Goodbye Everyone

I just wanted to take a moment to tell everyone goodbye. I have really enjoyed this class and getting to hear and read about everyones opinions and ideas. I hope that you all enjoy your holidays and good luck with your careers. I am sure I will see most of you around in other courses but for those of you that I wont see, goodluck to you all! Also, Mr. Wakeman thankyou for being so helpful when we didnt understand stuff and always being available to answer questions. I know you said this is your last time teaching this class so goodluck to you! -Happy Holidays!

What I've Learned

In EDM 310 we covered a wide range of material, from basic blogging to personal learning networks. I found the class to be overwhelming at first because of the amount of material that was going to be covered, but in the end I learned so much.

1. Google Docs- I learned about google docs which is something I never knew existed. I liked learing about this because it is easy to access and make documents.

2. Podcasts/vodcasts- I now know how to make a podcast and a vodcast. Also, I now acutally know what they are and how they are helpful. I will use podcasts to help teach. I would like to record podcasts of my lectures so my students can access them at any time.

3. Twitter- I learned that twitter can be used for educational purposes and not just to constantly tell people what you are doing. I have followed teachers on twitter and I have actually learned a lot from their tweets.

4. Personal Learning Network- I started making a PLN which is a network of people you contact via the internet. You can learn about topics and get new ideas from these people. PLNs can be very helpful for me when I start out my teaching career.

5. iTunes University- I never knew this existed! I think that this is very cool and a great teaching tool. I learned that I and my students have access to lectures from some of the top professors. Also, you can access podcasts on almost any topic.

6. ACESS- I learned all about this program, this was actually what my podcast was about. I learned that most high schools in Alabama are now using this. I feel that it is very beneficial to the students because they are able to access their class at any time. Also, they offer numerous AP courses which is great for our students who want a head start.

7. ALEX- I learned about this great site that offers different ideas for almost any subject. There are many different tabs on the site that will help you throughout your teaching career.

8. Excel- I FINALLY learned how to use excel. I have always been so confused about this program but now I can do formulas and even lay out a gradebook. This was my favorite part of the course.

I enjoyed learning the things I did in this class although, I would have liked to learn more about Microsoft Office programs. In addition, we learned briefly about Skype but I didnt get to see how it would be beneficial to me. I wish we would have actually used Skype in the classroom so we could have seen how it works. But since we did not and I still do not know how to use it, I probabley will not use it again.

This course did excite me. I was excited to record our podcast and to see how it all came together. It was exciting to me because it was something new and something that I had never done in another class before.

No I was never bored in this class. I actually never had a chance to be bored. I had to always pay close attention or I would have gotten lost on what we were doing.

Although the Excel part was my favorite I found it to be intellectually challenging. I felt this way because I had to remember the formulas and place everything in the right place. It became very tedious to click and drag and move things around on the spreadsheet.

The only thing I would delete or change in this course is Skype. It should either be deleted or used more in the course.

I feel that I am a technologically literate teacher at this moment. I feel that I am good at the programs and tools that I use. I plan to continue learning and getting better with them. I know that technology changes all the time therefore, I am going to be constantly changing and learning new things.

I will maintain my skills by continuing to use the tools and programs I learned from in this course. Also, I will take courses to better my understanding of new and upcoming technology throughout my teaching career.

Personal Learning Network

For my EDM 310 class I was assigned to create a personal learning network (PLN). This is an online learning network of people. You can get information and ideas from the people you contact in your network. For my PLN I used twitter to find and contact others on the use of technology in our classrooms.

I contacted wmchamberlain and teachernz on twitter. I have been following their tweets and getting some good information. I find that they both post videos and links with interesting information about schools and about technology.

Unfortunately, I had only a short time to work on my PLN but I do see the importance and the helpfulness of having a PLN. I plan to continue working on my personal learning network and plan to use the information I find to help me in my career.

Seven Stupid Mistakes and 7 Brilliant Things Teachers Do With Technology

Today I read three interesting lists, 7 Stupid Mistakes Teachers Make With Technology, 7 Brilliant Things Teachers Do With Technology, and Classroom Rules. Each of these lists were very informative and interesting to read. After reading each list I chose the two that I felt were the most important.

From the 2 Stupid Mistakes Teachers Make With Technology I chose "Not backing up your data." This to me is probley the most stupid mistake you can make as a teacher. We put so much time into our work and our lesson plans and the moment our computer crashes or we lose our flash drive all that work is gone. Teachers need to make an effort to triple back up their work.
The second most important from this list is "Not supervising computer using students." Although there is security on the computers it is just stupid to still not supervise because as soon as that child runs across something innappropriate, you are responsible. Teachers just need to take action and watch and help their students using the computer. In the long run this could save a teacher from getting into a sticky situation with parents.



From the list 7 Brilliant Things Teachers Do With Technology I feel that "Creatively finding and using resources," is a great thing for teachers to do. By researching and putting your personal touch on your resources then your students will learn more. They will learn more because you will be more passionate to teach something you have researched and made your own. In addition, "Put kids in touch with the world," is a wonderful action for teachers. By creating things such as blogs, or keypals you are widening your students horizons. Now days you can talk to people all across the world. Technology is a fun and easy way to culture your students.

