Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Week 3 Assignment


Media Literacy in the First Grade
I have to start off saying, "WOW!" These are really first graders in this video and they are using blogs!!! How exciting! When I was in first grade, I did not even know what a computer was. It is truly amazing how much time has changed from then to now. I find it amusing that first graders are more technologically literate than most adults in today's world.
The children that were in the video were knowledgeable about the different topics and they explain what media literate meant. I enjoyed this video, I liked how they used different children to express different topics and how it related to today's world. It goes to show how much technology is changing and how we all need to adapt.

Little Kids... Big Potential
How amazing is it that children are learning via technology!! I enjoyed the part of the video about the children using the smart board, teachers that I am currently taking are scared of the smart board, and yet these children are using it as if it is nothing. How great is that!!! These children are using so many things such as wikis. The teachers that are including all this new technology are such an inspiration to me.
Not only is it keeping up with the time, it is helping children learn in a different approach. Of course, I enjoyed this video, I was impressed at the knowledge all these children had about the new technology such as Skype. I think if teachers now embraced this new change, then their students would actually want to come to school to learn. I know if I were still in elementary school and I had a class where we used Nintendo DS, I would absolutely love coming to class! Overall, I thought this video was inspiring! I want to be one of those teachers!!!

Smart Board Lessons
I thought this podcast was interesting. This is my first podcast that I have ever listened to, so of course this is new to me. I thought it was really awesome how technology has changed. I found it rather boring at first, but I am looking forward to listening to the other podcasts.

KidCast
I liked the beginning of the podcast because it was upbeat and it kept me entertained. I found this podcast very informative. I thought he handled the different questions very well. I actually enjoyed listening to this podcast, I thought he help me, personally, with the basics of a podcast. I liked how he stated about "that the teachers need to be proactive." This is a very important goal for teachers to take.

ConnectLearning
I liked the introductions with this podcast because he answered some of my questions, amazingly. I really enjoyed listening to the other librarians with their insights on pod-casting. I liked the way he moved around the room to get to the other librarians about certain issues such as book talking. Some of the librarians talked about expanding their podcast to different cultures, such as the Spanish speaking students. Some teachers actually bought some ipod shuffles, how great is it that students can listen to pod casts on ipod shuffles.

EdTechTalk
I found it interesting that Robert actually interviewed Danielle and Marley about pod casting. It just goes to show, someone could use a podcast in various ways. This podcast was very informative. I liked that Danielle explained the social relationships through pod casting. Danielle even used Net Flicks as a teaching tools. I liked that fact that Robert explained micromanaging in classrooms; to sum it up he was talking about that a teacher needs to be in the classroom but to let the students do the work.


Friday, January 22, 2010

Week 2 Assignment

A Vision of Students Today
I really enjoyed this video about the average college student. I must agree with majority of what the students said, well wrote. College is tough, especially when you have to work or a family. I would say this video shows a glimpse of what college appears to be. I especially liked the girl who showed what she wrote about "18% of my teachers know my name," I find that true because some of the basic courses, such as a history, is filled with 100 or more students and how is one person suppose to know 100+ students names.
I went to Mississippi State University as soon as I graduated from high school; when I attended, all the classes that I had were filled at least with 200 students. It was really hard to understand what the teacher was talking about in class, and in my opinion, the teacher did not care if you passed the course or not. At MSU, they did not use chalk boards at all, it was all done by lecture or power point. I am not sure if I could add anything else to this video other than, using more than one camera, because I felt a little dizzy after! As I stated earlier, I really enjoyed this video, I thought it gave a good in-sight of what a typical college setting is.

"It's Not About the Technology"
I was intrigued by this article because it demonstrates what teachers need to know and what future teachers need to know. Mrs. Hines made some really strong points, the point that stuck out in my mind was "Teachers must be Learners" because there are not many teachers that are learners. Some just do not want to learn any more because of the schooling that they have had. But, a person never stops learning. Technology is now and the future, teachers as well as students need to embrace it.
Teachers need to teach technology to their students, as well as the students teaching the teacher about technology. Good teachers need to enlighten their students with the enjoyment of technology. I believe that majority of the schools need a program or seminar to teach the teachers how to use the various technological equipment and how to teach the teachers how to teach it to students. We need good technical savvy teachers in our classrooms. I really enjoyed this article.

