Goodbye

I have enjoyed work with everyone this semester. Have a good summer. I am sure I will see most of you next semester in the halls.

Final Blog Post

1. I have learned many new and valuable things this semester. I have learned how to use tools like google earth, blogs, timeline toast, vocaroo, and twitter. I have also learned the power of blogging. It is a great tool. By reading other people's blogs especially teachers, I have learned many things not taught in an education text book. I believe I can take all the things I have learned in EDM 310 and incorporate them into the classroom.

2. I do not believe there is anything that we did not learn in class that I wanted to learn. I am exiting this class much wiser in technology than when I walked in the first day.

3. There was nothing we learned in class that I did not want to learn. Everything we learned can be used beneficially in the classroom in one way or another.

4. I believe this class did not excite me so much as it was valuable for me. Occasional projects were fun to do such as the timeline toast and podcast. But, when I think about the class I see it as more valuable than an exciting experience.

5. Nothing in class seemed "intellectually challenging". The only problems I had came when I tried to rush through my work. But, on the whole everything was pretty much self explanatory.

6. The only time I was bored with this class was when I had to watch videos over and over again for my blog posts. The only suggestion would be to mix up the blog projects a little bit. Instead of having three videos for a week mix in an article or something.

7. I guess one thing I would change about the class is the meeting times. I think there would have been less confusion if class met both meeting times instead of one.

8. At the beginning of the semester I was probably in the "some" range of being technologically literate. At this point I am in the "good" range. I have really learned a lot from this class and now hope I can retain all of what I have learned.

9. I will improve technologically from this point on by keeping up to date on tools I can use in the classroom as well as how I can integrate technology into the classroom. I will continue to build my PLN and refer to it regularly. I am excited about using technology in the classroom one day.

Substansive Presentation

Week 15 Blog Post

A 7th Grader's Personal Learning Environment
I really enjoyed his video. It showed how technology can be successfully used in a classroom environment. Facebook, twitter, and blogs were used to help with her work and could share her work with the world. Her PLE allowed her to be more creative in her work. More classrooms should be like this one.

Two Questions That Can Change Your Life
The two questions in this video were "what is my sentence?" and "was I better today than yesterday?". These are questions not only teachers but everyone should ask themselves every single day. By asking yourself these questions it really makes you think about what you want to accomplish in life and how you are going to go about accomplishing these things. This was a very good video.

My Survey Results

http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=0AvTe8HigslYfdHRYZ3BtRzdXcEtYU3FkYm1GSzV1TFE&hl=en

Teaching Someone How To Use Technology

For this project I taught I classmate how upload their google tour project to their blog. They had already uploaded it but had a kmz file error. In the end the google tour presentation was uploaded and now working correctly.

Interview

For this project I interviewed my aunt, Melodie Drach. She has been teaching for a very long time and will be retiring at the end of this school year. She teaches at St. Vincent's Catholic School. I asked her a few questions that I would like to share.

1. Why did you want to become a teacher?
She answered that she had always been interested in education and really looked up to her teachers that had taught her. She talked about a few who had positively affected her life and helped shape her to who she is today. She became a teacher so she could be that person for others.

2. How has teaching affected you outside of the classroom?
She responded that teaching has been a very rewarding career. At the end of the day when she gets home she feels great about herself knowing that she is making a difference in someone's life.

3. What advice do you give future teachers?
She answered, with a little bit of a laugh, to just stick in there. The first year can be tough but it is not as bad as it seems. Be comfortable in your surroundings because kids these days can sense that and will take advantage of you if you're not. But overall just have fun. Teaching is an enjoyable and rewarding experience.

4. What has changed the most over your teaching career?
She simply stated, "everything''. From technology to books to students themselves, she said everything has changed significantly. She talked about how when there was no internet or smart boards. She remembered when dry erase boards were the new thing. She said one of the most difficult parts of teaching is keeping of with all the changes but if you can then you will enjoy a very good and relaxing career.

