My EDM 310 Blog Assignments are Now Complete...

Guys, it was nice to have a class with you all. I am regretful because I did not get to know each and every one of you on a more personal level, but hey, we are all in education and I believe that we will eventually meet again. I want to thank Dr. Strange for his time and patience. It takes a special person to teach technology and I believe that he is one of the best!
I hope everyone and their families have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! I hope you all pass every test that we as future educators have to take, and that the beginning of your careers are what you have dreamed about your whole life!
-Kellie Brooks

What I would have liked to have learned....

I think that in EDM 310 we pretty much covered everything. I think the only think I would really like to learn more about is iPods, and easier ways they can be used in the classroom. I am actually about to invest in an iPod so that I can learn about them and try to utilize them in my own class one day!

What I learned in EDM 310

I have learned many tings this semester in Dr. Strange's class. I have learned how to set up and blog, and have even set on up for my church's youth group! I also never knew anything about Google docs and the many things that we have dome with them. I am actually setting up my wedding address book on Google Spreadsheet so that I don't have to worry about towing it around with me, I just have to access a computer!! I also had no clue what Foliotek was. I know we didn't spend a long time discussing the topic, but this class helped me to not be intimidated by it anymore!

Plusses and Minuses of Blogs

After using blogs during this semester I have become very comfortable with blogging. i think that blogging is a great teaching tool and benefits many people around education. The great thing about blogging is what you an put on it. You can add links, announcements, worksheets, daily life, and even schedules. These are things that many parents need to know and usually lose any worksheet that a child brings home. Using a blogs allows the parents to be more interactive with their child's school life.
A great plus is that you can easily inform everyone what is going on in your classroom. This does not only include the parents. It includes a child that might have missed a day because they were sick, a principal that wants to know an objective of an activity you did, or even another teacher who wants to do the same lesson as you. A blog makes things easier because none of these people would have to come to the teacher directly, they could just visit the blog.
The only minus I can think of with blogging is the time it takes to keep up with it. Already I hear teachers complaining about what they have to do in the classroom and how much time it takes, so adding a blog to their plate would take more time. Although I believe that once they took the time to set up the blog, then it would begin to save them time.
I looked at another students blog, Brian O'Gwynn, from Brian's blog I have learned that he wants to be a P.E. teacher. I think that Brian could still utilize a blog for his classes. He would have different criteria than I would have as a regular education teacher, but he could still post informative facts about physical education and any tests that students will have to take in his class.

Duke University- Center for Documentary Studies

For this post I wasn't exactly sure what to do. The instructions were on out topic paper, but they didn't tell us what podcast to listen to. So I have taken it upon myself to put something up on this slot. I don't know if its correct, but I wanted to make sure all my posts were here!
The podcast I listened to was of two women who were listening to Martin Luther King's "I have a Dream" Speech, and telling her opinion of it. The women were so shocked when Dr. King was shot, and back in their time, the Civil Rights Movement was ignored. They were very young when schools were beginning to be integrated. These older women found it ironic when they were young because they didn't understand why they had to call the other girls "colored" girls.
I am very glad that we have almost overcome all the racism in schools. There is still some white privilege when it comes to the curriculum, but I think that we will eventually overcome that also.

EDM 310 Podcasts

The first podcast I listen to was "Burp Back Education" by Patricia Robbins, Megan St. Amant and Courtney Morris. The podcasters spoke about what Dr. Strange refers to as "Burp Back" education. Basically when students learn some facts, listen to lectures, take a tests, and then forget the all the facts. All podcasters agreed with Dr. Strange in the we should NOT use burp back education as future teachers. Some teachers today don't use this method of teaching, they actually let the students engage in conversation and learn what they need to know. We can easily use different forms of technology so taht our students don't burp back facts.
The second podcast I listened to was "Facebook as an Education tool?" by Theola Hine and Larrica Smith. Theola and Larrica both discussed how Facebook could be educational. On Facebook, you can create groups and you can network with other students you can also get memos and other alerts from your campus. It really helps groups, committees and other organizations. Most people use Facebook more than university e-mail so it would be more effective.
The third podcast I listened to was "Technology used at the University of South Alabama." The podcasters were Jennifer Harris, Alison Hawes, Amelia Perkins. They discussed how technology that is used in their classes here at South Alabama. A few forms of technology were Moodle, Online classes (We need more of them!!), USA Online, and Foliotek (Many students have to learn it by themselves).
My last podcast was my own, "ALEX and ACCESS: Alabama District Learning", by myself, Aison Davis, and Brooke Elder. We discussed all the perks of using ALEX and ACCESS for a better opportunity for AP students. We also pointed out all of the subjects that students can take including Chinese!!!
All of these podcasts were very informative but I think that everyone could have been better prepared, and not as nervous. There were many awkward silences, but overall many of them were informative and had many good points!

