Wednesday, December 5, 2012
Special Blog Post
Read the article about Sal kahn and the Kahn Academy from Fortune magazine published last Friday that I mailing to you. (I can't find it online!)
Read about the Kahn Academy on its home page. Read this: Sal Kahn responds to a critic...and the critic answers back from the Washington Post.
Take a look at iTunesU (iTunes/Store/iTunesU (at top)/search for mathematics I made a screen shot of what I found when I did what I suggest you do. I am sending that by email.
Then summarize what you have read and watched and answer this question: What have you learned about using technology to teach math?
As you can see in the picture above there are plenty of different apps and programs you can get to aid in teaching and learning math. In the article Dr. Strange sent me in the mail it described what Khan Academy has done. They reach millions of students per year through the videos they post on their site. They have more than 3,400 videos. On their web page you can watch tons of videos on many different subjects on many different levels. You can create your own profile and view your history and suggestions on what you can learn next. You can also select your avatar to show off your accomplishments. They also have a Teacher ToolKit. They can give you ideas of how to incorporate Khan Academy in your classroom.
In article from the Washington post it looks to me like two different organizations are arguing about how to teach and explain the slope of a graph. Like I have said before everyone learns and teaches differently. Therefore of course these two are not going to agree. However, Khan Academy is correct in this argument.
In doing all of this I have realized that I could possibly make my own videos as well as use the ones from Khan Academy that I feel are explained the way I want it to be. I do not want to show these videos in class, but I would refer students to these for a better understanding of the material. I would like to have a class blog or class website that I can have my students go to access these videos and things easier. Lastly, I will research the apps more in hopes to find several that would be useful for my class.
Project #13 Collaboration report
Sunday, December 2, 2012
C4T Summary #4
In Mr. Will Richardson's Blog, Read. Write. Connect. Learn., He posted a quote from Jaron Lanier:
Roughly speaking, there are two ways to use computers in the classroom. You can have them measure and represent the students and the teachers, or you can have the class build a virtual spaceship. Right now the first way is ubiquitous, but the virtual spaceships are being built only by tenacious oddballs in unusual circumstances. More spaceships, please.
My Comment: I really like this post. I am a senior in College and have used computers since I was in Kindergarten, but it was never more than just playing a game or writing a paper. Now, I am learning all of these new ways to teach using technology and it is mind blowing. I can not believe what can already be done, but i can not wait to see what will be possible in the future.
In another post I read he posted another quote.
Roger Schank:
But learning happens when someone wants to learn, not when someone wants to teach.
He then said, "Um, exactly."
My comment: I completely agree. Too many times teachers are accused of not doing their jobs. Granted some may not do it effectively, however, the child must want to learn what the teacher is trying to teach.
Roughly speaking, there are two ways to use computers in the classroom. You can have them measure and represent the students and the teachers, or you can have the class build a virtual spaceship. Right now the first way is ubiquitous, but the virtual spaceships are being built only by tenacious oddballs in unusual circumstances. More spaceships, please.
My Comment: I really like this post. I am a senior in College and have used computers since I was in Kindergarten, but it was never more than just playing a game or writing a paper. Now, I am learning all of these new ways to teach using technology and it is mind blowing. I can not believe what can already be done, but i can not wait to see what will be possible in the future.
In another post I read he posted another quote.
Roger Schank:
But learning happens when someone wants to learn, not when someone wants to teach.
He then said, "Um, exactly."
My comment: I completely agree. Too many times teachers are accused of not doing their jobs. Granted some may not do it effectively, however, the child must want to learn what the teacher is trying to teach.
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Final Report on My PLN
My PLN is growing as I use the tools I have learned in this class. My Symbaloo account is my home website on my computer, and I go to everything I need straight from there. I have learned how to make new tiles, and I can add websites as tiles if I want to. I have also found that I can have several tabs on my Symbaloo to keep everything organized.
C4K Summaries for November
#8 Brittany C. posted a story on November 1, 2012 about her trip to Canada. She explained how she hated the ride, and how boring it was. She talked about many different things they did and summarized the entire trip. I commented and told her: I always loved traveling with my parents and like her I hated the ride. I am originally from Indiana. So, now when I go home I drive 12 hours to see my family. I have always wanted to see Canada, but like her I do not like the cold so much. I hope she gets to see more places in her future. Traveling can be an amazing experience, and you can learn so much.
#9 ZaneD is in a 9th grade history class. His class's blog is here. In his post he speaks as if he was Napoleon Bonaparte. He gives a set of rules of dictating then says now you are ready for stage two of dictating and gives another set. He stated the source of what he read to write his blog post for his History class. My comment: Your post was very creative and thoughtful. I really enjoyed reading it. History has never been a strong suit for me so reading this was very interesting.
#10 In the blog Nelson's Navigators. There are four videos about Alabama. I watched The State House. Here is my comment: I watched your video The State House. It was very informative! Being that I am not from Alabama, I have not learned about the state of Alabama as you are doing now. However, I did learn new things from your video. We all learn at least one thing new every day!
#9 ZaneD is in a 9th grade history class. His class's blog is here. In his post he speaks as if he was Napoleon Bonaparte. He gives a set of rules of dictating then says now you are ready for stage two of dictating and gives another set. He stated the source of what he read to write his blog post for his History class. My comment: Your post was very creative and thoughtful. I really enjoyed reading it. History has never been a strong suit for me so reading this was very interesting.
#10 In the blog Nelson's Navigators. There are four videos about Alabama. I watched The State House. Here is my comment: I watched your video The State House. It was very informative! Being that I am not from Alabama, I have not learned about the state of Alabama as you are doing now. However, I did learn new things from your video. We all learn at least one thing new every day!
Sunday, November 25, 2012
Blog Assignment #13
Back To The Future and A Vision of Students Today.
In these videos they show the difference in using technology and not using technology in the classroom. In A Vision of Students Today it showed a lot of things that do not surprise me at all. Like students being on Facebook during class, or buying textbooks they never use. At the end of the video the teacher wrote on the blackboard, “what is it missing?... videos… pictures…”
I want my students to be engaged in learning without realizing that they are learning. In Back to the Future he mentions that students have to learn how to be taught. I am one who has learned how to be taught, and now it is hard to figure out how to learn on my own. I am doing it, but it will take a while to get the full swing of it.
These videos are a must watch. They are very inspiring. I wish I had education like this when I was growing up.
I want my students to be engaged in learning without realizing that they are learning. In Back to the Future he mentions that students have to learn how to be taught. I am one who has learned how to be taught, and now it is hard to figure out how to learn on my own. I am doing it, but it will take a while to get the full swing of it.
These videos are a must watch. They are very inspiring. I wish I had education like this when I was growing up.
Final Project Progress report
For our final project we have chosen to do an iBook. We are accumulating all of the things we need for it, and it is going great! Everyone is cooperating well and getting things done. We are using Drop box to get all of the files to one computer to put it all together.
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Blog Assignment #12
My Blog assignment that Dr. Strange should have assigned in the area of Math:
Write about your experiences in your math classes.
Were your teacher’s methods effective?
What suggestions would you give to your teacher to be more effective?
What was most helpful?
Was Technology used? If so, what technology was used?
What technology could have been used?
My Mathematical Journey
The farthest back in my school career I remember is either 3rd or 4th grade. We did times tables in class everyday. We had to do timed tests to get better and faster on our times tables. We also did this for addition and subtraction in earlier years. We also played games to make us learn these. The one I remember most is called "Around the World." The teacher picks a student to start. They go stand next to another student, the teacher holds up a card and the first person to answer moves on. The first student to make it all the way around the room and make it back to their own seat gets some type of prize.
We started pre-algebra in 7th grade. This was the best teacher I ever had. My teacher, Mr. Moore, I had heard horror stories about. I heard he was a horrible teacher, he was strict, and he was just plain mean. My brother had him 3 years before I did, and I never heard a good thing about Mr. Moore from my brother either.