PLN Part 2

I have made some new additions to my PLN:

http://twitter.com/winetimejs
http://twitter.com/mbayda
http://twitter.com/gtashbin
http://thefischbowl.blogspot.com
http://www.facebook.com/
http://morganbayda.wordpress.com/
http://www.freetech4teachers.com/
http://attheteachersdesk.blogspot.com/

SEC Stadium Google Tour

Comments 4 Kids

Week 4
I commented on a story about the girl's soccer game at mereside. I coach soccer so I really enjoyed reading about their game.

Week 5
I read a girl's book review on Red is for Rememberance. It was a very good book review and would make one want to read the book.

Week 6
For this week's comments 4 kids I read Marc's post about scientists Marin Mersenne and Count Rumford. I enjoyed reading this post and it provided a good bit of information.

Week 9
I viewed Anita's blog from St. Pius X school. She and her friend made a video about a writing test that they did not enjoy. I was amazed to how at such a young age, students could make a quality video.

Week 10
I watched a video by Ilaisaane from St. Pius X school. Her video was on the anxious emotion. She did a very good job in captivating the emotion.

Week 12
I looked at a picture drawn by a five year old at Pt England school. It was an impressive picture for a five year old. It is good that these kids are learning to express their thoughts visually at such a young age.

Week 13
I read Wakatere's post about his day flying kites with his classmates. He used a lot of adjectives and made it seem like you were there with him. He also added pictures of the class flying kites.

Week 14
I read a blog post by Studamyer. In his post he wrote a story about his time playing capture the flag. He was very descriptive and the story was entertaining.

Week 14 Blog Post

This semester I have learned how important technology can be in the classroom. I have learned very many different ways to implement technology as well. I now know how to blog, tweet, create videos, time lines, and podcasts. These new tools will be influential in my teaching methods in the future.

Google Earth Test Trip

Skype Project

I use skype to talk to my German friend Carlo. He came from Munich to Mobile last year and played soccer at Murphy High School where I am an assistant coach. He is very good at soccer so when we skype I always ask him how it is going. Skype is a great tool and I am glad it lets me keep in touch with people all across the world.

Week 13 Blog Post

Dr. Seuss: The Zax

I really enjoyed watching this short video. Dr. Seuss really has a lesson for every situation. In this story the zax meet each other while crossing paths and will not compromise on which way to go. This stubbornness is seen in many teachers today. So many will not change their ways of teaching even though they are outdated and are not sufficient for students' education in the new technological society. It is the teacher's duty today to adapt to the ever changing environment of education. Failing to do so only hurts the future of our students.

Another PS 22 Video

This was an amazing video. The children did an outstanding job with the song and Stevie Nicks was absolutely estatic after watching the video. This is just one reason why it is important to post their work to blogs. Without doing so they would have probably never had the great and rare opportunity to join Stevie Nicks on stage to sing with her. Posting to blogs help us to share our thoughts and feelings with the world. You never know who might just see it and in this case the right person did.

Another example of why it is important is the learning experience taken from posting blogs. It gives the student the opportunity to not only let their voice be heard but also allows them to look at other students work and learn something from their peers. Posting blogs is an important tool that should not be taken for granted.

Week 12 Blog Post

I really enjoyed looking at and reading Kaia's blog. It shows that there is no age limit when it comes to using technology. It was also great how her father has encouraged her to use technology to further her own education as well as share what she sees from her perspective. Her father found the people who were commenting her blog and even got a class to send her a voicethread. This series of blog posts are proof that anyone can learn how to use technology to further education.

Timeline Toast

This is my timeline showing the series of events that has led to ESPN to becoming the world wide leader in sports.

http://www.timetoast.com/timelines/48298

Week 10 Blog Post

Morgan Bayda: An Open Letter To Education

I could not agree more with Morgan Bayda's experience as a college student. I myself have gone through the very same things while here at South. So often do I sit in a classroom and listen to long drawn out lectures jotting down frantically notes to somehow remember what is being talked about. I often ask myself, while trying to stay awake, why am I even writing this down? Like always I come up with the same answer. I take these notes so that I can pass the next test.

