Embedded in this post is my final summative project for my Internet For Educators class. My very last class in my entire life I might add! Woot woot!! It is weird to think that all these years of schooling has come to an end, but then I just begin to think that I'll be in a classroom for the rest of my life! Feels quite good to be at this point! The Internet for Educators class was a great class to have as my last class, and if anyone is reading this who is going to be going into the Faculty of Education at Brandon University, I highly recommend taking it.
It took me awhile to figure out how to make all my audio one file, and then how to put it into slideshare, but once I did it turned out to be a really good tool to use. I will be using it in the future!
Thanks to everyone who was with me for my journey, and good luck to everyone in the future!!
Sunday, March 10, 2013
Thursday, March 7, 2013
What the Future Will Be Like...
What's next? Who knows really. All we have are assumptions, and little hints of what is in store for us. From a technological stand point? That is even more of a mystery. Technology surprises me everyday, in more ways than one. Years and years ago I thought that the Sega Genesis was the most amazing piece of technology out there! Playing Sonic the Hedgehog and Power Rangers all day was my idea of the pinnacle of the tech age (I had no idea what pinnacle meant back then). Then, time goes on, and better video game systems emerged. Ipods became available and wow were those things the next big thing. Then every day something new comes out.
The Horizon report highlights a few directions in which it thinks technology might go towards. Personally, I found one extremely interesting portion of this report to be about... wait for it... you've all heard of it... dun dun dun... the cloud (Oooooo..... awwwww). Yes, 'the cloud.' What is the cloud. It is this magical online storage space, where for you to access, doesn't involve chords (good... I hate them). Things are moving towards this storage capacity, and there isn't a thing we can do about it! Everything seems to be connected to some form of 'cloud' someway or another. My iPad uses the cloud, and so does my iPhone. My laptop tried to use it (getting a little old), and so do all of the applications that I have. The cloud sort of scared me in the beginning. Why? Storing everything somewhere, where millions of other people store their stuff... pretty sure I wouldn't store my wallet in a changing room locker with even 8 other people. Nuh uh. So i was hesitant. Then... I realized that I didn't have to carry around all of my stuff with me everywhere I went. Quite handy if you ask me, because I carry around enough textbooks that sometimes my laptop is an afterthought.
Schools may start to do this more too. Why not allow kids to save over the cloud, so they can access their work from anywhere? First of all, it doesn't give students the excuse of "Oh... well I forgot all of my stuff in my locker... soooooo didn't do it." With the cloud, we as teachers can say "HA! you could have accessed it from home, so don't give me that." (I would say it nicer that that of course, but for dramatic effect I thought it would suffice). Use the cloud, and use it well. Online courses will benefit from it, and so will many other things. I just hope that it doesn't get to the point where students think they don't have to come to school because they can now do everything at home, because we don't want it to start looking like this...
It won't though... right? No one can actually say for certain. It is scary to think that it may. The internet and technology is just so influential, that it is impossible to predict it's influence a decade from now. Here is to hoping that the picture above never happens, because we need that personal connection, no matter how many other ways there are to talk with people. Until next time... CHEERS!!!
The Horizon report highlights a few directions in which it thinks technology might go towards. Personally, I found one extremely interesting portion of this report to be about... wait for it... you've all heard of it... dun dun dun... the cloud (Oooooo..... awwwww). Yes, 'the cloud.' What is the cloud. It is this magical online storage space, where for you to access, doesn't involve chords (good... I hate them). Things are moving towards this storage capacity, and there isn't a thing we can do about it! Everything seems to be connected to some form of 'cloud' someway or another. My iPad uses the cloud, and so does my iPhone. My laptop tried to use it (getting a little old), and so do all of the applications that I have. The cloud sort of scared me in the beginning. Why? Storing everything somewhere, where millions of other people store their stuff... pretty sure I wouldn't store my wallet in a changing room locker with even 8 other people. Nuh uh. So i was hesitant. Then... I realized that I didn't have to carry around all of my stuff with me everywhere I went. Quite handy if you ask me, because I carry around enough textbooks that sometimes my laptop is an afterthought.
Schools may start to do this more too. Why not allow kids to save over the cloud, so they can access their work from anywhere? First of all, it doesn't give students the excuse of "Oh... well I forgot all of my stuff in my locker... soooooo didn't do it." With the cloud, we as teachers can say "HA! you could have accessed it from home, so don't give me that." (I would say it nicer that that of course, but for dramatic effect I thought it would suffice). Use the cloud, and use it well. Online courses will benefit from it, and so will many other things. I just hope that it doesn't get to the point where students think they don't have to come to school because they can now do everything at home, because we don't want it to start looking like this...
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| I've had so many classes here... It is actually quite sad knowing this may be the very last time I am sitting in this spot. |
Sunday, March 3, 2013
Keeping Up With the Podcasts
I have subscribed to podcasts for quite awhile now. Never educational ones though, which I probably should have. I have subscribed to such podcasts as the College Humor podcast, the Pardon The Interruption podcast, the Jay and Dan podcast, and a few others. I have always like them, whether they were audio or video. They provide a great way to catch up on missed events (such as sports highlights). I have now recently understood the benefits of them educationally. I have watched TED Talks ones before too, but I'm sure most people have heard of them before, so I am going to introduce you to a couple that I have come across and come to enjoy.
I have used the mobile classroom podcast to help me get through some technology difficulties I have had. The podcast is set up as sort of a video in picture styled format. The video serves as the audio, while a words and pictures are splashed onto the main portion of the screen. The first one I watched was about Evernote. I use Evernote quite a bit, but there is always something to learn, so I decided to watch it to introduce to some things I may not have even known about. It did help me quite a bit. This podcast is more for the teacher than for the students. It can help teach you some tips about different technological tools, so that you can better use them in the classroom, or so that you can better teach your students. Give it a try. Look at the list, and you will probably see a title that is linked to an internet tool that you want to know more about.
The Mobile Classroom ( https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/mobile-classroom-ipod-edition/id338794710 )
I have used the mobile classroom podcast to help me get through some technology difficulties I have had. The podcast is set up as sort of a video in picture styled format. The video serves as the audio, while a words and pictures are splashed onto the main portion of the screen. The first one I watched was about Evernote. I use Evernote quite a bit, but there is always something to learn, so I decided to watch it to introduce to some things I may not have even known about. It did help me quite a bit. This podcast is more for the teacher than for the students. It can help teach you some tips about different technological tools, so that you can better use them in the classroom, or so that you can better teach your students. Give it a try. Look at the list, and you will probably see a title that is linked to an internet tool that you want to know more about.
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| RSS... something I still need to know more about. |
The Cool Teacher Podcast ( https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-cool-teacherpodcast/id406347324 )
The "Cool Teacher Podcast" with Barbara and Chris, is an audio podcast that gives hints and tips of how to make your classroom a "cool" and "fresh" place to be. Essentially, they give some suggestions about how to keep your classroom different. They also discuss a lot on the topic of assessment, which is something that all teachers should learn about. One podcast, they talked about those awful computer generated comments that exist on some report cards. Those take away from the personable connection between students and teachers. I remember reading those comments in high school, the "a pleasure to have in the classroom," or "good and consistent work habits." Seriously? Thanks for caring. Anyways, this podcast talks about real issues, but puts an interesting spin on them. Please give this one a try.
Overall, you have to love podcasts. You can get them automatically downloaded right to your computer or phone as soon as they become available, and you can listen to them as easily as listening to music on your iPod. I use them, and will for quite sometime. I will especially be using them for educational purposes now. So, until next time.... CHEERS!!!
Putting My Foot On The Ground.... Digitally
Searches, posts, comments, views, pictures, videos, and all of those other things you do on the internet... what does it leave? It leaves a digital footprint. Not a carbon footprint (which is probably vast because of what we all consume), but a digital one. A digital footprint is what we leave behind from being online. There are two sides to the footprint... a good, and of course bad.
I have actually googled myself, and to be honest I was a little disappointed. It took me forever to find me. My name is quite common however, so that may be the reason, but even after typing in my hometown I couldn't find much. I found some football stats from high school, and my Google+ account, which I had just activated about 2 weeks prior. I couldn't find my facebook, or my Twitter. Is that good or bad? Depends on how you look at it I suppose.
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| My digital footprint... literally. |
The good side, are all the positives you can leave behind. If you create something wonderful, or write an amazing paper, of course you are going to want people to see it, so post it online. It will go towards giving yourself a really good online presence. You want someone to google your name and see amazing content. Which brings me to the bad. People do stupid things, its a fact (no offense). Everyone has done something stupid in their life, but only some allow it to get online. This is where the bad portion of the digital footprint begins to show. Imagine you are a pre-service teacher, and you have just finished your second year in the ED program, so you are going out to celebrate! Pretty harmless: a couple of drinks with some friends, some pool, maybe some VLTs. Then, on the walk home you decide to go to the washroom, right where you are standing, and your friend decides to take a picture. Harmless? Not to the possible employer who just googled your name. (Side note: This story was completely fictional, as I just made it up on the spot) Being responsible in general is important, because there are too many ways for our doings to become public. Act responsible everywhere, and you should be fine.
Overall, a digital footprint can be scary, but also empowering. Be smart, act right, don't watch reality television (joking), and you should have a good digital footprint for life. Let's face it, it'll be there for that long. Until next time... CHEERS!!!
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| I don't think she's been irresponsible with her digital footprint... or has she? |
There Is An App For That... Seriously There Is An App For Almost Everything
ShowMe Interactive Whiteboard
I have had the ShowMe Interactive Whiteboard app for awhile now, and it has been awesome! Essentially it is a whiteboard for your iPad! This can also be downloaded through android devices as well, but I will explain from an IOS stand point. You start it up and you are given a blank white screen, with a pen option (with multiple color options... oooooo), as well as a clear all, an eraser, and a couple other options. There is also a record button. Once you are ready, hit record and start your lesson. While you are writing (I suggest getting a stylus pen for convenience) your voice can also be recorded. A great use for this app is to do lessons, whether it be math, science, english, or whatever! Just write and record. You can then share it via Twitter, Facebook, email, or embed it in a website or blog (like I did below). You could then hook it up to your projector, so the whole class can see it. My favorite feature is that you can share it. This is a great function, especially if a child was sick that day. If a student was sick and missed a long division lesson, one could easily do a quick ShowMe lesson and then email it to the parents or put it on the classroom website so the student could watch it. Another awesome feature is that you can even search lessons other people have made. There are thousands of lesson covering all subjects and topics. If you are looking for a really good lesson on science just search it up and it will most likely be there! Lessons can also be viewed over their website. All you have to do is create an account (which booyah is free), select what subjects you like, and it's all learning from there. If you have a tablet this is a must get, and if you don't, the website with all of its recorded lessons is a must see!! Below the video is a link to the app store! Until next time... CHEERS!!
Saturday, March 2, 2013
This Week in I4ED... Presentations!!!
So this week we got to present our group presentations. I would first like to say congratulations to everyone because they are all very well done! Every group presented confidently and strongly, and the best part was that each one was beyond the usual slideshow presentation! So good job everybody.
The first presentation was about the debate on BYOD (Bring Your Own Device). Now, I can see both sides of the argument: about how it will just distract kids; and the other side saying that it will only benefit kids. Overall however, let kids bring their devices!! If they have them, it is just going to cut back on how much the school is going to have to spend on other devices. I understand that some families can't afford such devices, and we need to be mindful of that. So, if a school is going to turn BYOD, then there has to be some form of financial aid system set in place to help those families in need. Here is the link to the awesome presentation we got to see https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1E2FviR2kGV2Ge1klIvJhXTZvv7xWrtbcQ-IqcKEFZ4I/mobilepresent#slide=id.p . Great job ladies!!
