This week we discussed topics of inclusion and accessibility and how we can use technology to help reduce barriers and make a more inclusive class. Simone’s discussion was very insightful and helpful in regard to inclusive education. Having a more inquiry based model allows a much more inclusive learning experience because it does not require students to be confined in the traditional classroom environment.

I think using technology to reduce barriers and improve accessibility is a great way for teachers who are working in traditional classrooms to approach these issues. Because a lot of the accessibility benefits that Simone mentioned involve having more time to speak with teachers either one-on-one or in larger discussions, and unfortunately that might just not be possible in traditional classrooms. However, if classrooms were better equipped with technology such as speech-to-text and closed captioning would take some of the pressure off the teacher while still supporting the students.

Additionally, I think certain changes such as having different types of seating, having fidgets available, and having a “cozy corner” are relatively easy changes, that I plan to implement, that can have a big effect on students feeling supported and included in the classroom. Along with that I think it is important that all students have access to these resources so that no one child feels singled out and because I believe all students regardless of designation can benefit from supports. In another class we discussed how to address inclusivity and diversity and were introduced to the Rick Hansen Foundation, which has lots of resources available to help create a more inclusive classroom especially in regard to disabilities. I plan to integrate some of these lessons and activities into my classroom some day. After talking with a classmate, we realized we both really appreciated this resource and planed to use it in the future.

The most important thing to me that I believe fosters inclusive education is creating a welcoming and supportive classroom community. Focusing on building relationships also allows you to get to know what will help the students succeed and create a feeling of trust from the students to ask for what they need, knowing they will be listened to and heard.

Our discussion on AI was very interesting this week. The first two videos that were shown were crazy, although I did guess that both videos were AI, it still blew my mind that they could be created with a single line of text. The use of AI has always been a complicated topic for me because while I see the benefits, I am also wary of the drawbacks that come with AI use as well. One issue that I find quite important is the inherent bias that exists in AI. I think we have to be really careful to be aware and make accommodations for this bias when AI is trained using only white faces or western culture.

I never really thought about how things like Google Maps uses predictive AI. I had always thought of myself as someone who didn’t really use AI but I never considered all the forms of predictive AI with which I had interacted. This, along with our discussion about how AI actually works including trying out the Google Doodle AI training, makes me more open and interested in trying out AI. While I consider myself pretty “tech-forward”, AI has been the one thing I have definitely avoided.

I really enjoyed trying to recreate the one picture of a flower using computer-assisted art programs (Canva) and AI art programs (Craiyon). It was interesting to me that many people found the AI quicker while I felt like it was easier to use Canva as I could directly choose what I wanted instead of trying to input the right line of text. However, I have quite a bit of practice with Canva, as well as an account already, so that helped make it a quicker process for me.

Although I wrote most of this myself, I did want to try out the challenge posed to us to use AI in the creation of our blog post so I asked Chat GPT to “write a paragraph on the pros and cons of using AI in schools” (which might I say felt very meta). Exact prompts are in quotation marks.

Here is what it gave me initially:
The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in schools presents both advantages and challenges. On the positive side, AI technologies can enhance personalized learning experiences, tailoring educational content to individual student needs and pace. Automated grading systems can alleviate the burden on teachers, allowing them to focus more on interactive and creative aspects of education. AI-driven tools can also identify learning gaps, providing timely interventions to support struggling students. Moreover, AI can facilitate the development of critical skills such as problem-solving and collaboration through interactive simulations and educational games. However, the use of AI in schools raises concerns about data privacy, as these systems collect and analyze vast amounts of student information. Additionally, there is a risk of over-reliance on technology, potentially diminishing the role of human educators and the personal touch they bring to the learning environment. Striking a balance between harnessing the benefits of AI and maintaining the human element in education remains a crucial consideration for the successful implementation of these technologies in schools.

I then asked it to “condense to 3-5 sentences” and got this:
The use of AI in schools offers personalized learning and efficient grading systems, fostering critical skills. However, concerns include data privacy issues and the risk of diminishing the role of human educators. Balancing the benefits of AI with the preservation of the human touch in education is crucial for successful implementation.

Overall, I am quite impressed with generative AI, and am looking forward to exploring it more, but will likely keep writing most of my own blog posts etc. (I also made sure to use “please” and “thank you”…. because you never know right).

Separate from AI, I thought Miro was an interesting resource that I could use in a classroom. In my Link2Practice I was exposed to Jamboard and was disappointed when I learned it was being discontinued. I think giving the students the ability to write in real time on a digital whiteboard is a useful way to increase participation especially for students who might not feel comfortable speaking up in class.

This week we chatted about teachers as content curators and the importance of effective curation of resources. Curation not only helps you learn about the content itself, but also helps you teach curation to students. We also discussed many other reasons for content curation including using resources more effectively, ensuring good quality content, and preserving instructional time (from Week 5 slide deck). I thought our discussion about the three steps of content curation including reading the resource, organizing and refining information from the resource, and then sharing the information was interesting because I had never really thought about the specific steps of curation. The most novel information for me was the sharing component, even though I unconsciously knew that curation inherently includes sharing the content out again, I never really considered that it was a distinct and required step.

Since each step in the content curation process has different tech you can use, I ended up trying a lot of new tech this week. I was already very familiar with Pinterest as a way to find content, but I tried Notion as a way to organize content and Padlet as a way to share content. These were both new to me so involved some exploring and practice to figure them out.

I think notion is a very interesting resource especially since it has so many templates you can use. I started using it to keep track of my assignments and while I still don’t have a complete grasp on how to use it, I have been finding it helpful. Since you can create many different pages and categories I think it will a very useful tool to keep lots of information organized while also keeping it in one place. I have always been a “list person” so it is just another place I can make and keep lists (although I am never giving up my paper and pen lists!).

I also developed a Padlet for my learning pod to keep track of our inquiry projects and work on our presentation. I wanted to try Padlet as I have never heard of it and I thought that making one for our learning pod would be a good way to try it (plus I heard other groups did it during class). Because we have very busy schedules it can be hard to meet in person every week, so our pod discussed using digital tools to keep up with each other in addition to meeting in person when we can.

I have felt a little more inspired compared to last week and have made some video content which seems to be performing better. It can be really demotivating when you put a lot of work to create a video and have it tank in performance. I try to separate quality from performance because I know in the long run it is more important to make quality content than push out a lot of lower quality content that might get higher views but not provide any real value. Through this process, I have learned that reels definitely are more effective at converting viewers to followers.

I spoke to one of my content creators friends who along with her own fashion Instagram, also works for a travel and tourism account for Victoria (NearMe Victoria) about the best content to create. She told me that video content is most important and to keep clips very short to maintain attention and retain viewers until the end of the video. We have discussed whether more aesthetic videos with music or talking videos perform better but it seems like it is always changing. Although she does have lots of success, especially on her work account, we both struggle with understanding and predicting what the algorithm will favour. It is so helpful to have people in my community that I can discuss social media and collaborate with. It is a bit like our PLN that we have discussed in class, but for a different aspect of my life.