Project 8

Project 9 - TimeToast

My Sentence Video

Blog Post 4

Eagle’s Nest Radio and Class Blog:

It’s hard to believe that these are only third graders. You also have to think, that if these kids are capable of learning this, then other people can learn as well. I think Podcasts like this are beyond brilliant, because you can make this information accessible to other students, not just the ones in your class. You are also making students learn and firing them up about the subject. Not only that, but in a way, the students are becoming the teacher. Sometimes it is easier to understand a topic when it is coming from the mouth of a peer and not your teacher. While listening to these Podcasts I noticed that sometimes the music can be a little too loud and distract from what is being said.

The Benefits of Podcasting in the Classroom:

This video was really interesting to watch and it kind of makes me wonder why things like that haven’t been done before. For some classes it might be a little more difficult, for example math classes where students need to see things being done in front of them in order to fully grasp it. However, with English and History classes, these seem like excellent ways to get students excited about the subject itself. If they are interacting and researching topics for the Podcast, they will be learning without even realizing that they are doing so. I think that is the biggest benefit, is that it makes learning fun.

Judy Scharf Podcast Collection:

This was a really interesting website to explore and read everything Mrs. Scharf had to share. It’s clear that she is very adamant about using this technology in the classroom and I think everyone should be. I read through her list of suggested Podcast topics and I had to laugh. They were clearly geared towards the age group she teaches. She didn’t ask them to do something boring and mundane like other teachers would. Instead, she gave them an entire list of things to choose from and I think that is important. Podcasts don’t have to be boring; they can be fun and entertaining and that is the purpose of them.

Blog Post 3

Peer editing can be a very effective tool, if utilized correctly and that was the point for these videos and slideshow. When reading blog posts or even papers for other classes, there should always be a positive. Focusing just on the negative, but not bothering to tell the person they phrased something exceptionally well, is not going to accomplish much in the long run. You have to compliment, but also show them how they may best make changes to their work. Whether it be with grammar, spelling, etc.

Personally, I would send an email, as opposed to commenting on the blog. Just in case the person takes it personally, they don't have to worry about others seeing the comment. I would also do this in the classroom. Unless an entire class had messed up, there is no point in singling out one individual.

The article It's Not about the Technology by Kelly Hines was an incredibly eye-opening read. She covered several good points that I think "technology in the classroom" advocates overlook time and time again. Firstly, that all teachers must be learners and I feel this is beyond an excellent point. You cannot teach a student how to use technology, or anything for that matter, if you do not first learn how to use it yourself. Not only that but a teacher has to be willing to learn. If they do not want to to learn the technology or different methods, then you very well cannot shove it down a person's throat. That is how the misuse of technology happens. People also tend to forget that the new generations of teachers are coming in with different views than someone from the previous year. Everyone needs to be up to date. Secondly, Mrs. Hines said that learning and teaching are not the same thing. This statement is very true. You can teach at a student time and time again, but if they do not know how to learn, then they won't retain the information. As my EDF professor used to say "It's not about what to do, but how to think." She'd always tell us to think smarter. Navigate around the problems and come to a solution; a full, concise, and well thought-out idea.

Thirdly, she says that technology is useless without good teaching and this could not be more true. "When we put innovative tools in the hands of innovative teachers, amazing things can happen," Mrs. Hines said and I don't think anyone could have phrased it better. If we give our teachers the proper training, then they can do amazing things. Just think about what this means. As opposed to having disproportionately high drop-out rates, then we can eliminate that. Students leave school because they just don't care anymore, but if teachers are able to reach them on a level they understand, then they will care. This is what the definition good teaching it. Lastly she says you must be a 21st teacher without the technology and this is yet another solid point she makes. If you can reach a student without the SMARTboard or the powerpoints or the computers, and still prepare them for a future where they are constantly surrounded by technology, then you will have succeeded as an educator.

