Food.

I’ve learned that the food industries depend much on the robotics solutions in order to perform their tasks efficiently by reducing the human errors and minimizing the process interruptions.

Furthermore, this year we focused more on learning the sensors and servo motors of the NXT Lego Mindstorm. We first had to find information about these sensors and motor, and then do a Prezi Presentation about them. After this, we started to build each type of robot with each of the sensor ability, such as light, touch, sound and ultrasonic and one robot that demonstrated what a servo motor does. For example, our group built and programmed the Segway Rider with light sensor and the mouse trap with the touch sensor.

Currently, we are preparing our Mini Sumo Bot for our upcoming competition. I am in Group#2, called Futsu-Nushi-NoKami, together with four other members. Our design for the Mini Sumo Bot is slightly different than the original design because we decided to add a barrier pusher that might help push out the opponent’s robot out of the ring in the completion. Hopefully, our new design can outstand in the challenge. I am really excited to see the outcome. After spring break vacation, I would really like to have more challenges and competition among other groups in the class.

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Inspirational Story Yvonne Nix

Fourth Grade Teacher Elementary School

I’m the learner when it comes to using some of the technology that has been introduced. I try to stay one step ahead of the students, but I’m not always successful. Thanks to all the help of colleagues and the tech department new ways of using technology has been implemented in the classroom.

The interesting thing about kids trying new things, is that their parents are often involved in the learning process as well, and the students become the teachers. All of the 4th grade students did a Prezi for the Native American project. Almost

all of it was done outside the classroom, which meant that in the classroom we could do some “hands-on” investigations about the Native Americans. Google Forms is another program that has been used several times. Students have responded on Forms as part of their daily reading at home. They are now in the process of filling in a form for the 5Ws of a newspaper article. 4th grade has also used Kidblog for committing on the reading they have done. It’s a great way for students to view the thinking of their peers. I’m excited about all the possibilities that are out there to explore.

technology.ans.edu.ni | Tiger Tech Magazine

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Xtra! Xtra!

creativity

The Articles presented in this magazine are based on personal experiences and opinions and not necessarily represent authorship of the American Nicaraguan School.

American Nicaraguan School

Innovation & Technology Division Frente al Club de Lomas de Montserrat, P.O. Box 2670 Phone #: (505) 2278-0029 / (505) 2278-4508 / Fax: (505) 2267-3088 Managua, Nicaragua www.ans.edu.ni