Sunday, February 27, 2011

Timetoast Instructional 9b

C4K Summary #1

C4K#1
The first student that I responded to was a girl in Ms. Naugle's 4th grade Math class. The students were learning about Geometry and wrote a response about what they learned in class on that particular day. Rachel S. commented that she loved the slides, flips, and turns. It is wonderful to see kids who are excited about MATH!

C4K#2
Terine and Tauwhare created a podcast book review of Caught in the Sea by Rosemary Keating. The most fascinating part of this review was the style in which the students created the podcast. One student interviewed the other asking questions about the book. I found this interesting because it took the students from the traditional pen and paper book report to allowing them to expound their communication and listening skills. It is even more effective because the students can share the information with other students in the classroom. This podcast came from Room 15 at Pt England School in New Zealand.

C4K#3
This blog also came from the Pt England School in NZ. The student's name was Asena and she had spent a vacation attempting to learn how to surf. This blog assignment seemed to be a writing assignment encouraged by her teacher Mr. Marks. I liked how descriptive she was as she told about her experiences.

Blog Post 6

The Networked Student- I found this video to be very interesting.  This video accurately describes how our class, EDM 310, is designed.  We are the networked student, but we have been set up with all of the resources and materials to learn.  The networked student needs a teacher, because the teacher serves several roles, as the video outlines, that help make the entire experience a success.  Without Dr. Strange's organization of the class materials, we would not be learning a multitude of information this semester. 
I feel that by the end of this semester, I will be prepared to be the teacher of the networked student.  My students are only going to be limited to the experiences that I require and expose them to, but the possibilities of their educational practices are limitless.  There is not one thing that I have learned this semester that could not be appropriately incorporated into any classroom.  The most rewarding part of being a networked student is the ability to learn from your peers and classmates.  This is a learning style that needs to be incorporated into all classes.
Being a networked student's teacher means being prepared, organized, and efficient.  Dr. Strange has adequately exemplified  all of these behaviors which makes our class and learning experience a success.  The networked student can appreciate this teaching style because he or she is responsible for the level of personal success received in this type of classroom.  This type of classroom setting also makes it easy to recognize and assess the progress being made by each student. 

SN:Although the material presented in the video was very interesting and useful, I did not like the way the information was presented.  The little pieces of paper were irritating. 

A 7th Grader's Personal Learning Environment- I loved this PLE video!  This is so awesome and amazing.   I wish that I had a class like this in middle school to learn about science.  I wish that science classes in public schools today were set up this way.  Teaching students how to use the Internet and social networking to expand their knowledge and learning is so important.  It teaches them positive ways to use the Internet at school and at home, which promotes them to become life-long learners.

SmartBoard Critiques- After reading a few of the blogs that I found on  http://www.teacherslovesmartboards.com/, I am not sure how Staton and Ferriter could use the words 'hate' and 'dumb' when speaking about SmartBoards.  The teachers on this page really, REALLY love the SmartBoards.  I feel that Staton and Ferriter need more training on the many possibilities that their board has to offer.  Ferriter has given his board away to someone, so maybe this would not be beneficial for him.  The website linked above is a network for teachers to share assignments and interactive lesson plans that teachers and classes have designed and developed.  It is an interesting way to incorporate the SmartBoard into the classroom and get kids excited about using it.

Project 9a Timetoast

Blog Post 5

Eagles' Nest Radio- This was the cutest podcast. I love the idea that the students are responsible for sharing the things they have learned with the rest of the world. You can tell that they spent time organizing what they would say on the podcast. This seems to pull together many different skills including writing and communication. They also seemed to complete the assignment in groups. Each one responsible for their own radio segment: architecture, history, biography, etc. I would love to hear the podcasts that the other groups in the classroom created.

100 Ways to Use You iPod to Learn and Study Better- This lists offers a great number of resources that are interesting and accessible directly from an iPod or iPhone. When looking at technology today, it is easy to assume that since you are able to reach the internet from your phone or mp3 device, then any resouce is right at your fingertips. We use handheld devices for all sorts of daily problem solving: mapquest directions, searching phone numbers or business locations, and social networking. We can also use them for some of these suggested ways: study guides, tutorials, and educational podcasts and videos.

Langwitches- I am so amazed at some of the creative ideas these teachers are blogging about. I think that this is a site that I will keep under the favorites tab because the ideas are so unique and could be used in different curriculum areas. It is amazing how far technology and education has come, and to think that it is still growing! This site definitely makes me want to use podcasting in my own classroom one day. When teachers talk about "not reinventing the wheel" they are talking about websites and ideas like this one. This site will help other teachers begin to formulate positive ideas about incorporating podcasts into their classrooms.

Monday, February 14, 2011

Blog Post 4

Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please? When I first read this post I laughed. I thought he was crazy and over reacting, until I realized the sarcasm. I think that it was a warning to parents and teachers to not let their children fall behind. Without technology the children will become illiterate. Even though technology is important it was a warning that pen and paper (the fundamentals of grammar) is important. As a future teacher it is important to learn how to not rely on technology or pen and paper but to integrates the two together. Dr. McLeod is the co founder of the Did you know videos. Dr. McLeod is an Associate Professor of Educational Administration at Iowa State University.

