Summary Post C4K Comments 4-6

C4K4

     I was assigned to comment on the blog of Hueloata. He goes to the Pt England School in Auckland, NZ. He is in the sixth grade. His teacher is Mr. Ted Barks. He had a picture of two cute puppies on his blog and had a link on his page where he found the pictures. I told him that I liked the pictures of the dogs and that they were very cute. I also told him that I have two dogs and two cats of my own. Below is a picture of the the two puppies he had on his blog post. 

    

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     I was also assigned to comment on Maree's blog. She is in the eight grade and also attends Pt England School. The name of the blog I commented on was Room 22's Favorite food. She was using google docs to make a line graph to show what the classes favorite food was. She had been studying statistics in her math class. I left a comment for her telling her that it was great that she was using google docs already. I told her that I had been using google docs for the first time in my EDM 310 class and that she was way ahead of me.I asked what her favorite food was also. Here is the line graph that she made. 

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     I also commented on a video made by 12 and 13 year olds from Melville Intermediate School in New Zealand. They have an elective class one day a week where they can decide what they would like to do. They chose to follow a recipe and cook. They did a good job of cooking and recording their adventure. I left a comment on their blog post and asked them if they were able to eat the food they cooked. I told them that 

I wish I would have been able to choose an elective when I attended school. I think it is so cool they they have the option one day a week to decide what they want to learn. They seemed to be having so much fun cooking and it gave them a break from being stuck in the classroom all day long. Here is the video if you would like to watch.

Kennedy Options - Cooking from myles webb on Vimeo.

Project # 12 Recorded Skype Interview

Blog Assignment # 9

What I've Learned This Year

     Mr. McClung talks about what he has learned in his first year of teaching in this post. He describes how he developed a mindset where it was all about him during his college years. He now realizes that checking for student comprehension is the most important aspect of teaching. He also learned to be flexible when things did not go his way. I think this is very important for new teachers. I believe that we all get frustrated when things don't go exactly the way we planned them to go. We should be flexible and realize that some things happen for a reason that we might not see at the time they happen. I also agree with Mr. McClung when he says communication is very important. Many problems can be avoided if we communicate with one another. We should also not be afraid of technology according to Mr. McClung. Technology should be used to help us and our students. The last two things he talks about is to listen to your students and to never stop learning. I agree! I think if we ever stop wanting to learn something new as teachers, we should consider finding another field to work in. If we stop learning, how can we except our students to learn new things.

  

Smartboard Presentation Group # 1

This was a collaborative project worked on by: Brittany Hamilton, Courtney Starkie, Joshua Ragsdale, and Rashad Adams

After the Smartboard lesson, we sent a quiz to our participants. Click on the link below to see the results of that quiz. https://spreadsheets.google.com/viewanalytics?hl=en&formkey=dENsOERUc19IckJrUUk2ZkNoM2ZrVFE6MQ#gid=0
   


     I had fun working on the Smartboard project. I had never used one before. I think I will enjoy having one in my classroom one day. I can see it being very beneficial to a classroom. I do not think that every classroom needs a Smartboard, but it is a very good technology tool to use when teaching a lesson. I enjoyed playing the game at the end of the lesson and I think that is a great way to reinforce what you just taught to your students. 
     I learned how to make forms using Google docs which I will be able to use one day when teaching. I think this Smartboard presentation made me aware of some good tools that I can use one day when I teach history. I also think this project was a good collaboration project. We had to work together as a group to create a lesson. We all had to help gather information for our presentation and quiz. 

