Summary for Questionaire!

Blog Post 4

First of all I want to say that I really enjoyed listening to all of these podcasts. I think what was most interesting is how the children really want to act out the part that they have because it is something exciting. Before, if they didn't podcast, they would probably think these things were very boring and probably not important.

Now that they can act out a specific part and they look at history, or any other subject, with such a different view. How can this help a student pass a grade and learn? Well, I think that sense they are really much more involved, they will know or retain so much more of the information they receive.

Eagles’ Nest Radio Episode #2: Totally Terrific Time Travel with Explorers

I really like how the students in this podcast express themselves. They have so many things going on with sound effects, dialog, and acting that they are really preparing for so many other things later in life. I like how they are all part of the podcast in some way. I think this is a great way to get the kids involved and want to learn.

I liked that in this podcast they have the vocabulary words in the cast. Man would have loved to have that when I was in elementary school! I really struggled in spelling and vocabulary. I think if I would have been able to listen to the words over and over, I would have had a better experience in that subject.

Episode 1a: Eagles’ Nest Radio: A Shark-tastic Interview

This is a very cool podcast where the students are interviewing a shark guy who dives with sharks and knows many things about them. I think that the children really like when they get close to something they are learning about. Even though they are not actually seeing a live shark, they are talking to someone who has been there, and I think that interests them.

Again, this is a great way to get the children involved in the subject and get them thinking about what they are learning. I like that the teach lets one of the students do the interview and the class had lots of questions. Normally, children would read about this in a book and not really want to know more about the sharks. Now they are excited, asking questions, and you hear them yelling "Wow!".

Practical Principals 23 – #EduconEnvy, Ten Things, and the iPad

This podcast shows us how cool podcast can be. I like that they start off with music and all of the introduction stuff. This is also really cool because she is not even there! She is using Skpye to talk to him and do a podcast at the same time.I really think that this could be the part of technology that I uses to comunicate with the parents of my class.

I could set up a podcast that is like a review of what will be going on in the class that week. Therefore, the parents wouldn't have to wonder what their children are doing in class! I really think the parents would really enjoy know what their children are doing every week.

It’s Not About the Tools. It’s About the Skills

I like this post because it explains from a teacher's point-of-view on how a podcast helps students learn and why they choose to use podcasts. The teacher goes on to talk about the different tools in using the podcast and explains that the children are not just learning to use podcast and other tools, they are learning the regular subjects also.

Another cool thing is that toward the bottom of the post there are pictures of the different things that the children use in the classroom. Around the pictures there are the different skills that each tool helps and I encourage everyone to look at those! It's really cool to see the different things that each tool helps the child to learn and practice. My favorite one is probably the podcasting skills because I can find a few skills that I would have loved to have developed when I was in grammar school.

Audio to my Presentation

Get Your Own Free Hypster.com Playlist.

My Google presentation

Blog Post 3

Don't teach your kids this stuff. Please?
This guy is pretty funny but gives a good message at the same time. His idea about technology is that he wants his kids to be ahead of the game, so he tries to convince parents to not let their children learn these things. I want my children to be able to understand that technology will be very important when they are entering the work force. He does raise some good points that there are bad things that children can be in contact with on the internet, but they are easily taken care of if the parent knows how to use the technology themselves!

Scott McLeod is the co-creator of the Did You Know? video. He also helped in creating the country's "first graduate program designed to prepare technology-savvy school leaders."

The iSchool initiative
This is just another great video showing us how technology can change how students learn, interact, and progress. As I've said before, technology opens doors to new ways of learning and also this will bring about a whole new way of life for some students. How can so many things be available in one simple device?

I think the most appealing thing about this video is the idea that the iSchool could save a student $600! Plus not to mention the school saving money. Another part that really gets me thinking is everything is on one device. This is so much more convenient that carrying five or six books home every night to work on your homework.

Lost Generation
Thinking about the way some generations act I think is the key for our generation to turn things around. Some say that generations before are ones who had a strong will to work and do more manual labor than newer generation. So, attitudes change and generations are stereotyped, but over all they are right to say that newer generations are not willing to do certain things, because they don't have to do those things. The movie shows us that all the things that were said at the beginning can be reversed. We can reverse these things by having the right attitude and start looking at ourselves with reflecting eyes and ask ourselves, am I really who I want to be?


Eric Whitaker’s Virtual Choir
Over the past few years I've learned one thing about myself. That one thing is that many things that amaze me don't amaze many other people. After watching this video, I don't see how anyone could not be amazed. None of these people singing have even met each other! What an amazing video that shows yet another way technology can be used.

Blog Post 2

A Vision of Students Today
I think anyone who has attended college can relate to this video in one way or another. This video shows me some surprising facts about students such as: One student would write over 500 e-mails in one semester, and It shows how much more time we spend listening to music and surfing the internet than we spend doing anything else. It's very humbling to hear that over one billion people make less than one dollar a day.

How can technology help students? One way I think is to keep students motivated to do well in class. One part of the video was talking about how students use facebook and other social devices while they were in class. How much more would students learn in a class if the class was incorporated in technology in some way? How much more time would they spend on class work? I think they would spend so much more on something that is recent to the students age or something that could be updated. Maybe students would be more active in a class that was required to share ideas and comment on things in the class, and with technology, this would be an easy way to do just that.