Is It Okay to Be a Technologically Illiterate Teacher?
This article was very informative. I was enlightened with Mr. Fischs' thoughts about technologically illiterate teachers. I believe that if a teacher wants to teach anything, including technology, they must want to teach it, learn about it and want to learn more about the subject. In my opinion if a teacher just has to teach students about technology, even though they do not want to, it is a double standard. Teachers want the student to be interested in it, when they, the teachers, are not interested.
I feel that all teachers should be technologically literate. Technology is here today, tomorrow and in the future, so get use to it. If a teacher does not want to acquire the skills about technology then that teacher needs to change their profession. When a teacher does not include technology in their classroom, the students are the one who are being jeopardized. Overall, I was really intrigued with this article.

Gary's Social Media Count
One word, WOW! It is so crazy how much can happen in a second. When I first clicked on the link for the social media count, it started out as 80 something new blogs and now it is almost 3000 new blogs. It just goes to show that everyone, well almost everyone, is using technology. I wonder what would happen if all of sudden computers, phones, etc just magically shut down? I know I would freak out, I depend on my computer for just about everything.
Teaching is changing so much because of technology. I think it is up to the teacher to stay updated with the new and improved technology, as well as schools. Children need to be technologically literate, as in Mr. Fisch's article. Technology is never ending! As I am bringing this blog to a close, the number of new blogs is 6000!!

Friday, January 15, 2010

Week One Assignment

Did You Know?

WOW! I was completely shocked at all those statements within the video. I had no idea how much things can change in a matter of seconds. I especially liked the statement about "There are 31 billion searches on Google every month." Technology has offered us so much in the recent years and once we learn this new technology, it seems we have to learn it again because that particular item is outdated.

I was also intrigued to know about "The top 10 in-demand jobs in 2010...did not exist in 2004." That statement alone tells me that everything as we know now is/will be or has already changed. This video had some quick, fun facts that anyone could enjoy knowing. I would definitely recommend this video to anyone who wants to learn. Overall, I thought this video was an eye opener for different age groups of people.


Mr. Winkle Wakes

This video makes a lot of sense about technology. Technology is everywhere, hospitals, businesses, some schools. It was disappointing to me about the computer in the classroom that was not being used because I feel that since technology, especially computers, are everywhere we greatly need them within our schools. I feel that education needs to step it up because technological changes are being made daily. When I was first introduced to a computer, I have to admit I was a little scared, but after working on it and learning what it could do, a computer has so much to offer.

Schools need computers in every classroom if not for every student. Some schools do have computers in the classrooms, but I wonder if the teachers let the students use them to learn. When I become a teacher, my students will know how to work and learn on a computer. If it was not for change in technology we wouldn't be where we are today. This time is growing rapidly and we must change. The world is constantly changing, we cannot stop this so either change along with it or stay behind. Technology is our friends.


Sir Ken Robinson

Creativity was the main focus of this video, which is an important tool in education in my opinion. I thought many of the things he said was true because if you think about it, education in our schools is becoming less and less creative and more routine. Children are growing and using less and less of their creative side. I agree with Mr. Robinson about "we grow out of our creativity." Schools need to incorporate more creative activities for children as well as the teachers. As adults, we do not like making mistakes, and most do not like to admit if they are wrong, children on the other hand, they do not mind making mistakes or admitting it, they learn from those mistakes.

Mr. Robinson stated that "every school has the same hierarchy of subjects," I must agree because more and more schools focus and stress the other subjects rather than music and art. Most schools start decreasing funds for music and art departments, when I feel that those subjects are part of the core of an educational learning experience. Creativity is just as important as the other subjects in school. I really enjoyed this video, but I have to admit, I was really dreading watching it. I learned a lot in this video and I believe that many of the points that Mr. Robinson said are true.


Vicki Davis

This video kind of reminded me of my first day in EDM 310, which was Tuesday. A lot of the points that Mrs. Davis said, was similar to Dr. Stranges' statements. I liked when Mrs. Davis said she wants her students to "get comfortable with technology." That is such a great way to network with students and let the students work together with others. Not all subjects in school need to have the routine of textbook and taking notes. I wonder if teachers ever think that majority of the time most students are not really paying attention to them?

I really enjoyed this video, I especially liked it when she talked about customizing her lesson plan to still meet the requirements of teaching this course. She customized it so that there could be more interacts between students and teachers. The statement that Mrs. Davis said that really inspired me to become a better teacher was to "empower students..." Overall, this video was a wonderful way to incorporate many new technology into a classroom setting and I believe that students, children as well as adults will enjoy.