I was assigned to comment on a blog by a teacher in Sydney called "Classroom Chronicles."
The first post that I commented on was titled, "Thinking in the Classroom." In this post she discussed how her students have begun blogging and using a class blog to open their minds and get the students to think for themselves. Over the past summer she had attended a conference in New Zealand where a speaker talked about using smart phones and other technologies in the classroom. Through her blog she asked her students and their parents to comment and give their opinion to this idea. She listed a few of the comments that both teachers, students, and parents have given and they were all valid points. She concludes by asking what we think can be done with this teaching tool. Should we continue to ban them? If not how can we use them while making sure the students are not youtubing or texting their friends?
I responded by saying:
"I am a student at the University of South Alabama in Mobile, Alabama. This is a great idea and more teachers should be open to using ipads and other technologies as well because it can be such a great teaching tool. However, I do understand where people come from when saying that those that cannot afford an ipad will not see the benefits. That is why I feel that if a school is open to the idea of using these devices for teaching then they (the school) must be the buyer and provide them for their students. This way every students has access to one. When should these devices be used? Well like everything in the world there is a time and place for everything. These devices should be kept away until the time when they were needed. And personally I feel that if it was ok to have smartphones and ipads that it will continue to be a problem, but not to the degree that it is now."
The second post that I commented on was the bloggers' personal picks for the 2010 Edublogs awards. The awarded areas that edublogs recognize are: Best Individual Blog, Best New Blog, Best Class Blog, Best Student Blog, Best Resource Sharing Blog, Most Influential Blog, Best Teacher Blog, Best Librarian Blog, Best Educational Blog, Best Educational Wiki, Best Educational Podcast, and Lifetime Achievement.
I commented with:
"Thanks for sharing these great blogs. I have not looked at all of these blogs (YET!), but of the ones that I have looked at I can see why you have nominated these are your personal picks. These are all great places to find lots of useful information for teachers."
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
C4K #8-# Summary
C4K #8:
I was assigned to comment on a student from Bryant HS named Rikimaru's blog. In the blog post they took a picture of some big guns on a ship and made the picture in black and white. The student ask what we would name the picture. I responded with:
"Hello,
I am also a student from the University of South Alabama. This picture is awesome! I like taking photographs on the side sort of as a hobby. Black and white pictures are my favorite simply because of the cool effects it creates. As for a name for your photo I would say, "A Look From the Past." I just get the sense that because it is black and white it is old and way back in history.
Great job!!!"
C4K #9:
I responded to a post by a girl name Nicole. In her post she blogged about a book that she recently read called "Welcome to the Club" by Martyn Godfrey. In the story the main character is asked to help this new nerdy person around school. The new student gets the main character in trouble, but in the end they become great friends.
I responded with:
"Hey Nicole,
I am a student from the University of South Alabama where I am learning how blogging and other types of technology are used in the classroom. In the class we are assigned to comment on students' blogs from all over the world, which I think is really cool. The book you read sounds like an event that happened in my life. I was asked to help a new student out if they needed help. The problem was is that I thought they were really odd and we would not get along. Surprisingly we became the best of friends and still are years later."
C4K#10:
In this post the students were asked by their teacher to complete an assignment through a blog post answer the three questions specified. Two were serious question related to the class. The final question however was just a simple question asking what they were thankful for to get the students to respond.
"Hello Kacie,
I am a student from the University of South Alabama in Mobile, Alabama. It has been a long time since I have learned polynomials, but your response is very clear and easy for me to understand. I also totally agree with you. I am always thankful for the great friends I have!"
C4K #11:
I commented on a student named Melissa's blog. She posted about how her school had canceled for the day because it had started snowing. I responded with:
"Hello Mellisa,
I am a student from the University of South Alabama in Mobile, Alabama. I am 22 years old and all through school I can remember only one day that we got off for snow. That one day was last year. The crazy about it was that only about an inch and a half of snow and they canceled school. It really did make me laugh considering it was so little yet there were so many accidents. It continues to amaze me how drastically different across the world."
