Last but not least...

I feel that EDF310 has been an interesting course and that all future educators should be required to take it. It is beneficial in many of ways and can be a helpful tool for teachers. I was not familiar with blogging in general and after creating my own blogs and analyzing others, I was able to get a deeper understanding of blogging and its advantages. After taking this course, I now know how to create a class blog of my own. I think that having a class blog is a great way to get students as well as parents involved in the learning process. It also enables teachers and students to follow other class blogs not only around the country but around the world. Teachers can get ideas from each other and incorporate them into their own classrooms. I also was introduced to ALEX which will be extremely helpful when I enter my career as a teacher.

I found the google presentations to be useful in getting to know fellow classmates. It was a fun activity and at the same time, I was learning how to use google and all it has to offer. I didn't realize google had so many functions and tools. Using google docs makes it so much easier to share your material with others with how you simply post and share your information. I enjoyed the pod casts as well, although when wanting to actually listen to them, it sometimes took way too long for them to load. Overall, I have enjoyed this class and will bring what I have learned into my future classroom. With technology constantly changing and becoming so useful in our world,I believe it is crucial for teachers to know how to use it, and for them to educate their students on it as well.

Texting Away Your Education

I understand teachers becoming frustrated with students for using their cell phones during class. I don't however believe it is becoming detrimental to their education. We somehow need to get the parents involved or make the no texting during certain hours feature a mandatory rule during school hours. During the school day, students should not be on their cell phones but I think it is highly unrealistic to try and enforce parents to dispose of the texting feature on their children's' cell phones. I read an article on this not too long ago and studies show that texting does not affect students' writing abilities or any other subject material. They know when to switch modes and when writing a paper, they should write in a formal way. If we want to accept it and bring new technologies into the classroom we can't take away features like text messaging away from the students. We must embrace this new technology but set limits on and prohibit the use of it at certain times while in school.

Being Optimistic!

I really enjoyed this blog and agree with everything that Mr. McClung had to say. Teachers cannot and do not have the right to set limitations on their students goals. The sky is the limit in education and as teachers, we must believe that ALL of our students have the ability to academically succeed. Everyone knows SOMETHING. Teachers must find each students talents, consider students goals, and then motivate them to push for those goals. Teachers serve as role models for their students and if they are pessimistic and negative towards students' abilities, then students will also be negative about their abilities. We must serve as optimistic figures for our students and encourage them to reach for their goals.

Being Unique

I enjoyed this blog and think this school has some great strategies for keeping a close relationship between all the teachers and it also makes the point on how students are the main focus. I think that sometimes teachers forget why they are in the classrooms and what they are there to do. Students have the right to a fair education and in order for them to receive that needed education, teachers must consider students as their main focus. I think the holiday hall parties is a great idea for communication and socializing. I think the parents should be invited to some of these hall parties and then teachers, students and parents will be interacting and communicating with one another.

I Love Teaching!

Since I was a little girl, I have always dreamed of becoming a teacher. Each year, we would dress up for career day and I always came as a teacher! I can remember playing "school" with my friends and making lesson plans and teaching on my little dry erase board. Now that I am a year away from graduating and becoming a teacher, I have learned so much more about what this profession really entails.

I think this blog is a great inspiration for all teachers who are down in the dumps because of hectic situations at school. This is somthing that can help remind a teacher of why they are there and what their mission is as an educator. I will soon become a Literature teacher and I truly believe I have a passion for the subject as well as children, and my goal is to teach them to the best of my ability through my personal talents and teaching skills. The satisfaction of knowing you have successfully helped students strengthen their knowledge in a significant way is truly amazing. Building a close relationship with each of my students will be crucial in getting them to open themselves up in order for them to academically excel. I am also looking forward to learning from the students. Not only am I getting to teach them, but in return I am also learning things from them. It is a reciprical process and I am looking forward to them teaching me as well.

Being Brave!