The second presentation was on the Good, the Bad, & the Ugly of the internet. This presentation made a lot of good points about how the internet can be an amazing thing, but also that it can be harmful and ugly. For example, one of the presenters mentioned that someone could mention your name in a post or something else, and that that may be in a bad way. Problem is that because you are not the creator, you cannot get rid of it, so if someone google searches you then it may appear. That may not be a good thing if it is your potential employer searching. Many benefits were mentioned as well, such as one major resource. The internet is an amazing tool, and we should not discourage it because of a few of the downfalls it may contain. Please view their presentation here... https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1ErYv_zr4MNtcYhiK5iqU9O64-vkTF1lqO-A3bAtl3W4/mobilepresent?pli=1#slide=id.ga8aabbd0_0105... Awesome job everyone!
The third presentation was about how not to steal from the internet. Now, I'm pretty sure everyone is guilty of stealing from the internet in some form or another, at some point in their life. I don't mean illegally downloading something exactly, but even by not attributing where a picture in a presentation came from. So this presentation was very informative, and it actually taught me a lot about copyrights. It also began with a really informative and comedic video, so please visit the site (http://hownottosteal.wikispaces.com/ ) to watch it, and also to see this massive resource! Well done all!
The fourth presentation was about internet filters. I dislike internet filters in schools... a lot. First of all, don't block my YouTube!!! It is too big of a resource!! They discussed a lot about how internet filters in schools are blocking students from accessing important information. I remember in grade 12 biology having to do a presentation on body systems. When I tried to find some information on the reproductive system... I couldn't. Why? The word "sex" was blocked with an internet filter. Therefore, I was unable to search some information about the "sexual reproduction system." Powers that be forbid I search for gender and nothing comes up because its synonym is "sex." Pretty silly in my opinion. Anyways, a great presentation, and presentation style! Please check it out
( http://aj4ca.edu.glogster.com/internetfilters ). A very good job.
The last presentation was actually the presentation I was involved in. Our group decided to do ours on cyber bullying. Now, a couple weeks a go in an older post, I gave a little disclaimer about our video, letting people know that we made the video with a particular purpose (satirical), to show how we think the media may push things to make them seem scarier than it really may be. I am not saying bullying isn't scary, it is awful, I'm just saying the media may portray it a little differently. We had fun making the video, and we hope that everyone perceived it in the way that we meant it to be viewed in. We need to make sure that cyber bullying isn't taking the focus away from the bigger picture of bullying. Cyber bullying is a form of bullying, but it is not the only form. There are multiple forms, and they all can be lumped together as just bullying, which is what we need to focus on.
Overall, great presentations everyone. It was a very informational, and professional class!! Until next time... CHEERS!!
The first presentation was about the debate on BYOD (Bring Your Own Device). Now, I can see both sides of the argument: about how it will just distract kids; and the other side saying that it will only benefit kids. Overall however, let kids bring their devices!! If they have them, it is just going to cut back on how much the school is going to have to spend on other devices. I understand that some families can't afford such devices, and we need to be mindful of that. So, if a school is going to turn BYOD, then there has to be some form of financial aid system set in place to help those families in need. Here is the link to the awesome presentation we got to see https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1E2FviR2kGV2Ge1klIvJhXTZvv7xWrtbcQ-IqcKEFZ4I/mobilepresent#slide=id.p . Great job ladies!!
The second presentation was on the Good, the Bad, & the Ugly of the internet. This presentation made a lot of good points about how the internet can be an amazing thing, but also that it can be harmful and ugly. For example, one of the presenters mentioned that someone could mention your name in a post or something else, and that that may be in a bad way. Problem is that because you are not the creator, you cannot get rid of it, so if someone google searches you then it may appear. That may not be a good thing if it is your potential employer searching. Many benefits were mentioned as well, such as one major resource. The internet is an amazing tool, and we should not discourage it because of a few of the downfalls it may contain. Please view their presentation here... https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1ErYv_zr4MNtcYhiK5iqU9O64-vkTF1lqO-A3bAtl3W4/mobilepresent?pli=1#slide=id.ga8aabbd0_0105... Awesome job everyone!
The third presentation was about how not to steal from the internet. Now, I'm pretty sure everyone is guilty of stealing from the internet in some form or another, at some point in their life. I don't mean illegally downloading something exactly, but even by not attributing where a picture in a presentation came from. So this presentation was very informative, and it actually taught me a lot about copyrights. It also began with a really informative and comedic video, so please visit the site (http://hownottosteal.wikispaces.com/ ) to watch it, and also to see this massive resource! Well done all!
The fourth presentation was about internet filters. I dislike internet filters in schools... a lot. First of all, don't block my YouTube!!! It is too big of a resource!! They discussed a lot about how internet filters in schools are blocking students from accessing important information. I remember in grade 12 biology having to do a presentation on body systems. When I tried to find some information on the reproductive system... I couldn't. Why? The word "sex" was blocked with an internet filter. Therefore, I was unable to search some information about the "sexual reproduction system." Powers that be forbid I search for gender and nothing comes up because its synonym is "sex." Pretty silly in my opinion. Anyways, a great presentation, and presentation style! Please check it out
( http://aj4ca.edu.glogster.com/internetfilters ). A very good job.
The last presentation was actually the presentation I was involved in. Our group decided to do ours on cyber bullying. Now, a couple weeks a go in an older post, I gave a little disclaimer about our video, letting people know that we made the video with a particular purpose (satirical), to show how we think the media may push things to make them seem scarier than it really may be. I am not saying bullying isn't scary, it is awful, I'm just saying the media may portray it a little differently. We had fun making the video, and we hope that everyone perceived it in the way that we meant it to be viewed in. We need to make sure that cyber bullying isn't taking the focus away from the bigger picture of bullying. Cyber bullying is a form of bullying, but it is not the only form. There are multiple forms, and they all can be lumped together as just bullying, which is what we need to focus on.
Overall, great presentations everyone. It was a very informational, and professional class!! Until next time... CHEERS!!
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Dear Infographics... I Will Understand You... One Of These Days
Alright it is confession time. It took me a long time to understand this thing we all call infographics. While looking at other infographics that people have made, I was thinking that these things were one of the coolest ways to organize data ever! I also thought that it looked ridiculously hard to do. Therefore, I embarked on my journey to create an infographic of my very own. My first finding, was that it was one of the coolest ways to organize data ever! My second finding, was that this is one of the hardest things I have ever done. I, personally, consider myself to be quite good with technology, so I couldn't understand why I couldn't figure this out. I started by trying to decide what was the best way to make one, because there were so many options. Well that took forever. I came across one program that would allow me to do a simple venn diagram... easy right? HA!! I had no idea how to even do that. So honestly, I gave up for a little while. Took me about two weeks before I decided to try again. So i signed into http://visual.ly/ to give it another go. I stumbled upon this one called the "Twitter Account Showdown, which I have seen a couple of times previously. I really liked the idea of comparing Twitter accounts, so I gave it a go. The hardest part of it was trying to decide who to battle against. I looked across the table to the left, and across the table to the right. The one on the left just started Twitter, and had maybe 4 tweets (hello Adrienne), and the one on the right I'm pretty sure only follows 6 people, with 0 tweets (hello Kristan). So i decided to pick a celebrity, but a worthy celebrity. When I mean worthy, I mean someone who is involved in education somehow. So, I decided to battle Bill Nye The Science Guy (@TheScienceGuy)!! So it was easy as signing into Twitter through visually, and clicking a button. BOOM!! Done! The results were not shocking at all, and the winner won by a landslide. Bill Nye dominated me in the Twitter statistics. He tweets a lot more than I do, and he has way more followers than me. I, however, follow more people than he does, and I also beat him in mentions on weeks 2 and 4. Woot woot!
Besides getting a super smackdown from Bill Nye, I also learned a few things. Apparently a bulk of my tweeting takes place on Mondays at 3 am. Maybe I sleep tweet I have no idea. The tool of infographics is still very interesting to me. I am going to keep playing around on them to fully figure them out. Mainly because I want to eventually use them in a classroom. It would be a way more innovative and fun way to present data with the students, and I am sure they would love it! Go infographics!!! (Sort of).
Until next time.... CHEERS!!!
create infographics with visual.ly
Besides getting a super smackdown from Bill Nye, I also learned a few things. Apparently a bulk of my tweeting takes place on Mondays at 3 am. Maybe I sleep tweet I have no idea. The tool of infographics is still very interesting to me. I am going to keep playing around on them to fully figure them out. Mainly because I want to eventually use them in a classroom. It would be a way more innovative and fun way to present data with the students, and I am sure they would love it! Go infographics!!! (Sort of).
Until next time.... CHEERS!!!
create infographics with visual.ly
Sunday, February 24, 2013
Web Based Courses + A Requested Recipe
Welcome to a two-part post (I hope you like chocolate).
This past Thursday we had Donald Girouard and Sophia Palahicky join us to talk about web based courses. I have to be honest, I have never taken an online course or even a distance course, and have only known a few people that have taken them. Personally, I like the face-to-face of the classroom style of learning, so that is why I have never taken an online or distance course. We based courses are getting bigger, and they are becoming way easier to access these days. I really like some things about them, but also have a few issues. My first like of them is that it offers a student who may not be able to attend classes regularly, the opportunity to learn the material he or she should be learning. One of my friends got his spleen crushed when playing hockey in high school, so was unable to attend classes for a good month. He, was not given the option of an online course though, so he felt like he fell behind a lot. If he had an online course it would have benefited him greatly. Online courses would also be a great thing for someone in a situation where they may of had a teenage pregnancy. Many young females in North America drop out of school because they end up getting pregnant. An online course would allow them to still gain the education they need and deserve, while still being able to stay at home with her newborn. Some schools just don't have the enrollment to have a lot of teachers on staff, so having an online course would be beneficial there too. In situations like these, I totally like online courses. Now, I don' like them for a few reasons (personal opinion). I like the face-to-face interaction between student and teacher. I would hate to get taught my grade 4 fractions unit over the internet. There just seems to be no personal connection there. I realize that you can turn on a web cam, but thats still not the same. I also dislike them because they may eventually cause me to not have an available job. If one teacher can teach roughly 80 kids at one time with an online course, that means that roughly 3 jobs could be discarded. As an aspiring teacher that scares me. Pretty sure I'm allowed to be scared by that. Also, as a soon to be early years educator, I personally (and no offense) do not see a connection between early years and web based courses. Young children need the teacher connection, and need that teacher to sometimes take their hand and guide them. An online course cannot give a child that mentoring feeling, or that stable figure. Let's face it, to some children their teacher is the most stable and constant person in their lives, and we need to show that we still can be. Especially for the younger ones. So to end this portion of the post, I have to say that I can't see myself using web based courses much. It is a great idea, but for me I just don't see a place where it will fit.
To get to the second part of my post, a classmate asked me to add the 'Death by Chocolate' recipe to my next blog post, so here you go Tiffany!