Yasmine's Blog Post:
She blogged about a picture of her feeding a horse and all the adventures should went on that day. However, she forgot to post the picture into the blog so we only had the text to comment on.
"I am also attending the University of South Alabama. We can't see the picture, but from the way you talk about the experience it is very obvious that you had a great time. It is always nice when you can get out and take a few minutes from the busy world to 'stop and smell the roses'"
I was assigned to comment on a student from Bryant HS named Rikimaru's blog. In the blog post they took a picture of some big guns on a ship and made the picture in black and white. The student ask what we would name the picture. I responded with:
"Hello,
I am also a student from the University of South Alabama. This picture is awesome! I like taking photographs on the side sort of as a hobby. Black and white pictures are my favorite simply because of the cool effects it creates. As for a name for your photo I would say, "A Look From the Past." I just get the sense that because it is black and white it is old and way back in history.
Great job!!!"
C4K #9:
I responded to a post by a girl name Nicole. In her post she blogged about a book that she recently read called "Welcome to the Club" by Martyn Godfrey. In the story the main character is asked to help this new nerdy person around school. The new student gets the main character in trouble, but in the end they become great friends.
I responded with:
"Hey Nicole,
I am a student from the University of South Alabama where I am learning how blogging and other types of technology are used in the classroom. In the class we are assigned to comment on students' blogs from all over the world, which I think is really cool. The book you read sounds like an event that happened in my life. I was asked to help a new student out if they needed help. The problem was is that I thought they were really odd and we would not get along. Surprisingly we became the best of friends and still are years later."
C4K#10:
In this post the students were asked by their teacher to complete an assignment through a blog post answer the three questions specified. Two were serious question related to the class. The final question however was just a simple question asking what they were thankful for to get the students to respond.
"Hello Kacie,
I am a student from the University of South Alabama in Mobile, Alabama. It has been a long time since I have learned polynomials, but your response is very clear and easy for me to understand. I also totally agree with you. I am always thankful for the great friends I have!"
C4K #11:
I commented on a student named Melissa's blog. She posted about how her school had canceled for the day because it had started snowing. I responded with:
"Hello Mellisa,
I am a student from the University of South Alabama in Mobile, Alabama. I am 22 years old and all through school I can remember only one day that we got off for snow. That one day was last year. The crazy about it was that only about an inch and a half of snow and they canceled school. It really did make me laugh considering it was so little yet there were so many accidents. It continues to amaze me how drastically different across the world."
Yasmine's Blog Post:
She blogged about a picture of her feeding a horse and all the adventures should went on that day. However, she forgot to post the picture into the blog so we only had the text to comment on.
"I am also attending the University of South Alabama. We can't see the picture, but from the way you talk about the experience it is very obvious that you had a great time. It is always nice when you can get out and take a few minutes from the busy world to 'stop and smell the roses'"
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Blog Post #13
ALEX stands for the Alabama Learning Exchange where teachers or even students can go and find very helpful and useful information. For teachers they even have lesson plans for subjects of all sorts. The program was started by the Alabama Department of Education as a way for teachers to share different types of educational materials and information all at one location.
Teachers are able to communicate with one another through the site. The site not only offers lesson plans, but also there are links to interactive resources for the classroom. Under the courses of study portion of the site the subjects are broken down from arts education to physical education to driver education and many other courses. Under each division there are smaller, more specific subjects. The site even has material for all levels of students. Each course has available web resources, lesson plans, and a section for podcasts that can be used. The site has a section for teachers title personal workspace where they can have their own space to share their own personal ideas and teaching plans.
Personally I really like that program and I am completely astonished at all the available material to the public for FREE! Now that I know this site exist I am bookmarking it on my computer for use when I have finished my degree and get a job of my own.
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Progress Report for Project 15
For project 15 I am working in a group with Len Jenkins and Jameson Branch. We will create a video explaining how we will each use technology in our classrooms. By having a group discussion we will be able to give feedback to one another and other ideas that they give us that we can incorporate into our classes.
