Homework January 31, 2010

Podcasts

I have to embarrassingly admit that until this assignment that I had no clue what a podcast was. This is one of the many reasons that I'm thankful for this class. After reviewing the podcasts I learned a lot about how I might want my podcast to be. I found them to be interesting.

SmartBoard Lessons was quite unusual, Ben Hazzard was out of the ordinary. I listened to DimDim.com and in the middle of his podcast he ordered coffee and soup. I thought it was rather funny. He works while ordering. The KidCast, was awesome for children and was by far my favorite. I think it's important that kids have activities to be involved in other than video games and television. If I had kids of my own I would definitely allow them to be involved in this podcast. Connect Learning Episode 90 was almost like a refined debate. It seems that they are in a workshop and are allowed to give input. EdTechtalk was exactly like a radio show except on an educational based level. It was an interview based show. Where Robert Squires was interviewing college professors. MacBreak Weekly was also exactly like a radio show it even had commercials. It's very organized. This week in Photography also had commercials and was also like a radio show and had interviews. It had more than one host and had different segments. From the show it sounds like they had a blast.

When I do a podcast I would like for it to be fun and interesting but at the same time be educational and helpful to others. My favorite was KidCast and This week in Photography they were both educational and fun.

Homework January 24, 2010

Micheal Wesch: A Vision of Students Today

This video is a real eye opener for students. I know it is for me. My experience as a student has been a rather interesting one. I graduated high school in 1999. After high school I went to Faulkner State Community College where I earned my associates in Criminal Justice in 2003. I then went to the University of South Alabama where I found myself in over my head and after three attempted semesters I withdrew. I suppose I was a lot like some of the students in the video, talking several hours a day on the phone, watching 2 or more hours of T.V. and not paying attention in class. I would spend less than 3 hours per week studying. I was taking for granted an opportunity that was once for so many people an impossible dream, a dream that is called education.

Several years had gone by and I found my degree useless and myself with no direction. Looking for some sort of path I was told that McIntosh High School was in need of a Special Education Paraprofessional and that the qualifications was to have earned at least 64 credit hours . Finally my A.A. was good for something. This is where my desire to teach began.

Although the Special needs children captured my heart I felt that Elementary School would be the best choice for me. I returned to school in the Spring of 2009. I'm not saying that my entire world revolves around school but I do put more energy into my education. I now realize that it's necessary. I guess the change of heart is due to maturity and responsibility however I could definitely be spending more time reading and a lot less time watching movies. From my experience as a student the only idea that I could add to the movie is to take into consideration the students age. I feel that it's difficult to tell an 18 year old to make a responsible decision about their future, if they don't already have a goal. For most 18 year old kids their social life is what most important during this time of life.



It's Not About the Technology by Kelly Hines

This blog was educational all in itself. I love how she describes her concepts. Kelly Hines really puts things into perspective with how brilliant she made the truth. I agree completely with her. We as educators do have a responsibility to be constant learners for the children as well as for ourselves. As we've already learned that technology is steadily advancing we should be learning steadily as well.

I agree with this Blog entirely. It's not about the technology as much as it's about the teacher. You can have the best of the best and if it's not being used then what good is it other than just collecting dust. We need to all take heed to Kelly Hines blog and learn something, as she said always be learners.



Fisch:Is It Okay to Be A Technologically Illiterate Teacher?


I think what Mr. Fisch is saying is that no it's not okay for teachers to be technologically illiterate and at the same time be effective and successful teachers. I agree completely with him. He is quite clear about how it is the students who are impacted by the lack of knowledge here. I feel that yes every teacher should have some basic knowledge of technology and to incorporate the use of it in our classes.

As we learned earlier from Kelly Hines that educators should be constant learners, well technology is also something we should be constantly learning about. The teachers should be willing to learn about technology not only for themselves but also for the student. Mr. Fisch writes that it's getting harder to be successful in the 21st century being technologically illiterate. That's not only true for teacher but for most companies. Even the cash registers at fast food restaurants are advancing. Like he said we need to experience this, explore it, and learn it. As educators it's up to us to help our students to become successful and effective citizens, lets not hold them back.



Gary's Social Media Count

It's astonishing how fast the numbers increase. They all increase faster than one second. It really gives you some sort of an understanding of the rapid growth of technology. If technology grows as rapidly as these people are doing things online then wow. I guess technology would have to grow rapidly to accommodate the fast high speed of all that's going on the internet today.

