Media Literacy Video
Watch here!

In this video Kathy Cassidy is showing her audience what her first grade class can do. Her class is focused on learning about media literacy. The students, at the age of six and seven are doing things I didn't understand until much later on in my elementary school education. The fact that a seven year old can pick up a book and distinguish between fiction and non-fiction shows that they are capable of learning much more than what is traditional taught. Later in the video, another young girl located her class's blog online by herself. Introducing these young students to technology at an early age is extremely important.

I think a lot of the time, especially in education, people are scared to think outside the box. They don't want to try new things, but sometimes change is good. By expanding her curriculum, Cassidy utilizes the technology she has in her classroom and her students are reaping the benefits. I can only imagine what these children will be capable of one day. Technology is constantly changing and this is only one instance of how useful of a tool it can be for learning. Even in first grade, students can benefit from technology.


Little Kids..Big Potential




It's is simply amazing that in first graders are BLOGGING! Up until two weeks ago, I had not even had a blog page. I think the fact that the students are getting the freedom to use computers motivates them to actively write in their blogs. They also enjoy that others get to see what they are writing about as well. From a teacher stand-point the students are not only learning how to type, but sound out words on their own. Blogging improves writing, even in first grade.

Although these videos impress me, I can't help but question if I'm ready for this tidal wave of students that will be media literate. I struggle to make a powerpoint presentations on my own, how will I be ready for them? At least I have the blogging somewhat mastered. I also, like any other college student, I understand Facebook and iTunes. I guess this is a start. In the back of the classroom in one of the videos I saw the sign reading Class of 2025 so I guess I have some time to learn. In the meantime, I think I'll go listen to a podcast and Facebook stalk!



Can your baby do this?(Mine can't either, but I'm not a parent, nor do I own an iPhone.)


Are you kidding me? This young toddler can barely say 'iPhone', but understands how to use one. The fact that a baby can use and operate and iPhone really says a lot about the design of the phone and the potential of young children. They really do absorb information like a dry sponge. The last cellphone(not an iPhone) and toddler combination I saw involved a full cup of water and resulted in some unhappy parents. (That was poor planning on mom and dad's part though.)

What in the world am I going to do if this child walks through my classroom door? This video is a wake up call. Children can learn at any age. It is up to teachers, parents, and guardians to feed them with as much knowledge they can. I'm pretty sure the only thing reflecting any intelligence that I did at this age was me pulling all of the wipes out of the box on my own. Wow, that's not embarrassing at all.

Understanding Podcasts

Teaching with Smartboard by Sladkey and Miller
Find it on iTunes or
for more information, CLICK HERE

In this podcast, it begins with a theme of the holidays. This podcast included holiday music and graphics. The episode I watched,episode 67, is the annual holiday edition. In order to make a podcast, you must think about audio recordings, visuals, and what information is being presented and how. It is also important to let people know where they can find more information about a subject too. Both men created an entertaining way how to educate people about Smartboards. They included written instructions, pictures, and auditory instructions.



KidCast:Learning and Teaching with Podcast
Find it on iTunes:
"Active Listening to Improve Your Show" by Dan Schmit
Episode 57

The narrator opens with music and an introduction to his podcast. This podcast was only audio. Schmit also gives a website to visit as another resource for a competition he is involved with. He explained that a podcast is like a show and have different episodes. Some of these can done by students. There are several types of educational podcast. One type is an inquiry podcast that answers a question through investigation. Another is a point of view editorial podcast. This type of podcast is persuasive to the audience and can be about political issues.



EdTechTalk
Cammy Bean interviews Robert Squires

For more information about this podcast Click Here

What I noticed about this podcast right away is the fact that all of the participants were from different states. One lady was from Florida, while the other was from Montana. This really showed me the possibilities there are with podcast creation. This podcast involved a lot of discussion as far as how it was formatted. This podcast also did not involve visuals. The creators planned ahead, had questions reader for the interviewee, and knew what they were going to talk about beforehand. This tells me that a lot of planning goes into the creation of a podcast.



This Week in Photography
126: Race in Photography- Don't Blink!
Find this podcast on iTunes

This podcast opened with the sounds of a camera going off. This immediately drew me into the topic. The topic at hand was whether or not face detection is racist. The facial recognitions may think that Asians are blinking and that dark skinned tones weren't picked up. Interestingly enough, the company, Sony, is an Asian company. The problem with this new technology that was being discussed is that it wasn't tested well enough before being released to the public. I also noticed that is was the first podcast that had a sponsor.

