Charm and I were very happy with the way that our website turned out. We both put an incredible amount of time and effort into it and I think that it shows. If we were to do this project over, I would want to develop a clearer vision of what were going to do before going to the conference. Of course, neither of us had ever been to a conference before, so we didn't really know what to expect. I would probably not have spent a full day at one workshop and I would have taken more pictures and video. We did have a few problems with my didgital camera running out of battery power, so that limited what we were able to do. Even so, I feel that we were able to gather and organize a lot of information for our site.
I learned that there's a lot that you can do with websites and that they are a great way to present various types of media on a subject, including text, pictures, video, and links to other sites to include even more information or concrete examples. I feel that I have a good grasp on iphoto and imovie after using them again on this project. I would like to learn if there is another (better?) way to upload video to a webesite. In order to upload our video footage, we had to compress quite small and consequently the quicktime viewer was pretty small as well. Also, I would like to continue to do general experimentation with photo, video, and website programs just to learn more and see what they can do. I liked googlepages, but it had only a limited amount of templates and designs available and I think that other programs give you more options.
Attending the conference also showed me that the issues we have been discussing in 506 are just what we need to be discussing. These issues are so relevent right now that everyone should be discussing them and, I feel, soon will. Our time in Rochester also reaffirmed that I've come a long way since the beginning of the semester when I first labled myself a "mellenial technophobe." Though spending an hour in a workshop that had nothing new to offer me was a little frustrating because of our limited time, it also felt good to be "in the know" (somewhat) when it comes to matters of technology and education.
After my own experience making a website, I feel that it would be a challenging, enjoyable, and very useful project for ELA students. Because you can build a site around anything, and because you can incorporate various media--photos, video, audio, text, etc-- a website project would help students develop and showcase both multimedia and traditional literacies. I would definitely have my students do a website project, and I would probably have them work in pairs because it is a very time-consuming project if it is done well.
In closing, I would like to say that I really enjoyed what everyone did with their projects. It's too bad that we all didn't get to see everyone else's, but from what I did see, it seems as if just about everyone really accomplished something to be proud of. Though this class was challenging and a ton of work, in the end, I am glad that I took it and I feel that I can now meet the rest of the 21st C. head on. Or at least with my head out of the sand.
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Monday, December 11, 2006
Bringing Back the Fountain Pen
According to this article, a private school in Scotland is requiring its students to learn how to use fountain pens and to use them for all written school work except math. They also have handwriting classes that help them work with the pen and improve their penmanship. Though the title of the article says "School shuns tech, teaches fountain pen," the article itself states that "there is a full range of facilities for computer lessons and technology isn't being ignored." School administration says that the policy has improved student work by forcing students to take greater care with what they are writing and to focus more. In turn, this has improved self-esteem.
I thought this was an interesting phenomenon in the increasing emphasis on high-tech schooling. Of course, this is a private school, which is an important point. I doubt they are doing the same thing in the public school system. I have to say that I think there should be more emphasis placed on student handwriting in our own schools, especially since students are required to hand write on all those standardized tests that we will have to grade somday, and deciphering student writing is often no easy task. Not that I think fountain pens are the answer. I've never had to write with a fountain pen in my life. Apparently they were before my time. Don't you have to put the ink in yourself or something? Of course, if Scottish seven-year-olds can do it, maybe I should give it a try too.
I thought this was an interesting phenomenon in the increasing emphasis on high-tech schooling. Of course, this is a private school, which is an important point. I doubt they are doing the same thing in the public school system. I have to say that I think there should be more emphasis placed on student handwriting in our own schools, especially since students are required to hand write on all those standardized tests that we will have to grade somday, and deciphering student writing is often no easy task. Not that I think fountain pens are the answer. I've never had to write with a fountain pen in my life. Apparently they were before my time. Don't you have to put the ink in yourself or something? Of course, if Scottish seven-year-olds can do it, maybe I should give it a try too.