Blog Assignment # 8

Richard Miller :  This Is How We Dream

     I enjoyed this lecture by Richard Miller. He talks about how the world is changing and how we need to adapt. There used to be books everywhere and that was the way most people learned. Today people are using the internet way more than they use books. There is so much more available to us because of the internet. I think people were limited in what they could learn in the past. People could only learn from books they read or by going to a library to do research. Today people with the click of a button can find valuable information on anything they want to learn about.
     I believe we have to teach our students how to use technology if we want them to be successful. If we try to hang on to the past and teach them the way we were taught, we are neglecting them. We have to teach them the new way of learning. In order to teach them the new way of learning, we have to be able to do it ourselves. If we as teachers do not stay updated with evolving technology, how will we expect to teach our students this new way of learning.
     Am I prepared to write with multimedia? The honest answer to this question is no at the moment. I do feel like I am on my way. Taking this course (EDM 310) has helped me a lot. I am more prepared than I was a few months ago. I do think my students will be able to write with multimedia. I think they will be more prepared than students in the past to write with multimedia. I believe that in a few years it will be necessary for every student to write with multimedia or risk the chance of falling behind their peers. This makes it vitally important for me as a future teacher to stay updated with the newest technology and to learn something new everyday that may one day help me teach my students.


The Chipper Series

     This video is about a young lady who is searching for the easy way do things. She is in Dr. Strange's EDM 310 class and wants to turn her work in late and procrastinate all the time. She eventually drops out of school after making bad grades. She thinks she should be able to turn her work in whenever she wants. She starts her own flight school. She lets the students make their own schedules and come to class whenever they like. The Flight school is not a success and it is quickly shut down by the FAA. Chipper then decides to get an online degree and Dr. Strange helps her get a job at a school. She is not responsible and misses class all the time. She is eventually fired by the school. She then gets a job as a waitress. This does not last long either and she is fired. Chipper decides to be a nanny next. She thinks this will be easy and she can do her own thing all day instead of watching the kids. She is never offered this job. She finally decides to be a garbage collector. This job does not last long either. She finally comes back to Dr. Strange and tells him that she had a "cleansing" of her mind. She decides to come back to school and get her master's degree in education. This time she is determined to not procrastinate and to study hard.
  

EDM 310 For Dummies

     This video is about two girls who are frustrated and hate EDM 310 in the beginning. Their attitudes change quickly when they are introduced this book titled "EDM 310 For Dummies". They find in this book many helpful things and tutorials that help them with the class projects. They start enjoying EDM 310 and start looking forward to doing their work now.


Learn to Change, Change to Learn

     This video is pretty much encouraging us to change the way we are learning. We are sticking to the same way of learning when the world around us is changing. We need to change the way that we teach in many aspects. If we continue on this path, our students will not be ready for the real world that awaits them when they leave school. We should teach students things that are important for them in the future.
     Many jobs in the future will be dependent on us knowing how to use technology. The old way of teaching is not going to enable our students to be successful . Most jobs in the future are going to be computer and technology related. It is not easy to change our old habits sometimes, but I believe we have to adapt to the world around us and give our students the best opportunity to succeed in life. I agree with the gentlemen in the video that says we need to get away from requiring students just to learn facts. We need to teach our students how to find useful information. We should encourage students to learn independently and by working with others.


The Secret Powers of Time

     This video was a good demonstration of the changing world around us. I think Professor Zimbardo is trying to point out that we are more past oriented in our thinking when we should be more future oriented. We should embrace the future way of learning things and let go of the past. I think it is sad that so many people are more worried about being successful than spending time with their families. I agree with Professor Zimbardo when he says " There is a disaster recipe developing for boys in America." The amount of time that boys are spending on video games and on the computer are staggering. This means that they will never fit in a traditional classroom. They are expected to sit back and be quiet in a classroom. They control nothing and are being taught nothing that interests them. I think this is why so many boys are dropping out of school. It is not challenging them and they are not in control of anything. I think we could do better as teachers to try to incorporate some new ideas and make learning more fun and more interactive. We can still teach the necessary things, but make it more interesting and challenging.


Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us

  
     Daniel Pink discusses what really motivates us in this video. Most probably think that money is the leading motivator for why we do something. Pink talks about a study at MIT where they took a group of students and gave them a group of challenges. The students were given monetary rewards based on their performances. The result was a strange finding. Once the task called for rudimentary cognitive skills, a larger reward led to poorer performance. This is opposite of what most people believe would happen. The point MR. Pink is making is that people perform better when they are allowed to be creative and think for themselves. When people are just told what to do and how to do it, they are less creative and are not challenged to learn independently. I think this is what is happening in a lot of classrooms. Students are just being forced to memorize material so they can pass a test. If we let students be creative and force them to find answers for themselves, I think we will see better results and positive attitudes toward learning.