Trip to ACCESS Lab at Daphne High

My trip to the Daphne High School ACCESS Lab was very interesting. I was able to meet Mr. Rho, the ACCESS Lab teacher, and explore the lab. I went during the second block class of the day so Mr. Rho was not teaching. The thing that I thought was really cool about the lab was how the teachers could link to other Labs by IVC. Mr. Rho linked to the other Baldwin County school that has an ACCESS lab. Another thing that I thought was neat was that there were two cameras in the class, one for the teacher and one for students. The cameras could zoom in on the students so that way someone in the back could hear someone in the front.
I think the whole ACCESS Lab idea is a great one. It brings so much technology into the class and it gets us one step closer to 'team teaching' with other teachers at other schools. It also allows students to take classes they normally would not take. Unfortunately the labs have a long way to go as far as technical gliches and financially. I am excited to learn more about the labs and how I can use them. I am confident that as soon as all the schools have labs, then it will be easier to resolve these issues.

Mathematics in Technology- Maine Department of Education

In the first episode of the podcasts I wasn't surprised that the podcaster said that most teachers were not into incorporating technology into their math lessons. What I wasn't aware of, was the technology was essential to teaching math. I do know that many students do not understand math, I am one of them, so I wonder if technology would have help me. Technology supports a student centered learning activity, and one technology lesson can cover 3-5 textbook lessons. So using technology would actually be easier to use technology than trying to cram in the whole textbook.
Many teachers are often intimidated by technology, buts if they would listen to these podcasts they would be amazed at the pros of using technology instead of all the cons of using it. After listening to these podcasts, I think it would be easier to use technology.
As a teacher I think that I am already set on using technology in any Math lesson that I teach. Most students get bored with worksheets, and even though math is a subject that you have to practice, using technology would be a cool innovative way to teach. I especially like how Judy Chandler, the podcaster, said that one technology Math lesson can include many textbook math lessons. Technology is making everything easier, and can even help most students understand a hard subject.

"Growth" vs. "Fixed" Mindset- Stanford University

I never knew there were such things as growth mindsets or fixed mindsets. Standford University conducted a study with many students. Half the students were put in a class where they just learned study skills. These were the "fixed" mindset students who wanted to be smart and would try to be smart. The other class was also given study skills, but also had other lessons of growth mindsets. These lessons were simple but taught students that they had to exercise their brain, that they had to think higher to achieve what they wanted. By the end of the semester the teachers, who did not know there were two studies going on, could pick out the students who were taught growth mindsets.
Carol Dweck, Professor of Psychology, one of the people conducted the study, wrote a book about growth and fixed mindsets. She was later contacted by a race car driver who wanted to find out if drivers had a fixed mindsets. The driver wanted to know that if someone in a competition race made a mistake, were they set up for failure because of their mindset.
The different mindsets are interesting. I want my students to all have growth mindsets, and I know that I will have to be one of the people that teaches them this. I don't want my students to be set up for failure because they make one mistake, I want them to know that we must keep going and prevail over that mistake!

Grade K-5 Video- Infrared: More than Your Eyes Can See

The videos that I watched was a video geared toward K-5. The video explained what infrared light was, and how fir fighters can use it to find people trapped in a fire or someone what is lost in the woods. The video also explained that all things, hot and cold, give off light called infrared light. Something that is hot gives off brighter light, and something that is cold gives off darker light. In the video, students get to see different animals under infrared light, which is really cool. They also get to see the podcaster place her hands in a garbage bag, and then turn on the infrared light, and you can see through the bag!! What is really cool is that infrared light can't penetrate through glass because the glass is so think, the podcaster also explains this.
This podcast is a great tool for students to see. I think as a teacher I will use this podcast. The podcaster explains infrared light in every detail, but uses tools that you can't bring into the classroom. At one point we get to see a rhino under infrared light, I think that I would lose my job if I brought one in!!
I think I could use this podcast and others just like it almost like a virtual field trip. The podcast also helps to explain the subject really well, and acts like a reinforcement for the subject. I could see myself using podcasts so that my students can better understand any subject.