Ingredients:
This past Thursday we had Donald Girouard and Sophia Palahicky join us to talk about web based courses. I have to be honest, I have never taken an online course or even a distance course, and have only known a few people that have taken them. Personally, I like the face-to-face of the classroom style of learning, so that is why I have never taken an online or distance course. We based courses are getting bigger, and they are becoming way easier to access these days. I really like some things about them, but also have a few issues. My first like of them is that it offers a student who may not be able to attend classes regularly, the opportunity to learn the material he or she should be learning. One of my friends got his spleen crushed when playing hockey in high school, so was unable to attend classes for a good month. He, was not given the option of an online course though, so he felt like he fell behind a lot. If he had an online course it would have benefited him greatly. Online courses would also be a great thing for someone in a situation where they may of had a teenage pregnancy. Many young females in North America drop out of school because they end up getting pregnant. An online course would allow them to still gain the education they need and deserve, while still being able to stay at home with her newborn. Some schools just don't have the enrollment to have a lot of teachers on staff, so having an online course would be beneficial there too. In situations like these, I totally like online courses. Now, I don' like them for a few reasons (personal opinion). I like the face-to-face interaction between student and teacher. I would hate to get taught my grade 4 fractions unit over the internet. There just seems to be no personal connection there. I realize that you can turn on a web cam, but thats still not the same. I also dislike them because they may eventually cause me to not have an available job. If one teacher can teach roughly 80 kids at one time with an online course, that means that roughly 3 jobs could be discarded. As an aspiring teacher that scares me. Pretty sure I'm allowed to be scared by that. Also, as a soon to be early years educator, I personally (and no offense) do not see a connection between early years and web based courses. Young children need the teacher connection, and need that teacher to sometimes take their hand and guide them. An online course cannot give a child that mentoring feeling, or that stable figure. Let's face it, to some children their teacher is the most stable and constant person in their lives, and we need to show that we still can be. Especially for the younger ones. So to end this portion of the post, I have to say that I can't see myself using web based courses much. It is a great idea, but for me I just don't see a place where it will fit.
To get to the second part of my post, a classmate asked me to add the 'Death by Chocolate' recipe to my next blog post, so here you go Tiffany!
Ingredients:
- A baked chocolate cake
- 1 container of Cool Whip (light or regular it doesn't really matter, but let's be honest regular tastes better)
- Roughly 8 Skor bars crushed up in a ziplock bag (can use other chocolate bars too)
- 3 packages of instant chocolate pudding
Directions:
- Basically get a really big and deep bowl, because you are going to need the room.
- Bake a basic chocolate cake. (Not going to lie, I just used one of those Betty Crocker cake mix boxes, because I cannot bake) If you can make your very own chocolate cake from scratch then that is awesome and it will probably work out better.
- Prepare the pudding.
- Cut the cake so it looks like a 5 X 2 grid. Then, you will want to take the pieces out, and cut them all in half so they aren't as tall.
- Now I don't use actual measurements at all for these steps, so please just bare with me.
- Lay some cake at the bottom of the bowl to make one layer (don't put them on top of each other, just try to make it a flat, single layer). Follow this by scooping some pudding on top of the cake to cover it completely. Next, make a layer of cool whip. Follow that by sprinkling some skor pieces on top of the cool whip. Finally, add another layer of cake, and then repeat until the bowl is full.
- It is usually best to end with cool whip and skor pieces at the very top (more of a looks thing), but it doesn't really matter.
I find that it works out to roughly 4-5 layers of each ingredient. This is my all time favorite cake. On my birthdays this is what my Mom makes for me. I also ask for it every time I decide to go back to my hometown for a weekend. If you make it, hopefully you enjoy it! Until next time... CHEERS!!!
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Don't Take Away My/Our YouTube!!
Dear Diary......
Just kidding, I wouldn't do that to you. YouTube is huge. There is no denying that. If I could go back in time I would invent it and make the millions off of it's sale. However, there is no such thing as time travel (yet), so I'm just going to have to either wait for that moment in history, or just enjoy it, and use it for it's many educational and personal uses.
Youtube has been banned, and blocked off from the servers in some school divisions. In ways I understand this choice. First, there is some inappropriate stuff on YouTube that children should not see. Second, some students may watch videos when they are supposed to be doing some other type of work. These reasons make sense to me. This is now the time where I sort of go against what i just said. Yes, those reasons are valid. However, I do not think they are valid enough reasons to completely block it from schools completely. Why? Ever watch a YouTube video that taught you something? I still would be clueless as to how to tie a tie without YouTube. Ever watch a video to help you get through something? I would still be playing Batman: Arkham City if it wasn't for YouTube walkthroughs. Ever watch a video that made you laugh after a day that just got you down? I always watch YouTube after a tough day (good ol' Epic Rap Battles and Kid Snippets). Ever watch a video and feel inspired to do something? I have, and lots of other people have. Many great things have begun on YouTube such as awareness for worldly events (Kony 2012), careers (too many to mention), and classroom projects. There is too big of an educational advantage to YouTube to just not allow it.
There are a few different ideas that I have gained from YouTube videos, that I would love to incorporate in a classroom. "Oh hey now, those aren't touching on curricular outcomes?" says the guy at the back of the room." Listen guy at the back... students working together to create a unique classroom experience, that promotes creativity, community, and inquiry, is in itself an outcome. It should be the most important outcome. I'm going to stop now, because this post isn't about outcomes (maybe I will touch on that some other day when I have a job). Anyways, I have always loved stop motion. Stop motion films such as "The Nightmare Before Christmas" is one of my favorite movies, and one of my favorite TV shows is "Robot Chicken' (for the record I would never ever show a Robot Chicken clip in the classroom). I would, however, show many other ones. I have always wanted to do a stop motion short, but have never done one, because I have never owned a good camera. Now with technology, stop motion can easily be done using an iPhone. I will want to do one in the future. Below is a video made by a student, which was actually a classroom project (it is about copyright infringement):
I would maybe show this particular one, depending on the age of the class (mainly because of the dog pooping part). There are many others available out there to use, and some people on YouTube dedicate their time recreating movie trailers... like this one:
That particular video is very high quality work. Anyways, having students do a project that involves using stop motion would be amazing. Pick a topic, any topic, and students could do a quick stop motion video on it ranging from habitats to anti-bullying. I probably have lots of lego around my house still from when I was a kid, so I could easily just bring it all to school one day.
Another idea I have come across on YouTube is Bill Nye the Science guy clips. When I was younger, I thought Bill Nye was the smartest person in the world (he is probably pretty close). His TV show was so good, and so educational! The best part for teachers, is that he had the economic resources to do cool stuff to teach in an awesome way. He had a whole production company to help him get his teaching across, so why not show it? Plus, if we decide not to show an episode of his or even a quick clip, he can give us many different experiment ideas (one an episode at the least). Another added bonus, is that on YouTube it is free. A lot of schools have Bill Nye videos on VHS, but not DVD, because (last time I checked) the series cost roughly $1700!!! Yikes! Here is a great video of his (perfect for the habitats and communities unit in grade 4):
Overall, the educational benefits of using online videos in classrooms is endless. So much can be taught, and so much inspiration can be started. Please, please don't block it from the school! Until next time... CHEERS!!
Just kidding, I wouldn't do that to you. YouTube is huge. There is no denying that. If I could go back in time I would invent it and make the millions off of it's sale. However, there is no such thing as time travel (yet), so I'm just going to have to either wait for that moment in history, or just enjoy it, and use it for it's many educational and personal uses.
Youtube has been banned, and blocked off from the servers in some school divisions. In ways I understand this choice. First, there is some inappropriate stuff on YouTube that children should not see. Second, some students may watch videos when they are supposed to be doing some other type of work. These reasons make sense to me. This is now the time where I sort of go against what i just said. Yes, those reasons are valid. However, I do not think they are valid enough reasons to completely block it from schools completely. Why? Ever watch a YouTube video that taught you something? I still would be clueless as to how to tie a tie without YouTube. Ever watch a video to help you get through something? I would still be playing Batman: Arkham City if it wasn't for YouTube walkthroughs. Ever watch a video that made you laugh after a day that just got you down? I always watch YouTube after a tough day (good ol' Epic Rap Battles and Kid Snippets). Ever watch a video and feel inspired to do something? I have, and lots of other people have. Many great things have begun on YouTube such as awareness for worldly events (Kony 2012), careers (too many to mention), and classroom projects. There is too big of an educational advantage to YouTube to just not allow it.
There are a few different ideas that I have gained from YouTube videos, that I would love to incorporate in a classroom. "Oh hey now, those aren't touching on curricular outcomes?" says the guy at the back of the room." Listen guy at the back... students working together to create a unique classroom experience, that promotes creativity, community, and inquiry, is in itself an outcome. It should be the most important outcome. I'm going to stop now, because this post isn't about outcomes (maybe I will touch on that some other day when I have a job). Anyways, I have always loved stop motion. Stop motion films such as "The Nightmare Before Christmas" is one of my favorite movies, and one of my favorite TV shows is "Robot Chicken' (for the record I would never ever show a Robot Chicken clip in the classroom). I would, however, show many other ones. I have always wanted to do a stop motion short, but have never done one, because I have never owned a good camera. Now with technology, stop motion can easily be done using an iPhone. I will want to do one in the future. Below is a video made by a student, which was actually a classroom project (it is about copyright infringement):
I would maybe show this particular one, depending on the age of the class (mainly because of the dog pooping part). There are many others available out there to use, and some people on YouTube dedicate their time recreating movie trailers... like this one:
That particular video is very high quality work. Anyways, having students do a project that involves using stop motion would be amazing. Pick a topic, any topic, and students could do a quick stop motion video on it ranging from habitats to anti-bullying. I probably have lots of lego around my house still from when I was a kid, so I could easily just bring it all to school one day.
Another idea I have come across on YouTube is Bill Nye the Science guy clips. When I was younger, I thought Bill Nye was the smartest person in the world (he is probably pretty close). His TV show was so good, and so educational! The best part for teachers, is that he had the economic resources to do cool stuff to teach in an awesome way. He had a whole production company to help him get his teaching across, so why not show it? Plus, if we decide not to show an episode of his or even a quick clip, he can give us many different experiment ideas (one an episode at the least). Another added bonus, is that on YouTube it is free. A lot of schools have Bill Nye videos on VHS, but not DVD, because (last time I checked) the series cost roughly $1700!!! Yikes! Here is a great video of his (perfect for the habitats and communities unit in grade 4):
Overall, the educational benefits of using online videos in classrooms is endless. So much can be taught, and so much inspiration can be started. Please, please don't block it from the school! Until next time... CHEERS!!
Monday, February 18, 2013
This Week In #I4ED
This week was a pretty good week in our Internet for Educators class. We didn't have any presenters this week, but we went over quite a lot of things.
We discussed online bookmarking. Now, I just recently started to use the bookmarking function on my iPad's Safari app, and soon after vegan to use Diigo. To discuss the first of the mentioned, my bookmark bar consists of Future Shop (most used one), Dorkly (a video game comedy website, Apple.ca (obviously), and I think some lesson planning website (preservice teacher necessity). I also have a few folders, once of which contains all of my classmates' blogs (I did it this way because I couldn't figure out how to use the RSS feed thing yet), and a folder containing all of my resources for the current unit I am planning. I really like this form of bookmarking, but Diigo is something else. Diigo allows me to save websites, but then also share them with others. I find this pretty awesome, but I do I fully understand how to use it? Nope. Diigo is something I am going to have to continually work at over the next little while. It is almost as if I always forget it is available to use, so I never really add anything to it. I eventually will find myself using it more there is doubt about that, but it'll just be at slower pace.
This week we also dove really heavy into our group projects. The topic our group chose was cyber bullying, which is a very big, and important topic these days. The style of our presentation is a video (I am only saying this because some of our classmates saw us out side with a camera, so no real spoiler alert there). Now... I hate anything that is remotely involved with bullying. It is an awful and disgusting thing that has no place in this world. This being said, I am a little worried as to how people will perceive our video. I say this, because the way we approached it was in a satirical manner. I would just like to say right here and now, that we did not make the video to offend anyone, and that we made it in such a way as to show how some things (that are very serious and important) may get put into a different context by some forms of media. That being said, please, when you watch it next week, do not think that any of us agree, or are making fun of the serious problem of bullying. Everyone one of us is 100% behind its complete and utter extinction from society. I also do not want to give away too much of it, so please come back next week to see it, and to read me discuss it.
