Member Profile - noelle : Teacher Lingo
This project didn't go as i thought it would. I started it towards the beginning of the semester. First i went to Teachers.net to try to find a contact. I e-mailed random people i saw on there and i put stuff on the board to get people to respond, but i never heard back from anyone. Then i went to Teacher Lingo to try to find a contact. I made a whole profile telling why i was in the site and sent out emails and put stuff on the boards and i only had one reply the whole time and it was from a local girl who was a future student in the same situation as me so i couldn't use that as my contact. Above is a link to Teacher Lingo where you can get on and look at my profile page to see some of my efforts. My name to look me up on Teacher Lingo is just Noelle. So after that, i gave up on the teacher sites and went to Facebook. I found a guy named Martin from Germany and talked to him, but he would not talk about technology or education and it was hard to talk to him because German is his first language. So, i failed at my attempts for an electronic converstion, but i did put alot of effort into this assignment and i hope this won't affect my grade.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Monday, November 24, 2008
ACCESS lab visit
My trip to the ACCESS lab was very interesting. I went to Davidson High School to do my research. I was a bit nervous there because when i walked in the door the assistant Principal had a wand out looking for a weapon that he thought the student had, but the student didn't have anything on him. So after that i went to the ACCESS lab which is run by Mrs. Wright. I went in while they had a class going on in there so Mrs. Wright told me what they did in the ACCESS lab and i sat with the class, which was all optional to each student kind of like an advanced course. Mrs. Wright thought that this was a great program that they started and would be beneficial to each high school in the future. I didn't get any time on the computer, but i watched some students in their class, but there was one problem. Someone had turned the heater on in the classroom the night before and it was 90 degrees in there, which is why i have that awful face in my picture, because it was too hot to stand. So i observed the class for a few minutes after i was told what they do and then i left because it was too hot to stay in there. The lab was operational, but not completely. Mrs. Wright just went and got her certification and so they are just starting and i don't think they are doing everything yet, but they are on their way and doing some stuff in the class.
Experiences in Blogging
I decided to view Lisa Frye's EDM 310 blog for this post. She was one of the people in class that kept up with her blog throughout the semester like i did so i thought her blog would be interesting and not rushed. Lisa's blog was a lot like mine. Most of our assignments were all the same besides a few where we got to look up our own schools to write about. Overall all of our blogs look the same, just a little difference in views as what we saw from our assignment.
Lisa's views and ability to write well made her blog very readible. You could tell she knew what she wasn't writing about and had completed each assignment thoroughly. I read her views on podcasting and she took a different approach to that assignment than i did. I talked about individual groups and what they could do different and she found the biggest plus or minus and focused on that. She was saying how Dr. Strange was involved in one of the podcasts and how it enhanced it and she wished he had particpated in all of them. I agree completely. I wished he would have gotten involved in my groups' podcast and gave us his thoughts because i think it would have enhanced ours greatly.
Things that could have been improved on our blogs were the assignments. I think he could have gave us more options on choosing what we wanted to write about. Lisa's blog looks alot like mine and i am sure all of them do too. If someone looked at our class blogs they would only want to read one of them because no one wants to read about the same thing over and over. I would never by choose read twenty of the same thing just worded different so i think if they were all different blog readers would be more prone to stop by our blogs and read more of them.
I loved doing the blog even though i didn't like some of the assignments. I had never blogged before and it was alot of fun. I like to write even though i am not great at it. The blog made the class fun and i liked tha it was something i could do at my own pace instead of in class. I never knew there were so many blogs and people writing until EDM 310. Also alot of the assignments i did like. I enjoyed reading about the Edutopia and Randy Pausch last lecture. I learned alot about technology and education through blogging. Overall i think the blog was a lot of fun and i learned a lot.
Lisa's views and ability to write well made her blog very readible. You could tell she knew what she wasn't writing about and had completed each assignment thoroughly. I read her views on podcasting and she took a different approach to that assignment than i did. I talked about individual groups and what they could do different and she found the biggest plus or minus and focused on that. She was saying how Dr. Strange was involved in one of the podcasts and how it enhanced it and she wished he had particpated in all of them. I agree completely. I wished he would have gotten involved in my groups' podcast and gave us his thoughts because i think it would have enhanced ours greatly.
Things that could have been improved on our blogs were the assignments. I think he could have gave us more options on choosing what we wanted to write about. Lisa's blog looks alot like mine and i am sure all of them do too. If someone looked at our class blogs they would only want to read one of them because no one wants to read about the same thing over and over. I would never by choose read twenty of the same thing just worded different so i think if they were all different blog readers would be more prone to stop by our blogs and read more of them.
