Blog assignment # 10

Do You Teach Or Educate? 

This was a very good video for anyone who is involved in education in anyway. I really enjoyed it. I became an education major simply because I love children. I can not wait to become a teacher and to be with children all day. Some people think I'm crazy to want to be with kids all day long, but I can't help it. Another reason I am an education major is that I love to teach and inspire others, especially children.  I intend to educate and not just teach by being a positive role model for my students. I want to learn all the new technology and lessons just like they should.


Don't Let Them Take The Pencils Home

This is a really interesting and cool post. It is an argument between a teacher and an administrator about pencils. The administrator does not want the students to take home pencils because of a recent article.  The article suggest that students who bring home pencils have lower test scores. The teacher then suggest that maybe the article did not count for his class. The administrator then ask how the teacher plans to "fix" the pencil problem. He says he has met with the parents and students and taught them ways a pencil could be used for learning. Th administrator ask how can you keep up with what they do at home? If they play games like "Hang Man"? The teacher says he will keep the students interested with projects and maybe if they are playing hang man that they are learning something!

Blog post # 9

I really enjoyed reading this reflection, it goes over what this particular teacher has learned and experienced in the last school year. This teachers name is Mr. Joe McClung, and this is the 2010-2011 school year.  It brought up many helpful tips and points. The first point the teacher brings up is "Know who your boss is". It say that don't try to please the adults and other individuals all the time. When teachers do this they get to much involved with what other people think of them. When that happens the students are left out and forgotten. The students should be the first priority in the teachers life at school.  Students should always be the primary focus, this is why we become teachers. The second point he made is that " Don;t expect others to be as excited about change as you are". In this part the teacher basically goes over what happens at the professional development sessions he goes too. He says that he is the optimistic geek who enjoys the idea, but that he never understands the people who don't. I think that all teachers need to get interested and more involved in new learning techniques and such. If we as teachers aren't excited about teaching new technology and ideas why should our students be? The third point he brings up is "Don't be afraid to be an outsider". This is so true. He talks about not being afraid to be different form the other teachers you work with because you want to fit in. Focus on the students and focus on learning with them. " Don't touch the keyboard", is very simple but very true. If a student is having difficulties learning, do not show them by taking over and doing the work for them. They will never learn this way. You as the teacher have to let the student learn some things on their own, it is better to do it this way because the student learns better. The last part he says " Don't get comfortable". As a teacher don't become same. Be an ever changing person by learning new ways to teach and new ideas for students. I really enjoyed reading this reflection and learning from it.

Blog assignment # 8

Dr. Miller


These are some amazing videos! Dr. Miller does an excellent job of explaining and teaching It is amazing to me how much technology we use today. It also is crazy how fast technology changes. Just to think when I started high school a few years ago we only had chalk boards. By the time I was a senior we used SMART Boards everyday! I agree with him that there needs to be a curriculum invented on how to use technology. I would have no idea on how to do some things such as the program he used to create the 3D plans of the building. If teachers could learn new technology and be able to teach it,  just imagine what students could do with it! There are so many cool ways teachers could use technology in the classroom. Teachers can use peer learning by letting groups make videos on a subject and presenting it. Instead of using a poster board like I had to do, students could make presentations on the web and contact professionals threw blogging for science or any kind of projects! I think technology is a great way for students to learn and be creative.






Blog Post 12 By Carly Pugh


This was a really great post. She took an assignment and turned it into much more. I never even knew that you could make your own play list on You Tube. The videos she chose were all inspiring to watch. I hope when it comes time for me to do this assignment I can be as creative as she was. She will be a great teacher! I think she accomplished the hopes of Dr. Miller for writing with  multi -media. She used videos to express her teaching philosophy and techniques. Great post to read and great videos to watch!



Chipper Series and EDM For Dummies

Both these videos were fun to watch. It was cool to see other EDM students talking about the class. I sometimes wonder if I'm the only one who has mental break downs every week over this class. I'm glad to see I am not alone. It has gotten a lot better for me since I started doing my work all week, not just on Sundays! If I could choose a way to do a video, I would make one like the popular TV show " I Survived". This is a show were people have gone through some very horrific things and almost died. A person gives an interview, or account of all the events that happened that they almost died from.  Not that I've almost died or even close to it, honestly it just sounds like a good title for a video about this class.  I think the message of these videos is that it may seem hard at first, but if you do your work you will make it!