(Side Note: I am eating a piece of unbaked peach cheesecake right now, and it is delicious)
I am very excited to see everyone's presentations this upcoming week, because by the sounds of it everyone has been working very hard on them. It is also my turn to bring a snack on presentation day, so I hope everyone in the class likes chocolate cake, chocolate pudding, cool whip and skor bars, because if not then I have a lot of eating to do. Overall, it was a great week, and I'm looking forward to continuing the tech journey this week! Until next time... CHEERS!!!
We discussed online bookmarking. Now, I just recently started to use the bookmarking function on my iPad's Safari app, and soon after vegan to use Diigo. To discuss the first of the mentioned, my bookmark bar consists of Future Shop (most used one), Dorkly (a video game comedy website, Apple.ca (obviously), and I think some lesson planning website (preservice teacher necessity). I also have a few folders, once of which contains all of my classmates' blogs (I did it this way because I couldn't figure out how to use the RSS feed thing yet), and a folder containing all of my resources for the current unit I am planning. I really like this form of bookmarking, but Diigo is something else. Diigo allows me to save websites, but then also share them with others. I find this pretty awesome, but I do I fully understand how to use it? Nope. Diigo is something I am going to have to continually work at over the next little while. It is almost as if I always forget it is available to use, so I never really add anything to it. I eventually will find myself using it more there is doubt about that, but it'll just be at slower pace.
This week we also dove really heavy into our group projects. The topic our group chose was cyber bullying, which is a very big, and important topic these days. The style of our presentation is a video (I am only saying this because some of our classmates saw us out side with a camera, so no real spoiler alert there). Now... I hate anything that is remotely involved with bullying. It is an awful and disgusting thing that has no place in this world. This being said, I am a little worried as to how people will perceive our video. I say this, because the way we approached it was in a satirical manner. I would just like to say right here and now, that we did not make the video to offend anyone, and that we made it in such a way as to show how some things (that are very serious and important) may get put into a different context by some forms of media. That being said, please, when you watch it next week, do not think that any of us agree, or are making fun of the serious problem of bullying. Everyone one of us is 100% behind its complete and utter extinction from society. I also do not want to give away too much of it, so please come back next week to see it, and to read me discuss it.
(Side Note: I am eating a piece of unbaked peach cheesecake right now, and it is delicious)
I am very excited to see everyone's presentations this upcoming week, because by the sounds of it everyone has been working very hard on them. It is also my turn to bring a snack on presentation day, so I hope everyone in the class likes chocolate cake, chocolate pudding, cool whip and skor bars, because if not then I have a lot of eating to do. Overall, it was a great week, and I'm looking forward to continuing the tech journey this week! Until next time... CHEERS!!!
Friday, February 15, 2013
Following "Stump The Teacher"
In our Internet for Educators class, we were given a list of popular Edu-bloggers, and were asked to give a few of them a read as to expand our network. I came across a few, read the blogs, liked what I read, and then added them to my reader. Then I came across a blog name that just stood out, and that was "Stump The Teacher." I added this to my reader before even reading anything, because the name was just so unique. I saw it almost as a challenge: as in "try and get me on something," or "stump me... if you dare!" So I finally went into the blog. What I found out was this.... his name is Josh Stumpenhorst. So, a very good play on words, and that more than got my attention. He is a grade 6 teacher from Chicago, Illinois, as well as a techie, basketball coach, and a very big Star Wars fan (got to love the Star Wars). Follow his blog at http://stumpteacher.blogspot.ca/.
I began to read his posts, and I immediately became intrigued. The first one I read was called "A New Hope," which obviously grabbed my attention (it's the first Star Wars movie title: first movie made, 4th in the series if you want to get technical). His post was on the topic of empathy and compassion in the classroom, and how it seems that there is a growing concern for how it looks like it is disappearing. He then mentioned how he still sees evidence of its existence, and that he as a "New Hope," for it. I believe that there is still compassion in the classroom, but we just only hear the bad stuff. So often we see the good things in a classroom, but no one talks about it because it is the expected norm. Everyone always hears about the bad stuff because (in a sense) its a conversation starter. People would rather talk about a bad thing a student did over a good thing a student did. There is more intrigue in that right? There is a problem with that. If we miss talking about the good stuff, then the notion that there is no compassion in the class is just going to grow. We need to make an effort to acknowledge the good. I'm not saying that every time a student says thank you or is nice to someone they get a cookie or a hall pass, but we should let them know that we appreciated the kind behaviour. This will only spread the word around and make it known that students do actually care for one another.
His other posts have included thoughts on many things: public education having to make it's first change at the university level; does asking questions make someone a troublemaker?; and a very heartfelt and meaningful post about the horrible shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. His thoughts are amazing, and his style is classy and sometimes humorous. Please, please give him a read. You won't regret it. At least follow him on Twitter at @stumpteacher. Until next time... CHEERS!!
I began to read his posts, and I immediately became intrigued. The first one I read was called "A New Hope," which obviously grabbed my attention (it's the first Star Wars movie title: first movie made, 4th in the series if you want to get technical). His post was on the topic of empathy and compassion in the classroom, and how it seems that there is a growing concern for how it looks like it is disappearing. He then mentioned how he still sees evidence of its existence, and that he as a "New Hope," for it. I believe that there is still compassion in the classroom, but we just only hear the bad stuff. So often we see the good things in a classroom, but no one talks about it because it is the expected norm. Everyone always hears about the bad stuff because (in a sense) its a conversation starter. People would rather talk about a bad thing a student did over a good thing a student did. There is more intrigue in that right? There is a problem with that. If we miss talking about the good stuff, then the notion that there is no compassion in the class is just going to grow. We need to make an effort to acknowledge the good. I'm not saying that every time a student says thank you or is nice to someone they get a cookie or a hall pass, but we should let them know that we appreciated the kind behaviour. This will only spread the word around and make it known that students do actually care for one another.
His other posts have included thoughts on many things: public education having to make it's first change at the university level; does asking questions make someone a troublemaker?; and a very heartfelt and meaningful post about the horrible shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. His thoughts are amazing, and his style is classy and sometimes humorous. Please, please give him a read. You won't regret it. At least follow him on Twitter at @stumpteacher. Until next time... CHEERS!!
Sunday, February 10, 2013
Technology in the Classroom Isn't For Looks
We recently had Clarence Fisher join us via Skype from his position in Snow Lake. The conversation we had was brief, but awesome. He talked about how we need to teach proper digital skills to our students. Digital skills are very important, much like how reading and writing is. I'm not saying reading and writing isn't important, I'm saying that digital skills are becoming increasingly important. Teaching a student how to use technology to gather information is essential. Teaching a student how to separate the real information from the garbage is also important. I have written many essays in my short time on this planet, and I have sure come across a lot of junk in terms of information. It is really hard to know what is good and what is bad. I wish I would have been taught how to filter it, because I have probably loaded an essay with some awful stuff at some point. If my knowledge was better at the time, I probably would have known what was good and what was bad, but my awareness was self taught so it took awhile.
We also discussed the actual, physical use of technology in the classroom. Many teachers have technology in their classrooms, but don't use it, or don't use it right. A smartboard isn't something you just slap on the wall and say "Oooooooo....... pretty." It is also not a glorified projector screen. It is an educational tool that students can interact with, which can greatly benefit their learning. An iPad just isn't a really slick, amazing, gorgeous, sexy and crazy awesome device; it has purposes that are educational and surpass everything I previously stated in this sentence. Yeah it checks email. Yeah it tells you when the Toronto Maple Leafs just scored a goal (which last night was plentiful I must say). Yeah it tells you the weather. However, if these are the only reasons it is sitting in your classroom, take the thing home, because you are just teasing the kids with the notion that they may get to use it. I use my iPad for a lot of assessment. Evernote is an amazing tool for the computer, iPad, and iPhone. It allows me to take antidotal notes, take pictures of students' work, and tag names and assignments so they are all organized. It is just too awesome. Anyways, use it if you have it, and use it right. Let the kids use it. IPads and smartboards in classrooms should be smeared with fingerprints.
Great presentation, and great information! Until next time... CHEERS!!
PS - This is the album I have been listening to while doing homework today. "Koi No Yokan" by Deftones. Awesome stuff, so give some of the songs a listen on YouTube if you like a mellower heavy metal sound.
PS - This is the album I have been listening to while doing homework today. "Koi No Yokan" by Deftones. Awesome stuff, so give some of the songs a listen on YouTube if you like a mellower heavy metal sound.
This is the audio video for their song "Tempest." Enjoy.
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Move Over Facebook.... The Sequel to "The Social Network" is Going to Be About Twitter.
Alright, so way back in the day I joined Facebook, mainly because all of my friends were on it and I didn't want to be the odd man out. I used it to see what people were up to these days, and to also remember birthdays (which people get mad at me for forgetting, but seriously its hard to remember that stuff). I would post photos, videos, and status updates, and just thought that this was the best thing in the world. Time went on: seasons changed; classes came and went; more movies kept getting released but none got better than "Scarface"; and my receding hairline receded even more. After this time passed, I started to get bored with this Facebook thing. I found myself checking it religiously, especially when I had other important stuff to do. So I sort of went away from it. Then a movie came out called "The Social Network," which was about the creation of Facebook. So, being the movie addict I am I bought and watched it, and thought it was quite good. So then for some reason I liked Facebook again. I still don't know why a movie did that to me, but I guess I sort of went back to McDonalds after I saw "Super Size Me" (before you say anything... yeah, that movie made me want McDonalds more, and I have no rationale for it). Around this time, I started noticing that a lot of the TV shows or hockey games I was watching would have this number sign followed by words at the bottom of the screen. I soon found out that it was something to do with Twitter, and just though "Oh pfft." So I paid no attention to it. Then, while watching Sportscenter, I started noticing that when the broadcasters name would come up, it would be followed by an @, followed by their name. Alright, so it was then and there when I decided that this was getting ridiculous. Why do I care what this person's @ thing is? So I tried to pay no attention to it. Then, after more seasons changed, my buddy told me that this one broadcaster would tweet all of the underground information on the "NHL Trade Deadline" (yeah, it is that important that it gets treated like a proper noun). So... I signed up to this twitter thing for that reason. And so it began....
Since starting to use Twitter, I have barely used Facebook. I realized how easy it was to use, and I found many other benefits as well. First benefit (I found) was that now I didn't have to read all of these drama filled posts anymore (you know EXACTLY what I mean by this, so no need to explain), because there is a character limitation!! Best...... idea..... ever! Plus, someone could follow you, and you didn't have to follow them! I also really enjoyed the hashtag (it is the legal name change from number sign). The hashtag makes it so easy to find information. Just use a certain hashtag in a post, then see what others have been saying, or search a certain hashtag to find information! It cannot get anymore perfect than that! I started to follow educators and classmates, and we could share a lot! I have tweeted a fair amount since joining (not as much as other people, but I try). I have tweeted educational tweets, and funny tweets. The one thing that I am always torn between is how to tweet. I say this because I started using Twitter as a personal account, and then it slowly evolved into a personal/educational profile. When I am in the process of writing a tweet, I usually stop and question whether or not the educational followers would appreciate it or not. I never tweet inappropriately, but i just don't know how the educational followers feel about non-educational tweets. The educators have followed me for the sole reason that I am also an educator. If they kept getting their home page filled with tweets about losing awfully in NHL '13, or my play-by-play of the 2013 Superbowl (which I really did do, so I apologize to all, but that blackout was ridiculous), would they get frustrated that I am not tweeting what they are expecting me to? I always wonder about that: to tweet serious, or tweet funny when appropriate? I don't want to offend the followers who followed me by not always tweeting educational information, but I also don't want abandon my original purpose of joining the network. I have considered getting separate accounts, but then I always come to the conclusion that I am me, and that I have nothing to hide, so why separate them? As long as I am not tweeting inappropriately then what is the problem right? Some might say to tweet only educational, and may chose to not follow me if I don't do that. The same could be said from the other side. Some of my friends may not want to see educational resources and links posted all the time. Tough call, but my final decision on it is... "If you don't agree, then don't follow." I'm going to tweet both. It would be nice for both sides of the network to see both sides of me: those being my personal side and my professional side.
