C4T#4 Summary

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."