Project #6
In my results for project #6 I learned many surprising things. I sent a form asking questions concerning the parking situation at the University of South Alabama and if they thought a parking complex would be a good idea as some students have voiced interest in.
I found out that 18 of 22 of the responses I received were from females. 82% (or 18) of those that responded were part of the Junior class. This was an interesting stat in my opinion because I am actually part of the Senior class where there was not a single responder. By far the most surprising thing I learned in doing this summary is that all but 3 of the 22 responders have housing on campus. I also live on campus and thought that this number would have been much higher.
Not surprisingly however many of the students park in the south parking zone. On a scaled answer from 1 to 10 the majority (82%) of students say that parking in their zone was a 4 or higher (10 being the worst). 64% of students (or 14 of 22) think the University should construct a new parking garage, but when asked where the garage should be located no two people had the same location in mind. Being that parking is a problem and it is free at the Mitchell Center I was surprised when only 8 students (36%) said they did utilize this facility.
As seen through my form analysis students think that parking is a problem and a new garage would be appreciated. However, no one agrees on where a garage needs to be placed to help ease the pains of parking at South.
Response Summary
I found out that 18 of 22 of the responses I received were from females. 82% (or 18) of those that responded were part of the Junior class. This was an interesting stat in my opinion because I am actually part of the Senior class where there was not a single responder. By far the most surprising thing I learned in doing this summary is that all but 3 of the 22 responders have housing on campus. I also live on campus and thought that this number would have been much higher.
Not surprisingly however many of the students park in the south parking zone. On a scaled answer from 1 to 10 the majority (82%) of students say that parking in their zone was a 4 or higher (10 being the worst). 64% of students (or 14 of 22) think the University should construct a new parking garage, but when asked where the garage should be located no two people had the same location in mind. Being that parking is a problem and it is free at the Mitchell Center I was surprised when only 8 students (36%) said they did utilize this facility.
As seen through my form analysis students think that parking is a problem and a new garage would be appreciated. However, no one agrees on where a garage needs to be placed to help ease the pains of parking at South.
Response Summary
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Blog Post #12
Assignment: Look at this list of blogs on the topic of technology in the music classroom. Look at several of these blogs. Pick one of these blogs and find one article to give comments on. I recommend looking for a blog post that gives a few programs that can be used to aid in the teaching of music in the classroom.
http://www.onlinedegrees.org/top-15-music-education-blogs/
Now I am completing my created assignment:
I choose an article from the blog be a techie. In this article the author Carlos Broos talks about some of the programs and new technologies that he used over the summer of 2010. The first product on this list is the ipad. He uses this in the classroom as well as meeting and conferences to take notes and show videos. He uses a website created by Dr. Joseph M. Pisano called Music Personal Learning Networking where music educators can share different ideas to implement in their classes. He list several more programs and sites that he used and how they can be used by teachers to make their jobs easier and a better teacher.
http://www.onlinedegrees.org/top-15-music-education-blogs/
Now I am completing my created assignment:
I choose an article from the blog be a techie. In this article the author Carlos Broos talks about some of the programs and new technologies that he used over the summer of 2010. The first product on this list is the ipad. He uses this in the classroom as well as meeting and conferences to take notes and show videos. He uses a website created by Dr. Joseph M. Pisano called Music Personal Learning Networking where music educators can share different ideas to implement in their classes. He list several more programs and sites that he used and how they can be used by teachers to make their jobs easier and a better teacher.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Blog Post #11
First of all let me say that these kids totally amaze me. They are talking... like adults! I would have never guessed that these kids are 1st graders. It made me laugh when one child said that they wrote in their books, but they really like writing in their blogs. Another thing is that these kids are from Canada.