Twitter, in my opinion, is THE social network nowadays. More and more things on television are displaying usernames and hashtags for Twitter, and less and less are showing Facebook page links. If another movie was ever made about the creation of social media, it would most likely be about Twitter, because of how it connects people. Don't get me wrong, Facebook connects people too, but just in a different way. Twitter is simple in a big way. It has an easy to use interface, but so much can be done through it. It doesn't change its layout every 2 months, and I have not read one tweet that was filled with drama. Those two points are enough reason to join Twitter. Overall, if you do not have Twitter, then try it out. You may actually find yourself tweeting more than 'liking' things, which is great because it is your voice. Until next time.... CHEERS!!
Monday, February 4, 2013
Be Personable, It is the Best Meet and Greet
This past Thursday we had George Couros join us in our Internet for Educators class from Edmonton via Skype. We previously had his brother speak to us, Alec, so it was pretty interesting to have them both give us some insight. I really enjoyed his bit about what he did when he spoke to an audience, of how he showed an inappropriate tweet that someone had sent out a couple days prior. People need to realize that that the profession of education demands a higher level of professionalism than other jobs. We don't have the ability to tweet or post things that many others do. We work with kids, and we need to show that we have the appropriateness to work with them.
I agree 100% with what George said about getting to know the students first, then teach curriculum second. When I did my very first student teaching placement, I picked a school that consisted of students that I knew, and who knew me already. I did so because I was very nervous about my first stint as a student teacher. Also, I knew that if I already had a good foundation with the students, that I would be able to have a smoother transition into the teaching aspect of it. It worked. The kids responded to me very quickly, because they knew who I was as a person already. Of course, this is not the case every time you step into a class, but it sure helps. My cooperating teacher in my second placement also knew the importance of getting to know the students, especially the ones outside of the classroom. He knew that one day there was going to be a little boy coming into his classroom, that would most likely cause a lot of commotion in the classroom. So ever since that boy was in grade 1 (this teacher taught grade 4), he made an effort to chat with the boy once in a while on the playground during recess duty, or if he saw them in the hallway. At recess he would discipline him if necessary, so that this boy would become accustomed to how he was as a teacher. He built a relationship for three years before that boy entered his classroom, and when he finally had him in the class..... no problems. The boy became to respect this teacher, because he had put in so much time with him prior to being in the class. This boy knew that his teacher actually cared, and therefore, he gave him his respect. It is very important to do this, because a single classroom may be a community, but it is a community within a larger community. A teacher needs to be a player within each.
In my third student teaching placement, I taught a grade 3/4 split class. First off, I loved it! Secondly, I decided to help coach the grade 7/8 volleyball team. Why? To connect. I spent school hours inside the grade 3/4 all of the time, so those students got to know me really well. I wanted to know everyone because then there wouldn't be that awkward blank gaze in the hallway that everyone gets once in awhile (as a side note: Ever meet someone in the mall or in a store that you haven't seen in awhile, and talk to them for a little while there? Then, after you say your good-byes to each other run into them again about 10 minutes later and its all of sudden really awkward? Weird how that works). It really helped me get to know the older kids, who in ways you can joke around a little bit more with.
Overall, awesome presentation! I took away so much from it. Put yourself out there (in a good way)! Meet the kids! Don't be the gremlin teacher who hides in the classroom and only leaves when the clock strikes 3:30! Connect! An apple a day keeps the doctor away! Now back to some Super Mario World! Until next time.... CHEERS!
Saturday, February 2, 2013
Welcome To Controversy, Tech. Population: Infinite.
This week we were very fortunate to have John Finch join us in my Internet For Educators class. This was the second time that I have heard John talk, so I was quite excited to enter the class for the presentation. To me it seemed like we talked about a lot of controversial topics surrounding technology and education. What do I think about controversy? I love it! Not the celebrity life controversy, or mainstream controversy; real life controversy. People hear the word and think "Uhhh..... maybe we should just stay away from this subject," or "I'm not going to touch that with a ten foot pole." Many do not realize the benefits of (some) controversy. Controversy starts conversations, and ideas (to an extent). It can sometimes lead to questions being answered, which can lead to the solution to a problem. Not all controversy is good though (please don't think that is what I am trying to say). It will always turn heads, and it will never disappear. I find that there is a lot of controversy in the educational field. Like cyber bullying; as bad as we think, or has it been inflated due to external factors? Should a teacher be able to go out and have a drink once in a while, or should they only do so in the privacy of their own home, with the blinds down, hiding underneath a blanket? Use sites that download educational you tube videos at schools with low internet accessibility, despite terms of agreements, or don't? So much controversy, so little room to type about it all. More on this later...
We started by chatting about a topic that has gained a lot of attention over the past year, which is cyber bullying. First off, cyber bullying is an awful and disgusting thing, which, like every other awful thing, should not exist. However, the awful truth is that bullying in some form will always exist. Despite how terrible cyber bullying is, that was not the main subject of cyber bullying in the talk. John asked us if we thought that drama played a large role in cyber bullying. As much as I despise bullying... yes, yes it does. When I was a youngster, bullying existed, and it was present as much as it is today. Kids got pushed around and tormented on the playground and on the walk home after school everyday. Students were in the office daily for situations that happened on and off school property, and sadly it was probably the same in other schools. Something since then, however, has changed. I don't think it is the amount of bullying, I think that has stayed consistent over time. I think that it has a lot to do with what John said, in that drama's impact is huge. While working this summer to pay for my final year if schooling (hopefully), I had a conversation with one of my co-workers, who has 2 daughters aged 10 and 15. He stated that there was more drama going on in his 10 year old daughters life than there ever was, or is going on in his 15 year old daughter's. He said that the school has sent home newsletters and other things to address the problem of cyber bullying in the school. He knows what goes on in his daughters' life, and even when she has said that she has been bullied, he sees the text or Facebook post, and does not see it as bullying in any way shape or form. He thinks that students today, because of technology, are just being over dramatic with messages they receive. I agree, and disagree with this. The reason I disagree, is because there are many instances of real cases of cyber bullying, that cause real serious problems. Whether or not in happens once, or a hundred times, it should be addressed. I agree, however, because in a text or message there is no way to tell the tone the sender had at the time (a threat is obviously a threat though). In addition, messages and posts stay there, and linger. This makes them accessible, over and over again, which can just increase the problem. This coworker does believe though that there is too much drama in grade school, and that it is skyrocketing the notion of bullying. I also agree with John and his notion that the media blows many subjects out of proportion. They really do that with everything don't they? Always report on the negative the majority of the time, and rarely the positive, almost to scare people. I don't know about anyone else, but it would be nice to hear an uplifting story once in a blue moon. John just mentioning drama's role in the cyber bullying epidemic is controversy. Good. The mere mention of it starts discussion, and gets people looking at the facts and stats (which for cyber bullying, John said are fairly low). John said that some administrators may start to limit the internet because of the cyber bullying problem. This in turn could lead to many valuable resources in the classroom becoming extinct. So by talking about it, we may just save it. For the record, I am in no way for cyber bullying, I think it is awful, and it has no place in society. I just think that we need to take a look at it, and truly talk with our students to see the truth, before we do something rash like ban the internet in schools.
Have I used you tube downloaders? Yes. Do I think they are exceptionally amazing to use when a school has a low bandwidth? Yes. Do I think that students should see some of these videos because of the educational value they hold? Yes. Have I stopped using them, now that I know I am going against the 40 page Terms of Agreement that I totally read when I signed up? ......*cough cough*...... (see previous responses). This topic is controversial, as it should be. Want to know what else is controversial that never seems to be brought up? The Terms of Agreement. I do not understand how websites, whose names or URLs I will not mention (I don't want to be controversial), can get upset with users when their Terms of Agreement are 40 pages long, and written in a language that only J. R.R. Tolkien could have created (he created many languages for his Lord of the Rings books; and I apologize if that reference did not make sense). A website, or company, should only be able to complain about users breaking their agreements, if the agreements are legible. I can honestly say that I have never sat down and read a full agreement before, because I know that it will not make sense to me even if I tried (I will however, if any superintendents or principals are reading this, without a doubt sit down and read my entire contract and duties list). I will also read a Terms of Agreement if it gets to the point and tells me in less than five pages, in english, what I am agreeing to. South Park had an episode based around this topic of Terms of Agreement, and though I will not get into the details of the episode, it made many very good points about how the length of them are just absurd, so barely anyone knows what they are signing up for (guilty as charged):
As an aside, some people think that a pre-service teacher having South Park as their favorite TV show is controversial. I was told that I should never watch that show because of the profession I am getting involved in. If thats the case then no teacher should be allowed to watch a show on TLC (it stands for The Learning Channel, and I don't think anyone has learned anything from "Toddlers and Tiaras" and "Honey Boo Boo"). As a second aside I love Apple, but i still find it hilarious.
Overall, it was awesome to have John Finch in our classroom. He isn't afraid to ask the questions, despite the controversy that may be surrounding the topic. Some people of course create controversy out of nothing, and then that can lead to bad things, but sometimes questions need to be asked. Good or bad, controversy is here, and he (or she) is knocking on the door. We can't keep the lights off and pretend we aren't home, in hopes that it'll go away and not bother us. Sometimes we have to face it head on. Sure, sometimes when we open that door we may get harsh words thrown at us, but sometimes we just may be lucky enough to open the door and buy a box of cookies. Until next time.... CHEERS!
We started by chatting about a topic that has gained a lot of attention over the past year, which is cyber bullying. First off, cyber bullying is an awful and disgusting thing, which, like every other awful thing, should not exist. However, the awful truth is that bullying in some form will always exist. Despite how terrible cyber bullying is, that was not the main subject of cyber bullying in the talk. John asked us if we thought that drama played a large role in cyber bullying. As much as I despise bullying... yes, yes it does. When I was a youngster, bullying existed, and it was present as much as it is today. Kids got pushed around and tormented on the playground and on the walk home after school everyday. Students were in the office daily for situations that happened on and off school property, and sadly it was probably the same in other schools. Something since then, however, has changed. I don't think it is the amount of bullying, I think that has stayed consistent over time. I think that it has a lot to do with what John said, in that drama's impact is huge. While working this summer to pay for my final year if schooling (hopefully), I had a conversation with one of my co-workers, who has 2 daughters aged 10 and 15. He stated that there was more drama going on in his 10 year old daughters life than there ever was, or is going on in his 15 year old daughter's. He said that the school has sent home newsletters and other things to address the problem of cyber bullying in the school. He knows what goes on in his daughters' life, and even when she has said that she has been bullied, he sees the text or Facebook post, and does not see it as bullying in any way shape or form. He thinks that students today, because of technology, are just being over dramatic with messages they receive. I agree, and disagree with this. The reason I disagree, is because there are many instances of real cases of cyber bullying, that cause real serious problems. Whether or not in happens once, or a hundred times, it should be addressed. I agree, however, because in a text or message there is no way to tell the tone the sender had at the time (a threat is obviously a threat though). In addition, messages and posts stay there, and linger. This makes them accessible, over and over again, which can just increase the problem. This coworker does believe though that there is too much drama in grade school, and that it is skyrocketing the notion of bullying. I also agree with John and his notion that the media blows many subjects out of proportion. They really do that with everything don't they? Always report on the negative the majority of the time, and rarely the positive, almost to scare people. I don't know about anyone else, but it would be nice to hear an uplifting story once in a blue moon. John just mentioning drama's role in the cyber bullying epidemic is controversy. Good. The mere mention of it starts discussion, and gets people looking at the facts and stats (which for cyber bullying, John said are fairly low). John said that some administrators may start to limit the internet because of the cyber bullying problem. This in turn could lead to many valuable resources in the classroom becoming extinct. So by talking about it, we may just save it. For the record, I am in no way for cyber bullying, I think it is awful, and it has no place in society. I just think that we need to take a look at it, and truly talk with our students to see the truth, before we do something rash like ban the internet in schools.