The video by Dan Brown in the blog post was very interesting as well as thought provoking. While I will not go as far as dropping out of school, I do believe that he had some very valid points. It is true that society as a whole is quickly evolving while the institution of education continues to sit there piddling around falling further and further behind. About a month ago my dad was asking me about how class was held and what took place during class and when I told him he gave a somewhat of a smile. Then he told me how when he was in college thirty years ago class took place exactly the same. I found that kind of disturbing. Now I know most teachers use powerpoints to read facts to us, but really how is that any different than reading facts from a blackboard besides the fact that powerpoints are more appealing to the eye? I find myself at times thinking that the only thing my institutionalized education is getting me is a degree so that I can have a profession. Like Dan Brown said, information is now free and anyone can access that. So what does that mean to me? Does it mean I am racking up thousands of dollars in debt just so that I can receive a piece of paper called a degree allowing me to become a teacher?

Week 9 Blog Post

ALEX
The Alabama Learning Exchange is a great website for teachers and students that are working on becoming a teacher. It has podcasts as well as lesson plans that teachers can pull from for ideas in their classrooms. This is a very well organized and informative site.

As a future teacher I believe ALEX will be a great tool for my teaching. I will use it as a resource for my classroom as well as add it to my personal learning networ

ALEX - Alabama Learning Exchange

ACCESS
The Alabama Connecting Classroom, Educators and Student Statewide is a phenomenal site for students who are interested in taking a course not offered to them. I wish I knew about this when I was in high school. It would have been very beneficial to my education. Students can also pull study material from this website to prepare them for the graduation exams. I am sure not many high school students know about what is offered through this site. This a great tool for the state of Alabama to have.

Week 8 Blog Post

Comments4Kids

For this week's comments4kids I commented on Brian's post. He talked about how technology can affect a family and how it distracts kids from paying attention.

PLN

For my personal learning network I am following the class blog as well as Dr. Strange's wall. I also will refer to Alice Christie's website for information.

http://edm310.blogspot.com/

http://techliterateteacher.blogspot.com/

http://www.alicechristie.org/

Week 7 Blog Post

This Is How We Dream

This was an outstanding video. Some of the things that were talked about blew me away. It is true that the way we research has changed a lot over time. As a student, when I write a research paper or looking for information on a subject I immediately go online instead of a library. Miller nailed it on the head when he said that this was not a fundamental change but an incremental change.

As of right now I do not feel as if I am prepared to write with multimedia, but as I go forth in my path to become a teacher classes like edm 310 and others will help me to able to do so. Writing with multimedia is a must with this culture that has become so auditory and visually driven. Just listening to someone lecture is not enough anymore. As I become a teacher I hope to write using multimedia as well as see my future students do so.

The Networked Student

This video was not only entertaining with its creativity but also great for me to refer to while I create my own personal learning network. It provided me with many different ways of how I can use different resources I can use to learn new things and create a personal learning network that will help me throughout my learning and teaching career.

As for the question, "Does the networking student even need a teacher?" the answer is yes. This video did a good job in explaining why. This fact is most obvious in my edm 310 class. With all the learning I have done in the past seven weeks I know it would be nearly impossible without a teacher. The teacher develops and molds the networking student and gives them guidance. A student cannot truly and successfully network without the teacher to help them along the way

Comments4Kids

I commented on the Melville Intermediate School blog's video in which the students were doing a worm transfer. I liked how they were having fun while still learning and how everything was hands on.

Getting To Know

Week 6 Blog Post

Dr. Alice Christie's Site

This is a great website and has a plethora of information for teachers and future teachers. I think sites like this help students like me in becoming a good teacher. Dr. Christie provides great resources on how to use technology in the classroom. As I become a teacher I will refer to this website and others like it to create a better learning environment for my students.

One section of Dr. Christie's site that I found very useful was the one on information literacy. It is a slideshow presentation and provided me with information that not only did i not know but info that I can apply to my future classroom to maximize my student's learning experience. It is former teachers like Dr. Christie that help pave and smooth the path for future students like myself.

iTunes U

Once again Apple has taken another leap in technology. As technology in the classroom grows more and more important the creation of iTunes U helps further the development of technology. It allows users to access lectures from some of the most prestigious universities in the nation. This can be very helpful for both teachers and students.