On the first day of class Mr. Moore explained his class rules: No chewing on anything, this included gum, pens, pencils, hair, even fingernails. No bouncing your feet under your desk. No tapping your fingers on your desk. Do not look at the clock. “My way or the hallway.” I was terrified that he would kick me out of class because I have chewed my fingernails since as long as I can remember. He did catch me a few times, but he never kicked me out.
Mr. Moore taught us one way to do specific sets of problems, and he expected our work to be shown in that exact way. If we did not comply with his method, he would make us rewrite it over and over to make us learn the system he wanted us to use. I always used his method because I did not want to write it over and over. I still use his method even in my 400 level math classes here at South Alabama.
In 8th grade we did a lot of projects. We had to make a blue print of our dream house and do all of the calculations that are to be done on one. We also had to draw to scale what the house would look like. My favorite was the roller coaster make from Popsicle sticks. My 9th grade year my school, Linton Stockton High School, changed how things were going to work. We went from semesters to trimesters. So, my first trimester I did not have a math class, and at the end of that trimester my parents bought a house out of our school district. So, I had to switch schools. This School, White River Valley, was still on semesters. So I had the credit for all of the classes I had taken at Linton, but I did not have math. So I moved with about 6 weeks left in the semester and had to make up all 18 weeks in that time to get the credit for the class so I would not lose getting my Academic Honors Diploma. I was behind by forty lessons in the class. The teacher told the principal, guidance counselor, and my parents that I could never do it. Well I did do it.
9th grade I had Algebra II, 10th was Geometry, and 11th was Calculus. Our Geometry, however, was not exactly Geometry. Our book for it was Linton’s Trigonometry book. So, I never really had Geometry in my opinion.
In college I have had several math classes: Pre-cal/Trig, Calculus I, II, and III, Foundations of Mathematics, Elementary Geometry, Differential Equations, Linear Algebra, Number Theory, Cryptography, and 2 Statistic classes. I still have Abstract Algebra, Linear Algebra II, and History of Math to take.
Effectiveness
I feel that most of my teachers were very effective in the way that they taught. I think that having Mr. Moore in 7th grade really helped me get a good basic understanding of how things should work. I also learned how to teach myself out of the book because of being so far behind in 9th grade.
The only teacher I have any complaint about is the one I had in 9th grade, Mr. Walton. I had him twice a day for the first semester to make up the credit. In 1st hour he would write everything out on the board that he was teaching. After that he left it on the board all day long, and the classes afterward only got to see what was already written.
Once I did not have to be in his class twice a day, I was stuck with only seeing what he had written in 1st hour. To make this better I think he should have written it for every class period, or if we had had a smart board he could have done it as slides in the 1st hour and saved it to show for the next 6. He could have animated the separate steps to show what is supposed to be done, then posted it to a class website or a class blog for us to see later.
Technology
Up until college no technology was used in my math classes. In high school we were allowed calculators, but I wish we had not been. Since I used one, my multiplication tables are a bit rusty. I have to think about the bigger numbers now instead of just spitting it out as soon as I see it. I do, however, believe that they could have used technology had it been given to them. In my senior year they had just gotten computers in a few of the classrooms that need them frequently, like English classes. I am really excited to see how doing a lesson using a smart board is going to go. It is next on my to do list.
In one of my college classes my professor used YouTube. He would have a student help film him while he did a tutorial on a specific subject. He would upload it and let us know he did so. That way if we had problems it would help, and it was our own teacher doing the problems in the same notation we already know. Other than this, no technology has been used in my math career. Maybe this is why I am having a difficult time seeing how it will work for me to use it. I have come up with a few ways, but I am still working on it.
Write about your experiences in your math classes.
Were your teacher’s methods effective?
What suggestions would you give to your teacher to be more effective?
What was most helpful?
Was Technology used? If so, what technology was used?
What technology could have been used?
The farthest back in my school career I remember is either 3rd or 4th grade. We did times tables in class everyday. We had to do timed tests to get better and faster on our times tables. We also did this for addition and subtraction in earlier years. We also played games to make us learn these. The one I remember most is called "Around the World." The teacher picks a student to start. They go stand next to another student, the teacher holds up a card and the first person to answer moves on. The first student to make it all the way around the room and make it back to their own seat gets some type of prize.
On the first day of class Mr. Moore explained his class rules: No chewing on anything, this included gum, pens, pencils, hair, even fingernails. No bouncing your feet under your desk. No tapping your fingers on your desk. Do not look at the clock. “My way or the hallway.” I was terrified that he would kick me out of class because I have chewed my fingernails since as long as I can remember. He did catch me a few times, but he never kicked me out.
Mr. Moore taught us one way to do specific sets of problems, and he expected our work to be shown in that exact way. If we did not comply with his method, he would make us rewrite it over and over to make us learn the system he wanted us to use. I always used his method because I did not want to write it over and over. I still use his method even in my 400 level math classes here at South Alabama.
In 8th grade we did a lot of projects. We had to make a blue print of our dream house and do all of the calculations that are to be done on one. We also had to draw to scale what the house would look like. My favorite was the roller coaster make from Popsicle sticks. My 9th grade year my school, Linton Stockton High School, changed how things were going to work. We went from semesters to trimesters. So, my first trimester I did not have a math class, and at the end of that trimester my parents bought a house out of our school district. So, I had to switch schools. This School, White River Valley, was still on semesters. So I had the credit for all of the classes I had taken at Linton, but I did not have math. So I moved with about 6 weeks left in the semester and had to make up all 18 weeks in that time to get the credit for the class so I would not lose getting my Academic Honors Diploma. I was behind by forty lessons in the class. The teacher told the principal, guidance counselor, and my parents that I could never do it. Well I did do it.
9th grade I had Algebra II, 10th was Geometry, and 11th was Calculus. Our Geometry, however, was not exactly Geometry. Our book for it was Linton’s Trigonometry book. So, I never really had Geometry in my opinion.
In college I have had several math classes: Pre-cal/Trig, Calculus I, II, and III, Foundations of Mathematics, Elementary Geometry, Differential Equations, Linear Algebra, Number Theory, Cryptography, and 2 Statistic classes. I still have Abstract Algebra, Linear Algebra II, and History of Math to take.
Effectiveness
I feel that most of my teachers were very effective in the way that they taught. I think that having Mr. Moore in 7th grade really helped me get a good basic understanding of how things should work. I also learned how to teach myself out of the book because of being so far behind in 9th grade.
The only teacher I have any complaint about is the one I had in 9th grade, Mr. Walton. I had him twice a day for the first semester to make up the credit. In 1st hour he would write everything out on the board that he was teaching. After that he left it on the board all day long, and the classes afterward only got to see what was already written.
Once I did not have to be in his class twice a day, I was stuck with only seeing what he had written in 1st hour. To make this better I think he should have written it for every class period, or if we had had a smart board he could have done it as slides in the 1st hour and saved it to show for the next 6. He could have animated the separate steps to show what is supposed to be done, then posted it to a class website or a class blog for us to see later.
Technology
Up until college no technology was used in my math classes. In high school we were allowed calculators, but I wish we had not been. Since I used one, my multiplication tables are a bit rusty. I have to think about the bigger numbers now instead of just spitting it out as soon as I see it. I do, however, believe that they could have used technology had it been given to them. In my senior year they had just gotten computers in a few of the classrooms that need them frequently, like English classes. I am really excited to see how doing a lesson using a smart board is going to go. It is next on my to do list.
In one of my college classes my professor used YouTube. He would have a student help film him while he did a tutorial on a specific subject. He would upload it and let us know he did so. That way if we had problems it would help, and it was our own teacher doing the problems in the same notation we already know. Other than this, no technology has been used in my math career. Maybe this is why I am having a difficult time seeing how it will work for me to use it. I have come up with a few ways, but I am still working on it.