Have I used you tube downloaders? Yes. Do I think they are exceptionally amazing to use when a school has a low bandwidth? Yes. Do I think that students should see some of these videos because of the educational value they hold? Yes. Have I stopped using them, now that I know I am going against the 40 page Terms of Agreement that I totally read when I signed up? ......*cough cough*...... (see previous responses). This topic is controversial, as it should be. Want to know what else is controversial that never seems to be brought up? The Terms of Agreement. I do not understand how websites, whose names or URLs I will not mention (I don't want to be controversial), can get upset with users when their Terms of Agreement are 40 pages long, and written in a language that only J. R.R. Tolkien could have created (he created many languages for his Lord of the Rings books; and I apologize if that reference did not make sense). A website, or company, should only be able to complain about users breaking their agreements, if the agreements are legible. I can honestly say that I have never sat down and read a full agreement before, because I know that it will not make sense to me even if I tried (I will however, if any superintendents or principals are reading this, without a doubt sit down and read my entire contract and duties list). I will also read a Terms of Agreement if it gets to the point and tells me in less than five pages, in english, what I am agreeing to. South Park had an episode based around this topic of Terms of Agreement, and though I will not get into the details of the episode, it made many very good points about how the length of them are just absurd, so barely anyone knows what they are signing up for (guilty as charged):
As an aside, some people think that a pre-service teacher having South Park as their favorite TV show is controversial. I was told that I should never watch that show because of the profession I am getting involved in. If thats the case then no teacher should be allowed to watch a show on TLC (it stands for The Learning Channel, and I don't think anyone has learned anything from "Toddlers and Tiaras" and "Honey Boo Boo"). As a second aside I love Apple, but i still find it hilarious.
Overall, it was awesome to have John Finch in our classroom. He isn't afraid to ask the questions, despite the controversy that may be surrounding the topic. Some people of course create controversy out of nothing, and then that can lead to bad things, but sometimes questions need to be asked. Good or bad, controversy is here, and he (or she) is knocking on the door. We can't keep the lights off and pretend we aren't home, in hopes that it'll go away and not bother us. Sometimes we have to face it head on. Sure, sometimes when we open that door we may get harsh words thrown at us, but sometimes we just may be lucky enough to open the door and buy a box of cookies. Until next time.... CHEERS!
Sunday, January 27, 2013
The 21st Century Connected Student
This is my interpretation of the 21st century connected student. My map may seem a little bare, but I chose to do mine based on the typical grade 4 student, who still may not have been exposed to too much yet. Nowadays, by this age, a grade 4 could easily have a cellphone (which is ridiculous because I got my first one at 17; but there is no point in having a pity party). They are so common that the age of ownership has dropped tremendously. Not many people use MSN messenger anymore, but if someone was to use it, it would be a grade 4. Messanger was the go to device after school, but since the incorporation of chat in Facebook,and with the text message, messenger sort of disappeared. Hash tags for twitter are everywhere these days, so a grade 4 seeing one and wanting to follow it just makes sense.
Facebook is probably the most used social device among this age group, because it is just so cool!! Right? Yeah, in ways. I personally never use Facebook anymore, mainly because of all the changes it has gone trough, which I despise (sorry Facebook lovers, but its true). The age of children using Facebook now is crazy, considering you have be at least 13 to have an account. Facebook is the "the" online social device, so of course students are going to want it. Go Twitter!
Overall, this is essentially what I think the connected grade 4 would look like. Until next time... CHEERS!!!
Facebook is probably the most used social device among this age group, because it is just so cool!! Right? Yeah, in ways. I personally never use Facebook anymore, mainly because of all the changes it has gone trough, which I despise (sorry Facebook lovers, but its true). The age of children using Facebook now is crazy, considering you have be at least 13 to have an account. Facebook is the "the" online social device, so of course students are going to want it. Go Twitter!
Overall, this is essentially what I think the connected grade 4 would look like. Until next time... CHEERS!!!
Saturday, January 26, 2013
Think, Think...... What Else Should I Use?
This, is my interpretation of my very own educational sharing world:
As you can see, I do not have all that much on it yet in comparison to some. However, I am somewhat new to the massive educational sharing network, but I do know that one day this will be a lot bigger. The first one that I ever used, and probably almost everyone first started using, was the web browser (except for family and friends; but lets just talk technology for now). In sense, it almost had to have been the web browser, because to get the majority of the others you had to use the web browser (except for the iPhone and iPad, but you probably did research on it before buying one through a browser; and again the family and friends of course). The web browser allowed me to reach all of the other portions of my network, even though I did not show using arrows because that would just look too busy.
Out of all the portions of my PLN, I would have to say that Twitter is the one I use the most. I joined twitter last year (to follow the NHL trade deadline), and have used it constantly since. I used it for more personal stuff for awhile, but then I learned through ICT that it had a countless supply of educational benefits. Sharing, following, and chatting about all kinds of educational opportunity, ideas, lessons, sessions, and the list goes on. The best part is, that all it takes is a quick follow or a hashtag search and it is at your fingertips.
I cannot count how many times Google Docs has come in handy for me. Collaborative projects, study notes, slideshows, etc. The ability to take multiple people's experiences and ideas and collectively add it to an online database is just astonishing. Google Docs would have been one of the most handy tools I could have used in my undergrad degree, but sadly I never heard of its existence until I was in my first year in the Faculty of Education.
I just started using Diigo... so I'll get back to you on that one.
MAPLE is going to be DA BOMB (yeah, I just said that). I have just been added to this amazing online resource thanks to John Evans, and once it becomes more widespread, it will be the go to online resource for Manitoba teachers. Just think, an online social website created by teachers, and exclusively for teachers! It is essentially Facebook without the veil. I say this because if you are on MAPLE, then it is you, not a fake version of you. You have to be a Manitoban teacher to use it. No invite groups, or special 1 month trials, only real teachers. You have to love that, because then you know you are getting the best possible resources available.
I would start talking about the iPad, but if you just look at how many connection arrows I've made with it, I think it sums up my thoughts on it well enough (it is literally the best piece of equipment I have ever owned).
I am still learning and always will be. So, in ten years from now if I am asked to create another mind map of my network, and then compared the two, I would probably be astonished to see how much it has expanded. I am going to keep thinking, searching, and trying, to see how many I can possibly use effectively. I am also very open to suggestions of really good one! So... wish me luck!! Until next time... CHEERS!!
*Thinking of what to try next, or about what to eat? You decide!*
As you can see, I do not have all that much on it yet in comparison to some. However, I am somewhat new to the massive educational sharing network, but I do know that one day this will be a lot bigger. The first one that I ever used, and probably almost everyone first started using, was the web browser (except for family and friends; but lets just talk technology for now). In sense, it almost had to have been the web browser, because to get the majority of the others you had to use the web browser (except for the iPhone and iPad, but you probably did research on it before buying one through a browser; and again the family and friends of course). The web browser allowed me to reach all of the other portions of my network, even though I did not show using arrows because that would just look too busy.
Out of all the portions of my PLN, I would have to say that Twitter is the one I use the most. I joined twitter last year (to follow the NHL trade deadline), and have used it constantly since. I used it for more personal stuff for awhile, but then I learned through ICT that it had a countless supply of educational benefits. Sharing, following, and chatting about all kinds of educational opportunity, ideas, lessons, sessions, and the list goes on. The best part is, that all it takes is a quick follow or a hashtag search and it is at your fingertips.
I cannot count how many times Google Docs has come in handy for me. Collaborative projects, study notes, slideshows, etc. The ability to take multiple people's experiences and ideas and collectively add it to an online database is just astonishing. Google Docs would have been one of the most handy tools I could have used in my undergrad degree, but sadly I never heard of its existence until I was in my first year in the Faculty of Education.
I just started using Diigo... so I'll get back to you on that one.
MAPLE is going to be DA BOMB (yeah, I just said that). I have just been added to this amazing online resource thanks to John Evans, and once it becomes more widespread, it will be the go to online resource for Manitoba teachers. Just think, an online social website created by teachers, and exclusively for teachers! It is essentially Facebook without the veil. I say this because if you are on MAPLE, then it is you, not a fake version of you. You have to be a Manitoban teacher to use it. No invite groups, or special 1 month trials, only real teachers. You have to love that, because then you know you are getting the best possible resources available.
I would start talking about the iPad, but if you just look at how many connection arrows I've made with it, I think it sums up my thoughts on it well enough (it is literally the best piece of equipment I have ever owned).
I am still learning and always will be. So, in ten years from now if I am asked to create another mind map of my network, and then compared the two, I would probably be astonished to see how much it has expanded. I am going to keep thinking, searching, and trying, to see how many I can possibly use effectively. I am also very open to suggestions of really good one! So... wish me luck!! Until next time... CHEERS!!
*Thinking of what to try next, or about what to eat? You decide!*Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Tech Overload!! (But In A Good Way)
Before every post, I go back and read the previous entry, to see if I can link them. So first off, I would like to apologize for my spelling and grammar in the previous post. While reading it, I became aware that I was making error after error. Whoops. I would like to say that I have good grammar, and I can honestly say that I was pretty good at spelling as a youngster, so I blame everything on autocorrect (at least 90% of it anyways). Apple has been so helpful to me over the past 6 years, but autocorrect is one thing that has bothered me and caused me nothing but a headache. How typing 'some' turns into 'Naomi' is beyond me, especially when I have no contact in any devices with that name. I realize that it can be turned off, but who has the time to do that right?
I will now get on topic before I lose you. Our Internet for Educators class was lucky enough to have Dr. Alec Couros join us via........... wait for it.......... THE INTERNET!! There were a few audio difficulties, but the overall experience and knowledge totally trumped that problem. The main focus of the presentation was how technology and the Internet are becoming an increasing force in the classroom. More and more students are being introduced to technology, and sometimes it is the students who are the most advanced with technology in comparison to the teacher. Alec pointed out that there are actually more smartphones around now than the older style phones, because of how they can access information anywhere. For example, my Dad's 15 year old bagged car phone sure can't tell me how many calories I consumed while demolishing a Spicy Chicken Combo from Wendy's (I don't actually calorie count; that would take more time than turning off autocorrect). More and more devices are being seen everywhere (I did a quick study on the matter, see picture below; it'll be a major research paper one day).