The availability of lectures from the top schools is very important to me. I have learned that the classroom is not only a learning experience for not only students but also for teachers. As I prepare to become a teacher I know there are so many things I do not know. When I become a teacher and I need to learn more about a certain subject to successfully teach my students I can log on to iTunes U and learn everything I need to know.

Week 5 Blog Post

Wikipedia
As to agreement as many others I also find wikipedia very unreliable. You can basically change anything and everything you want to about someone or something. Every time I am supposed to write a research paper I always hear the words from my teacher, "Do not use wikipedia as a source". The site is great for getting quick info on something but at the end of the day take everything you read from there with a grain of salt.

This has seem to become a big problem with major companies. Now anytime that something bad is written about the company, it simply goes on wikipedia and deletes the post and changes it to something positive. Wikipedia has now become just some big joke.

"What I've Learned This Year"
I found this article not only informative but very helpful. As a future teacher I can use this article to better myself. One of the most important things I got out of reading this post was in the title. Be positive. Being positive is really key in teaching, especially for a first year teacher. I am sure that first year for me will be a little overwhelming and tough at times but if I stay positive things will be so much more simple and less stressful. I have really learned a lot from this article and I plan on referring back to it during my first year of teaching.

Week 4 Blog Post

The Benefits of Podcasting

This video was very informative. I would recommend it for any teacher who is looking for a new way to integrate technology into their classroom. Podcasts are very useful in the classroom and they should be a stable in any classroom. The benefits and different ways the podcast can be used are endless and that is what make podcasts so valuable.

One part of the video that really stuck out to me was the segment on the Social Studies teacher and how he implements podcasts in his classroom. By using podcasts as a way to illustrate a fact or tell a story makes the class much more interesting and helps to keep the students' attention. As a future Social Studies teacher, I would like to use podcasts much like the teacher in the video did to make my classroom a more interactive and entertaining learning environment.

Week 3 Blog Post

They Are First Graders! Are You Ready?

Wow! Those kids are amazing. I could never imagine being able to do things like that when I was in first grade. These two videos really show you how far technology has come. I have a twelve year old brother who amazes me every day on the computer. It is not a bad idea for adults theses days to look for information on computers from children.

But how amazing these videos are, they point out once again that there is absolutely no excuse for teachers to be technological illiterate. If first graders can do it then so can adults. We must all come to this conclusion to help make education better.

Here's What's Coming!

And I thought I had seen it all. This baby is amazing. So often do I hear grown-ups talking about how those iphones look so difficult. Well they need to watch this video. If this baby can do this, I'm sure my mom could learn how to respond to my texts. Seriously though, these are the future students of America so we as teachers better be prepared.

Podcasts

This is the first time I had ever listened to any kind of podcasts and I found them very informative. There are tons of them out there and you can find out anything about everything. They seem to be very convenient to use and are a great source for anyone.

I believe podcasts can be great tools for teachers. I mean it is feasible that a teacher who might not be absent for school one day to prepare their lecture in a podcast and let the sub play it for the students. That in itself from a teaching standpoint makes podcasts very valuable. Technological literate teachers will use podcast to not only teach but to help them learn more about certain subjects.

One podcast that stood out the most to me was the Smartboard Lessons podcast. I found this podcast the most informative and interesting. The podcasts help bring technology in classrooms to another level and help instruct teachers on how to do so.

Knowing that I will be part of making a podcast later in the semester, one aspect that really got my attention was the voice inflection of the podcaster's voice. I truly believe that can make or break your podcast. No one is going to listen to a podcast for a certain amount of time if they are turned off by a dry uninteresting voice. Without any visual stimulation, the sound of a podcast is of most importance and this makes voice inflection key in a good podcast.

Week 2 Blog Post

Michael Wesch: A Vision of Students Today

I can honestly say I fit most of the messages through out this video. Multi-tasking for college students is an understatement. I work 20 hours a week not including my time coaching, go to class, study, and somewhere in there I fit in eating and sleeping. The greatest skill a college student can possess today is multi-tasking. If you can not master this skill be prepared for a tough college career.