I loved doing the blog even though i didn't like some of the assignments. I had never blogged before and it was alot of fun. I like to write even though i am not great at it. The blog made the class fun and i liked tha it was something i could do at my own pace instead of in class. I never knew there were so many blogs and people writing until EDM 310. Also alot of the assignments i did like. I enjoyed reading about the Edutopia and Randy Pausch last lecture. I learned alot about technology and education through blogging. Overall i think the blog was a lot of fun and i learned a lot.
Duke University: Center for Documentary Studies
I watched a podcast on itunes from the Center for Documentary studies done by Duke University about South Africa and they showed alot that we don't hear about Africa. South Africa is not a glamorous place like movies make it out to be. People see this country as a country on a downward spiral or in turmoil as it is referred.HIV and AIDS is the biggest problem in South Africa and the reason it is in a downward spiral. Many families are being broken up because of all the deaths from AIDS. The disease is affecting the country in that everyone is ill and this is not good for the economy and also affecting the people in the country negatively. Their are more social problems coming from the disease like violence, robbery, and the most common, death.
In South Africa their are programs being made up to help the morral of the people and children in the country to get their spirits up and to let them know everything is going to be alright. An example of one of these programs is role playing where students come together and perform skits as a group and it brings everyone together and helps the kids get their minds off things and feel like their are people there for them.
The students in South Africa put a lot of time into these programs. Duke University is helping to get the word out that Africa is in the middle of some hardships, but the students are going to prevail through this and be a successful new generation. The young generation in South Africa are working very hard to overcome their obsticles so they can live the future that everyone deserves, especially these kids because they have been through so much.
In South Africa their are programs being made up to help the morral of the people and children in the country to get their spirits up and to let them know everything is going to be alright. An example of one of these programs is role playing where students come together and perform skits as a group and it brings everyone together and helps the kids get their minds off things and feel like their are people there for them.
The students in South Africa put a lot of time into these programs. Duke University is helping to get the word out that Africa is in the middle of some hardships, but the students are going to prevail through this and be a successful new generation. The young generation in South Africa are working very hard to overcome their obsticles so they can live the future that everyone deserves, especially these kids because they have been through so much.
EDM 310 Podcasts
In DR. Strange's EDM 310 class we, as a class, made podcasts in groups of three or four. The podcasts were good overall, but all of them had room for improvement. The first podcast i listened to was "Itunes for High School Teachers" by Lisa Frye, Lisha Portis, and Joshua Andry. Overrall the group did a good job on the podcast. The group had a lot to talk about and seemed to have alot of knowledge about the subject, which means they did alot of research to prepare for their podcast. A few of the problems i saw were nervousness, but i think everyone was nervous and some take over on the podcast. I think Joshua Andry kept trying to take over the podcast. If one of the group members would have run out things to say i could see Joshua stepping in and helping out, but it seemed like he would interrupt the girls while they were talking and take over. I noticed this a few times and you can only hear one person at a time on a podcast so this wasn't good.
The second podcast i listened to was "Technology used in Classrooms in the College of Education" by Tina Dillen and Sara Large. They also did good overall. They talked about Foliotek, which was good, becuse this is the most important piece of technology we use as an education major. They did bad mouth the professors a little bit, which probably isn't good for their careers if they need a good word, but it was the truth. They talked alot about stuff we use everyday in our education classes and i learned a few things from this podcast. One problem i saw was they were using their problems in their classes and talking about the professors and discussing their problems with professors and name dropping to benefit themselves instead of sticking to the point. They did a good job overrall though and that was the only thing i saw that got them off subject i think and could be perceived as a problem.
The third podcast i listened to was "Blogs and Blogging" by Silas Smith, Andrea Williams, and Lashonda Pruitt. There podcast was also good and they looked like they did some research before the podcast. They know a lot about blogging especially because EDM 310 is based off blogging so it was a good topic for them because they have experience using blogs. The only problem i saw was there was a lot of joking to get around the nervousness and they went off the subject a little i thought talking about people having separate myspace pages to hide stuff but overrall it was good.