The Edible Schoolyard and A Night in the Global Village

I really thought that both of the podcasts were cool. In "The Edible Schoolyard", it is such an engaging way to teach students because the school literally has an edible schoolyard.. The school has a garden that the students tend to under the supervision of teachers. They not only garden and learn the way of life, but they also learn science from seeing the plants grow and from seeing the water cycle and the bugs that feed off of the plants. After the plants grow the students get to eat them, but before the do they learn the history of the plant and how it came to America. They also learn Math by mix in the ingredients to their recipe.
In "A Night in the Global Village" volunteers of students and chaperons from Rocky Mtn. School of Expeditionary Learning get to sleep in another world. The volunteers go to a camp where there are simulated lifestyles of people around the world. They are all then broken down into family "teams" to survive the night in what we would call the wilderness. They must trade, bargain, and find most of the materials they need while one of their team is pregnant and another has lost one hand. They must cooperate and learn to live someone else's way for one night.
The way that both of these schools teach their students is awesome. Most students understand what they read out of a book, but when you actually simulate how someone lives or how something is growing, it gives them a whole new understanding of how the world works. Many students don't realize that there are people in the world that don't have the things we have and as teachers, we must teach them these things.

Becoming a better Podcaster!

First I listened to Smart Board Lessons Podcast #146 on iTunes. I found that they told how to use different ideas in the classroom. The talked about making word clouds in the classrooms. These word clouds use one word and you make that word bigger and emphasize it. students learn how the work off of that word. They tackle a problem on each podcast and address how to help the kids.
Next I listened to KidCast, their podcast it was #56 about questions make the world go round was about making some podcast based on some observation done in a study.They asked many questions to Dan and was answering so that they could set up their own podcast and how to develop a podcast. EdTechtalk is another podcast that i browsed by, This was Teachers Teaching Teachers #123.This site has more than one person talking and they are teachers who are helping other teachers with in classroom ideas. Each teacher has groups in their rooms and they are pod casting on how to do things in their classroom. The photography teacher is on there talking about how her students use their photos in class and the ceramics teacher tells how she uses blogs in her classroom . They also set up some web pages together to be used in the classrooms.
I think I have the overall concepts of podcasting. Its basically like a radio show, but not just to one area, its to the whole world! That is the only reason I will be hesitant about doing a podcast, because I know that the whole world can hear me!!

Randy Pausch's Last Lecture

When I heard Randy Pausch's story I was shocked. I actually heard about it on Oprah one day when I was passing the television. As a daughter of a woman who had stage 2 ovarian cancer, anytime I hear the word "cancer" I am at immediate attention. I listened to his brief story, and was touched in two minutes. I was astonished that a man to act so unselfishly, and think not of himself and dying but of his family and how they were going to be taken care of. I not only listened and watched Pausch's lecture, but I also read his book. They are not exactly the same because in the book Pausch speaks more about what was going on within him then he did while actually speaking.
One teaching tactic that I learned from Pausch is to push your students. Pausch did not accept anything but the best from his students, and would push them and push them until he got what he thought they were fully capable of doing. I want to be able to do this with my students. The thing about Pausch is that while pushing his students he never came off as negative or hard, he came off as caring.
Another thing that I learned from Pausch came from his book. I learned to not look at numbers or ability, but how far a person may go to just be nice. In his program at MIT Pausch accepted only a certain number of students. There was one girl who was being questioned on her acceptance, and she did not get accepted because she was out of the ordinary smart or she scored high on an entrance exam, she got in because she left a "Thank You" note in her packet for the person who had showed her around campus. To Paush it did not matter about the students grades, she did have great grades already, it mattered to Pausch that the student went out of her way to simply say thank you.
Pausch has an inspiring story, and I am happy that his story lives on even after he is gone. His children have an extraordinary father, and should be proud. Pausch is an inspiration to anyone who has been diagnosed with cancer.