The iSchool Innovation. I was very impressed. I thought this was an awesome idea. Since the iPhone is used for everything else, why not make it school appropriate. I really thought that formulae was very interesting in the way that it works. The ischool includes features such as emailing, wikis, electronic libraries and much more.  The ischool enables every student to have an effective way of communication with teachers and students.  However, since schools are broke and laying off teachers and classrooms are being over populated how would each student be able to afford the iphone? for the ischool? The big issue with the school system these days is the money. The financial system would hinder this amazing idea from happening, but if the funds were all there it would a wonder upgrade for learning for the students.

The Lost Generation. The video was great. I was speechless after the first minute or two after watching it. When watching the video I was thinking "oh my goodness, what a heartless person" but as the words she was saying started to reverse with the video I began to get chills. It was very eye opening. It reminded me that the state that we are in as society. We must stay committed to our true values and morals and be an individual not what someone else wants us to be.

Eric Whitakers Virtual Choir. I thought that this video was simply amazing. As I write this post I am listening to this video again. I am still in shock that this video was composed through the internet. I think that technology has come a long way. This choir has 185 and people from all over the world that have never met each other physically but because of the internet they were able to form this choir. I am happy to be in apart of a generation that has these types of technological advances. So may people have so many negative things to say about the internet. This video is a very positive advancement. Objects can only be used in the way the person uses them. I think this goes for technology as well. if you use it for negative use than you get negative results. The internet is more helpful in ways people will never know, until they try.

Teaching in the 21st Century. I think the information in this video is very very very..did I say very?? TRUE!! As future teachers we must start to think of better ways to relay the information. We are not the primary source anymore. In addition, I think that only a handful of us had great teachers that not only taught us the content and facts but the skills to apply that information in everyday life.

As i entered elementary school I believed my teacher knew it all. They were my primary source of information. As I entered middle school I began to see that my teacher did not know it all, as I began to start doing research projects. As I went through high school and prepared for college, I realized that not only did my teacher convey the factual information and content to me they taught me skills of  how to. How to find the information I need and more, how to apply the information I learned to a particular situation, and how to inform others because now with so much technology and easily accessible information teachers are not the primary source. So to me to teach means that a student learned how to  do something and apply it.

Sunday, February 6, 2011

Blog Post 3

Michael Wesh: A Vision of Students Today. I so believe this video has been my exact college experience. I think there is nor enough time in the day to do all the things I need to do. Or is it that I did not use my time wisely?? I think that this video definitely was interesting to see. Being in a regular classroom sitting in desk and listening to a teacher lecture is very boring and not does not help everyone learn.
I, myself like most people learn by doing. I think that now that I am older and working on a second degree I am much more serious about school than I was before. So I can say that my class room experiences now differ a little bit form the video. However, I would add to the video that some professors are hard to reach and may not as people friendly as you would like them to. Which intimidates you as a student and enables you to learn, therefore causing another problem to the education system.

"It's not about the technology" I really enjoyed reading this article. I thought it was right on point with teaching in today's society. I think that the for principles Ms. Hines touched on was right on target. I do believe that as teachers we must always learn. We must be able to provide the student with the most accurate information. Of course we as teachers will not know everything, however, the little statement" No I do not know the answer to that. Lets find out." Encourages us as teachers to always be willing to learn. I think the most important information in this article in that teaching and learning are not the same thing. Once we as teachers realize every student learns differently then we are on to a great start as becoming successful teachers.

Furthermore, I think it is a no brainier that anything is useless without a good teacher. Information is always available but without a good comprehension or someone to explain it to you to understand the information it is useless. My favorite principle in the article is the last one. Be 21st teachers without technology. I think by achieving this it will be inevitable to not produce smarter and more well rounded students and teachers. And with this technology will only enhance the student and not become the student.

Karl Fisch: Is it okay to be a technologically illiterate teacher? I thought that this was a very interesting read. It started off a little bit confusing and straight forward. However, I enjoyed the honesty. When I was a high student I do believe that technology was not encouraged in schools the way they should have been. After receiving my first degree I believe that it is still not encouraged in Universities as it should be. Now working on my second degree and with this degree being in education I do see a change. However, this change needs to me made in all degree sought programs not just education.

The students that we are producing today will no more smarter than I was when I was in high school almost 10 years ago. Learning to accept than technology is a part of society needs to start soon or else the students of today will not be able to handle the demands of the jobs of tomorrow. So when I ask myself, "Is it okay for a teacher to be technologically illiterate? The answer is and will always be NO! In order to build a better society we have to start in our education system. We can not allow teachers to not use tools that are apart of society, it is only harming the student and setting them up for failure. We as teachers must ALWAYS be LEARNERS. It is not acceptable for us to settle.

Gary Hayes Social Media Count. Wow this is very crazy. Its changing at an outstanding rate. I'm shocked by this information.  Does this means students are using these various social sites in classrooms, driving, during conversations, at dinner, etc?? And the answer to that question is yes. Technology is changing drastically and for my career it can mean so much. Change is inevitable, therefore I must always be willing to learn and stay technologically literate.

C4T # 1 Summary

I was assigned to Morgan Bayda. She is a  new teacher in Saskatchewan with Bachelor of Education with a specialization in Early Childhood Education. In the first I commented on she was explaining how she never thought that she would receive as many comments on her blog and the things she post on it. She is very excited about the response that she has received. She also highlights the post that received the most attention.
In the second post I commented on Ms. Bayda was experiencing her first volunteer travel. She had a lot of pictures that showed different projects they were working on. Fromn the pictures, I gather she is having a wonder time and that it is a rewarding experience. I think that she will be a well rounded and very informational teacher.