I personally did not care for some of the ideas that Beatti mentioned. I understand the wanting to "be brave" but it doesnt seem as though some of these ideas could realistically happen. I know I wouldnt want to just sign my child away for a teacher to bring them wherever they want whenever they want. Parents want to know where their child is and they may not want their child going on certain field trips. As far as the supplies list and online note-taking goes, not all students have access to computers. Yes, USB drives are cheap, although they would have no significance to a student who doesnt have access to a computer outside of school. The same goes with this as far as the online note taking. Technology has brought us far and if every student has access to a computer than this would be a great idea, although realisticaly many do not. It would not be fair to have this option if not all students have access to it.
In general, I think this blog is a great opportunity for teachers to be able to speak their minds and voice their opinions on what they believe needs to be changed within the school system. If I were brave, I would set aside days where my students and I could step outside the usual classroom setting and have class outside. Changing things up a bit every once in awhile keeps the fire going and as long as the students are well behaved and still able to concentrate, I think venturing outside for a class every now and then is a good idea.

From the 3Rs to the 6Cs

Dr. Strange makes a great point with using his 6Cs relating to our technologically advanced society and how we should advance in our ways of teaching students. There are so many methods of learning other than through text now and we should take advantage of them. Having the ability to communicate with other teachers and students from around the world enables us to branch out and strengthen our knowledge in many different ways. We are able to do this through collaboration in working with others not just in the same classroom or state or country, but from all over the world. We as teachers must start thinking critically and become open-minded and creative in teaching, enabling our students to do the same in learning. Curiosity leaves us coming back for more and we should make resources available to students for them to have easy access to materials that will get them thinking creatively. Dr. Strange's 6C's are good ways for students to go about learning.

No "BurpBack" Education!

I think that Dr. Strange makes a very rigorous point. I can honestly say that half the material I was taught in grade school went in one ear and out the other. It seemed like an ongoing process for me to simply memorize the material, take the test and then a month later I couldn't tell you what it was that I had "learned." With today's fast growing and high-tech use of the Internet, any fact you need to know is just a click away. I don't believe teaching the test is an effective method for teaching students. For one, teachers aren't able to use their individual talents and skills to help students learn. They are forced to teach the material and that is it. Students aren't challenged or given a chance to really express themselves and learn while doing it. Students need to be able to think outside the box. Engaging students in group discussions, activities and projects can trigger them to think in several abstract ways. This is what teachers need to incorporate in the classroom for successful learning, rather than simply just teaching the test.

United States Classroom Blogging

The first blog spot I found was Mrs. Humphrey's 3D Class. This is an all boys 3rd grade classroom in Memphis, Tennessee. I didn't realize students at this young of an age were interacting with their fellow classmates through the Internet. It is quite impressive. This class has already learned about Twitter and how it works. The students are currently communicating with a class from Australia. Mrs. Humphrey has the boys parents involved which creates a close relationship between the teacher, each student and their parents. Blogging is a useful tool with engaging the parents in their child's education and in a way, they actually become part of the class. Mrs. Humphrey will video the students while they act out a script and then post it in the blog. The boys also each wrote a song using the past or past participle form of irregular verbs. Other teachers have commented on posts such as these stating "That was great! You gave me a great idea for my students." Blogging has become popular in the classroom and is clearly helpful for students, teachers and parents. This really shows how technologically advanced our country has become and how important it is for students to know how to use the Internet.



http://wwwmrshumphreys3d.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-03-26T07%3A36%3A00-05%3A00&max-results=7


The second blog I found being used for a U.S. classroom is Ms. Feinman's first grade class at Digg's school in Winston Salem, NC. Ms. Feinman posts newletters for her class on her blog. She has a slideshow of pictures of the students from Cinco de Mayo and a worksheet the students must complete on "What Mexican Food is our Favorite?" Ms. Feinman also posts assignments and materials to bring in for class such as egg cartons for a unit of study on earth's materials. There are riddles and questions for the students to answer. This class like the one above is also communicating with classrooms across the country through blogging. They talk to and learn about students of their age from Spain, Switzerland and the Netherlands. Blogging is a great way of communicating with students around the country and learning their hobbies and what school is like in their country.

http://diggsroom114.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-04-05T13%3A50%3A00-04%3A00&max-results=7

International Classroom Blogging

The first International classroom blog spot I found is of Teacher Mihnea's 7th grade class in Bangkok, Thailand. Teacher Mihnea posts assignments, chapter overviews, links, pictures and upcoming events on his class blog as an informational guide for his students. He posts chapter reviews, vocabulary lists, activities, and study guides for upcoming tests that his students need to know. Subjects on his blog page include English, Science, Health, Art, Math and History. Students are required to post assignments on their own blogs and comment on their classmates posts as well. For a history assignment, they were required to post a picture of their country flag and explain what it represents.
Teacher Mihnea created a label named "quiz stars" where he posts the names of students who do exceptionally well on quizzes each week. I think this is a good idea in how a students success and good grades are acknowledged. It motivates students to work hard and in return, will be recognized for their accomplishments. Teacher Mihnea even has the students' birthdays posted with pictures and how they celebrated each of their birthdays. With this being a seventh grade class, having extra posts such as these keep the students interested while they still have their school assignments just a click away.