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Blog assignment #11
In the first video I was shocked at how much a 6 year old can do and understand on a computer. I am shocked at how well they played together. I have never seen a group of children behave so well with technology such as a DS. Most children I have seen would be fighting over who would hold it let alone get anything accomplished.
In the Skype Interview Dr. Strange asks Ms. Cassidy several questions about her classroom and how she has come to use all the technology that she does. I like how she described how the kids love posting to their blogs. They know people from all over the world can see their work. I loved all of the questions that the students asked. Also, I had to laugh when Dr. Strange asked to see her back yard. I was just thinking what in the world could be in her back yard? Then I saw the snow. I can honestly say I do not miss that about Indiana!
I am not sure of what technology I will be able to use since I am going to teach Math at the Jr. High or High School level. Until I see some of it used in a classroom it will be hard for me to see how it would work with a math class. Obviously I wouldn’t have a blog for a math class. What would it say? We learned functions today. I just don’t see how that would help them learn Math. Of course I could have my “class Blog” to post homework and such, but that would not be my students blogging.
However, if I were to teach elementary I would most definitely use some of these things. I would have to have a very disciplined class to do it, but I would most certainly try.
C4T #3 Summary
In the teacher blog What "Ed said" she posted 10 Tips for (reticent) bloggers… In this post she explains how many people try to say they just can not do a blog, or they have writers block so she posted 10 Tips:
1. Write in your own voice, as if you are talking to people you know.
2. Don’t over-think and over-plan, just write what’s in your head. You can write another post when you have developed your thinking further.
3. Don’t agonise over whether it’s good enough. Write, check, post, done. You’ll improve with practice.
4. Never force it. If an idea for a post isn’t working, scrap it.
5. Avoid long slabs of text. Write in paragraphs. Use headings, images and bullet points to express your thinking clearly and ensure your message is evident.
6. Don’t explain everything. Use hyper-links to existing explanations on your blog and elsewhere on the internet.
7. Shorter posts are better than long ones. Always. Big idea? Break it into two posts. Small idea? Sometimes one paragraph is enough.
8. You don’t need to have all the answers. Some of my most successful posts have been composed entirely of questions.
9. Exclude all words that just don’t add anything. This was the very best piece of advice I read when I first started blogging. Carefully re-read posts that you have written and try to remove all the extraneous words that add little or nothing.
10. Exercise humility. (The tips above work for me, I’m just sharing…)
My comment to her was: I had never used a blog before this semester, and it has been a journey. I have learned a lot about HTML code and things I never realized were important. I believe these 10 tips would benefit our class, as many of us have never done a blog before this class.
The next post I read was Snippets from the SOME… SOME is a program where this teacher talks to students and teaches them from across the country. She explained how she played a game with them to learn their names. Each student said their name and a sport they like. Each student after that had to repeat the other students' names and sport then add their own. Another class period she talked to them about daylight savings time. She herself got to school an hour early because she did not change her clock. So, she tried to show them where they were on Google maps, but they were real quick to tell her she was incorrect. So, she showed them how to pull it up on the computer and "share" the screen with her. The next class time they had together she was very disappointed. The students were not having fun as usual, they were sitting in straight rows, and kept looking to the back of the room. Come to find out there was a teacher in the back of the room.
My comment: I makes me wonder how different their teaching methods are. If they were so scared to act as they normally do just because one of their teachers was in the classroom with them.
1. Write in your own voice, as if you are talking to people you know.
2. Don’t over-think and over-plan, just write what’s in your head. You can write another post when you have developed your thinking further.
3. Don’t agonise over whether it’s good enough. Write, check, post, done. You’ll improve with practice.
4. Never force it. If an idea for a post isn’t working, scrap it.
5. Avoid long slabs of text. Write in paragraphs. Use headings, images and bullet points to express your thinking clearly and ensure your message is evident.
6. Don’t explain everything. Use hyper-links to existing explanations on your blog and elsewhere on the internet.
7. Shorter posts are better than long ones. Always. Big idea? Break it into two posts. Small idea? Sometimes one paragraph is enough.
8. You don’t need to have all the answers. Some of my most successful posts have been composed entirely of questions.
9. Exclude all words that just don’t add anything. This was the very best piece of advice I read when I first started blogging. Carefully re-read posts that you have written and try to remove all the extraneous words that add little or nothing.
10. Exercise humility. (The tips above work for me, I’m just sharing…)
My comment to her was: I had never used a blog before this semester, and it has been a journey. I have learned a lot about HTML code and things I never realized were important. I believe these 10 tips would benefit our class, as many of us have never done a blog before this class.
The next post I read was Snippets from the SOME… SOME is a program where this teacher talks to students and teaches them from across the country. She explained how she played a game with them to learn their names. Each student said their name and a sport they like. Each student after that had to repeat the other students' names and sport then add their own. Another class period she talked to them about daylight savings time. She herself got to school an hour early because she did not change her clock. So, she tried to show them where they were on Google maps, but they were real quick to tell her she was incorrect. So, she showed them how to pull it up on the computer and "share" the screen with her. The next class time they had together she was very disappointed. The students were not having fun as usual, they were sitting in straight rows, and kept looking to the back of the room. Come to find out there was a teacher in the back of the room.
My comment: I makes me wonder how different their teaching methods are. If they were so scared to act as they normally do just because one of their teachers was in the classroom with them.
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Special Blog Assignment
In this article he says grades are, “the failure of the education system,” and this new way of learning will give students the opportunity to stay on the same subject until the skill is mastered. First, how will they know the student mastered the skill? There are still many ways of cheating to “Pass.” The system would still have to have a certain percentage to go by to say, “okay they can move on. They have mastered this skill.” To me that is still a grade.
When I was growing up you were in big trouble if you came home with less than a B. Grades are very important because grades reflect how much you understand. The students who make straight A’s understand the material and most likely understand more. It is the students who get A’s who go beyond the average level. What I think is sad is that a C is average. In my mind a C is almost failing. A D is not acceptable by any means; that is failing. I understand that there are students who use “burp back education,” but those are not the students who make A’s in every subject.
Sunday, November 4, 2012
C4K summary for October
#3 In Rebecca's blog she posted a story about Thanksgiving and how her grandmother cooks most of the food. She wrote how she just wants to dive in.
I told her Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday too. My grandma does most of the cooking for our celebration as well, and her story made me wish for it to be sooner.
#4 In Annelise's Post she talks about the things she has learned in her AP Government class. She said it has spilled over into her daily life, especially right now with the election coming up. She said she no longer has to ask her parents what is going on in the debates and such. She is a student at a Catholic school in Nashville, and she talks about how her theology class has also helped her understand what our government is doing. I loved her comments about how her "AP US History teacher describes it, the founding fathers would be “rolling over in their graves” if they knew the United States had become a two-party system."
I told her that I also used to have to ask my parents what was going on in the political debates. They were always so boring to me, and I always ended up falling asleep on the couch. Now, that is totally different. I like how her class has changed her everyday life so much. It is very important for young people to know what is going on in our government. I hope there are more like her who is interested in our country's future.
#5 In Emma's Extra-Excellent Blog!!! Emma wrote a post about Kachina dolls. She explained what they were for and how to make them.
In my comment to her I told her I had not heard of a Kachina doll before. I think it is very neat to learn about other cultures and what they do to remember those they have lost in their lives. I did a quick search and found that according to the Hopi, Kachina dolls are objects meant to be treasured and studied. They are not to be considered idols of worship or children’s toys.
#6 In McKenna's class they are learning about Alberta. She posted a Wordle with many words important to Alberta. I told her I really liked her Wordle. I just learned how to make them myself. I bet Alberta would be a wonderful place to visit from all of the different things her Wordle showed. I am originally from Linton, Indiana, and many of the words in her Wordle reminded me of home.