My fourth podcast i listened to was my podcast with Kimberly Kelley and Joel Graham about Youtube as a tool for education. We did ok overall but there was some problems. I was really nervous and kept stumbling over words and forgetting what i was going to say. This was a big problem for me i noticed when i listened to the podcast. It was very evident that i was very nervous. We had alot of information and examples but half way through our podcast we started to forget what what we wanted to say and left alot out because we were so nervous we forgot which in turn made our podcast shorter than alot of other podcasts in our class. We had alot alot of useful information and did a good job even though we were nervous and it ended a little short.
The second podcast i listened to was "Technology used in Classrooms in the College of Education" by Tina Dillen and Sara Large. They also did good overall. They talked about Foliotek, which was good, becuse this is the most important piece of technology we use as an education major. They did bad mouth the professors a little bit, which probably isn't good for their careers if they need a good word, but it was the truth. They talked alot about stuff we use everyday in our education classes and i learned a few things from this podcast. One problem i saw was they were using their problems in their classes and talking about the professors and discussing their problems with professors and name dropping to benefit themselves instead of sticking to the point. They did a good job overrall though and that was the only thing i saw that got them off subject i think and could be perceived as a problem.
The third podcast i listened to was "Blogs and Blogging" by Silas Smith, Andrea Williams, and Lashonda Pruitt. There podcast was also good and they looked like they did some research before the podcast. They know a lot about blogging especially because EDM 310 is based off blogging so it was a good topic for them because they have experience using blogs. The only problem i saw was there was a lot of joking to get around the nervousness and they went off the subject a little i thought talking about people having separate myspace pages to hide stuff but overrall it was good.
My fourth podcast i listened to was my podcast with Kimberly Kelley and Joel Graham about Youtube as a tool for education. We did ok overall but there was some problems. I was really nervous and kept stumbling over words and forgetting what i was going to say. This was a big problem for me i noticed when i listened to the podcast. It was very evident that i was very nervous. We had alot of information and examples but half way through our podcast we started to forget what what we wanted to say and left alot out because we were so nervous we forgot which in turn made our podcast shorter than alot of other podcasts in our class. We had alot alot of useful information and did a good job even though we were nervous and it ended a little short.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Mathematics with Technology
Judy Chandler, with the Maine Department of Education did a podcast on mathematics with technology. She found that most teachers say they don't have time to use the technology that is provided in their classrooms. The teachers think that they have to get through just the chapters in the book and the technology is too much trouble. This is not the case at all. Technology was made for a reason and it actually is a more useful tool than the textbooks we have been using for years. Technology uses and incorporates many new things with mathematics and it gets them more intrigued in their studies and also helps them learn about technology at the same time which will be useful for them in the future. Technology provides tools to engage the students in learning and incorporates useful things for the future that a textbook can't do. It extends students thinking when they can use things from daily life and throw technology in it to learn mathematics than to just do examples out of a book which no student wants to do. It better prepares the students for more useful learning in the future and can benefit a students' learning and go beyond with the technology. The technology models things to connect ideas and expands ideas. It also uses hands on experiences which can make a student better understand the material better. Technology is the future and if they have found a way to integrate it into the classroom where it can better prepare a student for the future than the teachers should think about their students and use this if it is offered.
Technology is the future. There is no question about this, it is a fact and it needs to be learned and used as much as possible. Technology has found a way to be integrated into education and is proving everyday that it is better than textbook learning. Textbooks are boring and it makes students feel like they will never use the stuff out of the textbooks. Technology is a way that we can learn things in mathematics,which we can incorporate, and use one day in our careers. It also teaches us about technology which everyone is going to have to know to do anything in the future.
Mathematics is the subject the majority of the world is bad at and hates probably because they are bad at it. When i was a student i was horrible at math, hated it, and most of the time went to sleep in the class because i was tired of starring at examples out of an old textbook. This is true for most all students and finally their is a solution. Mathematics in technology is a great thing. It incorporates technology, math, and things you will one day use all in one. I am going to be a kindergarten teacher when i graduate and just the other day i saw a wonderful example of technology in math class. I have been volunteering at Corpus Christi school in a first grade class for a few weeks and i just learned about this thing called a smart board. With this you can load things from the internet and use it in math class. The students love it because it is interesting to them and they are learning other things too. For example, during their math class they had pictures of all kinds of animals and they had to tell what the animal was, write it down, and then the screen started adding and subtracting the animals making it into a math problem. So just from this one picture they incorporated identifying animals, spelling them out,and adding and subtracting. Basically they combined three lessons in one with the technolgy in their math class. I thought this was great,but what made it so great was that the students loved participating because it was almost like a movie. They looked forward to it and learning thier math. Anything that can be this useful to ones' education and get them excited about learning at the same time should be used as much as possible by teachers.