Saturday, December 09, 2006
I Love to Showcase Myself
I just realized that I never posted the url to my professional website anywhere. Maybe we're a little past this now, but here it is anyway, for all the world to see. It's still under construction because it kind of took a back seat to other things. Also, as you can see, I've been having a terrible time trying to articulate my "Philosophy of Teaching." It's just so hard to sum up in a nice little paragraph what I think teaching is, or what I think/hope my teaching is. Or will be, I should say, because I'm not teaching yet. I know that I want to pursue multiple types of literacy, including media literacy. I want to incorporate a wide variety of texts, including non-fiction. I want a really writing-centered classroom with a lot of journal writing and blog writing. I hope to give students as much agency as possible within the classroom. Can any of this really be achieved? In truth, I have no idea. So, at the moment, my "Philosophy of Teaching" section is sitting there pathetically blank. Every time that I try to write a few senteces, it comes out sounding like a bunch of pre-packaged, totally-disconnected-from-reality, school of education hogwash. Or, it sounds like I have no idea what I'm doing and I'm making it all up off the top of my head. Which I don't, and I am.
Oh, also, I have tried unsuccessfully to upload the imovie that Charm and I made to my Graduate Studies Portfolio page, and even though I should have plenty of room, it doesn't seem to be working. I have 100MB to work with on Google pages and the movie is only about 12MB, but I've let it try to upload for like an hour and it just keeps saying uploading, and it never finishes. Should it really take over an hour to upload one video? I compressed it really small for the web so I didn't think it should take that long. Anyway, if anyone has thoughts or suggestions, please share.
Oh, also, I have tried unsuccessfully to upload the imovie that Charm and I made to my Graduate Studies Portfolio page, and even though I should have plenty of room, it doesn't seem to be working. I have 100MB to work with on Google pages and the movie is only about 12MB, but I've let it try to upload for like an hour and it just keeps saying uploading, and it never finishes. Should it really take over an hour to upload one video? I compressed it really small for the web so I didn't think it should take that long. Anyway, if anyone has thoughts or suggestions, please share.
Friday, December 08, 2006
Ever Feel Like You're Being Watched?
There's an interesting column in the latest edition of Newsweek magazine (I read the paper version, I must confess, but I've linked to the electronic version here). Steven Levy writes about how the rise of cell phone cameras and easy Internet access has led to such "radical transparency" that people now have to constantly monitor their behavior so as not to wind up as a figure of ridicule on the internet. All of us, even those who live far from the public eye, now have to worry about public scrutiny. Do we all remember the "screaming teacher" video that was posted on our class blog a few months back? Certainly that guy never thought his less-than-flattering meltdown would wind up viewed by thousands. Levy cites another example of this kind of unexpected exposure:
"But two Bank of America employees at a private function celebrating the company's merger with MBNA couldn't have anticipated what happened to them. Their over-the-top rendition of U2's "One" (with custom lyrics like "Integration has never had us feeling so good") wound up being mocked by thousands of Internet critics. (Adding injury to insult, lawyers for U2's record label threatened a lawsuit for copyright infringement.)"
Now, this particular incident brings up another recent 506 point of discussion. Copyright infringement? Are they @#%*ing kidding?!? Since when does drunk singing at a private function violate copyright? Did they make money from it? Did they ask to be posted to the web? Or are the lawyers going after whoever posted the video? Hmmm... It's not totally clear, but either way, it seems completely ridiculous to me. Any thoughts?
Anyway, to get back to my initial point, the threat of being photographed or videotaped at any moment and having said recordings made public for all the world to see (and mock) is certainly real. Levy points out in his column that this super-transparency could have a positive side if it deters perverts from flashing people or dog owners from leaving their pet's poo behind. But, the idea of always having to worry about one false move destroying your credibility or your career or a relationship or just making a lot of people laugh at you, I think far outweighs these possible benefits. Think about how Winston felt, with Big Brother constantly watching. Is "little brother" any more benign?
"But two Bank of America employees at a private function celebrating the company's merger with MBNA couldn't have anticipated what happened to them. Their over-the-top rendition of U2's "One" (with custom lyrics like "Integration has never had us feeling so good") wound up being mocked by thousands of Internet critics. (Adding injury to insult, lawyers for U2's record label threatened a lawsuit for copyright infringement.)"