#7 Special Edition! Dr. Vitulli and Dr. Santoli are in Ireland attending an International Conference on Education. I read the post Attention Getters. They posted about Dublin and their adventures there. They said the people were very nice and offered direction without being asked. There the drivers are on the right side of the road, and the walk ways say "look right" or "look left" on the pavement. They also asked, "Have you traveled internationally and if so, what cultural differences surprised, challenged, and/or enlightened you? What were your "attention-getters"?"
My comment to them said that it is awesome that they get to travel to other parts of the world. I love that the people in Dublin were so nice. I have heard horror stories about France. The only experience I have had going out of the U.S. was my senior year of high school. I went on a cruise to Cozumel Mexico with my parents. My first attention getter was the water. It was so blue! The next one was how the tourist area was so clean, but when you go outside of it everything was filthy. Lastly, we took a taxi to a private beach for our "excursion." Their speed limit signs were in Kilometers rather than miles, and I felt like we were going a lot faster than the roads allow in the U.S. I thanked them for sharing, as Dublin is on my list of places to see.
I told her Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday too. My grandma does most of the cooking for our celebration as well, and her story made me wish for it to be sooner.
#4 In Annelise's Post she talks about the things she has learned in her AP Government class. She said it has spilled over into her daily life, especially right now with the election coming up. She said she no longer has to ask her parents what is going on in the debates and such. She is a student at a Catholic school in Nashville, and she talks about how her theology class has also helped her understand what our government is doing. I loved her comments about how her "AP US History teacher describes it, the founding fathers would be “rolling over in their graves” if they knew the United States had become a two-party system."
I told her that I also used to have to ask my parents what was going on in the political debates. They were always so boring to me, and I always ended up falling asleep on the couch. Now, that is totally different. I like how her class has changed her everyday life so much. It is very important for young people to know what is going on in our government. I hope there are more like her who is interested in our country's future.
#5 In Emma's Extra-Excellent Blog!!! Emma wrote a post about Kachina dolls. She explained what they were for and how to make them.
In my comment to her I told her I had not heard of a Kachina doll before. I think it is very neat to learn about other cultures and what they do to remember those they have lost in their lives. I did a quick search and found that according to the Hopi, Kachina dolls are objects meant to be treasured and studied. They are not to be considered idols of worship or children’s toys.
#6 In McKenna's class they are learning about Alberta. She posted a Wordle with many words important to Alberta. I told her I really liked her Wordle. I just learned how to make them myself. I bet Alberta would be a wonderful place to visit from all of the different things her Wordle showed. I am originally from Linton, Indiana, and many of the words in her Wordle reminded me of home.
#7 Special Edition! Dr. Vitulli and Dr. Santoli are in Ireland attending an International Conference on Education. I read the post Attention Getters. They posted about Dublin and their adventures there. They said the people were very nice and offered direction without being asked. There the drivers are on the right side of the road, and the walk ways say "look right" or "look left" on the pavement. They also asked, "Have you traveled internationally and if so, what cultural differences surprised, challenged, and/or enlightened you? What were your "attention-getters"?"
My comment to them said that it is awesome that they get to travel to other parts of the world. I love that the people in Dublin were so nice. I have heard horror stories about France. The only experience I have had going out of the U.S. was my senior year of high school. I went on a cruise to Cozumel Mexico with my parents. My first attention getter was the water. It was so blue! The next one was how the tourist area was so clean, but when you go outside of it everything was filthy. Lastly, we took a taxi to a private beach for our "excursion." Their speed limit signs were in Kilometers rather than miles, and I felt like we were going a lot faster than the roads allow in the U.S. I thanked them for sharing, as Dublin is on my list of places to see.
Blog Assignment #10
In Mr. John Spencer's Blog, Adventures in Pencil Integration, he is mocking the use of pencils, I think. It is very difficult for me to see the sarcasm in writing. I can always tell sarcasm verbally, but writing is what ever tone the reader has in their head. Anyway, Mr. Spencer is mocking the integration of pencils into a pre-pencil classroom.
In Mr. John Spencer’s blog post Why Were Your Kids Playing Games? He tells a story of a conversation between a teacher and their principal. Mr. Spencer says the teacher was called into the principal’s office. He was caught playing games with his students that day. The teacher does everything he can to explain that even though the students appeared to be playing a game they were actually learning, but the principal kept cutting him off.
The principal seems to have his mind made up. The principal reminds the teacher of the last professional development day and the lessons taught. He reminds the teacher that strictly memorization type activities should be focused on and there is no time for games.
My first reaction to this is how can a principal be so uneducated? Playing games and hands on experience is how many of us learn. Most children retain what they have learned in games and such better than just sitting a trying to memorize it. As Dr. Strange expresses, this is a classic example of burp back education. When I read this the first time I did not realize the "theme" of this Blog.
It has taken me a while to chose another post to talk about because I don’t get it. I don’t really understand what this blog is trying to say. Everything is just so out of this world that I am having a hard time to chose one I understand and like the message.
I chose the post Avoid Social Networking. Again this blog is very sarcastic so I cannot tell if this story is more on the true side or not. So, the story starts out where the HR representative explains to them at the staff meeting, "From now on, teachers must avoid any site that allows for social networking with students." Each teacher expresses some sort of instance that they see students outside of school and the final conclusion met is, “Perhaps we'll simply pass a rule that you cannot interact with a student at all outside of school."
I find this very sad. I always loved seeing my teachers outside of school. It made it more real to me that they also had family and a life outside of school. Some of my teachers were my coaches for varies sports or dance teams. When I was young enough to trick-or-treat we always went to our teachers’ houses (they gave the best candy).
In the post, Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please?, Dr. Scott McLeod is telling teachers and parents not to let their kids use technologies of any kind. He goes on begging them not to let them get on the web and so on. Then in conclusion he says, “'cause I'm doing all of it with my kids can't wait to see who has a leg up in a decade or two can you?” In this it just shows that he really does want children to be taught these things, BUT the children must be taught the risks of the web and other technological things.
Scott McLeod, J.D., Ph.D., is known as one of the nation’s leading academic experts on K-12 school technology leadership issues.He is author of the blog "Dangerously Irrelevant". He produced the "Did You Know" series. He is also the director of CASTLE (UCEA Center for the Advanced Study of Technology Leadership in Education). You can find a complete bio about him here.
Friday, November 2, 2012
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Blog Assignment #9
I admire his strong will; not caring what the other educators think of him. As a student I did not care what my teachers thought of other teachers, all that mattered to me was: do I like them, am I learning from them, and are they nice to me and everyone else?
He also talked about how he ended up relying on his old lesson plans and finding himself boring. I could always tell when my teachers were bored with their own subject, and I always wondered if they are bored with it then, why do I need to know this? I want to be sure that I am always interested in what I am teaching my students. I also want to have a fun interactive way to show them how much I enjoy math.
He found that communication was a big deal in his first year. He says it is very difficult to communicate and to try to build relationships with fellow teachers. The next thing he pointed out is to be reasonable. Many teachers hold their students to a higher standard than the students do themselves. Do not be too hard on them when they do not meet your expectations. “Our job as teachers is to simply pick them up after they fail, dust them off, and encourage them to try again.”
Another thing he pointed out is to listen to your students. Take interest in the life of your students. One day you might see them all grown up. You may have been the one who changed their life, or you may be the one who put the fire of a certain subject in their heart. Unfortunately I will not see the teacher who did so for me, but I believe he is looking down on me as I come closer to my goal.
Lastly Mr. McClung says Never stop learning. You can always have a different outlook on things that you used to feel so strongly about, or you can change your style of learning or even teaching. There are always more things to learn. Do not stop soaking in the information around you. We expect children to continually do so, why should we stop?