Is it OK to be technologically illiterate? by Karl Fisch raised some questions for me. He said that teachers who are not technologically literate can be equated to teachers thirty years ago that could not read or write. I would say that it is a bit extreme, but not at all a false statement. If you don't go to the extremes how do you plan to make a statement and push for the change that is clearly well needed? Because no, it is not okay to not be technologically illiterate. He made a good point by saying teachers have a lot on their plates, but that students don't care about that. Education doesn't care about it either. In order to, relating back to Mrs. Hines article, be a good educator, then you need to be willing to learn.

Another excellent point made by the article he quotes is that we need to stop being so nice. We can no longer tiptoe around the subject of technology in the classroom as if it was some taboo subject, because it isn't. I like how Terry Smith says that doing jeopardizes the chances of success for our youngsters and he is right. If we constantly tell people, not just teachers, that it is okay to be illiterate with technology, then progress will not happen. The students will not learn and it will be a perpetuating cycle of knowledge lost and students not getting the fair chance they deserve.

Gary's Social Media Count pretty much made my jaw drop. This was an interesting counter to watch for even just a few seconds. Not to mention a little scary as well. We are so dependent upon technology for communication, not just with people that we know, but worldwide as a whole. Technology is constantly changing and adding and falling out-of-date, that it would probably give someone a headache trying to pay attention to it for more than a few minutes. Trying to grasp those numbers is near impossible.

For myself, as a future educator, this means that I have to back up what I've been saying and will continue to believe. I cannot allow myself to not become technologically literate once in a school setting, simply because the other educators around my are not. Even after this class is over, I have to be willing to learn and grasp everything that I can, so that my students will benefit. The students I will teach, will grow up in a society that is more dependent on technology than my own generation was. That is something else we need to take in account. Five years from now, what will the advances be? What will all of us be facing and are we prepared for it?

The video "A Vision of Students today" was definitely an eye-opener. Despite the fact that it was done in 2007, there are several of those things that can be applied today. Sitting in a class, I'll see a good number of people on Facebook or something not related to class. I've also been one of those students that buys the hundred dollar textbooks and never opens them. Also, most of the people I know are dependent on student loans and will be thousands of dollars in debt when we finally graduate. Teachers can no longer do their teaching on a chalkboard, by erasing and adding and lecturing.

While these are not bad ways to teach, they are also extremely old school. We can rely on the old school ways, but we need to work in technology and we need to find ways to equip our classrooms with interactive ways to learn. Students nowadays are used to having something in their hands at all times, whether it be a cell phone, a keyboard, a gaming controller, or whatever. They are interactive with their surroundings, so why not making learning that way? Instead of them spending hours in front of a video game, put those hours to productive use. The biggest message this video has is: Now is the time to change. Now is the time to act and get ahead of the game. We have all of this technology at our disposable, things some people can only dream of. Instead of taking it for granted, we need to use it and use it well.

Project 5

C4T #1 Summary

C4T #1 - 9/4/11
I was assigned to comment on Brian Crosby's Learning is Messy blog. His most recent post was about him being invited to be on the panel for the New York Times sponsored "Schools for Tomorrow - Bringing Technology Into The Classroom Conference." He was pointing out that educators aren't on the discussion panel and are generally only invited to be members of the audience and ask questions. This makes no sense to me. Why wouldn't then want teachers on the panel? They would be the most beneficial to any discussion on technology in the classroom. In my comment, I pointed this out and unfortunately, received no response. However, my eyes were opened, as I didn't even realize that, in a way, education was being cheated in another way.

C4T #1, post 2 - 9/10/11
There was no recent post when I went back this week. So, I chose to comment on the previous one, entitled "Getting to Know You". This post was well worth the read. Basically, Mr. Crosby was talking about how he gets students in assigned seats for the first quarter. Basically, the first day he lets them pick whatever table they wish to sit at. Most of them wind up being boy tables and girl tables. This year, he wanted a mixture so there were rules to follow for the second day of seating. Each table needed a boy and a girl, also you couldn't sit with people you had already sat with. As the days went on, there would be more students standing around, unsure of themselves.