Comments For Teachers # 2

     I commented on Royan Lees's blog. He is a teacher leader in the York Region District School Board, Ontario, Canada. He is currently an intermediate literacy teacher in Richmond Hill. The first post on his blog I commented on was about mobile app logos. He had his students analyzing and designing app logos. The students were very engaged and doing their homework because they loved doing this. Their was a high level of collaboration among the students that Mr. Royan says he wish he could bottle up and sell. The students are obviously having fun learning. I commented on his post and told him that I thought this was a great idea he had to make students excited about learning. I also told him that it was exciting to see students so engaged in their schoolwork and being creative. Below is a picture of some of the apps his students designed.

     The second post I commented on by MR. Royan was titled "I heart tech". In this post MR. Royan basically says that we need to get past the excitement of technology and use it for learning and teaching instead of just using it because it is cool! He says "To get past novelty,however you must experience the novelty." He gives an example of his daughter loving the ice cream shop. It is unavoidable that she will love the ice cream shop at first. I commented and told Mr. Royan that this was a great post. I told him that if we just focus on how cool something is, we often lose sight of what we can actually learn from something.

PLN Project # 10

1st Progress Report on PLN

     I have made a lot of progress towards my PLN in the last several weeks. Before this semester, I was not on Twitter or Blogger. I had been using Facebook a lot in the past. I have now connected with a lot of other web sites that have enhanced my learning. I am following many educators on Twitter which I have found is a very valuable tool for learning. I also created a Gmail account and have learned that Google has so many valuable tools needed for educating. I really like Google Docs and have used it frequently. I am excited about the progress of my PLN and how much better it will be in the future. I am using Symbaloo for my PLN right now. Here is a link to my PLN.

View my symbaloo.

Project # 11 Short Movie

Blog Assignment # 7

Randy Pausch Last Lecture: Achieving Your Childhood Dreams

      I was very impressed by this video and Randy Pausch. He had a great attitude despite being stricken with liver cancer. Most people would just roll over and give up. Randy had several childhood dreams that he wanted to accomplish before he died. He achieved all of them in some way. The six he listed in this video were:

1. Being in zero gravity

2. Playing in the NFL

3. Authoring an article in the World Book of Encyclopedia

4. Being Captain Kirk

5. Winning Stuffed animals

6. Being a Disney Imagineer

     I really enjoyed the part in the video about hitting a brick wall. We all may hit a brick wall in our lives when trying to accomplish our dreams. We should not let this stop us. It should be thought of as gaining an  experience instead of a stopping point to give up on our dreams. I really liked the Quote by Mr. Randy Pausch that said "Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted". I think a lot of time people do not realize that just because you didn't achieve something that you wanted in life, you can still use that experience to help you get where you want to be.    


    I also learned from watching this video what a head fake was. A head fake is when you make somebody think they are learning something that is fun when in reality it is something that is very valuable and important that they are really learning. It is something  hard to learn but you do not realize that when you are doing it because you are having fun with it. It is like manipulating a student to learning something hard by making it enjoyable. I also like the points he made about how to get people to help you. You can get people to help you by doing the following according to Mr. Pausch.

• Realize you can't get there alone
• Tell the truth
• Be earnest
• Apologize when you screw up
• Focus on others, not yourself

 
   I enjoyed watching this video and admired the courage shown by Mr. Pausch. This man may have been dying, but he was still having fun and helping others. I think he is a great example for future teachers! He challenged students and made fun learning at the same time. I hope one day I can have this great attitude about teaching as he did. I am not going to let a brick wall stop me from achieving my dreams anymore. I am going to use my failures as experience to make myself a better person and a better teacher. 

Blog Assignment # 6

The Networked Student

     This video made me realize what the future classroom may look like. There is so much more information available to us these days than ever before. I think students will like this new way of learning instead of having to hear boring lectures all the time and do the same thing in class every day. Most students are bored in the classroom these days and I think if they are allowed to learn more independently they will be more successful. 