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Project #10 - My PLN
Monday, October 15, 2012
Blog Assignment #8
In Richard E. Miller’s This is How We Dream Part 1 and Part 2 Mr. Miller emphasizes how important it is for technology to be incorporated in the classroom. There are many tools available today to use that can enhance the learning experience. I wish he had gone more into depth about it because I am still having a hard time seeing how it will work. I understand using technology is important, and I understand that students need to learn how to use it the right way. However, I do not think everything should be done by technology.
I still think it is very important for a student to be able go pick out a book and use it as a source. You cannot always guarantee that the information you are getting from the web is creditable.
Since I know Carly Pugh on a personal level, her indecisiveness did not surprise me! She is a very upbeat person, and she always has an idea. She was given the task of creating her own assignment and she went far beyond what Dr. Strange thought she might do. She wanted them to make a YouTube playlist that covered 10 things. I thought it was neat because YouTube videos can be useful when used effectively. You can also learn from them a lot faster if you are anything like me. When I'm reading, I tend to lose my train of thought and forget what I'm reading.
EDM310 is Different
In the Chipper Series, Chipper thinks it is okay to do her work whenever she wants to and at her own pace. So she opens her own school where people can do their work as fast as they want or how slow. Well, the problem with this is that you can’t learn this way. You need structure, due dates, and a set time to complete things. Some people would get it done in just a few weeks like the girl she brought in the talk to Dr. Strange, but most people would never finish.
In EDM310 for Dummies, I cracked up. This video is so funny but true. At the beginning the girls are so frustrated with what to do. Then it shows the book EDM310 for dummies. It has tutorials for the different things we use in EDM310. If there were actually a book like this, I probably would have bought it.
I would like to create a video that actually describes a lot of what we are doing. There was so much to read and go through when we first came into this class that I felt so overwhelmed. I went through the entire instruction manual after the first day of class. I read everything and went to all of the videos suggested (not the ones for assignments.) It took 4 hours just to do that. Then later Dr. Strange was talking about C4C, C4K, and C4T and I was just like “C4WHAT?” So, I think an Introduction to EDM310 video would be awesome! I would define the acronyms Dr. Strange uses, quick tutorials on blogger, Prezi, Timeline, iMovie for sure, and a few others.
Learn to Change, Change to Learn
In this video, there are several people talking about how schools should change. They talk about what, in their opinion, is working and what is not. I agree with the fact that schools need to be more up to date, as far as having books for all of their students, and they should at least have a library with computers. There are schools that cannot even afford books for everyone let alone computers. Do I think computers need to be at every student’s desk? No, I do not. However, that is basically what the people in this video want. They want children to not only learn from school but from the Internet and from other places. I completely agree that students should learn from everywhere possible, but I do not believe pushing technology down their throats is going to be good for anyone. There needs to be some fundamental things children need to learn about the Internet and other resources before they are allowed to explore them.
Scavenger Hunt!
Prezi is a fun and useful tool for presentations and more. They have a special deal for students and teachers! Their normal “Enjoy” package is $4.92 a month. That is about $59 a year. For students and teachers it is free! Their normal priced “Pro” package is $13.25. That is about $159 a year. For students and teachers it is only $4.92! By being a teacher or student you can save $100 a year on the “Pro” package for Prezi. Sounds like a good deal to me!
Make believe comics let you make your own comics!
Edmodo is a social networking site for teachers and students. It provides teachers and students a secure place to connect and collaborate, share content and educational applications, and access homework, grades, class discussions and notifications. Students can specify whether they are an auditory, tactile or visual learner, and they can specify their career goal by choosing from a pre-defined list of career areas.
Teachers can create groups that way each class is in a separate group. He or She can post homework, quizzes, grades, and more. They can also add co-teachers, and create “badges” to award students for their great efforts.
Parents can also create accounts. This is a great way to keep parents informed of classroom activities, assignments, grades, and school events. Parents will need their own unique parent code to register in which they can get from their child’s Edmodo account. This is to ensure that parents can view their child’s school activities.
C4T Summary #2
In my comment to him I told him I also love my digital camera. I vaguely remember cameras with film, but what I do remember is my parents rarely had them developed. Now, you can upload it straight to your computer and do whatever you wish with it. My high school had a class for photography, and I believe it should be offered as an art elective in all schools. It is not only fun, but students can learn how to create their own masterpieces. It will also enable them to learn how to use different tools on the computer that they may need in the future.
My comment to him stated that I agreed with him. Everyone has episodes where they do not want to pay attention, or they can not sit still. I do it quite often. However, it was never disruptive in my classes. I believe part of the problem is behavior issues. I have not once met a child who was diagnosed with A.D.H.D. that did not have issues with doing what they are told. That is just my experience though. “We’ve decided as a society that it’s too expensive to modify the kid’s environment. So we have to modify the kid.” I feel this is just wrong on so many levels. I know it is a cliche, but what about that child's rights?
Sunday, October 14, 2012
Blog assignment #7
In the video Wendy Drexler: The Networked Student the author talks about a student who is given an assignment for American Psychology that can be any topic. He attends class three days a week online, the other two online, and does not have a textbook. Also, the teacher almost never lectures.
My first reaction is: how can a student learn without the guidance of a textbook and lecture? I had to listen to this video twice as well as rewind several times. I can see this working in a college class but not middle school or high school. If this was a class assignment given to me in middle or high school I would feel so overwhelmed.
The video described many ways for the student to find information about the topic he chose, and all of them were online. When I was in high school my teachers encouraged us to use sources not on the web. In every paper for English class, we had to have at least one or two book sources. I do not believe all of the information students are receiving should be from the web. Anyone can post anything, and it can all be wrong.
I do believe that starting young with learning the tools to do an assignment like this would be helpful. That way when the student is older and given an assignment like this, they will know what to look for, where to look, and will not be so overwhelmed.
It makes me wonder how much students are actually learning in school now. Our teachers, parents, and grandparents all worried about how much we were online. Now, there is a huge push for everything to be done by technology. I am not sure what to think about this. I am going to need actual physical proof that this works.
In the video Welcome to My PLE! a 7th grade girl shows how she does her school work in her science class. She has pulled everything together on a person page that has her music, Facebook account, and many other things. Her science class is paperless, and she uses many different accounts to keep her projects and work organized.
My “PLE” is not so high tech. I use sticky notes on my MacBook Pro dashboard to keep all of my passwords and usernames straight. I also have a datebook that I write all of my assignments in. If I knew how to use something like what this girl has explained I probably would. However, before this class and before this video I have not heard of such a thing.
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Sunday, October 7, 2012
Blog Assignment #6
When children have fun while they are learning something hard, they learn without realizing it. As Randy Pausch called it, it is a “head fake.” One of his major topics in his lecture was about a class he taught that was all project based. He said his students surprised him by doing exceptionally well. He had no clue what to do. After talking to his mentor, he told them, “That was good but you can do better.” By telling them this, they continued to succeed and go passed the limits he had imagined. By hearing this I learned that as a teacher you do not know what limit any child has. So, push them to do better, and hopefully, they will push themselves to do better in the future.
He also talked about “brick walls.” When you go out and try to reach a goal and run into a brick wall do not give up. “Brick walls are there to let us prove how badly we want something.” If you just give up then obviously you did not want it that bad. Find out what is needed to improve on the skills you need to continue. This is something I would like to portray to my students. No matter how many brick walls you run into there will be a way to crawl over them.
“Don’t lose your child like wonder.” If you are around a group of young children you will notice they ask about everything! If they do not know what it is or how it works they will ask. In this day and age, people are afraid of being wrong or looking “stupid” because they asked. Be like a child and ask questions when you do not know the answers. We should be learning constantly throughout our lives.
Lastly, “Find the best in everybody: no matter how long you have to wait for them to prove it.” More often than not teachers get information about the incoming class from the teachers who have already had them. All too often teachers have already made up their minds about a certain student or two. I want to be sure I give all of my students the chance to show me who they are themselves rather than taking word from other. I want to believe in each and every one of them, and let them prove even to themselves what they are capable of.