Teachers and Technology

Michael Wesch : A Vision of Students Today Video
My Response to this Video:

This video captures how life as a college student can sometimes feel. I work a part-time job on top of taking 15 hours of classes, and am a part of AOII sorority on campus. Though the sorority is extra, it makes my time here at South seem more enjoyable. My classes this semester call for a lot of outside work, like reading about 250 pages per week, or weekly work like this blog(not that I'm complaining). At times, I do feel overwhelmed. After being in college for four years, I've become really good at time management, multitasking(I'm doing laundry as I write up this blog), and invested in a good coffee pot!

If I could change or add anything into the video, I would most likely add more about how students are coping with this stress. Behaviors like smoking, binge drinking, and casual sex seem to be negative ways college students deal with their stress.
Also a lot of the phrases were hard to read and at times I had to pause the video in order to understand what was being said. What I took away most from this video is that most students today are in the same situation I am. Student loans, the cost of living, and our future jobs are what we worry about most. The fact that I have had the privilege of attending college, have a laptop of my own, and have a vehicle to get me all the places I need to go really makes me think about how fortunate I am.




It's Not About the Technology

"...if a student has not learned, not matter how much effort has been exerted, no teaching has been done."-Kelly Hines
Read it here!
One of the most important points in this blog is the teachers should be teaching with learning in mind. This learning should be coming from both the student and the teacher.So many times as a student I have sat through entire classes not retaining anything. As a future teacher, I think it is extremely important to focus on students learning. If students aren't learning with one approach, then it is the teacher's job to change his or her approach. Also the teacher shouldn't just be teaching, the teacher should be learning along with their students. In order to be an effective teacher, one must always be wanting to learn new creative ways to reach their students.

To me it is crucial that in order to be a teacher, you must see what works and what doesn't work. Observing how students react to what is being thrown at them is important. Throughout my high school career, my teachers assumed that giving worksheets would automatically make us retain information. I would like to do more creative things in the high school classroom in the future because sometimes I think so many students are tuned out to learned. Looking back, in order to move forward is really what I took away from this blog. I hope to try and add something new every time I teach a lesson. I hope this subtle changes will reach more students and help them retain more information than I did.



Karl Fisch's Blog
Read it Here!

The post within Fisch's post is quite thought provoking. Should teachers really be accountable for being technologically illiterate? I think there is a distinct line between wanting to learn about technology, and just being unwilling to learn. I have heard too often the phrase, "I'm just not good with technology." Ignorance is impairing those who never try. Why not moving forward? Most students that enter classrooms seem to know a significant amount of technology, but who taught them? The topic at hand isn't about not knowing about technology, it is about individuals who are unwilling to learn because technology is outside their comfort zones.

Part of being a teacher, especially in today's world, should be about moving forward. Teachers, like Kelly Kines stated in her blog (link is in above section), should constantly be learning. Maybe the way our education system works is too comfortable for the average teacher. Is it time to shake up education? Maybe there should be more of a push to move forward and try new things in the classroom. Outside the four walls of the classroom, technology is moving forward, maybe its time for teachers to look out the open the window.



Gary's Social Media Count:
Visit full website here




Can you believe some of these numbers? Technology is moving forward and expanding at astounding rates! This makes me think of how much time I spend on the computer. Sometimes there are hours at a time that I am on Facebook, or YouTube, and/or other sites. Not to mention, I probably am text messaging my boyfriend at the same time(this goes back to my first section--I am quite the expert at multitasking, what can I say? It's a gift).

So what does this mean for teachers? It means that we must move forward(I've said it about 20 times already)! Technology is changing the world around us not only economically, but socially. The numbers above us prove that people are living in the technology age. The students that I went to school with will not be exposed to same things that my students will be exposed to. As teachers we must be part of this technological world too.