     I also think this way of learning challenges students to find answers for themselves instead of just depending on a teacher or other student to help them. A student today can find information on just about anything through the use of  networking. Connecting with people from all over the world is a great way to learn more. I think in the past we were limited to how much we could learn. When I was growing up I never was able to talk to someone who was in another country. I barely even talked to any one who do not live in my same city. Today we are able to learn so much more by being connected to people from all over the world.

     I think the networked student does still need a teacher. A teacher who is technology literate can help students with questions they have or connect them other people who can help them. A teacher can guide them and show them how to network with other people and use his or her experience to help them along the way. I think a teacher should encourage students to be  networking. A teacher also needs to be networking. A teacher should not be complacent and always willing to learn from other people also. 

     A 7th Grade Personal Learning Environment or PLN

     I was impressed with this 7th graders personal learning environment. It looked way different than what I did in school when I was a young boy. Technology has definitely changed  the way we learn today. My personal learning environment in EDM 310 is similar to this. I never have to use paper or pencil just like this 7th grader did not have too. Most of my classes in college are still not using much technology. I think in the future everyone will be using technology in their personal learning environment or risk the chance of falling way behind those who do use it.

A Critique of Smart boards
     In The two critiques I read about smart boards both think that the smart boards are a waste of money and do not really help the student that much more than a chalkboard or projector. Both educators seem to think that most schools have them just to show them off because they are cool and neat. They seem to think that they are really useless.

      I read a post by Jessica Cook titled The advantages of Using a Smart Board. She believes that smart boards are very beneficial to the teachers and students. She likes the fact that you can save your work on a smart board and retrieve it at any time. She also likes the idea that the smart boards can be connected to different computers and be useful in distance learning. Another advantage is after a teacher is through with a lecture or lesson he or she can print out what was on the board and give a handout to each student. Here is a link to the site.The Advantages of Using a Smart Board | eHow.com

     I believe smart boards are a good investment and offer more advantages than disadvantages. The only thing I do not like is when a school receives a new smart board and a teacher refuses to use it because he or she is scared of learning how it works. It is a waste of money if it just sits there unused, but it can be very beneficial to those who use it in a productive way.

Comments for Kids 1

C4K # 1

     The first kid's blog I commented on was a fifth grade boy. His post was titled What I like to do. He said that he liked to pogo stick and that he was the best one at it at the boys club. He also mentioned that he like to ripstik. He said that he like to read at that he had read many books since he was five years old. He also had a positive attitude about attending school and seeing his teacher everyday.

     I commented on his post and asked him what pogo stick and ripstik was. I had never heard of that. I also encouraged him to keep reading and told him that was great that he had such a positive attitude about going to school everyday. I asked him what was his favorite kind of books to read.

CK4 # 2

     The next student I was assigned to comment on was a girl named Chyna. She attends Pt England School in Auckland, New Zealand. She is in the fourth grade. I commented on her post titled I am getting a Netbook.  She was very excited because she evidently had won a netbook. She mentioned that she had won the netbook because she was good on the computer and did cool things on the computer. She also mentioned that when she first turned on her netbook that it turned off because her battery was flat!

     I commented on her post and told her that it was so cool that she was getting a netbook. I asked her what all she had learned on a computer and what could she do on it. I encouraged her to keep learning all she could on a computer. I told her that when I was growing up that we did not have computers in my classroom.

CK4 # 3 

     The final student I commented on was a sixth grade boy named Mateo. He also attended Pt England School. His teacher is Mr. Kent Somerville. The title of the post I commented on was Christchurch Earthquake. He was saddened by the earthquake in his country. He mentioned that 75 people had been killed and many more injured in the earthquake. He said that almost all the houses had been destroyed in the city of Christchurch. 

     I commented on his post and told him that I was very sorry for the earthquake in his country. I could tell that this was really sad to him and that he was concerned for the victims. I told him that I would be praying for  all the people involved in this terrible tragedy. I also asked him how far was Christchurch from where he lived. 