A quote that really stuck out to me was the one about the invention of the chalkboard that was from 1841. I mean really? Its been over 16o years and the chalkboard is still probably the major source of the classroom? I know dry erase boards are more often used now but it is still the same concept. Once again technology is lacking vastly in classrooms as a whole.

"It's Not About the Technology" by Kelly Hines

Kelly Hines has a very good point. We can use all the greatest technology in the world to teach but if we do not change our mindset and overall approach to teaching then we might as well stick to writing on a chalk board. Teachers must stay up to date and realize that just having top of the line technology does not make them a better teacher.

This article reminds me a lot of Vicki Davis and her classroom. Once again, teachers should not be the only source of teaching in the classroom. It should be a learning experience for every person, student or not, that walks through the classroom doors. If teachers are to become 21st century teachers this article is a must read with the accompanying of the video about Vicki Davis's classroom.

Karl Fisch: Is It Okay to Be A Technologically Illiterate Teacher?

In my short blogging career, I would have to say this is by far the best blog I have read. Simply, Karl Fisch just tells it as it is. I could not agree with him more about everything he has written in this blog post.

Teachers who are not technologically literate certainly should be held accountable. Most of all, to be technologically illiterate in today's world is to be pretty much illiterate in life. I do not know how people get by today not knowing how to use a basic computer but somehow they do it. I watched the videos about first graders. If they can do it so can teachers. Not only are technology illiterate teachers hurting themselves but they are also hurting their students.

Gary Hayes Social Media Count

It is astonishing on how quickly these numbers are rising. This count is obvious proof on how fast technology is growing. At this rate it is almost hard to keep up with the ever changing trends of technology.

As this relates to becoming a teacher, I realize I better start learning all that I can about the always growing world of technology. It also has made realize that I must not only teach my students but also learn from them because I know students today and in the future are the main source of the technological trends of the world.

Week 1 Post

Did You Know 3.0 by Karl Fisch
To me, this video was not only very informative but also shocking at times. Some of the numbers and facts that were shown were mind blowing. It seems crazy to think by the time some students graduate from college, the things they learned their first year will be outdated or that the top in demand jobs of 2010 were not even around just six years ago. It really shows how far and how quickly technology is growing.

One thing that did bother me about the video is how quickly the United States is falling behind China and India. It is odd to think that soon China will have the most english speaking people. Even more astonishing is the fact that India has more honor kids than the United States has kids. It is clear that now the most technological countries will begin to have the most power.

Mr. Winkle Wakes by Matthew Needleman
First of all, I would just like to state how cool I thought this video was. I am excited to know that by the end of the semester I will get to make a video like this. It is something I have always wanted to know how to do. I am glad that I watched this video and that I be able to create something like it.

This video is very clear and to the point. Education is lacking very much so in technology compared to the rest of the world. In a world where we are teaching the young minds who will one day run it, you would think technology in the classroom would be of most importance. But sadly that is not the case. I believe it is classes like EDM 310 that will change this trend of lacking technology in the classroom and will produce more technology literate teachers.

Sir Ken Robinson: The Importance of Creativity
When I first saw that this video was twenty minutes long I was immediately turned off and was preparing myself for boredom. But as I watched this video my mind was completely changed. I really enjoyed this video.

Sir Ken Robinson could not be more right when it comes to creativity in education. So often is students' creativity hindered in the pursuit of the basic reading, writing, and arithmetic. Students who excel in things such as music and art are so often given an unfair disadvantage in grade school. Robinson brought up many great points in his speech and I completely agree with him.

Vicki Davis: Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts
Wow. This video was great. The future of education lies in the hands of teacher like Vicki Davis. The things these students are learning to do are things that I wish I could have learned in grade school. With the technology of today, there is no excuse to not have more classrooms through out the United States like this one.

One thing I liked the most about this video is how Vicki Davis let the students teach the class at times. The most important thing got out of this was when she said, "So many teachers think I have to know everything before I teach it and that is the absolutely wrong thing to think". In todays world of technology it is often that students know much more about it than the teachers do. The classroom should not only be a learning experience for the students but also for the teachers. There is so much we can learn from kids today and this video is the perfect example of that.

First Post

This is my first post.