Should the U.S. re-think the way they look at education. This video makes it seem like these kids are far beyond American first graders. How many American first graders can create a wiki or even know what a wiki is. These kids are learning how to direct videos, teamwork on projects, and how to put their ideas together to make videos. Does anyone else find this a little crazy? And what is this... they are using their Nintendo DS' to learn? Is that possible? Would schools in the U.S. even consider the thought of using "video games" in their classrooms for education? More than likely not. In the interview with Ms. Cassidy I really like the part where she talked about how she has had several principals and they have all allowed her to continue the program. It really makes me happy to see that there are several principals out there that will listen to their teachers.
Should the U.S. re-think the way they look at education. This video makes it seem like these kids are far beyond American first graders. How many American first graders can create a wiki or even know what a wiki is. These kids are learning how to direct videos, teamwork on projects, and how to put their ideas together to make videos. Does anyone else find this a little crazy? And what is this... they are using their Nintendo DS' to learn? Is that possible? Would schools in the U.S. even consider the thought of using "video games" in their classrooms for education? More than likely not. In the interview with Ms. Cassidy I really like the part where she talked about how she has had several principals and they have all allowed her to continue the program. It really makes me happy to see that there are several principals out there that will listen to their teachers.
C4K #3-7 Summary
I have really found that these comments on kids blogs are actually fun. I enjoy how the teachers seem to comment on every one of the students' post. In C4K #3 I watched a video that a student put together. I have forgotten how wild and crazy children's imaginations can be. In post #4 I was assigned to a student that posted about her dog. She even posted a picture of her dog. This student is in the 6th grade and I was shocked at how well the student wrote. The post was very well written and honestly much better than my writing at her age. C4K #5 the student posted on how they wanted to start using sites such as glogster to start following some of her favorite bands. This post made me happy because I felt like because of the student blogging and using technology in the classroom she was able to come across sites like glogster. In post #6 the student post what some of her favorite things were. I commented by telling some of my favorite things. Post #7 was a class blog where the teacher had posted the study guide for one of their upcoming test. I told him that being a student as well it was very much appreciated when study guides and other important materials were posted online.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
C4T #3 Summary
Post #1:
In Lisa's post she blogs about easybib and how it has been added to the applications on Google Marketplace. She gives a few reasons why easybib is so great and especially now since you can now sign on through google. She has also embeded a youtube video showing what easybib can do. I commented by saying:
"Great post Lisa! I am glad to see that there are educators out there that like easybib. I have used it in the past and really liked the site. However, some professors are against students using easybib on assignments. I feel that by having it added to the Google Marketplace it says something about the site."
Post #2:
In the second post she talks about how the week before she was supposed to give a session on a tool that she had been using, she found out that the tool was about to be shut down. She ask if this has ever happened to anyone and what they did in that situation. I responded with:
"Hey Lisa,
Another great post Lisa! This post has really made me come to a major realization. What would I do if some of the important sites I used suddenly shut down? This semester I have used dropbox and other tools quite a bit. Obviously this has never happened to me before, but it is really something I should start thinking about. People really do need a Plan B in emergency situations.
Thank you for possibly saving my life from a possibly major technological situation."
In Lisa's post she blogs about easybib and how it has been added to the applications on Google Marketplace. She gives a few reasons why easybib is so great and especially now since you can now sign on through google. She has also embeded a youtube video showing what easybib can do. I commented by saying:
"Great post Lisa! I am glad to see that there are educators out there that like easybib. I have used it in the past and really liked the site. However, some professors are against students using easybib on assignments. I feel that by having it added to the Google Marketplace it says something about the site."
Post #2:
In the second post she talks about how the week before she was supposed to give a session on a tool that she had been using, she found out that the tool was about to be shut down. She ask if this has ever happened to anyone and what they did in that situation. I responded with:
"Hey Lisa,
Another great post Lisa! This post has really made me come to a major realization. What would I do if some of the important sites I used suddenly shut down? This semester I have used dropbox and other tools quite a bit. Obviously this has never happened to me before, but it is really something I should start thinking about. People really do need a Plan B in emergency situations.
Thank you for possibly saving my life from a possibly major technological situation."
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