February 28, 2010

The Machine is Changing Us

Michael Wesch's video demonstrates the changing media, more specifically YouTube, and the effects it has on the population. The videos he discussed shows how we are making connections more than we ever have through this medium. He discussed how people can reach out to so many other people to express themselves in a variety of ways. Additionally, he discussed how people become more self reflective on YouTube and how this medium is changing how people express themselves. It reminds me of being a pre-teen and recording little skits on a tape recorder for fun, but they were only shared with friends. Now with YouTube kids share their videos and skits with the world.
We've come a long way from the tape recorder to the vast array of multimedia tools we can use to express ourselves today. I'm sure YouTube, or some form of it, will soon become commonplace in the typical classroom as a learning and teaching tool.



This is How We Dream
Dr. Miller's video spoke of the future of writing with the use various forms of multimedia and the internet. No longer do we have to wait for books to be published. Writings and multimedia can be published almost instantaneously through the internet. More people have access to information in a shorter amount of time. Publishers have more views of their works through the internet than they could in the more traditional means of bound books and print.
Richard Miller spoke of how documents go through incremental change. Where documents may be headline news on the web or news in an email, later, these older documents can still be found on the web as a web based document. Whereas, traditional books, papers, etc. may be out of print and hard to find, the out of date documents and news on the internet can still be found. It basically undergoes incremental change. The internet now makes researching materials much easier and convenient than the traditional library search.
He also spoke of how we, as educators need to be willing to share ideas freely and collaborate with other educators. What better way to do this than by the use of the internet where educators can meet and collaborate with a multitude of educators from around the world, thereby, gathering, sharing and implementing new ideas that would, likely be virtually impossible without the use of the internet. The internet and it's seamlessly endless possibilities in education are here to stay. Teachers need to grasp this concept and accept it as a part of our future and learn all they can on using the internet as a teaching and learning tool. Finally, if the future of writing consists of more digital composing, then it is in the best interests of teachers to jump on board and utilize as much of the technology they have and learn right along with the students.

The Networked Student

I found this video very enlightening. It allowed me to see visually how all of these networking projects are connected. I see now why it's called connectivism. This would be a wonderful video to present to all teachers and students as an introduction to teaching students these networking skills.
It was interesting to see the student actually created a virtual textbook of information that he found most useful in his learning through his bookmarking account and RSS feeder. Unlike a traditional textbook he was able to include only information that was pertinent to what he needed in his learning endeavor. To sum up his opinions and what he has learned he could create a video or voice thread. For the high school student this would have to make learning new information motivating, interesting and fun.
Most definitely the networked student needs a teacher. Just as the video stated, the teacher needs to be there to guide and teach him how to build a network, to model how to use these networks, and how to decipher good information from propaganda. With the completion of this course, EDM310, I feel I will be prepared to be a teacher of a networked student. I can see where networking can also be used at the elementary level, probably beginning with blogs, wikis and podcasts. Once the student moves up to middle and high school, he could then have a smooth transition into more networking activities.

Week 7

Comments4Kids Week 7
I was assigned to comment on Mr. Lamshed's class blog on Fresh Fruit Friday. Mr. Lamshed shared a video and wrote how his class is trying to change bad eating habits by having fresh fruit Friday where students bring different fruit and share with the class. He wants to give other students the opportunity to try new fruits that they may never have tried otherwise. I commented on how I thought this was a good idea and hopefully it will change bad eating habits to good ones.


My PLN

I started my PLN by signing up for Twitter. I am still learning how to use Twitter, as this is all new to me. I have, so far, signed to follow classroom 2.0, Liveclass20, Free Technology for Teachers. I see where twitter can be a wonderful tool in my PLN in that I can follow sights and keep up to date on what's happening. I am still in the process of searching for new educational sites to follow and becoming more accustomed to Twitter.

February 21, 2010

Comments 4Kids Week 6
I commented on a student named Frank at http://pesburne.blogspot.com/ . He had a cute drawing of bubbles going up into a tree with a short description of the picture. I was impressed by the students' drawings and wondered what program they used to draw them. I commented on his colorful picture, description of his drawing and the wonderful job he did.
Educational Technology on Dr. Christie's Site
After exploring Dr. Christie's site, I found the section under Educational Technology to be the most useful for me as a classroom teacher, though there is so much information on her site it was difficult to decide. I plan on bookmarking her page for future reference. She has so many useful resources, it makes for an excellent site to refer back to often.
As I hope to teach Kindergarten again, I decided the section on Digital Media and Photography would be a great starting point. Dr. Christie gave some excellent ideas that would be appropriate for a K class, for example, pictures of real world geometry shapes, signs in the community to make an "I can read" book and pictures of students dressed as their future career. There was also a wealth of information and lesson plans on video projects. The iMovie tips and tutorials will be extremely helpful for me as I explore video making projects. I found some excellent links with lesson plans and examples that I plan on using such as the Springfield Public Schools. This site has a list of lessons with grade level, subject and type of media used. Dr. Christie's site is a fantastic starting point for any teacher using digital media in the classroom or for almost any technology in education.