Project 9b (Instructional)Timetoast

Blog Assignment # 5

Podcasting In the Classroom

     I think this video shows many examples of why podcasting is beneficial in the classroom. I love the idea of parents being able to see what is going on in their children's classrooms. I also think that is is a very good tool to use for someone who may be sick and needs to study at home. Podcasting allows a student who may have missed a class to still learn and to do it from the convenience of their home. I would love to use podcasting in my classroom one day and plan on doing so. I believe it is a great tool to use and should be used in our classrooms

Eagle Nest Radio & Class Blog

     I really enjoyed these 3rd graders podcasts. I always thought that podcast were for older students and not lower grades. I now see even the young can do podcasts and it is a great learning tool for them to learn. I really think podcasts help students be more creative and it keeps them more interested in learning because it is fun and is a new way of learning. I listened to the podcast about the ancient Romans. I would have loved to have been able to use this technology when I was attending school.
     I also liked hearing these students interacting and collaborating with one another while doing these podcasts. I think it teaches students to work together and learn together instead of just trying to learn alone. I hope more teachers in the future will allow their classrooms to do podcasts and use this wonderful learning instrument.

100 Ways to Use Your iPod to learn and Study Better

     I was amazed at all the the ways you can use an iPod for educational purposes. I had no there was so many things you could download on an iPod to use for learning. I can see where having an iPod can be so beneficial to have. You can have access to lesson plans and all kind of tools to teach students with the use of an iPod. I thought Ipods were just used to listen to music. I had no idea they could be used for so much more. This is definitely great technology that I need to get more familiar with.

          I will definitely use some of these tools for my future podcasts. I watched a video on how to make a podcast using Audacity. I will use this for future podcasts.I like how you can cut out background noise in Audacity. I will definitely use that one day! I also would like to buy an ipod and explore the many things you can do with it for educational purposes. I really liked how the 3rd graders used a podcast to learn history and would love to do that in my classroom one day.

Project 9a Timetoast

Assignment # 8 Podcast

MY Sentence Movie

Blog Assignment # 4

Don't teach your kids this stuff. Please?

     I really liked this post by Dr. Mcleod. I know that he was being sarcastic and did not really mean the stuff he was saying. I think he was trying to make a point of how many teachers and parents try to make an excuse in order to keep technology out of the classrooms. There are definitely some things that could be viewed as potentially harmful due to technology being used in the classroom. This should not stop us or give us an excuse to do away with it all together.  
     I believe we have to teach students to be responsible with technology just as we teach them to be responsible with other things. We cannot be scared to use technology just because there are bad things that can be associated with it. We will be putting the students we teach at a serious disadvantage if we deny them the use of something that will be very important for them one day. Dr. Scott Mcleod is an Associate Professor in the Educational Administration program at Iowa State University. He is widely recognized as on of the nation's leading academic experts on K-12 school technology leadership issues.

The iSchool Initiative

     This video changed my perception on how I thought technology would be too expensive to be put in all schools. It made me realize that  a lot of money could actually be saved if we used more technology. Less paper would be used and some of the things required like a calculator are already in the iphone or ipad. I think that people sometimes want to believe it would be more expensive just because they are afraid to learn about new things and it would require some changes in the classroom.
     After watching this video, I realize that we are not using enough technology in the classrooms today. We have all these new things today,but we continue to want to stay in the past and not move into the future. Most of the new technology would make things easier on us and would put those we teach at an advantage over those who do not get to use new technology.

The Lost Generation

     I did not like this video at first as it was all negative and seemed to stereotype my generation. Then it switched the words around and it made it into a positive message. I think a lot of people think that this is a lost generation with no hope and that we have strayed away from our past values. All we hear today it seems is negative and not painting a good picture of what our future will hold.
     I do not believe we are a lost generation. We may be looked on that way right now,however I think we have more tools to be successful today than we ever have. We have more technology on hand and if we use it to our advantage we may be known as the generation that saved us instead of the lost generation.

Eric Whitacre's Virtual Choir

     This video was great! To think that no one ever came together to do this and it was done all on the web is amazing. This video really makes me aware of the things we can now do thanks to new technology. This was really well put together and it sounded beautiful. It was different voices of people from all around the globe coming together to make a beautiful sound. This gives me hope that I can form relationships and get to know people from other countries and possibly work with people that live so far away!