Now, this particular incident brings up another recent 506 point of discussion. Copyright infringement? Are they @#%*ing kidding?!? Since when does drunk singing at a private function violate copyright? Did they make money from it? Did they ask to be posted to the web? Or are the lawyers going after whoever posted the video? Hmmm... It's not totally clear, but either way, it seems completely ridiculous to me. Any thoughts?
Anyway, to get back to my initial point, the threat of being photographed or videotaped at any moment and having said recordings made public for all the world to see (and mock) is certainly real. Levy points out in his column that this super-transparency could have a positive side if it deters perverts from flashing people or dog owners from leaving their pet's poo behind. But, the idea of always having to worry about one false move destroying your credibility or your career or a relationship or just making a lot of people laugh at you, I think far outweighs these possible benefits. Think about how Winston felt, with Big Brother constantly watching. Is "little brother" any more benign?
Monday, December 04, 2006
So What?
When Charm and I went to the NYSCATE conference, we attended a workshop called The Creative Journey, which was about infusing your classroom with creativity. The workshop was run by Peter Reynolds, a children's book author. Though there were positive and negative aspects of this experience, he said something that has really stuck with me, which I think goes to the heart of 506. He said, basically, that once you have the computer, so what? Just getting a computer in your classroom isn't particularly meaningful, it's what you do with that computer that matters. I thought of this immediately when a read a recent post on Will Richardson's blog, in which he addresses the same issue:
"What difference, really, does the infusion of technology into the classroom have if the teachers who use it don’t have a context for learning with it? My guess is that most of what’s happening in schools right now is what Alan November calls “automating,” taking the stuff we used to do on paper and digitizing it in some way without any real change in the pedagogy or in the understanding of what the learning potentials are."
Looking for ways to change the pedagogy is key here. As we've heard, read, discussed over and over throughout the semester, the old paradigms of learning just aren't adequate any longer (if they ever were). It's time to find a new path for ourselves and our students. But just "digitizing" isn't a solution. Having your kids do a power-point presentation instead of a poster doesn't change anything. When we interviewed Peter Reynolds after the workshop, he said "Technology is the invitation." Technology is a tool that we can use as we try to reshape the English classroom, but its potential is limited to what we decide to do with it. The real challenge will be answering that question, now that you have the computer, just what are you going to do with it?
"What difference, really, does the infusion of technology into the classroom have if the teachers who use it don’t have a context for learning with it? My guess is that most of what’s happening in schools right now is what Alan November calls “automating,” taking the stuff we used to do on paper and digitizing it in some way without any real change in the pedagogy or in the understanding of what the learning potentials are."
Looking for ways to change the pedagogy is key here. As we've heard, read, discussed over and over throughout the semester, the old paradigms of learning just aren't adequate any longer (if they ever were). It's time to find a new path for ourselves and our students. But just "digitizing" isn't a solution. Having your kids do a power-point presentation instead of a poster doesn't change anything. When we interviewed Peter Reynolds after the workshop, he said "Technology is the invitation." Technology is a tool that we can use as we try to reshape the English classroom, but its potential is limited to what we decide to do with it. The real challenge will be answering that question, now that you have the computer, just what are you going to do with it?
Sunday, December 03, 2006
Lies My Email Told Me
I received the following email, which claimed to be submissions from high school English teachers of metaphors and similes written by their students:
Every year, English teachers from across the USA can submit their collections of actual analogies and metaphors found in high school essays. These excerpts are published each year to the amusement of teachers across the country. Here are last year's winners.
1. Her face was a perfect oval, like a circle that had its two sides gently compressed by a Thigh Master.
2. His thoughts tumbled in his head, making and breaking alliances like underpants in a dryer without Cling Free.
3. He spoke with the wisdom that can only come from experience, like a guy who went blind because he looked at a solar eclipse without one of those boxes with a pinhole in it and now goes around the country speaking at high schools about the dangers of looking at a solar eclipse without one of those boxes with a pinhole in it.