Mr. Crosby's post was all about inclusion and the fear children have of not being included. He had the students talk about why they feared not being apart of something or why they were scared to sit at tables with people they did not know. This all boiled down to a fear of not being accepted by those students who did not know them. I thought this was an awesome assignment and thought it amazing that Mr. Crosby embraced these feelings the kids have. It's not something that should just be looked over, because negative consequences can come from it.

Blog Post 2

The video Did You Know? 3.0 by Karl Fisch and Scott McLeod was intriguing to say the least. It definitely captured my attention from the first frame. What shocked me the most about it, was what they said about India. They have more honors kids than the United States as a whole has kids. With the bit about the most in-demand jobs in 2010 not even existing six years ago, one really has to step back and look at that from an educational perspective. Most of the children you wind up teaching, will go into fields that don't even exist, just like the video said. I don't think this should scare people away from teaching, but should make them more excited about it.

Another thing that shocked me what they said about internet usage in general. We, as a society, have been extremely dependent on it. Not that this is a bad thing, because things that could not reach other societies, can now get there in the blink of an eye. When used wisely, technology is actually a brilliant tool that everyone can benefit from. I believe that was one of the multiple points pulled from this video. We shouldn't be afraid of using technology, but embrace it.

Mr. Winkle Wakes was a little odd to me at first, but I really did end up enjoying it. Basically the video follows this man named Mr. Winkles and how he awakes and finds himself in a technologically advanced society. He goes to an office building and a hospital where technology is being used to its full potential and he resists such a change. Mr. Winkles finally finds himself in a school, where nothing has changed and he enjoys it. The teacher still lectures and the only computer was in the back of the classroom and covered in dust.

This video shows a very interesting take on education, because for so long teachers and people in general were against using technology in the classroom. Even when I was in high school, most teachers only had basic computer skills and were stuck when something broke. The video showed that, no matter how resistant, we have to be willing to change and adapt. If you don't adapt, then you will be left behind.

I positively loved this video by Ken Robinson! This quote really struck me during the video: "If you're not prepared to be wrong, you'll never come up with anything original." Sir Robinson makes quite a few good points about the education system nowadays. Mostly how the hierarchy does not favor the arts in schools. People are pushed into things like business and "useful" careers. They say that you can never be a musician or an artist, so why bother? Basically, they undermine being creative and essentially try to squish it out of people. If you nurture the creativity of a child, they will flourish in all aspects.

The interesting story Sir Robinson tells about the dancer and what he says is true. Sir Robinson states that nowadays she would've been handed drugs and probably never would've realized her full potential. That's how society operates now and its scary. If we rid our children of creativity, then they will wind up as uninspired masses. I applaud this video, as well as Sir Robinson, and people really need to take a closer look at what they are doing.

Cecilia Gault's article and video interview with Sir Ken Robinson was really interesting. She is incredibly young, but her writing suggests that she is clearly very knowledgeable about the world we currently live in. She sees the value in creativity, mostly because she goes to a performing arts school. These schools shouldn't be the only ones embracing creativity; it should be nationwide. I'm sure in a few years, she will continue to hold onto this knowledge and expand on it, as opposed to just falling along the wayside. It'd be interesting to see where she is, education wise, in a few years.

Vicki Davis is a brilliant teacher by far. This video shows just how welcome change can be in a classroom. Or how successful one can be if they are just willing to change. Instead of just lecturing and teaching with pen and paper, she uses computers and teamwork. Not only is her classroom learning in different ways, but they are connecting with people from around the world. They are in Georgia and have connected with people in Qatar. Vicki Davis also says that she is learning from her students as well, it is not just her teaching them.

In today's world, Vicki Davis is showing how successful technology can be within the classroom and how you can connect your students to the outside world, which is so much bigger than we believe it to be. Like I pointed out with the first video, technology is a tool that should be utilized to its fullest potential, especially within the classroom. You can build teamwork and cooperation with the students and give them skills that are becoming more and more valued in the workforce nowadays.