Article Summary #1

Citation
Zakas, N. (2013). The evolution of web development for mobile devices.
Communications of the ACM, 56(4), 42-48. doi: 10.1145/2436256.2436269

Summary

This article conveyed the changes over time in how society gets their information and
how the developer has to change their developing ways to accommodate the alwayschanging Internet user. It starts out discussing the past and where we came from, dial-up,
lots of images, lots of HTTP and slow data transfer. It moves into how everything we
started from wont work on mobile devices because it would be too slow. This article
discusses the things a developer should consider when creating a mobile site. In todays
society everyone wants to go fast, so the suggestions in the article help one create a
mobile website allowing the user to move through the air as quickly as theyd like.
Different program suggestions such as a CSS were mentioned as well as things you can
eliminate such as images and tons of JavaScript. These things arent necessarily needed
on a mobile application. A common problem mobile users have is the always-dying
phone battery. Mobile developers have to create applications that dont drain the battery.
To sum up the article, in order to develop a site, a developer has to consider what device
will be used to look at this site and plan and design accordingly.

This journal article caught my eye because it discussed mobile devices. I am constantly
on my mobile device so I thought I should learn a little bit about what goes into my
everyday use. I do believe this article could be useful to an application developer. It is

something that I will share with some students of mine as they are in a club that designs
apps. They are currently in competition with the other schools in our county to create the
best app. I didnt think there were problems with the paper, however I do think that an
article like this is difficult for someone like me because I have little-to-no experience in
creating any type of website whether it be on a mobile application for through my
desktop. Every suggestion made in the article made sense to me as a user but I dont think
I would be able to apply anything they discussed in order to help myself apply the
concepts. This being my first web design and developing article, I found it very eye
opening as the language is quite difficult. I had to read and re-read something because I
wasnt sure what they were talking about. After reading and summarizing I still think I
could benefit by reading it again.

Article Summary #2
Citation
Tingen, J., Philbeck, L., & Holcolm, L. B. (2011). Developing classroom web sites for
21st century learning . Kappa Delta Pi Record, 47(2), 88-90. Retrieved from
http://eds.b.ebscohost.com/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=215213ed-9a43-443b-8c83e08b51711a54@sessionmgr112&vid=7&hid=105

Summary
This article covered a research done on current websites that have been created by
the classroom teacher. They focused on two time periods of each site they found. The
website in its current design as well as its archived site 5 years ago. If they site didnt
exist 5 years ago, it didnt make it into the study. The main aspect the research looked for
was if the site was being used based on the 21st century skills necessary for our students.
The study found that out of 100 websites researched and studied, only 25 out of the 100
were being used efficiently. The article touched on a couple of websites that stood out as
great. These sites included features like an email link to the teacher, a homework spot for
parents to see, a calendar that outlined assignments and the curriculum of the class and
also places for work to be submitted, viewed and critiqued by others.
The most interesting fact that I found from this study was that the sites that were
researched were created without any prior knowledge on how to create one. It mentioned
that some teachers watched videos on how to write HTML code and others used website
design templates that they found or the school had purchased the software. Not everyone
has the opportunity to take class or even focus on Instructional Technology to learn how
to incorporate technology and websites into their classroom; however this is important in
todays society. I teach in a Title 1 school, meaning that 85% of our students are on free

and reduced lunch. Even with this against my students, the majority of them have access
to the Internet via their mobile devices and their data plans. Students these days
constantly function using the website, and as a teacher if you want to be successful and
see your students learning and engaged, you have to incorporate what they know. This
article stood out as important to me because teachers need to have their own websites, but
they need to be used efficiently and meet a certain criteria.

