Tech. TidByte
April 9, 2015
A Message from Dr. Melissa Williams
It's all about the device...or is it? Even among the tech team, there are healthy debates. I wonder if you can guess which of us are "i" people and which aren't? Even cellular companies are on the get the latest wagon with new no contract contracts. When you think about what would make a significant difference in the classroom, is it about the device or what activities can be done to engage students and enhance instruction towards knowledge acquisition? When we make purchasing decisions, we do not immediately grab the newest. We talk to other districts and investigate the applications that can be used to best benefit instruction.
You Can Book Me
Are you interested in having me out for an instructional technology or technology integration session? I can work with departments, grade levels, campuses, classes, or individuals. To book me, fill out the form on my calendar found at https://clightfoot.youcanbook.me/. This is linked to my Google calendar to show my availability. I hope this makes me more accessible to you.
-Caroline
Ditch 'Dat Desk!
I remember my first principal's mantra, "You teach on your feet! You plan on your seat!" With technology, this can be difficult because we seem tethered to our desks and separated from our students. I'll be part of a roundtable discussion on this topic at next month's TEC2SES Technology Consortium, and below are a few ideas to help you Ditch Your Desk and get out there with your students. The links offer setup tutorials, and if you have trouble, you can schedule time with me at clightfoot.youcanbook.me.
- Check with your Librarian to see if your campus has any Mobis or InterWrite pads
- If you have a tablet, look into an app like Splashtop, where you control your desktop from your mobile device
- Find an Inexpensive Wireless Mouse or Presentation Clicker
Back it Up
Did you know that if you save everything to your desktop or My Documents on your C Drive, your chances of losing valuable files is high? Flash Drives have a tendency to corrupt, too, so these aren't the best places to save important things, and neither is emailing the file to yourself. Be sure to save things to your P Drive or Google Drive. These "Back It Up" Tutorials will show you how to save files to your P Drive or DISD Google Drive and how to save your favorites and bookmarks in your web browsers.
Explore pbslearningmedia.com
I was recently introduced to PBS Learning Media at a Librarians' Meeting and felt it worthy to make the cut for our Symbaloo page. Browse PBS Learning Media by Grade and Subject for videos, interactive activities, audio, documents, and in-depth lesson plans.
Samples of Content to Expect
A Note from the Help Desk About Work Orders and Online Testing
The Dickinson ISD Technology Department is heavily involved in online testing. While you may not be directly affected by online testing, realize that we are in that season and work orders may take a little longer to be addressed than you hope. We ask for your patience during this time, and know that we do care. We will take care of you as soon as we can!