Weather, movie times, stocks, sports stats, and so much more recreational information is available through such devices. They can also access video games, social media, video streaming, and play movies! For these reasons, some teachers do not allow devices such as smartphones in the classroom. Are these teachers forgetting something though? Are they missing the educational opportunities that are available through these devices? Yup. There is a vast amount of educational information that can be accessed as well through smartphone, and smartphone like devices. Wikipedia (though sometimes not always the most accurate), google searches, textbooks, journal articles, books, PDFs, websites such as national geographic and other crazy educational sites. All of these can be accessed quickly, easily, and at anytime, without having to sign up for the netbook cart that still may not be there when it is your turn for it (don't you hate that?). I understand why some teachers don't like it, because of the texting and checking of Facebook factor. However, I do think that the positive outweigh the negative. Even allowing for such devices to be taken out for special times is a step in the right direction. For my university classes, I use my iPad to take notes, because then they will be available on my phone too. Sometimes I get the eye from a professor because, or so I assume, they believe that I'm on Facebook, checking tweets or email, or playing games such as Fairway Solitaire
(https://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/fairway-solitaire-hd-by-big/id428393840?mt=), or Bad Piggies (https://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/bad-piggies-hd/id545229893?mt=8). Both of which are awesome games for iPhone or iPad, but I know when and when not to play them. I understand why I'm getting the eye, it makes sense. However, I'm using it for an educational and productive purpose. Most professors trust their students that they are doing so, and I think we as teachers need to trust our grade school students the same.
Dr. Couros touched on a subject that Dean Shareski did as well, and that was the topic of sharing. He stated that sharing is a process of learning and that we should not just consume. Instead, we should also add to the massive market of knowledge. I see it like the stock market in a sense. You see something that you think will do well and only keep getting better, so you put more and more in so that you can receive a better pay off. The more information you add and share with others, the more you will probably receive back because of the effort and information you have provided (don't use this advice with just any stock though, if you want to invest, talk to an investor).
One of my favourite comments of the presentation was, to paraphrase, how "hash tags are becoming a new form of literacy." That is so true. Twitter's hash tag is one of the easiest ways to access information and common ideas. Like reading, it takes awhile to get it down nice and smooth, but once you do your eyes are opened to a vast world of knowledge and ideas.
Finally, digital citizenship. What does it mean to be a good digital citizen? I personally believe it means that it is someone who adds to the digital community in an appropriate and respectful manner. Yes, people are going to argue, and people are going have disagreements about certain things, but they can all be carried out in respectful ways. Too much these days we read racist, prejudice, and literally awful comments on the Internet. People are being harsh on twitter and Facebook, but the worst of them all are the comments on YouTube. I literally cannot get through about 2 pages of comments without some sort of racist or derogatory comment these days. This is a link to a video made by Macklemore, (Oh yeah the "Thrift Shop" guy!! However, this song is about civil rights, and at 2 minutes and 17 seconds into the song he talks exactly about this subject - http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hlVBg7_08n0 ). Leaving such comments, in my opinion, is not being a good digital citizen, and it is our duty as teachers to teach children how to be a good digital citizen, because we know they are going to be 'linked in' anyways.
Overall, it was an awesome presentation, and the first 3 presentations all complimented each other very well. I would also like to say thank you to Sarah and Stephanie for the donuts!!! Also, a special thanks to Allison Isaak for proofreading this post before it was published, as to prevent last week's problem. Oh, and we watched another Kid Snippet video, which was awesome! I would love to try a project like that someday, especially as a class. So, until next time.... CHEERS!!
I will now get on topic before I lose you. Our Internet for Educators class was lucky enough to have Dr. Alec Couros join us via........... wait for it.......... THE INTERNET!! There were a few audio difficulties, but the overall experience and knowledge totally trumped that problem. The main focus of the presentation was how technology and the Internet are becoming an increasing force in the classroom. More and more students are being introduced to technology, and sometimes it is the students who are the most advanced with technology in comparison to the teacher. Alec pointed out that there are actually more smartphones around now than the older style phones, because of how they can access information anywhere. For example, my Dad's 15 year old bagged car phone sure can't tell me how many calories I consumed while demolishing a Spicy Chicken Combo from Wendy's (I don't actually calorie count; that would take more time than turning off autocorrect). More and more devices are being seen everywhere (I did a quick study on the matter, see picture below; it'll be a major research paper one day).
Weather, movie times, stocks, sports stats, and so much more recreational information is available through such devices. They can also access video games, social media, video streaming, and play movies! For these reasons, some teachers do not allow devices such as smartphones in the classroom. Are these teachers forgetting something though? Are they missing the educational opportunities that are available through these devices? Yup. There is a vast amount of educational information that can be accessed as well through smartphone, and smartphone like devices. Wikipedia (though sometimes not always the most accurate), google searches, textbooks, journal articles, books, PDFs, websites such as national geographic and other crazy educational sites. All of these can be accessed quickly, easily, and at anytime, without having to sign up for the netbook cart that still may not be there when it is your turn for it (don't you hate that?). I understand why some teachers don't like it, because of the texting and checking of Facebook factor. However, I do think that the positive outweigh the negative. Even allowing for such devices to be taken out for special times is a step in the right direction. For my university classes, I use my iPad to take notes, because then they will be available on my phone too. Sometimes I get the eye from a professor because, or so I assume, they believe that I'm on Facebook, checking tweets or email, or playing games such as Fairway Solitaire
(https://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/fairway-solitaire-hd-by-big/id428393840?mt=), or Bad Piggies (https://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/bad-piggies-hd/id545229893?mt=8). Both of which are awesome games for iPhone or iPad, but I know when and when not to play them. I understand why I'm getting the eye, it makes sense. However, I'm using it for an educational and productive purpose. Most professors trust their students that they are doing so, and I think we as teachers need to trust our grade school students the same.
Dr. Couros touched on a subject that Dean Shareski did as well, and that was the topic of sharing. He stated that sharing is a process of learning and that we should not just consume. Instead, we should also add to the massive market of knowledge. I see it like the stock market in a sense. You see something that you think will do well and only keep getting better, so you put more and more in so that you can receive a better pay off. The more information you add and share with others, the more you will probably receive back because of the effort and information you have provided (don't use this advice with just any stock though, if you want to invest, talk to an investor).
One of my favourite comments of the presentation was, to paraphrase, how "hash tags are becoming a new form of literacy." That is so true. Twitter's hash tag is one of the easiest ways to access information and common ideas. Like reading, it takes awhile to get it down nice and smooth, but once you do your eyes are opened to a vast world of knowledge and ideas.
Finally, digital citizenship. What does it mean to be a good digital citizen? I personally believe it means that it is someone who adds to the digital community in an appropriate and respectful manner. Yes, people are going to argue, and people are going have disagreements about certain things, but they can all be carried out in respectful ways. Too much these days we read racist, prejudice, and literally awful comments on the Internet. People are being harsh on twitter and Facebook, but the worst of them all are the comments on YouTube. I literally cannot get through about 2 pages of comments without some sort of racist or derogatory comment these days. This is a link to a video made by Macklemore, (Oh yeah the "Thrift Shop" guy!! However, this song is about civil rights, and at 2 minutes and 17 seconds into the song he talks exactly about this subject - http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hlVBg7_08n0 ). Leaving such comments, in my opinion, is not being a good digital citizen, and it is our duty as teachers to teach children how to be a good digital citizen, because we know they are going to be 'linked in' anyways.
Overall, it was an awesome presentation, and the first 3 presentations all complimented each other very well. I would also like to say thank you to Sarah and Stephanie for the donuts!!! Also, a special thanks to Allison Isaak for proofreading this post before it was published, as to prevent last week's problem. Oh, and we watched another Kid Snippet video, which was awesome! I would love to try a project like that someday, especially as a class. So, until next time.... CHEERS!!
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Learn by Sharing - Two Way Street
Today in my Internet for Educators class, we were lucky enough to have Dean Shareski Skype in with our class to give a presentation. First off, this was the first time I have been involved in a Skype presentation and it was awesome. It worked so well, and it was amazing because he was many miles away (many being an understatement). I would also like to say thank you to Jen for bringing that ice cream dessert, because it was delicious. I also spilt coffee everywhere up at the front when I was pouring, so thanks everyone, for overlooking my awful eye hand coordination. Oh, and we watched a hilarious video by the guys who do the Kid Snippets on YouTube. I just heard about these guys from an educational gal pal a couple days prior and have watched them all. Everyone should check all of them out!
The main theme of the day seemed to be based around the notion of sharing over the Internet, or more specifically, Educational Online Sharing. I personally used to (early last year) not like the idea of sharing my work online, because I figured that what mine was mine. I'm not insinuating that I'm not a sharing person, I'd gladly split my chocolate bar or let you use my Lego, I mean more so on a global level such as the Internet. Then a bit after being in my first year of education, I realized that if others never shared their great ideas then my lesson planning would have taken me way longer than it did. If someone was willing to tell me heir great ideas, don't i owe it to them and to others to share mine? So why not share? Is it really going to bother you that much if someone likes your idea enough to use it in a professional setting such as teaching? As teachers we should want other teachers to improve as well, so that we can benefit all children everywhere. I guess in a way I was hesitant before because I was worried that my ideas wouldn't be as good as all the other million ideas out there. However, as Dean said today, to paraphrase, "something obvious to us, may seem amazing to someone else." I was sort of thinking that way before, but to hear him mention it today completely pushed my in that direction. If everyone hates my idea, and wants nothing to do with it or will never use it in a classroom, that's fine. But if it could possibly help even one person... then mission accomplished.
I really enjoyed what Dean said about what is considered educational online sharing. Educational online sharing just doesn't have to be the sharing of resources, lessons, or ideas, but it can include much, much more. Educational online sharing can include 'how to' videos, step by step instruction on a forum, some good advice, or even just a positive video or poem that's uplifting and motivational. Below are some examples:
Previously Unconsidered Educational Online Sharing (first 4 are from the unpublished experiences of me):
1 - If you're professor asks the class if you read the required readings for the day, and you haven't, but tell her you did, make sure your textbook on the table has the wrapping off of it.
2 - Leaving sushi in the fridge for two full days after you have opened or brought it home from a restaurant and then eating it is not a good idea (pretty sure the word food poisoning applies here).
3 - Some old childhood memories of TV shows, should remain childhood memories (except for the 90's Ninja Turtles one, that stuff was just awesome, and still is awesome. There are also some other minor exceptions, so if you want, please post another childhood TV show that didn't get less interesting after growing up).
4 - Don't forget your clothes in the washing machine for a couple of days. It just creates extra work.
5 - A short smart notebook tutorial made by a couple classmates and myself in my ICT class. http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XbZFEldPR3U
6 - Another video made by the same crew, which will hopefully put a smile on your face. http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=O6-cb9GDAy0
Now for an example that was always considered Educational Online Sharing:
- a link to my classroom website, that contains a couple lesson pans on it created by me and two other people who allowed me to make them public (more will be added soon, I just haven't organized them on my computer yet). http://mrtaylorsclassroom.weebly.com/lessons.html
Overall, I loved the presentation. There were more topics discussed, but I wanted to focus on the sharing aspect because it is so important. If anyone has a digital footprint at all, then he/she has been on the receiving end of sharing at least once. Everyone should at least contribute to the giving side of the online share at least a few times to help contribute to the online learning community. As momma said, it's always better to give than receive. Now time for some TMNT. So once again, until next time... CHEERS!!