EDM Project 6- Electronic Contact

I was able to contact another education student at Florida State University. I contacted Janessa McGowens through Facebook. She is also a junior who has just begun her quest trough the College of Education. She and I talk about how technology is a crucial component in the classroom because it offers a different stimulation. If our students just sat in chairs all day and read from books they would get bored and hate school, but if we could take them on a virtual field trip it would make our students think on a different level because they can actually see what is going on.
One main point that Janessa and I agreed on is that the money for technology in the classroom needs to be increased, which is very hard at this time. If we could get the money to buy the technology, then there would be no need to take field trips by bus, we could just take virtual ones. With money and technology, our students don't just have to study geography, they can talk with someone, over a webcam, that lives in that area. So they are not only learning, but also seeing the world while in the safety of their classroom.
Janessa and I ended our conversation by discussing the money issue of our schools. We both firmly believe that when our schools can obtain the money for better technology then we will begin to learn on higher levels.

iPods in the Classroom

Wow! I never realized that an iPod could be used for so much!! It still completely amazes me how people find ways to use technology in the classroom. Many of the experiences that I found on the web were for older grade levels, but I am sure that there are many ways K-2 grades can use them too. I don't own an iPod, but do want to learn how to use one because I know that many of the students I teach will already know how to use one.
I found one story about Duke University using iPods, and I thought it was great. The entering freshman class at Duke all received iPods with preloaded history of the University and the fight song. This way the students were all equal with technology, because we all know that some college students could not afford iPods. I think every University should try to implement the same technology initiative and see what happens.
Source: http://www.education-world.com/a_tech/sites/sites070.shtml

Dr. Christie's Site

I found Dr. Christie's site to be both intimidating and informative. Intimidating because she not only has forty years as an educator under her belt, which is very rare now a days, but she knows so much about technology in education. I am very intimidated by any technology, but always try to be open minded about learning how to use it with students.
Dr. Christie's site was highly informative, especially the section of "Educational Technology" which is for teachers who wish to effectively use technology in there classroom. At this part of the site she names many links that teach anyone how to use any piece of technology in their class. This web site is going to be very useful to me as a teacher because of how intimidated I am when it comes to technology. After looking at this site I have learned many way that I can use technology effectively, and it also be comfortable for me and my students.

Wickipedia

I always used wiki in high school, and whenever I began my junior college career at Faulkner, I didn't understand why I could no longer use it. Now I know, and I am shocked. I knew that there were things on the net that you couldn't trust to be reliable, but never would I have thought it would be wiki. I personally believe that wiki should have warnings at the bottom of every page stating that all the facts may not be correct. After finding out about wiki, it has made me wonder and question every site that I get my information from now.

Best of Fischbowl 2007...

For this blog I chose to read the month of November. The writer, Karl Fisch, is so honest in every blog that he writes. The humor Mr. Fisch uses throughout his blogs really kept my attention while I was reading throughout the whole month. One blog that really caught my attention was "Why Wireless?" posted on November 2, 2007.
In this blog, Mr. Fisch explains that the high school that he teaches in has decided to go completely wireless. This also means that homes and people with portable devices can use the wireless internet from the school. The wireless is turned off on the weekends, but at the time of the blog, Mr. Fisch was trying to get it turned on for Saturday also. Many people didn't understand why the school had gone wireless, but there are so many obvious reasons and Mr. Fisch points many out. One, students who don't have internet at home now have it so they have access to grades, teacher web sites, and also e-mails. Two, parents have the same access. This is a great way for families who cannot afford the internet to actually use it. This is a genius idea that should be used all around!

Is it Okay for Teacher to Be Technologically illiterate?

I am indifferent in agreeing with the blog that we read. I feel that new teachers, such as ourselves, we should be technologically savvy. We have the classes and the resources to know all about technology. In my opinion it would be completely ridiculous for a new teacher to not know about teachnology. Knowing about technology will only help us in our classrooms, it will also help our students. When our students see us useing technology, then they can learn how it use it. We have to remember that as futue teachers, we will be teaching the most influential people we will ever come in contact with. If we don't give them thir first taste of technology then who will?
I also think that teachers who have been teaching for a while should be cut some slack. Technology changes everyday, and some teachers find it hard to find the time to learn all about the new technology. I don't mean that they shouln't learn t all, I mean that they shouldn't be expected to become an expert in that field. I think they should be given a little more time to learn, and be expected to learn a little bit about the new technology.