http://primary3lbs.blogspot.com/


The second International blog spot I found was Mr. Hide's Class Blog. This is a seventh grade Physical Geography and History class from Colegio Jorge Washington by the sea in Cartagena, Colombia. Students are required to post answers to assignments on their own blog pages. Mr. Hide posted a field trip permission form for students to print out and get their parents to sign and bring to school. The students post articles about global warming issues and articles on civilization and their own beliefs. There is also a video link about Facebook and if it as safe as you think it is. After reading some of the students blogs, all of their responses are detailed and have interesting, thoughtful feedback.

http://mrhide7.blogspot.com/

Google, Zen Master of the Market

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/07/technology/07google.html?_r=1

G DRIVE

I feel a bit uneasy about the whole GDrive idea. It does seem like it would be an easy and convenient way to locate and pull up your information where ever you may be, it seems a little risky. I like knowing that all of my information and documents are in a secure place and that they are only for me to look at. I wouldn't want others to be able to pull up my information or go through my documents. GDrive would be nice when having a computer crash or stolen because you wouldn't have lost anything of yours. Although if we had all of our material on the GDrive, would it still be just ours?

Changing the Way We Think

This idea of the Internet changing the ways in which we think is an interesting thought. Although I do not log in to Facebook as much anymore, I have to admit that it became natural to me when getting on the computer to go straight to the Facebook website to log in. I did it without thinking twice about it. I would be planning to go to another site and find myself at the Facebook page.

The skill of reading is not just given to us. It is something that we must acquire over time through continuous practice. I agree with what Proust says that reading is "something we have to learn how to do." It is important to make sure students are continuously engaging themselves in reading whether it be through the Internet or on paper. It is a great thing with having such easy access to the Internet, although I do think it could be triggering to laziness when it comes to the educational and actual thinking part of it. We really aren't having to put forth much thinking and effort to find out information. We also must be cautious when using the Internet because although it provides an abundance of information, not all of that information is true. The Internet is a wonderful source but we must not become glued to it and rely on it for everything.

ACCESS

ACCESS stands for the Alabama Connecting Classrooms, Educators and Students Statewide. ACCESS is an online, outside learning program where students in Alabama high schools get a chance to participate in advanced placement courses that may not be available to them in their schools. The needed curriculum is not available for students in certain schools due to the lack of qualified teachers and low income. Teachers can carry on their knowledge by enriching the minds of students through the web. Technology has advanced tremendously in the past five years and students will eventually be exposed to these new technologies sooner or later. It is best to introduce them to it while they are young, so they can become familiar with the concepts of online technology and apply what they have learned in future classes.

Although ACCESS is a growing and beneficial program for high school students, it can cause teachers to be out of jobs. Face to face interaction can also be thought of as a con. Teachers and schools need to let students know that this program is available to them and is a great way to further their education and become skilled learners. This program helps students learn inside, as well as outside the classroom. Overall, I support the ACCESS program and will introduce it in my classroom and inform students of how beneficial it can be for them.

ALEX

ALEX stands for The Alabama Learning Exchange and is a useful tool for not only teachers, but for students, parents or anyone who is interested in learning about the methods of the Alabama Learning Exchange. ALEX was created by the Alabama Department of Education and covers a wide range of activities, lesson plans and links for all of the academic subjects taught in Alabama schools. The helpful information provided through ALEX gives teachers the recommended resources and techniques to use for teaching their students and developing them into academically successful learners. ALEX also defines what skills a student of each grade level should have.

ALEX includes web links for teachers, administrators and students that pertain to any questions or facts they want to know about the Alabama Education System, how it works, and what exactly it consists of. Teachers can use this as a helpful source and backup checklist to make sure they are along the right track in teaching their students the needed material for that particular grade level. I believe ALEX is a great tool for teachers and I will definitely use it to my advantage when I become a teacher.