The main theme of the day seemed to be based around the notion of sharing over the Internet, or more specifically, Educational Online Sharing. I personally used to (early last year) not like the idea of sharing my work online, because I figured that what mine was mine. I'm not insinuating that I'm not a sharing person, I'd gladly split my chocolate bar or let you use my Lego, I mean more so on a global level such as the Internet. Then a bit after being in my first year of education, I realized that if others never shared their great ideas then my lesson planning would have taken me way longer than it did. If someone was willing to tell me heir great ideas, don't i owe it to them and to others to share mine? So why not share? Is it really going to bother you that much if someone likes your idea enough to use it in a professional setting such as teaching? As teachers we should want other teachers to improve as well, so that we can benefit all children everywhere. I guess in a way I was hesitant before because I was worried that my ideas wouldn't be as good as all the other million ideas out there. However, as Dean said today, to paraphrase, "something obvious to us, may seem amazing to someone else." I was sort of thinking that way before, but to hear him mention it today completely pushed my in that direction. If everyone hates my idea, and wants nothing to do with it or will never use it in a classroom, that's fine. But if it could possibly help even one person... then mission accomplished.
I really enjoyed what Dean said about what is considered educational online sharing. Educational online sharing just doesn't have to be the sharing of resources, lessons, or ideas, but it can include much, much more. Educational online sharing can include 'how to' videos, step by step instruction on a forum, some good advice, or even just a positive video or poem that's uplifting and motivational. Below are some examples:
Previously Unconsidered Educational Online Sharing (first 4 are from the unpublished experiences of me):
1 - If you're professor asks the class if you read the required readings for the day, and you haven't, but tell her you did, make sure your textbook on the table has the wrapping off of it.
2 - Leaving sushi in the fridge for two full days after you have opened or brought it home from a restaurant and then eating it is not a good idea (pretty sure the word food poisoning applies here).
3 - Some old childhood memories of TV shows, should remain childhood memories (except for the 90's Ninja Turtles one, that stuff was just awesome, and still is awesome. There are also some other minor exceptions, so if you want, please post another childhood TV show that didn't get less interesting after growing up).
4 - Don't forget your clothes in the washing machine for a couple of days. It just creates extra work.
5 - A short smart notebook tutorial made by a couple classmates and myself in my ICT class. http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XbZFEldPR3U
6 - Another video made by the same crew, which will hopefully put a smile on your face. http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=O6-cb9GDAy0
Now for an example that was always considered Educational Online Sharing:
- a link to my classroom website, that contains a couple lesson pans on it created by me and two other people who allowed me to make them public (more will be added soon, I just haven't organized them on my computer yet). http://mrtaylorsclassroom.weebly.com/lessons.html
Overall, I loved the presentation. There were more topics discussed, but I wanted to focus on the sharing aspect because it is so important. If anyone has a digital footprint at all, then he/she has been on the receiving end of sharing at least once. Everyone should at least contribute to the giving side of the online share at least a few times to help contribute to the online learning community. As momma said, it's always better to give than receive. Now time for some TMNT. So once again, until next time... CHEERS!!
Sunday, January 13, 2013
Professional Learning Networks (PLN)
This past Thursday we had John Evans visit our Internet for Educators classroom, and he presented on professional learning networks (PLNs). Professional learning networks can include such networks as Twitter, NING, Scoop It, diigo, and MAPLE. PLNs are essentially networks that teachers can use to continue learning. As teachers, we have the responsibility to continuously learn, or we will be doing a disservice to our students. Through PLNs, teachers are able to share resources, ideas, and advice without having to meet face to face, or by having to negotiate a phone call. PLNs allow for these things to be posted, or linked, and then can be viewed at any time to according to convenience.
My personal favourite PLN is Twitter. To be 100% honest, I did not originally get Twitter for educational purposes. I do not have cable, therefore, I was unable to follow the NHL trade deadline a couple years ago. So, I got Twitter so I could follow some hockey analysts so I could know what was going on (trade deadline is addictive OK, not my fault). Then, I started to realize the educational value of it, once I realized that educators used it continuously. Resources, upon resources are posted on it everyday, and to be honest there are so many posted that I don't have enough time to look at them all. I'm lucky if I view 10% of the ones on my feed. However, that just shows the vast quantity of resources, and the major benefit of it. I also use my Twitter account for personal use as well, but I do so in an appropriate way. I realize that a lot of people prefer to keep theirs professional, or have a separate account for personal use, but that would just be another password to remember probably and I have too many of those already. Plus, how else am I going to keep updated on Game of Thrones, Dexter, and Breaking Bad news? And I have to stay in touch with my celebrity future wife Kate Beckinsale somehow (she doesn't know it yet, but its inevitable). I haven't done too much sharing educationally speaking much yet, except for good YouTube clips that could be used in the classroom, but I plan on making a strong effort to tweet some. I have used many that others have tweeted, such as from John Evans and his tweets linked to his iPads in Education column, and they have all been beneficial.
I really want to use NING more. I have only really used NING as part of class assignments, but it is ridiculously useful when you think about it. Everyone on it is an educator, everyone on it has a link to Brandon University, and the quality of discussion is unparalleled. I will be making an honest effort to use it in the future for non-assignment related tasks.
John introduced us to a site called MAPLE, which I now believe is going to be the go to online tool for educators in Manitoba. A website that will literally link all Manitoba educators to one place is just the best thing since sliced bread (or burritos). I have looked around on the library, and it contains everything necessary for teacher, especially the curricular documents. Having John sign all of us up was just amazing, and I cannot thank him enough for doing that for us.
Overall, the presentation was amazing, and the topic too. John is a thorough speaker, and is extremely passionate about education, and continuous learning. PLNs are very beneficial to teachers, because it allows us to organize our resources and ideas in a way that avoids bedrooms turning into extreme fire hazards (see picture below). PLNs are something that every teacher will need to be apart of, because as time goes on, technology is just going to evolve, and we can't afford to be too many steps behind it. Why? As much as the theory of natural selection is true, we don't want to see it come into play with careers.
Until next time fellow educators... CHEERS!
My personal favourite PLN is Twitter. To be 100% honest, I did not originally get Twitter for educational purposes. I do not have cable, therefore, I was unable to follow the NHL trade deadline a couple years ago. So, I got Twitter so I could follow some hockey analysts so I could know what was going on (trade deadline is addictive OK, not my fault). Then, I started to realize the educational value of it, once I realized that educators used it continuously. Resources, upon resources are posted on it everyday, and to be honest there are so many posted that I don't have enough time to look at them all. I'm lucky if I view 10% of the ones on my feed. However, that just shows the vast quantity of resources, and the major benefit of it. I also use my Twitter account for personal use as well, but I do so in an appropriate way. I realize that a lot of people prefer to keep theirs professional, or have a separate account for personal use, but that would just be another password to remember probably and I have too many of those already. Plus, how else am I going to keep updated on Game of Thrones, Dexter, and Breaking Bad news? And I have to stay in touch with my celebrity future wife Kate Beckinsale somehow (she doesn't know it yet, but its inevitable). I haven't done too much sharing educationally speaking much yet, except for good YouTube clips that could be used in the classroom, but I plan on making a strong effort to tweet some. I have used many that others have tweeted, such as from John Evans and his tweets linked to his iPads in Education column, and they have all been beneficial.
I really want to use NING more. I have only really used NING as part of class assignments, but it is ridiculously useful when you think about it. Everyone on it is an educator, everyone on it has a link to Brandon University, and the quality of discussion is unparalleled. I will be making an honest effort to use it in the future for non-assignment related tasks.
John introduced us to a site called MAPLE, which I now believe is going to be the go to online tool for educators in Manitoba. A website that will literally link all Manitoba educators to one place is just the best thing since sliced bread (or burritos). I have looked around on the library, and it contains everything necessary for teacher, especially the curricular documents. Having John sign all of us up was just amazing, and I cannot thank him enough for doing that for us.
Overall, the presentation was amazing, and the topic too. John is a thorough speaker, and is extremely passionate about education, and continuous learning. PLNs are very beneficial to teachers, because it allows us to organize our resources and ideas in a way that avoids bedrooms turning into extreme fire hazards (see picture below). PLNs are something that every teacher will need to be apart of, because as time goes on, technology is just going to evolve, and we can't afford to be too many steps behind it. Why? As much as the theory of natural selection is true, we don't want to see it come into play with careers.
Until next time fellow educators... CHEERS!
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
New To This Whole Blogging Thing.... ish
If someone would have asked me 12 or so years ago if I would be a blogger, I most likely would have first thought it was some corny rip off of the famed Frogger video game franchise and said "No." Then, once someone explained to me what blogging was, then I would probably still have said "No." In years past, I never would have even considered blogging. In all honesty, back then who would really want to read a 'Dear Diary' moment about me on the Internet, especially when all of the dial-up Internet was needed to download those precious illegal mp3s on Napster. Speaking of Napster, the first song I ever downloaded was "The Saga Begins" by Weird Al Yankovic, which was a parody of "Episode 1" of the Star Wars movies, which sampled the song "American Pie" by Don McLean. Anyways, blogging was just something that never ever once crossed my mind. In my grade 12 year, someone I knew started to blog, and I can honestly say that I never once read one of their posts (I feel bad for that now come to think of it). I just never thought that I would want to sit down and read about someone's day, because I would rather just ask them about it in person.
Then the years rolled on and I realized that people were actually becoming famous for being bloggers, and that this blogging thing had become a huge phenomenon that I had apparently missed the boat on. None of my close friends were blogging, but they would read blogs, and knew people who blogged, but did not blog themselves. So, I decided to one day read a blog to see what the hype was about. So I began to read a blog made by a TSN broadcaster, and I found it awesome because of the hilarity that was contained within it. Despite this new found love for reading, I still never once thought I would blog myself... until I entered the Faculty of Education at Brandon University, and was told that I had to blog for part of my course marks, using a little site called Ning.
Well I can honestly say that I actually enjoyed writing blogs for that class, because it really helped extend my learning on what I had learnt about in that particular class. However, once the class was finished, my blogging trailed off quite a bit. To be more exact, it disappeared completely. I do not know why, maybe it was because the class was over, but who knows.
Anyways, I am using this class (Internet For Educators) as sort of my second chance. I want to make sure that I keep this blogging thing up this time, because I now truly see the benefit of its use. It is a great way for educators to share ideas, help each other through problems, and just stay in touch for sanity's sake. It's use within the Internet for Educators class will be highly beneficial, and I hope that it becomes an integral component of course.
So, to conclude my first post in just over a year... here is to a new second start in my technological career (so now the thing in the picture and I are going to figure out exactly what this RRS feed is exactly) .... CHEERS!!
Then the years rolled on and I realized that people were actually becoming famous for being bloggers, and that this blogging thing had become a huge phenomenon that I had apparently missed the boat on. None of my close friends were blogging, but they would read blogs, and knew people who blogged, but did not blog themselves. So, I decided to one day read a blog to see what the hype was about. So I began to read a blog made by a TSN broadcaster, and I found it awesome because of the hilarity that was contained within it. Despite this new found love for reading, I still never once thought I would blog myself... until I entered the Faculty of Education at Brandon University, and was told that I had to blog for part of my course marks, using a little site called Ning.
Well I can honestly say that I actually enjoyed writing blogs for that class, because it really helped extend my learning on what I had learnt about in that particular class. However, once the class was finished, my blogging trailed off quite a bit. To be more exact, it disappeared completely. I do not know why, maybe it was because the class was over, but who knows.
Anyways, I am using this class (Internet For Educators) as sort of my second chance. I want to make sure that I keep this blogging thing up this time, because I now truly see the benefit of its use. It is a great way for educators to share ideas, help each other through problems, and just stay in touch for sanity's sake. It's use within the Internet for Educators class will be highly beneficial, and I hope that it becomes an integral component of course.
So, to conclude my first post in just over a year... here is to a new second start in my technological career (so now the thing in the picture and I are going to figure out exactly what this RRS feed is exactly) .... CHEERS!!
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