Copyright

Copyright laws can range from black and white to being in the gray area. From experience, it seems as though schools do not take copyright very seriously. The law that we learned about that surprised me most is that band directors are not allowed to copy music if students lose music or there are not enough parts for the band. I thought this was very surprising. I thought if you bought the originals you had the rights to that music within your band. I have been in band since fifth grade, and every year my band director has copied music if students have lost it, or there are not enough originals. As a teacher, it is important to teach students about copyright respect because they will encounter copyright throughout their entire lives, whether it is through sharing music, school projects, etc. I believe teachers should have to pay attention to copyright in order to be a good example for their students. They cannot teach their students to follow copyright correctly if they are not following it themselves. In addition, not following copyright can get the teacher, the school, as well as the school district in trouble. When I am a teacher, I will model copyright ethics. For example, I will only use a copy of a source for myself when planning or researching a lesson. I will explain to my students about the risk of downloading music without paying. I will try my hardest to have enough workbooks and textbooks for everyone in my classroom.

Interactive Whiteboards

Interactive whiteboards are becoming more and more common in the classroom and can be a useful resource for the classroom. Interactive whiteboards enhance teaching and learning by providing a hands-on experience. Interactive whiteboards are fully engaging. They provide visual, auditory and kinesthetic activities. Interactive whiteboards have enough technology to enforce any lesson in the classroom in a way that students want to do and in a way that they will remember. The interactive whiteboard technology, however, is difficult to learn. There are many different applications for the technology and it is important for educators to be introduced to the technology beforehand, as it is difficult to use with no prior knowledge. The pros of having them installed in the classroom is they provide an engaging experience for students, reinforce material in new ways, and incorporate a new technology in the classroom. The cons to having them installed in a classroom are they may be difficult to reach, they have malfunctions, and they are not able to be completely manipulated. Smartboards are great for incorporation into content. For example, when studying geography, the Smartboard can reinforce geography with matching games or map games. When studying money, students can make change with the infinite cloner. When studying seasons, students can sort aspects of seasons into categories. The Smartboard is a great resource for the classroom, as long as the preparation for use is done appropriately.