Learn to Change, Change to Learn

Another great video! It blows my mind that coal mining was ranked higher than education! The video talks about how students now learn more outside the classroom than in school. If you think about it some technology is banned from school but those same things that are banned are the most powerful learning tools. Such as cell phones and laptops. One of the people in the video made the comment that" Technology really isn't a choice". This is a powerful statement to me, because it is true. If teachers aren't going to prepare the students for the future, which is technology, who is? Why would we as teachers not want to instill in our students the information and skills  to make it the world , isn't that why people become teachers?

Blog assignment # 7

C4T Summary


This week the blog I was given to comment on was titled " 2 cents Worth" by David Warlick. This is a very cool blog to visit and read. The first post I read and commented on was called "A Video Game Idea". In the post David Warlick has free time with his daughter while she is in the hospital. After reading some blog post by Scott McLeod, and watching his daughter playing a video game he comes up with a new idea. His idea is to create a video game similar to the one his daughter was playing. The one his daughter was playing consisted of creating a restaurant and running it. His idea is to create a school and run it. I thought this was a very cool and unique idea. Think about it, a fun and new way for educators to learn more about how to be a professional. It could also have positive influences on children. The second post I commented on was titled " Steve Jobs- A Great Idea".  This post is very sad and also encouraging. David Warlick states what a great innovator and intelligent man Steve Jobs was. Steve Jobs for those who do not know, was a co-founder of Apple. In the post David also added a quote from President Obama; "   Steve was among the greatest of American innovators – brave enough to think differently, bold enough to believe he could change the world, and talented enough to do it. " David says if Obama truly believes what he said about Steve Jobs, he could be the right person to get teachers to say " that's a great idea"  instead of "that's the right answer".


Project # 10 PLN

For my PLN I chose to use Symbaloo. I really like this tool! It is very helpful. I like it because it is all my tools in one. For example I can access my Twitter, Facebook, Google Account, and much more. This is what my PLN consist of so far. Most of my people to help me are on my Twitter.



Randy Pausch's Last Lecture 

This is really an inspiring video. Watching this I did not even realize that an hour had passed by. I recommend this to everybody. This was the last lecture of Randy Pausch. He starts the lecture by exposing the "elephant" in the room. This elephant is that he has cancer and doctors have given him months to live. He goes over his childhood dreams, which he achieved. One childhood dream was to play in the NFL. He never got to play in the NFL, but learned life lessons from football. One lesson he shares is the concept of "head fake learning", or indirect learning. For example football, you learn how to play the sport, but you also learn teamwork, endurance, and integrity. Teacher's could use this technique to teach students. For example the lesson can be on money, and the students could play a game of monopoly, which is fun. The students think they are just having fun playing a board game without knowing they are learning about money. Another part of the lecture he says just have fun. He makes the point of how he is dying and is having fun. Teachers are role-models for every student. If the teacher isn't having fun teaching, why should the student have fun learning? Also help other people whenever you can. Randy says always put people first! Teachers should also show students gratitude, this will encourage students. Some other great advice he gives is, "don't complain just work harder", "be patience, no one is pure evil", "tell the truth, integrity" and "brick walls are there for a reason, they let us prove how badly we want things!"

Project # 11

Blog assignment # 6

The Networked Student

I really liked watching this movie by Wendy Drexler today.  It is very informational about technology students can use. It gave an example of a student studying a subject and how he used technology to learn. The student used many programs and ways to get information on the subject. My favorite way he used technology was the mp3 player. The student not only has his favorite music on his mp3 device, but also had podcast and audio on the subject he was studying. In the movie the question "Why does a networked student even need a teacher?" was asked. The networked student needs a teacher to teach him or her to be a learning architect, a change agent, a modeler, a connected learning incubator,and a network sherba. This in short means, a networked student needs a teacher to teach how to use technology and all the available resources that can be used to learn.  I feel like I will be some what prepared to teach a networked student, but I am definitely ready to learn with my students!

A 7th Graders Personal Learning Environment

This was a really neat video. The video showed the everyday science class for this particular seventh grade student. This student used a computer and the internet to learn instead of a text book. She used many blogs and sites to learn and create assignments. My favorite part of her PLE was how it was custom for her. Compared to my PLN, the two are very similar to me. Like my PLN this student has people and tools to help her. Also like me, the tools are always changing so she will have to be a life long learner!