4. She grew on him like she was a colony of E. coli, and he was room temperature Canadian beef.
5. She had a deep, throaty, genuine laugh, like that sound a dog makes just before it throws up.
6. Her vocabulary was as bad as, like, whatever.
7. He was as tall as a six-foot, three-inch tree.
8. The revelation that his marriage of 30 years had disintegrated because of his wife's infidelity came as a rude shock, like a surcharge at a formerly surcharge-free ATM machine.
9. The little boat gently drifted across the pond exactly the way a bowling ball wouldn't.
10. McBride fell 12 stories, hitting the pavement like a Hefty bag filled with vegetable soup.
11. From the attic came an unearthly howl. The whole scene had an eerie, surreal quality, like when you're on vacation in another city and Jeopardy comes on at 7:00 p.m. instead of 7:30.
12. Her hair glistened in the rain like a nose hair after a sneeze.
13. The hailstones leaped from the pavement, just like maggots when you fry them in hot grease.
14. Long separated by cruel fate, the star-crossed lovers raced across the grassy field toward each other like two freight trains, one having left Cleveland at 6:36 p.m. traveling at 55 mph, the other from Topeka at 4:19 p.m. at a speed of 35 mph.
15. They lived in a typical suburban neighborhood with picket fences that resembled Nancy Kerrigan's teeth.
16. John and Mary had never met. They were like two hummingbirds who had also never met.
17. He fell for her like his heart was a mob informant, and she was the East River.
18. Even in his last years, Granddad had a mind like a steel trap, only one that had been left out so long, it had rusted shut.
19. Shots rang out, as shots are wont to do.
20. The plan was simple, like my brother-in-law Phil. But unlike Phil, this plan just might work.
21. The young fighter had a hungry look, the kind you get from not eating for a while.
22. He was as lame as a duck. Not the metaphorical lame duck, either, but a real duck that was actually lame, maybe from stepping on a land mine or something.
23. The ballerina rose gracefully en Pointe and extended one slender leg behind her, like a dog at a fire hydrant.
24. It was an American tradition, like fathers chasing kids around with power tools.
25. He was deeply in love. When she spoke, he thought he heard bells, as if she were a garbage truck backing up.
Now, I thought this was pretty amusing, but it seemed suspicious to me. Who are the high school students writing these sentences in actual English papers? Numbers 2, 3, 8, 11, 14, and 20 seemed particluarly unlikely to be written by kids in high school. Not that I think that high schoolers couldn't come up with some really vivid, funny, interesting metaphors and similes. These just didn't seem to be in the style of high school kids. So, I looked around the Internet to see if I could find an actual contest for English teachers to submit their kids ananlogies, and not only was there no such thing to be found, but all of these come word-for-word from a "bad analogy" contest by the Washington Post, some from 1995 and some from 1999. Which makes sense, more sense than the English teachers submission story, but why would someone have collected these and tried to pass them off as the work of students? Why not just send out an email saying, look at these great bad analogies from the Washington Post? What is the point?
And it's amazing how far and fast these chain emails spread. When I was looking for some information on an analogy submission contest for English teachers, I found a couple of blogs that had posted this exact same email and list, but without any mention of the Washington Post contest. It really makes me wonder where this particular email originated from. Anyone else seen it before? Anyway, this would make a great illustration to show students that you can't believe everything you read in cyber-space. And then you could have them come up with their own bad analogies, which actually are written by kids.
Every year, English teachers from across the USA can submit their collections of actual analogies and metaphors found in high school essays. These excerpts are published each year to the amusement of teachers across the country. Here are last year's winners.
1. Her face was a perfect oval, like a circle that had its two sides gently compressed by a Thigh Master.
2. His thoughts tumbled in his head, making and breaking alliances like underpants in a dryer without Cling Free.
3. He spoke with the wisdom that can only come from experience, like a guy who went blind because he looked at a solar eclipse without one of those boxes with a pinhole in it and now goes around the country speaking at high schools about the dangers of looking at a solar eclipse without one of those boxes with a pinhole in it.