Article Summary #3
Citation
Tunks, K. W. (2012). An introduction and guide to enhancing online instruction with web
2.0 tools. Journal of Educators Online, 9(2), 16pgs. Retrieved from
http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ985402.pdf

Summary
The amount of people taking online classes in their higher education is growing
rapidly over the years. This creates a need for tools to help keep the students engaged and
active in their learning. The instructor of these types of courses needs tools easy to use of
them and the student as well. Having these tools allows the students to feel the presence
of the instructor without actually being in the same physical space.
More and more Web 2.0 tools are being created every day. These can be blogs,
RSS feeds, wiki-spaces, and even social networking. The main purpose of Web 2.0 tools
is to share information across a level playing field and allow for discussion between the
instructor and the classmates.
This paper was useful to me as a high school teacher. I teach Seniors in high
school and one of my main goals throughout the school year is to prep my students for
entering college. Like it was mentioned in the article, a majority of students now take
classes online. If I start incorporating Web 2.0 tools into my classroom on a weekly or
daily basis, my students wont be so shocked when they begin their higher education and
spend lots of their time online. I didnt think there were any problems with this journal
article. It was very well laid out and a very easy read. I mainly found it easy to read
because it was something that I am personally and professionally interested in.

The hardest part of the Web 2.0 tools is actually using them efficiently allowing
for a better and more engaging learned environment. I would have liked to seen a little
more information regarding successfully implementing the tools into a classroom.

Article Summary #4
Citation
Walker, A., Recker, M., Ye, L., Robertshaw, M. B., Sellers, L., & Leary, H.
(2012). Comparing technology-related teacher professional development designs: a
multilevel study of teacher and student impacts. Educational Technology Research and
Development, 421-444. doi: 10.1007/s11423-012-9243-8

Summary
Professional development is something educators must endure all the time as our
profession is constantly changing. This article discussed research done comparing two
types of professional development and the impacts the types had on students. One group
that was studied received a professional development only on technology use and
learning to incorporate online activities into the classroom. The other group was
technology use plus problem based learning. There were a lot of factors that went into
this research, but each group all had the same research questions. The results however
came back entirely different.
Neither one of the professional developments had negative effects; however the
technology plus problem based learning group showed significant gains across the board
with their students. The technology only group showed gains in student attitudes but there
were no other areas of gain from incorporating online activities with no other
instructional help.
I picked this article because over the last 3 years my school that Im currently
teaching at has been under the School Improvement Grant through the state of Georgia.
We are constantly forced to go to professional developments that have yet to be beneficial
to me in my classroom. The highlight of professional development days is that I miss an

entire planning period and have to rush to get things done before my students show up for
third period. I do not think that this article was useful to me personally however I do
think that someone at my school that plans professional development every week might
find the results interesting. This type of information could be used to drive a more
efficient professional development and a better use of my time in the mornings. We strive
to incorporate Problem Based Learning in our schools but no one has actually sit down
with me and helped me create one.
One problem that I had with this paper was the language. While I did have a hard
time following some of it, I fortunately was familiar with some of the research language
because of a class that I took last semester about different types of data and statistical
research. I overall learned that professional development needs to be modified based on
who is taking the class and that it should meet the needs of the teacher learner so they can
better use it to develop in their own classroom.

Article Summary #5
Citation
Yusuf, N. (2013). The future of global education. International Journal of Business and
Economic Development, 1(3), 75-82. Retrieved from
http://eds.b.ebscohost.com/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=215213ed-9a43-443b-8c83e08b51711a54@sessionmgr112&vid=18&hid=105

Summary
This article discussed the evolution of E-learning and how our education is being
impacted by the World Wide Web everyday. As in anything, there are advantages and
disadvantages to everything, E-learning is no different. Some advantages that learners
experience is being able to set their own schedule and having access to the information
24/7. Learners have the capability to use their own learning style to learn the material
rather than one way that you may or may not get in the regular classroom. Some
disadvantages are that it is easy to get off task and get behind and you might not always
have immediate access to the instructor as they cant sit at their computer 24/7 to answer
any questions.
This article showed E-learning happening in other counties, Saudi Arabia to be
exact. E-learning is taking place there but not as rapidly as say America because internet
access to households is hard to get to sometimes in this country. There are several
projects going on right now in Saudi Arabia to make E-learning more accessible to
anyone wanting higher education.
This article was interesting to me because I have been an E-learner on several
occasions. I have found it interesting to watch how the E-learning instruction has changed
over time. This information is particularly important to share with my students who are

soon about to graduate high school and have the opportunity to take advantage of this
great way to learn. A majority of my students will have to work their entire way through
college and having this type of opportunity is great for them. This article was very
informing. It was well written and an easy read. One thing that came to my mind as I was
reading this article was that as the world develops the E-learning concept, learning can
take place on such a larger scale. Having an opportunity to learn from people from across
the world is mind blowing. This concept is definitely not something my parents or
grandparents ever thought would be imaginable.