Homework--January 17, 2010

Did you know? 3.0
After watching the video, Did you know. My very first response was WOW. I actually watched it more than once just to be able to grasp what I had just watched, pausing the video between the clips to make sure that I read every word and my mouth was still wide open! No I didn't know, I didn't even have a clue. We have all this technology at our fingertips and we never wonder where does it all come from. The amazing part is that almost as soon as we understand the technology something new is already in the making and nothing including time is slowing down. We better catch up!

As a child I was the one in my family who was always figuring out how to use the new electronics or whatever is was that we bought that was technical. I remember thinking, why don't you get it? As an adult I understand in this rapidly growing world that we live in that if we don't continue to learn and stay caught up that it's easy to get behind. I realized this when blue tooth was created, in the beginning I just couldn't understand it. It's not surprising that people would easily fall behind with technology when in 1984 the number of Internet devices were only 1,000 and by 2008 it had already grown to 1,000,000,000. What surprised me most was how technical information doubles every two years and that by the time a technical student reaches their junior year in college the information that they learned as a freshman is already outdated. The world is constantly growing at a alarming speed and it's important that as educators we continue to grow with it. That's what it all means to me.




Mr. Winkle Wakes
Mr. Winkle Wakes after a hundred years of sleep to find himself overwhelmed by such an advanced world. Since watching both Mr. Winkle wakes and Did you know, I feel like Mr. Winkle a little and I could relate to his feelings sometimes. Mr. Winkle disliked to technological future, however it's necessary and does make life for so many a little less complicated. The medical technology was necessary for many reasons. The main reason is that some of the major illnesses that so many died from a hundred years ago, today can be treated with medicines and in some cases are considered minor and inconvenient setbacks.

The educational viewpoint was sad. Although Mr. Winkle found school familiar and comforting it is rather pathetic that school hadn't changed much in a hundred years. I guess this is sort of like a two edged sword because education is essential but it also shouldn't be intimidating on any level. I feel that it's up to the educator to make sure, regardless the circumstances, that the curriculum is not outdated. In the video Mr. Winkle wakes, there was a computer in the class that was not being used and was described as dusty. This should be unacceptable in any school, we should use what equipment that has been made available to us to ensure that the future of our students will ever be inadequate. In a world that is constantly growing, school and education should always stay up to speed because our future can't afford for education to remain the same.



Sir. Ken Robinson: The Importance of Creativity
I found the talk to be humorously inspiring and so full of truth. Sir Ken
Robinson put some ideas in a whole new light. He made me think of education in a way that I've never thought about it before. It is so true, we are programmed to think about education in a right or wrong manner. we are never taught the importance of creativity as individuals however we are told who the great artists are. As grade level students we are always prepped for college to become something that makes a lot of money, which never allows the student to find themselves as individuals when what they're great at just might be better that what they're programmed into becoming.

I like the way this talk opens up your mind to think outside the box and it's available in 36 different languages to get the point across on a more broad spectrum. Schools should make room for more creativity. It might set the stage for more Gillian Lynne's or Picasso's. I'm not at all disputing the importance of our education system, math, science, language, reading, and history are vital.

I also like how he tells us to face the fear of being wrong. There is a truthfulness just in those words, so many of us are afraid of being wrong so when we are taught that certain curriculum is the right one or the best one that what we tend to go with sense we all have this fear of being wrong. I agree with Sir Ken Robinson on so many levels and I'm glad that I was introduced to this site.



Vicki Davis: Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts
Vicki Davis is an amazing teacher with an amazing concept of teaching. She is so right about her method of teaching, every child is not going to learn the exact same way so it is important to mix things up a little. I like how she allows the students to teach some of the material. Some students learn best from there peers. It's so important as a teacher to be in tune with your class.

Another concept I like is that it's a technical class they are all learning about technology and it seems like no one is being left behind they are all up to speed. I think it is important for schools to teach kids about technology, that's why I was so excited about taking this course because it is so important for us as students and it will continue to be important as we begin our careers as educators. With so much to learn in this rapidly evolving world it's nice to have someone to educate us so that we can one day educate others.

Welcome ALL!!!

I welcome everyone to my blog. This blog is my first and I'm very excited about getting started and learning from this new experience. I invite you all to share and enjoy this adventure with me.