Technology is the future. There is no question about this, it is a fact and it needs to be learned and used as much as possible. Technology has found a way to be integrated into education and is proving everyday that it is better than textbook learning. Textbooks are boring and it makes students feel like they will never use the stuff out of the textbooks. Technology is a way that we can learn things in mathematics,which we can incorporate, and use one day in our careers. It also teaches us about technology which everyone is going to have to know to do anything in the future.
Mathematics is the subject the majority of the world is bad at and hates probably because they are bad at it. When i was a student i was horrible at math, hated it, and most of the time went to sleep in the class because i was tired of starring at examples out of an old textbook. This is true for most all students and finally their is a solution. Mathematics in technology is a great thing. It incorporates technology, math, and things you will one day use all in one. I am going to be a kindergarten teacher when i graduate and just the other day i saw a wonderful example of technology in math class. I have been volunteering at Corpus Christi school in a first grade class for a few weeks and i just learned about this thing called a smart board. With this you can load things from the internet and use it in math class. The students love it because it is interesting to them and they are learning other things too. For example, during their math class they had pictures of all kinds of animals and they had to tell what the animal was, write it down, and then the screen started adding and subtracting the animals making it into a math problem. So just from this one picture they incorporated identifying animals, spelling them out,and adding and subtracting. Basically they combined three lessons in one with the technolgy in their math class. I thought this was great,but what made it so great was that the students loved participating because it was almost like a movie. They looked forward to it and learning thier math. Anything that can be this useful to ones' education and get them excited about learning at the same time should be used as much as possible by teachers.
The Stanford Challenge
In 2007, Carol Dweck, a professor of Psychology at Stanford University and also the author of a book called "Mindset: The New Psychology of Success", did a podcast on a study she did comparing growth mindset and fixed mindset. It was an eight session workshop where some got study skills for the fixed mindset and the rest got study skills and the growth mindset lesson for the growth mindset. The students who got the growth mindset learned to use their brain as a muscle, to open their minds, and made connections in which they learned alot. This groups' grades improved and teachers could point out who went to the growth mindset lessons. The ones who got just the study skills didn't learn as much and mainly learned to memorize.
Another example of the growth mindset was a race car driver tried the growth mindset lessons and it helped him out on the track during races. He said that the races lasted for hours and every mistake on the track can cost a race or a life. The growth mindset lessons helped him to not make mistakes and when he did make a mistake it also taught him to deal with the mistakes and handle them the best way possible. This made a big difference in his driver because the main difference between a winning driver and a losing driver is their mistakes and how they deal with them. The growth mindset helped with this and improved his driving.
Well i wish that i could participate in the Stanford challenge because i would love some growth mindset lessons because i think they would be extremely useful to me. I probably won't get this opportunity but it seems like such a good thing to learn. I think it would open my mind instead of just learning how to memorize i might actually learn more of the material given to me. As far as being a teacher this would greatly help my teaching. If students could learn growth mindset it would open up alot of possibilities in the classroom as a teacher. We could do so much more and learn so much more as a class. I am not a big fan of memorization and i always had a problem connecting things and this seems like the answer to all that. If we could get students to think outside the box and use their minds as a muscle, always growing and strengthening, this would be a great accomplishment in the field of education.
Another example of the growth mindset was a race car driver tried the growth mindset lessons and it helped him out on the track during races. He said that the races lasted for hours and every mistake on the track can cost a race or a life. The growth mindset lessons helped him to not make mistakes and when he did make a mistake it also taught him to deal with the mistakes and handle them the best way possible. This made a big difference in his driver because the main difference between a winning driver and a losing driver is their mistakes and how they deal with them. The growth mindset helped with this and improved his driving.
Well i wish that i could participate in the Stanford challenge because i would love some growth mindset lessons because i think they would be extremely useful to me. I probably won't get this opportunity but it seems like such a good thing to learn. I think it would open my mind instead of just learning how to memorize i might actually learn more of the material given to me. As far as being a teacher this would greatly help my teaching. If students could learn growth mindset it would open up alot of possibilities in the classroom as a teacher. We could do so much more and learn so much more as a class. I am not a big fan of memorization and i always had a problem connecting things and this seems like the answer to all that. If we could get students to think outside the box and use their minds as a muscle, always growing and strengthening, this would be a great accomplishment in the field of education.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