Teaching in the 21st Century

     Teaching in the 21st century is way different than in the past. We have much more information than in the past. Students can now find information on any subject through various ways on a computer. I think teachers sometimes look down on people who come to class with cell phones and computers because they are just assuming that the they are using it for entertainment instead of learning. I like the part in the video where it talks about students engaging with their technology instead of using it simply for entertainment. Engaging is when students take advantage of technology to learn from it. Teaching in the 21st century means taking advantage of all that is out there to teach methods of learning.

C4T Summary Post # 1

The State Writing Test


     This blog by Paula White is discussing the upcoming writing test administered by the State. The test will be given online on a computer. Mrs. White is talking about some of the teachers concerns about this test being alone. Some are concerned that some students do not know how to use a keyboard very well. Others are concerned that kids who do not text on their phones will be at an disadvantage. Most are concerned with the fairness of this kind of test. Mrs. White believes from what I gather is that we should be teaching kids how to write on a computer all the time and not just to prepare them for the test given by the state. I agree! We should try to teach our students everything that is given to us to learn. In this case the state has made computers available and they should be used by the students .


Expect More

     This blog by Paula White encourages us to expect more from our students and to not underestimate their abilities. I think often times we just believe students to not know how do something when in reality they do and are willing to learn. I like the quote in this blog made by Adora Svitack. "No matter your position or place in life, it is imperative to create opportunities for children so that we can blow you away." Mrs. White goes on to say that her students do not need to grow up to blow her away because they are already doing so. I agree with that. We can learn some much from young people if we just let them teach us what they already know. I also agree with Mrs. White that we should let students choose some of the things they want to read or learn about. I think a young person is more likely to study things he or she is interested in. I think teachers should try to incorporate things that interest kids so they will be more excited about studying and learning.

Project # 5 Google Presentation

Blog Assignment # 3

A Vision of Students Today


     I think this video is a good picture of what is going on in most classes today.It seems most classes that I attend do not have technology involved.I just show up to class and hear a lecture in most classes without being included. I have bought many books and never even opened some of them. I feel like I wasted my money and feel like I have been robbed of learning.
     I think we should be challenged to learn when attending classes. I also feel like we should bring new technology into the classroom and be allowed to use it when it helps us to learn.It is a shame that we are in some cases living in the past and if we did not not know any better we would think that things are the same as they were 30 years ago. It is time for us as educators to become committed to bring change into the classrooms through new technology!


It's Not about the Technology


     I completely agree with Mrs. Hines. What good is technology if we as teachers do not know how to use it and teach our students. We have to change our mindset and be flexible. If we do not try to change we will be guilty of not becoming learners ourselves. Just because we are teachers does not mean our education stops and we stop learning. We should try to learn something every moment that we can in hopes of being the best teacher that we can be.
     I also agree with the four points that Mrs. Hines makes that we need to do to be effective in the classroom. We should adapt and change our teaching strategies if the students we teach are not learning. We should never forget that the reason we teach is to make learners. If we as teachers don't know about technology how are we going to expect our students to learn it. We have to be good teachers first and then we will be able to use technology more effectively.


Is it okay to Be A Technologically Illiterate Teacher?


     I really enjoyed this blog and after reading this it changed my way on how I view technology. I always thought that teachers might could get away with not being technologically literate. I do not think that anymore. I think technology is moving so fast that if we do not try to stay caught up we will be jeopardizing our careers as educators in the near future.
     When I first started reading this blog I thought that Mr. Fisch was crazy when he made the comparison with being technology illiterate and not knowing how to read thirty years ago. I think that is a good point and I can see that being true in the very near future. We can longer stand still as educators and not be willing to learn more. We have to use technology if we want to be successful in the classrooms.


Gary Hayes Social Media Count


     This was unbelievable! Anybody who sees this and does not realize how fast technology is moving and how you will be left behind if you are not constantly learning must be blind. More and more people are using technology everyday and pretty soon you will be in the minority if you do not keep up.