It's Not About the Technology
This post brought forth a new way of thinking to the technology in education idea. I think there are some very good points and questions raised in this post, but i think the benefits of technology in education out-weigh the problems that are addressed. Here is the comment I left on the post.

I really think that students would benefit strongly if a teacher incorporates technology into teaching. I know that this post is saying that it's not "all" about technology but I think it my be a very effective way to get children thinking. Maybe some student needs help from a teacher face to face, or maybe another student is a quick learner. I think the use of technology can accomplish both of those students needs. I did want to comment on one part under where the post said: "Technology is useless without good teaching." I agree that there are so many teachers out there with the technology to use with their class and refuse to use it. I think that those teachers are probably not willing to learn about the type of technology themselves, but I think if the students can use technology with a teacher who allows them to explore on their own, these students will benefit in the long run.

The Fischbowl
What a great post on technology in education! I really enjoyed reading this because it opens up things to me that I didn't think about before. I agree that a teacher should be technologically literate for the sake of the children they teach. I think that so many teachers want their students to do better in their class, but refuse to let them take up the most useful and helpful tools.

I think what really caught my attention in this was when he talked about reading and writing in the 20th century vs. technological literacy in today's time. People sometimes think that it is acceptable to not understand everything about technology and how to use every aspect of it. I'm not so sure that is the right attitude we need to take when we are teachers trying to help students prepare for their future. We should have the attitude: "How can I use these tools to help my students learn more?"

Gary's Social Media Count
This media count is something that you really don't fully comprehend by just looking at it. So many things are happening on the web today that we may never really understand how big of an impact it is having on our lives. If we as teachers can incorporate some part of these medias into our teaching, I think that we would reach so many more students and also have them prepared for a very technologically based work place.

Comments for Teachers

Synthesizing Education
"You Covered This Last Year"

Here Is my comment on the first Comment: As a student I have heard the words: “How could you not know this? You should remember that from last year.” I agree that as an educator, teachers must remember that students will always forget things and surely will be out of practice after summer.

"Is 1:1 Done?"

Comment:I am from a very small school where there are maybe 2 computer labs on the whole campus. Even though that our school didn’t have the equipment need for 1:1 interaction, I would bet that 75% of the students at that school had a computer or laptop they could bring to class. I think the parents would jump at the opportunity to get their children these needs for class if it was required. Parents want their children to well in school, and if technology gets more affordable then I think the majority of parents would buy a laptop for their children.


Does Education Deserve An “F” In Social Media?

Comment:I think the post and all the comments make a great point in saying that teachers need to learn why the social media can be effective and useful to the them (teachers) and the students. Soon I think there will be more and more social networks to communicate with and this will mean more ways to find knowledge! If that’s not a reason to teach children how to use these social medias, then I don’t know what to think!

Technology As The New Math

Comment:I know some people really don’t understand math as well as others. I think that many people don’t want to put forth the effort to really understand it. People who say they just don’t understand technology probably don’t want to understand technology. I agree with this post most defiantly.

Blog Post 1

Did You Know?
This was a very interesting video that really brought many things to my attention that I had no idea even happened. After seeing that video I think it is safe to say that we do live in a very small world. Technology is a very useful tool for us in classrooms as teachers and classmates, but the fast rate of technology growth has really created a challenge for teachers. This Did You Know video shows us as potential teachers how important it is for us to "teach" kids how to use these tools and make them a part of our lives.

The last part of the video has the question "So what does this all mean?" I think it means that we must prepare our youth for so much more than the past generations have. I think that many students around the world in years to come will be so reliant on technology that if they are not shown how to use these tools they will not be prepared to live in the world that will be.

Mr. Winkle Wakes
This video is great in showing how things are around us today. This is one of those kinds of videos that really depicts the way our ways so true and so well. How many of us know that our teachers in high school were so like the one that Mr. Winkle visited? I know my high school was this way. Why should kids be taught to learn to use technology?

This video showed us why children should be taught to use technology when Mr. Winkle was in the work place. Everything that was in the building was computers and internet based machines. If children don't get a head start on using technology, how can they be expected to prosper in society?

Ken Robinson Video
Ken Robinson really wants people to understand how creative children can and should be. I think his opinion on creativity is really true and how we should carry that out in the class room. I like when he says that children should be prepared to be wrong. If we teach children to never be wrong, when will they ever learn new ideas and new theories?

He goes on to say how diverse our education is that we should let children explore the education that we have. He says that we should not limit our children to such a small and narrow part of our education system. So many things can be developed from this because the children will be exposed to so much more and be more involved. I think technology can give us a way to do just that.

Digital Smarts
She makes a good point in saying how some children have limits with just pencil and paper. Children can have less limits with a computer. They can have more ways to express themselves. Its all about learning and she shows the great ways that computer technology is changing the lives of our children and how great these tools are to everyone, not just students in a classroom.

She says that its so amazing to see children learn things that she didn't teach them. This is a great way to understand how kids should learn and that they feel accomplished when they learn something on their own. The blogs are real important in their class room because they share ideas and learn a new type of social skill. This is important to children who live in rural areas because they now have access to many more sources from around the world.

My Jupiter Wordle

Trouble Finding Online Link

I know there are some students who have trouble finding their online class on the University of South Alabama's home page.
Here is a link to the USA online system. Online Classes

Welcome to my very first blog!

This should be very interesting to see! I've never created a blog before and I never really got the whole idea behind it. Maybe this is the start to a great and fun experience.