Article Summary #6
Citation
Ogunleye, A., Owolabi, T., & Sunday, A. (2013). The design and development of a webbased e-learning platform for the understanding and acquisition of various entrepreneurial
skills in smes and industry. US-China Education Review, 3(4), 239-251. Retrieved from
http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED542975.pdf

Summary
This articles main focus was about creating a Web Based E-Learning platform for
universities in Nigeria. The socio-economic status of Nigeria is very poor but is growing
because of the known concept that the young members of their society need to educate
themselves in entrepreneurial skills that will allow them the knowledge to become
successful business men and women. The government of Nigeria has focused on creating
an online web based platform that is mainly focused on entrepreneurial skills. This
program was designed to be very basic and well structured to encourage the best learning
possible. The young people of Nigeria will come out of the universities with the best
education possible for them at this time. The main problem for the graduates is receiving
funds to start their entrepreneurial avenues. This is the next problem to be solved in
Nigeria. They have goals of becoming one of the top 20 fastest growing economies by
2020.
This article was interesting to me because I teach economics at the high school
level. I find it interesting to see how other countries are implementing the concepts that
we are already using in America to achieve their own growth. This paper was a little
unorganized for me. It seemed to jump from topic to topic without connecting itself to the
topic before. I believe that it couldve been organized a lot better. After reading the article

my first thought was, this definitely didnt focus mainly on the website platform design,
like the title lead me to believe. I learned more about the socio-economic status of
Nigeria than I did about the web design.

Article Summary #7
Citation
Hyman, S. (2013). Creating virtual spaces. Knowledge Quest, 36-39. Retrieved from
http://eds.b.ebscohost.com/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=215213ed-9a43-443b-8c83e08b51711a54@sessionmgr112&vid=25&hid=105

Summary
This article reviews several different websites that you can use as an educator or
as a student or even as an individual to help you advance in any aspect of your life. All of
the virtual spaces you can create allow you to share, gather, and discuss learned
information with others. The main idea behind this article was to recognize that it is the
21st century and most people dont like to use pen and paper anymore. The resources
shared in this article even showed you how to create an online resume and use it
electronically to your benefit to get a job.
This article was very well written and anyone can benefit from the information
shared. As an educator I always like to come across new websites that I can use in my
classroom to help engage my students. This article shared several new sites that I had not
heard of yet. It also gave me new ideas that I could use in my classroom to help me help
my students be more successful in their education career as well as their futures.

Article Summary #8
Citation
Helibronner, N. (2013). Creating and delivering differentiated science content through
wikis. Science Scope, 36(5), 24-34. Retrieved from
http://eds.b.ebscohost.com/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=215213ed-9a43-443b-8c83e08b51711a54@sessionmgr112&vid=28&hid=105

Summary
This article encompassed two main aspects of teaching in todays society,
differentiation and technology. Rather than creating a website, it showed you how to
create a Wiki to allow the teacher to be in multiple places at once and still engage all
students based on their current knowledge and learning styles. The first thing you must
make clear when working with a wiki is having all students and parents understand that
there is a district internet policy that must be followed, especially when it comes down to
postings. Once the politics have been covered you can create different links to downloads
that will help guide students in their own learning. The article shows you a great outline
to have the students learn an entire unit without the lecturing. You can start with a Read
me First page and then move onto gathering data so you can group your students based
on an prior knowledge they have to the subject. From there you communicate with your
students what group they fall under and then set them free to begin. If planned and
structured well, as the teacher you are only the facilitator and the students are the
teachers. The article offers different ways of having the students submit work for grading
as well.
I really enjoyed this article because it is useful to anyone in the teaching field. I
am not familiar with wikis as I havent used them since my undergrad 5 years ago but I

felt inspired to use one of these types of spaces in a unit next year. This article was very
well written and contained lots of figures that really helped give the reader a visual of
what they were reading about. I found this article very useful in my professional
development and Im not a science teacher.