At the end of the lecture Randy Pausch revealed that this lecture was for his own children. He knew his life was coming to an end do to the cancerous tumors in his body. He will forever be in my heart, and I will do my best to stick to his advice even though it was not for me but for his own children.
Monday, October 1, 2012
Summary for C4K September
#1 In Room 7 at PES Tells Tales' blog September 4, 2012 Mitchell used lots of descriptive words in a story about an octopus to paint a really interesting picture!
I told him how interesting his story was, and how much I liked it. I also told him to keep up the great work.
#2 In History Class Kaylee was told to bring items that mean a lot to her. Some of the many items she brought were a rosary which was given to her by her great grandma, a stuffed tiger that she got from the hospital after she went through surgery, and some pictures of her and her family. She has posted a picture of these and many other things that are important to her.
I told her that I love that she has so many things near and dear to her heart. Treasure the memories she has, and enjoy being with her family as much as she can.
I told him how interesting his story was, and how much I liked it. I also told him to keep up the great work.
#2 In History Class Kaylee was told to bring items that mean a lot to her. Some of the many items she brought were a rosary which was given to her by her great grandma, a stuffed tiger that she got from the hospital after she went through surgery, and some pictures of her and her family. She has posted a picture of these and many other things that are important to her.
I told her that I love that she has so many things near and dear to her heart. Treasure the memories she has, and enjoy being with her family as much as she can.
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Blog Assignment #5
In Travis Allen’s videos The iSchool Initiative and ZeitgeistYoungMind's Entry, Travis is trying to show how technology can help cut costs in school, and help children learn. He pointed out that the school would be able to lock things on the iSchool and the Internet would be limited access.
I can see how this would be helpful, but we cannot completely get ride of pencil and paper in schools. Like I said in previous posts I will not believe that technology is the only way to go. Not everyone learns the same way. Yes, I believe that it is helpful, but I refuse to believe it should be the only thing we use to teach our students.
Virtual Choir
Jennifer Chamber’s posted Eric Whitacre’s Virtual Choir. I find it very neat that this is possible. I have seen things like this before like a virtual band. My question is what happens when someone’s Internet connection fails? We all know it happens. Mine does it every day.
Teaching in the 21st Century
In this video there is so much information and questioning. What it comes down to is: what do we, as teachers, need to teach these students to be successful in whatever they want to become? We need to get our students engaged and hungry to learn. We need to teach them not only facts but skills they will need throughout their lives. Even though it is easy to look it up, I do believe some facts are important to know, but skills are essential to life: how to cook, how to drive, how to write, and etc. Watching this video really makes you think about what you have been taught and how.
In Katie Gimbar’s Flipped classroom videos she talks about how she has completely changed how she teaches. Here is a link to videos of questions people have asked her. Dr. Lodge McCammon’s video Dr. Lodge McCammon's FIZZ - Flipping the Classroom shows the same type of process Katie Gimbar uses I’m almost positive she got the process from him. Ms. Munafo, Flipping the Classroom - 4th Grade STEM, has also flipped her classroom.
Katie Gimbar posts a video about what is going on in the classroom for the students to watch for homework. Then, they apply what they learn on the video in the classroom. Through doing this the students can watch the video how ever many times they need to, to understand the material.
I find this process very interesting and possible to apply in my future classroom. I feel that it is very instructional for the students, and they can learn at home and apply the material in the classroom. That way if they have questions while doing their problems they can ask right then. I am very interested in trying this method in the future.
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Summary for C4T#1
What Now? What Next? So What?
Micheal Fawcett's 9-year-old student planted trees for Arbor Day. He didn't get to talk to his student afterwards. So, he tweeted him later the same day to ask how it went, and the student replied, "I'll make a Doc."
I commented and let him know how awesome I think it is that a 9-year-old little boy would volunteer his time to plant trees. I love that he keeps in touch with his students, and it amazes me that a 9-year-old is on twitter. Thankfully he has parental consent. Lastly, it made me giggle that he said, “I’ll make a doc.” I had no clue what that was until the beginning of this semester!
In his next post, he says it was supposed to be a comment to someone's blog, but his iPad was not cooperating. Her post was about PaCT, and how they are trying to make all teachers teach the same and think the same and coordinate it to where all teachers are teaching the same thing at the same time. That way a student can move from one school to another and the new teacher can pick up where the last one left off. So, in his "comment" he explained that teachers are the only ones who can stand up and say enough is enough. If they continue silence and claim no responsibility for the destructive effects these policies will have on a generation of students then they only have themselves to blame.
My comment was expressing how I thought that the concept of PaCT was insane. Not every student thinks the same way. So, how can they expect every teacher to? If it was not for some of my teachers who thought differently than others, I never would have made it out of my math classes with passing grades.
Micheal Fawcett's 9-year-old student planted trees for Arbor Day. He didn't get to talk to his student afterwards. So, he tweeted him later the same day to ask how it went, and the student replied, "I'll make a Doc."
I commented and let him know how awesome I think it is that a 9-year-old little boy would volunteer his time to plant trees. I love that he keeps in touch with his students, and it amazes me that a 9-year-old is on twitter. Thankfully he has parental consent. Lastly, it made me giggle that he said, “I’ll make a doc.” I had no clue what that was until the beginning of this semester!
In his next post, he says it was supposed to be a comment to someone's blog, but his iPad was not cooperating. Her post was about PaCT, and how they are trying to make all teachers teach the same and think the same and coordinate it to where all teachers are teaching the same thing at the same time. That way a student can move from one school to another and the new teacher can pick up where the last one left off. So, in his "comment" he explained that teachers are the only ones who can stand up and say enough is enough. If they continue silence and claim no responsibility for the destructive effects these policies will have on a generation of students then they only have themselves to blame.
My comment was expressing how I thought that the concept of PaCT was insane. Not every student thinks the same way. So, how can they expect every teacher to? If it was not for some of my teachers who thought differently than others, I never would have made it out of my math classes with passing grades.
Blog Assignment #4
I went to Judy Scharf’s Podcast selection and watched the video How to Create a Podcast using Audacity. Since I have never heard of a podcast before, this video was very overwhelming. I have to download a lot of stuff to my computer from the Internet (not something I make a habit out of). It is very neat that you can remove backround noise and trim certain things from the recording. My luck if it did not have this option, the neighbors would come home and my dogs would start barking. Then, I would have to start all over. This is definitely a program I will have to play with for a while before I need to use it.
In the video Podcasting in The Classroom by Mr. Joe Dale, he mentions (among other things) that podcasting is a good idea for when students are sick. I never really thought about this until he said it, and it made me think about it a little more. I want to teach math. We all know that not everyone is good at math. By the time I got to Algebra I had surpassed my mother in her math skills, and I surpassed my dad at about geometry. So, neither one could help me anymore. If math teachers would podcast their lectures, the parents could learn along with their students, and they would have a better chance of helping their children with their homework.
I also went to Langwhitches Blog and read Listening-Comprehension-Podcasting. I loved that she was not making this assignment all about podcasting. Each student recorded his or her sentence. The teacher made sure all of the recordings were out of order. That way her students had to listen to each one, do the editing it needed, and put them in the right order. She even thought about pulling it up on the smart board in their classroom so they got the hands on experience of doing this. I wish I had something like that growing up! I would not be so confused now!
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Blog Assignment #3
The videos What Is Peer Editing?, Peer Edit With Perfection Tutorial, and Writing Peer Review Top 10 Mistakes, were all helpful videos to help learn how to peer edit or how not to peer edit. What Is Peer Editing? and Peer Edit With Perfection Tutorial were very similar. Both described the steps in which you should take when peer editing.
1. Start with a compliment. Let your peer know what you think they did well.
2. Make a specific suggestion. Suggestions can include: a different word choice, their details, their organization, their sentences, and their overall topic. Be specific about what they should do to their paper to improve it.