From the list New Classroom Rules I really like "Come to class everyday, unless you would rather just go online. This is a very true statement a majority of classes are changing to online courses. Before we know it all students of every grade will be having their class time online. Also, "Bring required materials, including your laptop and cell phone everyday." This rule is not farfetched either. Almost every student already has or is required to have a laptop, and pretty much all of them have cell phones. I think it is great to take advantage of the technology that the students already have at home. By using their personal devices they are likely to be more interested in learning.

At The Teachers Desk-Professional Blogs

Today I examined the professional blog At The Teachers Desk. I explored the many gadgets on this page such as the live traffic feed, the world wide visitors, and the labels section. This professional blog is laid out very well and is easy to navigate.

In addition to just looking at the blog I also read a few of the posts. One of which was the post titled "How Do I know Im Not Just Being Selfish." This post caught my attention because he stated that he finds himself more interested in helping other schools incorporate technology than he does with his own classmates. Also, he asks why are we pushing technology so hard? This is a good question because the more I go through school the more I am seeing and learning why technology is being pushed. Technology is being pushed because technology is up and coming and our students will be required to know how to use it once they graduate. I also read the post about his skype call with the ESOL students along with many other posts. I really enjoyed reading the posts and learned a lot from what he wrote.

After looking over this blog I now see the importance of a professional blog. A blog allows you to post your thoughts, feelings, and experience for everyone to see. I feel that experience is something that should be available for everyone, especially new teachers. By posting it you are helping your future co-workers. I will definately look to some professional blogs for ideas when I start my teaching career. Also, a professional blog is a great way for you (the person writing the posts) to get feedback likely from other teachers. It is always good to get a second opinion on a thought or idea that you have. This feedback may help you to better your idea or to come up with even more. We can all learn a lot from each other even if we have never met. By having a professional blog you are opening up many doors for yourself and many others.

Michael Wesch

Today I watched Michael Wesch's video Toward A New Future Of Whatever. At first he started his speech by talking about the impact of technology on our culture. He stated that when the media changes then our conversations change. Which is very true, everyone molds to the new, cool, and "acceptable" idea. Everyone has to have the nice new technological device and everyone has to be a the new social network. He used the example of television. He stated that people think they have to be on the tv to be soemone. He talked a lot about MTV, when MTV first came it out was the cool thing and everyone wanted to watch MTV. He showed a clip of the Simpsons from 1992 where they stated they were "the MTV generation." Then a clip from 2001 where the kids are asked if they want to go out to "Block land" and their response was "Meh."

I feel that these two clips are very interesting and very true. I admit my generation is just like the "Meh" clip. We are more interested in tv and the internet than we are about going out to see nature and parks. I see it in my college classes now, people come to class and play on facebook the whole time, or text, or listen to iPods. Its like nothing can interest us anymore, nothing is quiet as stimulating as technology.

Another interesting thing he showed was a picture of a class who seemed uninterested and then a picture of American idol with excited people. This is very bad for future teachers. It is going to be harder to interest our students. We are basically going to have to sing, dance, and jump through fire to get them to pay attention to us. Yes, thats extreme but kids these days are only interested in video games and television. I see it now in kids as young and 3-5. It seems that every child 3 and up has some sort of portable game system, thanks to the parents who dont want to deal with them. I work at a department store and I cannot tell you how many times I see they kids dragging behind the parents quietly playing their Nintendo DS. Also, younger and younger kids are walking around with cell phones. Not just those phones designed for kids that only dial two numbers (their parents). No these kids are walking around with iPhones.

Overall technology has its pros and cons. Unfortunately for teachers it is going to be harder to keep their students stimulated in class without doing so with a new technological device. Before we know it the old fashioned way of teaching will be over.

Why Post Student Work Online?

Many people ask why students should post their work on the internet, for everyone too see. Many also say that it is unsafe for the students. Well I can tell you that there are many reasons for students to post their work online and there are also safe ways to do so. One major way is to not post any personal information like where you live or attend school. As far as why they should do it, here is one great example Landslide Video. I watched this video and it was very touching in fact it almost brought tears to my eyes. To see a class get together and sing a very meaningful song just brings joy to everyones faces. So why not post this? I feel that joy and happiness is something we all need a little bit more of, especially in these tough times. I cannot find anyone who can say that the things children say and do don't make them crack a smile. So if for any reason, students should post their work so they can brighten the days of many across the world.

Another reason students should post their work is for communication. For example, students can blog about events in their lives and many all over the world can read these. I realized the importance of this when I watched this video Dear Kaia. This little girl's father has been helping her with a blog. He noticed one day that students from all over the world were leaving comments on her posts. He soon realized how great of a thing this was and had a conference call with a class from acroos the world. Students everywhere will benefit from the connections they will make with all kinds of students from many places of the world.



Also, if students post their work and research online it can constantly be used by other people. It is so wonderful that we can use each other, people from all over the world, for information and knowledge. Someone may have researched and discovered or even experienced something you needed to know about then they posted it online. Amazing now you have access to that information. For me that is a good enough reason in itself to post your work online.




In addition to communication and happiness, another reason is that by allowing and requiring students to post their work to the web, they get the much needed practice on the computer. Before we know it all of the jobs are going to be computer based and the schools are already trying to go to computer based classes. If anything, the students will benefit from their trial and error in posting their work. Soon every child will be a master at uploading and posting their work for every one to see.