Blogs In Classrooms Around the World

The First International blog I found is from a class that is located in New Zealand. Mr. Lietze is their fifth grade teacher. The blogs is used for many different things. Of course, like many blogs it is used to keep students and parents informed about what the class did during the day. It also has a ton of different links! It has links to math sites, other teacher's blogs, writing sites, and even p.e. sites. The great thing, that's not even half the extra sites posted on the blog!! This is the most informative blog that I have ever seen. One of the top things in this blog in my opinion is that it has a spot where parents can enter their e-mail address so they can receive updates automatically!!
Source: http://e3eclat.blogspot.com/

Another blog that I found is also from New Zealand, but it is a Manaia kindergarten class. This class ha over thirty families that are active in the class and the main purpose of the blog is to stay in touch with friends and family around the world. The blog is about all the different activities the class does on a daily basis. The class also has different blogs that they are actively updating everyday along with their other many activities.
Source: http://manaiakindergarten.blogspot.com/

My Presentation!

Blogs In Classrooms Around the U.S.

In my search for blogs in other schools, I stumbled upon Mrs. Fudge's Kindergarten Class Blog. This class is at Chalker Elementary in Cobb County, Georgia. Mrs. Fudge uses her blog in many different ways. She has some links for her students, where they can look at the virtual library and also a few links for fun Math activities. Another way Mrs. Fudge uses her blog is to keep parents informed. She lets the parents know what the class did during the day, and also tips for how the parents can help the child at home. She also uses the blog to keep parents informed about school activities. Since she is a kindergarten teacher a blog for her is greats because not every kindergartner is going to remember to tell mom and dad of they get out of school early.
Source: http://chalker.blogs.com/fudge/

Another blog I found is for the Senior Class of 2009 at Pickens High School. Pickens High School is located in Jasper, Georgia. This senior class uses their blog to keep all of their classmates informed of their activities. The class has really picked up on the fact that not everyone will get a slip of paper or hear an announcement. The blog includes facts about their school that not all students may know, and also fundraisers the class is planning on having.
Source: http://pickensseniorclass.com/

Did You Know?- Video

The "Did You Know" video we watched was very mind blowing. I had no idea of all the information that it gave us. The fact that one day China will be the largest English speaking country is just mind boggling. I couldn't believe the differences in college graduates in the USA, India, and China. I guess I never really realized that the United States was not number one in everything.
I suddenly feel like I need to be asking the questions that were proposed at the end of the video. What is going to be done about all of the stats. that we were presented with? When is something going to be done?

ACCESS- Alabama Connecting Classroom, Educators and Students Statewide

The Alabama Connecting Classroom, Educators and Students Statewide program that offers high schools students more electives in the high school curriculum. The program specifically helps high school students that are in the Advanced Placement(AP) program. It opens a wide variety of web-based and video-interacting courses.
I think that ACCESS program is a great program for high school students. The program can open their eyes to many more courses and better prepare them for the college and degree that they hope to pursue in the future. It would be great if this program, like ALEX, would expand to further high schools so that when our students graduate they will be a little more prepared for what they will encounter.

ALEX- Alabama Learning Exchange

The Alabama Learning Exchange is something that is still fairly new. I know when I graduated in 2006, and we did not have it then. ALEX is a way that many more courses can be offered at public schools. It offers web-based courses and also video conferencing. Also you can take courses that blend both web-based and video conferencing.
The ALEX program opens up a whole new world to Alabama students. They can take courses not usually offered in the curriculum. I think it is a wonderful idea because sometimes some students are not challenged by the courses offered. I think this program should grow and be offered in many more schools.

Getting to know me....

Hi! My name is Kellie Brooks. I just transferred to South this year from Faulkner State Community College. I came to South because I wanted to be close to my family. Originally, I planned on going to Troy University, and even spent a semester there. I am a very big family person and believe that every person's "center" should be their family. Outside of my family, I am also a nanny for two wonderful little boys. They are five and three. I spend a lot of time with them, and even vacation with them! I work at S and K Menswear as a seamstress, and enjoy my time that I get to spend working in peace and quiet. That's about all about me, lets here about you!

First Post!

Welcome to my blog for EDM 310!!