Validity of Internet Sources

Using reliable internet sources is a huge issue in our world today. Making sure that our students are using sources that give credit to the author is so important to enstill in them at a young age. When wondering if a internet source is reliable there are four things to look at: credibility, accuracy, reasonableness, and support. Credibility means to look at the authors name and authors credentials. Every internet source needs to be a trustworthy source. Accuracy means to use sources that are up-to-date and detailed. The source needs to reflect intentions of completeness and accuracy. Reasonableness is checking if the source is fair, has an objective and is without emotion in their writing to persuade the reader. Last but not least, support means to look at the other sources that were used to create the internet site information. Making sure they are reliable sources is an important fact when dealing with support.


I am sure that I am guilty of using a invalid source, but in high school and college this is something my professors have really enstilled in us. Using non-reliable sources in a paper or project in college is something that would get us major points off a paper or even a redo. In our society today there are so many invalid internet sites, so be sure to use CARS: credibility, accuracy, reasonableness, and support!


Here are some funny internet sites that are NOT reliable...


Pomegranite Phone


Tree Octopus

Fair Use and Copyright

Copyright and fair use are things that all teachers need to take into mind for themselves, but also for their students. When showing videos in class or news reports, teachers must make sure that they are not in violation of copyright. These two topics can get very confusing if you do not know the restrictions and guidelines of each. When it comes to using musical plays, poems, movies, songs and literature, teachers must get permission to use these items first. Many times schools must buy the rights to use certain materials. There are some fair use guidelines that allow teachers and students to use copyrighted material in the classroom. These include the use for: face-to-face student instruction, presentation at peer workshops and conferences, educational uses in the course for which they were created, and portfolios as examples of their academic work.

Copyright and fair use was not something that I thought about very often, which now I understand, is extremely important as teachers, especially Christian teachers. We must set a good example for our students and co-workers, so not violating copyright would be a good place to start. As teachers of the next generation we need to enstill in them a good work ethic, so by teaching them the proper use of copyright materials, they will hopefully make the right choice when faced with it.

A Christian Worldview in Education

Christians who are teachers have two very important jobs: to teach the future generation and to shine the love of Jesus into their lives. Being a Christian in today's society is one of the hardest things to do, but because of God's grace and compassion we are able to succeed. Seeing the world through eyes of those who love Jesus is completely different than those who do not. Yes, the world is an awfully horrible place, but there is so much potential for the word of Jesus to be heard. Making Jesus the center of your life lets you view the world as a place where you have a job. This job would be to reach those who are lost. It is easy to get caught up in how terrible things in our world are right now, but we must have hope and joy in Jesus Christ. As future teachers we must keep a positive worldview. Yes we should inform our students of the not-so-good things going on in our world, but always end with the positive aspect that they can help make a change!

Technology in Education

Using technology in the classroom offers a wide range of differentiation. Growing up I do not remember technology coming into my learning very much until I was in high school. It seemed like every class involved some sort of technology from the internet to using video cameras for research projects. The most technology that was used in my elementary days were videos or cassette tapes. Although these are good uses of technology, there is so much teachers can do with technology with their elementary students.  

Today there are SO many great options to use to incorporate technology into your classroom. Lets face it, we live in a society where most of our students are smarter with technology than we are, so why not include it in their day to day learning! Whether you are using your smart board to play a review game or having your students use computers to research volcanos around the world, using technology in your classroom is a whole new world of learning for your students.

Proverbs 31 Word Cloud