Technology is CHANGING the classroom

"Did You Know? 3.0"

After watching the "Did You Know? 3.0" video, I was completely blown away at how fast technology is coming out and thriving. It's amazing that people that are starting college in 2009, like my little brother, will be exposed to completely different information than I have been exposed to. This really adds to how old I feel(I'm only 21, I guess I better get used to the feeling). The fact that computers are becoming so crucial to society and how we live, makes me wonder how much things will have changed in 5 to 10 years. My little brother's college, Ringling College of Art and Design actually provides every incoming freshmen with a Mac book. The fact that his college has moved forward with technology that much makes me think back to how far we've come.

Thinking back ten years ago in 2000, my family had only one desktop computer that was occasionally used for school reports and work documents. It was mainly was just a form of entertainment for the household--many solitaire games and Oregon Trail(I probably still can't make it to Oregon, but you can't deny that the game was addicting). Now ten years later, every single member of my family has a laptop computer and a cellphone with text messaging. My family still has a desktop computer in our office, but because we also have updated from dial-up internet to a Wi-Fi connection, we all prefer our own laptops over the desktop. Not only have our computers and cellphones become more advanced, but video games too. I remember seeing old pictures(the paper kind that you had to get developed for all the kids out there) trying to play Duck Hunt on the old Nintendo system before I could even form a sentence. Today, my family owns a Wii, and several games (none of which you have to blow into to get them to turn on).


Mr. Winkle Wakes

The Mr. Winkle Wakes video raises questions like how and why technology should be used in the classroom. Teachers are supposed to be preparing us for the future, but how are they doing that by lecturing and not incorporating technology into the classes they teach? Many teachers complain about not having the funding, but there are many instances where teachers aren't using the tools that are provided for them. In the video, the classroom did have a computer in it, but it wasn't being used. This says a lot about our education system. We don't want to change our methods because they have worked in the past.

In the defense of my teachers, I have be exposed to many useful technology skills. I began learning how to use a computer at an early age, and was learning how to make a PowerPoint presentation by the time I was in 5th grade. It wasn't until high school that I really saw the benefit of technology as my chemistry/physics teacher was using a tablet that was connected to her computer. This contraption was projected through her overhead screen to show us how to work physics problems. I didn't understand the convenience of this until I enrolled in physics college course at South--my teacher's tools consisted of a few white boards and different colored dry erase markers. Time was wasted in class because my professor had to constantly erase old work in order to continue on with the new problem.

Ken Robinson Video Response

I agree with Ken Robinson. I believe that creativity is the classroom is killed through education. Children are taught at an early age that being right is the only way to succeed. By doing this mistakes are not only stigmatized, but children are being inhibited from coming up with anything original. Robinson uses the phrase, "educating people out of their capabilities". He continues to say that children are born artists because they aren't scared to be wrong. They take a risks, which allow originality.

Ironically, Robinson points out, that in every school system, the same subjects are emphasized and the same areas are ignored. Math, science, history, and language are all top priorities in schools worldwide. The Arts, on the other hand seem to be at the bottom of the academic hierarchy. The fact that kids are pointed in the direction of professions that they have no interest in, is depressing. Most children dream of being musicians, dancers, and various other creative outlets, but are inhibited from doing so because they are told they'd never get a job in that type of field. Because of this, many really talented individuals went to college, or even worse didn't go to college, and are now working at some empty job. Robinson encourages us to radically change the way we see intelligence, especially in the classroom.

Harnessing Your Students' Digital Smarts

Vicki Davis engages her students through incorporating technology in the classroom as well as using different methods of teaching to reach her students. Her tools include podcast, blogs, digital storytelling, virtual worlds, and other digital tools. Davis pays attention to her students' interests and what engages them in the classroom. She uses new terms and tools to encourage learning and discovery through the use of the internet. Students are also encouraged to share new information with each other, and students actually teach lessons from time to time. With this freedom of creativity, these students are being exposed to a lot more information than a traditional classroom is.

I think that it is important to understand that tradition teaching methods cannot reach every child. Most students retain information better if they are doing hands on work. Students are also being able to use their creative outlets in a class like this as they are allowed to explore their interest. With the use of the internet, students can learn more about the real world and can expand their knowledge outside of the four walls of the classroom. Also, if students understand their work is being shared with the world, they will take more pride in their work because it isn't just being read by a single teacher. Incorporating technology in the classroom is also beneficial to students in the future because they can take the knowledge that they learn and apply it in directly to their lives because technology is becoming such a crucial part of society.