3. Make spelling, grammar, punctuation, and sentence corrections.
It is very important to stay positive. Let them know when they did something well and be specific of what it was. Example: I really loved your topic! As the video Writing Peer Review Top 10 Mistakes expresses, do not be a “Picky Patty,” “Mean Margaret,” or a “Defensive Dave.”
Technology in Special Education
Our lives are based on all sorts of technology. If we can teach special education students to use it, then they may be able to live more of a “normal” life. In this video the teacher explained how she has changed her classroom. Laptops have changed how she teaches and how the students interact in her class. One student needs help during silent reading time so he is taken into the hall and is read to there. Now, he has an iPod that can read it to him while he is in the classroom with everyone else.
Chris is a mute student who can type out what he wants to communicate. The students like using computers, and they themselves believe it is helping them. I am thrilled that these students are not being swept under the rug and are being cared for. In my class I hope to have a way to help students with needs. With Math it may be a little more challenging than English and reading. However, I will rise to that challenge and do what needs to be done for my students.
In this video a little boy named Brad is doing some homework on an iPad with his mom and dad. First he used the app called Toddler counting. In this he used it to learn how to count. He would touch each object and it would tell him the number. In the end it would repeat X amount of what ever it was he was counting. He also used apps for learning sight words and a righting pad to help with how he writes his letters.
After watching this I looked to see what kind of apps I could use in the field I want to teach, Algebra. There was Wolfram Algebra Course Assistant. It is made for Algebra I Algebra II, and College Algebra. The Wolfram Algebra Course Assistant solves your specific algebra problems, and it will show you how to work through the problem step by step. However, this specific app would be used more for those who are just looking for how to do it and turn it in, not to actually learn how to do it.
So, I kept looking and ran across the Algebra Touch app. It lets you drag numbers and letters from side to side in an Algebra problem. Say you have x + 7 = 10. You can drag the 7 to the other side of the equation. You can drag to rearrange, tap to simplify, and draw lines to eliminate identical terms. You can switch between lessons and randomly-generated practice problems. Also, you can create your own sets of problems to work through in the equation editor, and they will appear on all of your devices with iCloud. So, you do not have to use just an iPad.
Right now, this app covers Simplification, Like Terms, Commutativity, Order of Operations, Factorization, Prime Numbers, Elimination, Isolation, Variables, Basic Equations, Distribution, Factoring Out, and Substitution. I believe this app would be very helpful for every student, not just the special needs students. In the classroom it would be helpful if there were a way to record what the student has done on the iPad. The teacher could make his or her own set of problems, and record what the student can do and what needs work. They could then set it up to where they can send practice problems to the parents, and have their child practice in addition to their assigned homework. We all know practice makes perfect! As of right now, I feel as if pencil and paper is the best way to collect homework and such in a Math class. However, I do believe this app could aid in learning the process of Algebra.
Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts
Mrs. Davis made a very important point at the beginning of her video. “ I don’t have to be in front all of the time.” I think it is important for students to learn from each other. Once you teach something to someone else, you yourself have a better understanding of how to do it.
I have never seen a high school that had that type of technology to teach in such a way. My high school was all pencil and paper. We had to use our own computers at home to type up our English papers. Personally, I like pencil and paper for some classes, but as she said, “Only some will succeed that way.” Her students have had the opportunity to learn with people all over the world!
Friday, September 7, 2012
Blog post 2
After watching Did you know? 3.0 – A John Strange 2012 Version based on Did you know 3.0 by Karl Fish and Scott McLeod, I realized many facts I had not before. China is huge! For one of us, there are 1,300 of them. The Chinese are more likely to be bi-lingual, and they can speak better English than us Americans. India is even bigger. They have more academically privileged children in their country than all of the children in ours.
1,097,220 people use YouTube per minute. Just think of how many that would be in one day! Not only that, but 48 hours of video is added in the same minute. There are 1,393,519 Google searches per minute. That tells me too many people rely on Google. On average one year ago EDM310 students reported they spend 1 hour and 16 minutes text messaging other. This number is not much less than the high school average at just short of 2 hours. On top of all of that statistics show that almost every home has at least one computer.
These videos made me realize how technology is growing. Fisch and McLeod’s video stated that a college student going for a four-year degree would have outdated information by their third year of college. That just amazes me! As both videos stated, we will be teaching students for jobs that do not even exist yet. In Dr. Strange’s version he asks if we are ready? What is our role in preparing our students to use technologies that do not exist yet? As a math major I am not sure what other types of technology would be used for math than what is used now. I am interested to see over the next ten years what that may include.
Mr. Winkles Wakes by Mathew Needleman was a cute little movie about an old man, Mr. Winkles, who had slept for 100 years. After awaking he went to an office. Not knowing what anything was because of all the machines made him feel ill. So, he went to the hospital. In the hospital he was amazed to see there were machines keeping people alive. He did not think that the hospital could help him. He went for a walk and came across a school. Going inside everything was as he remembered. There was on machine, but it was dusty and not in use. It comforted him to know that after 100 years everything in the school had remained the same.
The movie made me think, how could schools stay the same that long? How can they not change what is being taught in schools when everything in the real world is changing so fast? The answer: schools are changing but not as drastically as the real world. Schools do not have the funding they need to change as fast as the real world, and it would be impossible to follow a curriculum that changes so quickly. I have always been taught that grade school/high school is to prepare for college and college is to prepare for the real world. In some aspect this is true. However, think about all of the students who drop out or do not go to college. Those students need to be prepared for the real world right out of high school. How are they supposed to be prepared if the schools have not changed in the last 100 years?
Sir Ken Robinson: The Importance of Creativity
He also said, “children are not afraid to be wrong. If they don’t know they will have a go.” In this I find myself realizing how many times I have not spoke up in class or some type of instance because I was afraid of being wrong. Creativity is something most children do not keep through high school. They may not get out of elementary school with it. Then when there is a project to be done they feel lost as to what is “supposed” to be done. There are still jobs out there for creativity such as billboards, commercials, websites, and graphics for shirts or commercials and such. The list goes on once you start to think about it. We just need to find a way to incorporate them into the school curriculum.
Glass
At school, the roof was made of a solar type of glass to gain energy from the sun. In the classroom the teacher used the same type of technology as the closet door to teach her class. Each student had a tablet in front of him or her, and they could see up close what the teacher was doing. With this in the classroom it could solve an issue of children who are visually impaired. They would be able to look at their screen in front of them rather than trying to focus on the one farther away.
The most amazing thing in the video was the doctor on a video conference. One doctor was in the U.S. and another in China. These doctors are collaborating on a patient.
There are many other types of technologies used in this video that I would like to see some day. The crazy thing is they are already making them. Eventually we will have them on the market. However, I fear they will not be cheap. All of the Technologies used in the Corning video are explain in Corning’s narrated video A day Made of Glass 2: Unpacked.There is also a demonstration video Project Glass: Live Demo at Google.
I am really interested in seeing all of this happen in the future. However, Mr. Winkle would not, and that is okay with me. As the times change our technology changes, and as technology changes we do too. Why should our schools and classrooms be any different?
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Blog Assignment 1
About Me
I moved to Mobile, AL from Bloomfield, IN, July 2009. I consider Linton, IN my "home town" since I lived there for most of my life. I have 2 dogs and a loving fiancé that I hope to be marrying in summer of 2014! I am a full time Secondary Education/math student at the University of South Alabama, and I hope to graduate in December 2014. I was on the county swim team for 6 years, and qualified for the state meet 3 of them. I love to sew, watch football, and do things with my family, which is now difficult living 12 hours away from them.