iTunes U

I found that university professors and students can access itunes u for lectures, lessons, and other videos. It is a way for teachers, students and alumni to stay connected with their university. Students can access lessons or lectures anywhere as long as they have the internet and a computer. This is an excellent resource for students to review lectures and reinforce what they have learned.
Teachers, as alumni, could use it to stay up to date on emerging technologies and what's changing in the field of education and share this information with other teachers. Professors can share and collaborate on videos and lectures they find or create. The ease of having the ability to access learning on the go makes it convenient at any time for students and teachers. It would have been great to have had something like this in my earlier years of college when I would carry my voice recorder to class to listen to the lecture again as a review.

iPods in Instruction

In researching instructional uses for iPods I found one sight that uses Interactive writing prompts with the use of music for older students. These look like very good writing lessons to keep students interested through popular music. Another site I found named, 100 Ways to Use Your iPod to Learn and Study Better has links to study guides, podcasts, tutorials, applications, classroom help and iPod learning support, just to name a few. This site has some wonderful resources for any grade level. I didn't realize there were so many sites available for iPods in education, for that matter, I didn't realize iPods were becoming so popular in education. I look forward to learning more and, hopefully, I will have access to iPods in my own teaching career.

February 14, 2010

Comments4Kids
I read Bitten! by Bradley and Mason from a 5th grade class in England. As I commented on their blog, I found their story very descriptive. They vividly described a spider bite and the feelings the character was having. It left you wanting to know what happened next. The students used some excellent describing words. I would love to see them continue on with their story.

Can Wikipedia be a Trusted Source of Information?
I have asked myself this question many times. I didn't know a lot about Wikipedia until recently and still don't. I recall first accessing Wikipedia and realizing anyone could go in and edit information. I immediately questioned its reliability. Who's to say the information is correct if anyone can go in and change information? Just my opinion, but I think one needs to read between the lines. I would definitely not allow Wikipedia to be the only source of information. Research other online encyclopedias. If you're using Wikipedia for general information or just for fun then, fine. No need to look up other sources unless you're curious or you question the reliability. If you want to be sure, you're best to look for other sources. I would not rely on Wikipedia as the only source.
Will Wikipedia ever change its policy? I think so, in time. If not, this editing of information will get out of hand, if it hasn't already. I believe if they do not change, people will catch on and realize information is not what it seems. They will quit using Wikipedia as a reliable source and go elsewhere. As educators, we should teach our students not to rely on one encyclopedia site and research many sites. Let them know the sites like Wikipedia can be edited by anyone and the reliability could be questioned.

Mr. McClung's What I've Learned This Year
Mr. McClung shares his experiences as a first year teacher in Missouri. He wrote of initially being worried more about how his supervisors assessed him rather than concentrating on student needs. I think many first year teachers can relate to this, as I have. He wrote of planning the perfect lesson and "beating himself up over lessons and activities that did not go well". He learned to let it go and try to work with it to better the situation. I, too, can recall planning the "perfect" lesson and it would turn out to be a total flop. In some situations I would just stop the lesson and either modify it or go back and do the normal routine lesson.
Mr. McClung also wrote of teacher expectations and how sometimes we set too high of expectations only to be let down and possibly scolding the student. He wrote of building rapport with your fellow teachers, not being afraid of technology, listening to your students and as educators, never stop learning. What an excellent way to reflect on your first year of teaching by writing your experiences in a blog. Mr. McClung has wrote more honestly than most. It was refreshing to read and reflect back on my own first few years of teaching experience. I can recall many of the same feelings Mr. McClung has written about.

The View

February 7, 2010

Review of Podcasts Resources
How inspiring to view the variety of sites pertaining to podcasts. The first site I explored was the Langwitches Blog. There were some excellent ideas to use in the classroom. The teachers explained what they expected, the directions they gave to students and how they edited many of the podcasts projects. There were many tips and ideas that I found to be useful for my own podcasts. I'd like to learn more on how they found their sound effects. As I explore these sites, I'm sure I'll find more information on sound effects.
I found a wealth of information on the "100 Ways to Use Your iPod to Learn and Study Better" site. I will especially refer back to tutorial #28, as it lists programs for editing, programs for beginners and quite a bit of tips for beginning podcasters. The Curriki site is an excellent site for teachers to view a guideline on project podcasts for their students. It includes a classroom timeline of learning activities pertaining to Podcasts, not to mention, benefits, tips, topic suggestions, creating, submitting, grading and rubrics for podcasts. Any teacher who is attempting their first classroom podcasts would well benefit in viewing this site. I found the The Education Podcast Network site to be interesting. It broke down podcasts into elementary, middle and high schools. It also listed specific topics with a variety of links to other sites podcasts. You could basically use this site to search schools and subjects without going all over the web.
Overall, the sites I found the most useful, informative and interesting were the Curriki site and the Langwitches blog. I will definitely go back to these sites as a new podcaster to get information and ideas to use with my own students.

Comments4Kids
First, I was astonished at the amount and quality of the blogs of the students. I was impressed by Ilya's blog review of the book The Demonata: The Demon Thief. He reviewed the book in way that actually made you want more. He made the story interesting. He gave just enough information to leave you asking, "Ok, what now? What happened in the end? Did he save his brother?" The goal was accomplished in that he left you wanting to read the book to find out what happened in the end.
Blogging....what a great tool to allow the world to see the wonderful writing of students in school!