My mom has been a cosmetologist since as long as I can remember. She is also an independent consultant for Scentsy and doTERRA. She has recently decided to go back to school for business administration and is now in her third semester at Ivy Tech. My dad is a Marine, and he is now working as a civilian at SAIC as a senior engineering technician. He is also a competitive bass fisherman in the FLW, and an avid sportsman. I have one older brother who is in the Army National Guard, the Carpenter’s Union, and is also a college student at Ivy Tech. He is 25 and owns his own home, and he has a 5-year-old daughter who has started all day kindergarten this year. My niece is very sweet. She loves to play, and she loves to stay with me when I visit. When she misses me she always asks, “Can I come to your house in Bama?” I wish I could tell her yes. My fiancé, who will soon be family, graduated from Alabama Southern in Thomasville, AL. He is an electrician and does Programmable Ladder Controls.
My passions at this point of my life are school, my pets, and being the best person I can be. If I do not excel in school then I do not feel that I will be able be the person that I want to be. I will be the first to admit that for a period of time I was not a person that anyone wanted to be around. I was bitter and negative all the time. Since then I have been trying to be aware of myself and how I am acting. In return, this will and has made me a better person than I was. As far as my pets, I love them to death! They are basically my children, and they sure act like they are. I have a Chihuahua, Foxy, and a retriever mix, Allie. I got Foxy for my birthday a year ago. Allie is a rescue. Southbark rescued her from a kill shelter. Southbark is a local company who fosters animals until they can find them a forever home. It thrills me that there are organizations like this since Mobile does not have a non-kill shelter.
I decided I wanted to go to The University of South Alabama in the 6th grade. I wanted to be a marine biologist, and go to the school that my uncle had. Obviously, I am no longer striving to be a marine biologist, but I still felt it was still necessary to leave Indiana. In high school I was in the band, a football manager, and on the dance team; until my parents decided to move to a new school district in the middle of my freshmen year. My new school did not have a dance team or football. So, I had to resort to cheer leading for the basketball team. Basketball is in my top 3 for hated sports! I stopped cheer leading after my junior year and became the drum major for the band my senior year.
After officially deciding to come to The University of South Alabama during my senior year of high school, I decided to enter as a BMD major for hopes of getting into the pharmacy program. However, science was not on my side. I really enjoyed my math courses and decided to take a few extra classes just for electives. After thinking about it more I realized how much I loved algebra in Jr. high and high school. Thinking about this made me realize how much I valued my 7th grade math teacher who passed away my senior year. He was an amazing person and teacher, and he is the reason I want to teach math. He wanted us to learn to do it his way or no way. Now, I understand why. I still do my math problems the way he taught us. I doubt that I will teach my class that way, but I’m still in training.
Randy Pausch on Time Management
Before this video I did not know who Randy Pausch was. In this video, Dr. Pausch talked about things I already do. He talked about making a plan and making a to do list. Generally, my plan includes my to do list. I write what is absolutely important in pen so it cannot be changed. The other things I write in pencil in case, like he said, something comes up. I have a plan each day, week, and month. As far as goals, mine are school related. This semester my goal is to, at minimum, make the dean’s list again.
Also, my mom has challenged the people in her businesses and those that she knows with the “What if/Why not Challenge.” Here is a brief explanation: for the next 16 weeks what if you eat right, take your supplements like you are supposed to, exercise, do your work when you need to (only you know what your what if or why not's are). For many of us they are the same, for some they are deeper or more personal. However the bottom line really is, what do you have to lose? What would be different four months from now if you don't “What if/ Why not”? What will your life, your families’ lives look like 16 weeks from now if you give 100% and put the procrastination and excuses aside. I am personally taking this challenge and I cannot wait to see what comes of it.
Time Management Exercises and Time Management Lessons
I need to watch my “time wasters” more. I spend too much time watching TV or online looking at the news or even Facebook.
I moved to Mobile, AL from Bloomfield, IN, July 2009. I consider Linton, IN my "home town" since I lived there for most of my life. I have 2 dogs and a loving fiancé that I hope to be marrying in summer of 2014! I am a full time Secondary Education/math student at the University of South Alabama, and I hope to graduate in December 2014. I was on the county swim team for 6 years, and qualified for the state meet 3 of them. I love to sew, watch football, and do things with my family, which is now difficult living 12 hours away from them.
My mom has been a cosmetologist since as long as I can remember. She is also an independent consultant for Scentsy and doTERRA. She has recently decided to go back to school for business administration and is now in her third semester at Ivy Tech. My dad is a Marine, and he is now working as a civilian at SAIC as a senior engineering technician. He is also a competitive bass fisherman in the FLW, and an avid sportsman. I have one older brother who is in the Army National Guard, the Carpenter’s Union, and is also a college student at Ivy Tech. He is 25 and owns his own home, and he has a 5-year-old daughter who has started all day kindergarten this year. My niece is very sweet. She loves to play, and she loves to stay with me when I visit. When she misses me she always asks, “Can I come to your house in Bama?” I wish I could tell her yes. My fiancé, who will soon be family, graduated from Alabama Southern in Thomasville, AL. He is an electrician and does Programmable Ladder Controls.
My passions at this point of my life are school, my pets, and being the best person I can be. If I do not excel in school then I do not feel that I will be able be the person that I want to be. I will be the first to admit that for a period of time I was not a person that anyone wanted to be around. I was bitter and negative all the time. Since then I have been trying to be aware of myself and how I am acting. In return, this will and has made me a better person than I was. As far as my pets, I love them to death! They are basically my children, and they sure act like they are. I have a Chihuahua, Foxy, and a retriever mix, Allie. I got Foxy for my birthday a year ago. Allie is a rescue. Southbark rescued her from a kill shelter. Southbark is a local company who fosters animals until they can find them a forever home. It thrills me that there are organizations like this since Mobile does not have a non-kill shelter.
I decided I wanted to go to The University of South Alabama in the 6th grade. I wanted to be a marine biologist, and go to the school that my uncle had. Obviously, I am no longer striving to be a marine biologist, but I still felt it was still necessary to leave Indiana. In high school I was in the band, a football manager, and on the dance team; until my parents decided to move to a new school district in the middle of my freshmen year. My new school did not have a dance team or football. So, I had to resort to cheer leading for the basketball team. Basketball is in my top 3 for hated sports! I stopped cheer leading after my junior year and became the drum major for the band my senior year.
After officially deciding to come to The University of South Alabama during my senior year of high school, I decided to enter as a BMD major for hopes of getting into the pharmacy program. However, science was not on my side. I really enjoyed my math courses and decided to take a few extra classes just for electives. After thinking about it more I realized how much I loved algebra in Jr. high and high school. Thinking about this made me realize how much I valued my 7th grade math teacher who passed away my senior year. He was an amazing person and teacher, and he is the reason I want to teach math. He wanted us to learn to do it his way or no way. Now, I understand why. I still do my math problems the way he taught us. I doubt that I will teach my class that way, but I’m still in training.
Randy Pausch on Time Management
Before this video I did not know who Randy Pausch was. In this video, Dr. Pausch talked about things I already do. He talked about making a plan and making a to do list. Generally, my plan includes my to do list. I write what is absolutely important in pen so it cannot be changed. The other things I write in pencil in case, like he said, something comes up. I have a plan each day, week, and month. As far as goals, mine are school related. This semester my goal is to, at minimum, make the dean’s list again.
Also, my mom has challenged the people in her businesses and those that she knows with the “What if/Why not Challenge.” Here is a brief explanation: for the next 16 weeks what if you eat right, take your supplements like you are supposed to, exercise, do your work when you need to (only you know what your what if or why not's are). For many of us they are the same, for some they are deeper or more personal. However the bottom line really is, what do you have to lose? What would be different four months from now if you don't “What if/ Why not”? What will your life, your families’ lives look like 16 weeks from now if you give 100% and put the procrastination and excuses aside. I am personally taking this challenge and I cannot wait to see what comes of it.
Time Management Exercises and Time Management Lessons
I need to watch my “time wasters” more. I spend too much time watching TV or online looking at the news or even Facebook.
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