4. She grew on him like she was a colony of E. coli, and he was room temperature Canadian beef.
5. She had a deep, throaty, genuine laugh, like that sound a dog makes just before it throws up.
6. Her vocabulary was as bad as, like, whatever.
7. He was as tall as a six-foot, three-inch tree.
8. The revelation that his marriage of 30 years had disintegrated because of his wife's infidelity came as a rude shock, like a surcharge at a formerly surcharge-free ATM machine.
9. The little boat gently drifted across the pond exactly the way a bowling ball wouldn't.
10. McBride fell 12 stories, hitting the pavement like a Hefty bag filled with vegetable soup.
11. From the attic came an unearthly howl. The whole scene had an eerie, surreal quality, like when you're on vacation in another city and Jeopardy comes on at 7:00 p.m. instead of 7:30.
12. Her hair glistened in the rain like a nose hair after a sneeze.
13. The hailstones leaped from the pavement, just like maggots when you fry them in hot grease.
14. Long separated by cruel fate, the star-crossed lovers raced across the grassy field toward each other like two freight trains, one having left Cleveland at 6:36 p.m. traveling at 55 mph, the other from Topeka at 4:19 p.m. at a speed of 35 mph.
15. They lived in a typical suburban neighborhood with picket fences that resembled Nancy Kerrigan's teeth.
16. John and Mary had never met. They were like two hummingbirds who had also never met.
17. He fell for her like his heart was a mob informant, and she was the East River.
18. Even in his last years, Granddad had a mind like a steel trap, only one that had been left out so long, it had rusted shut.
19. Shots rang out, as shots are wont to do.
20. The plan was simple, like my brother-in-law Phil. But unlike Phil, this plan just might work.
21. The young fighter had a hungry look, the kind you get from not eating for a while.
22. He was as lame as a duck. Not the metaphorical lame duck, either, but a real duck that was actually lame, maybe from stepping on a land mine or something.
23. The ballerina rose gracefully en Pointe and extended one slender leg behind her, like a dog at a fire hydrant.
24. It was an American tradition, like fathers chasing kids around with power tools.
25. He was deeply in love. When she spoke, he thought he heard bells, as if she were a garbage truck backing up.
Now, I thought this was pretty amusing, but it seemed suspicious to me. Who are the high school students writing these sentences in actual English papers? Numbers 2, 3, 8, 11, 14, and 20 seemed particluarly unlikely to be written by kids in high school. Not that I think that high schoolers couldn't come up with some really vivid, funny, interesting metaphors and similes. These just didn't seem to be in the style of high school kids. So, I looked around the Internet to see if I could find an actual contest for English teachers to submit their kids ananlogies, and not only was there no such thing to be found, but all of these come word-for-word from a "bad analogy" contest by the Washington Post, some from 1995 and some from 1999. Which makes sense, more sense than the English teachers submission story, but why would someone have collected these and tried to pass them off as the work of students? Why not just send out an email saying, look at these great bad analogies from the Washington Post? What is the point?
And it's amazing how far and fast these chain emails spread. When I was looking for some information on an analogy submission contest for English teachers, I found a couple of blogs that had posted this exact same email and list, but without any mention of the Washington Post contest. It really makes me wonder where this particular email originated from. Anyone else seen it before? Anyway, this would make a great illustration to show students that you can't believe everything you read in cyber-space. And then you could have them come up with their own bad analogies, which actually are written by kids.
Friday, December 01, 2006
Going Way Low-Tech
According to this article, (which I only found out about through my aunt's blog--love that cyber-space network) the military is training bees to sniff out bombs. I just find this fascinating, maybe because something as ancient as an insect is becoming an integral part of modern warfare. They're not using robots to sniff out those bombs, just your average honey bee. The world is such an amazing place.
This also reminded me of those old disney cartoons where Donald Duck is at war with a bunch of bees. Does anyone remember those? I used to love them. I wonder if I could find some clips online somewhere...
This also reminded me of those old disney cartoons where Donald Duck is at war with a bunch of bees. Does anyone remember those? I used to love them. I wonder if I could find some clips online somewhere...
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Observation Complete!
I finished my 50 hours of observatin for ENG 505 this week! I am really happy to be done. The kids and the teacher were very nice, but the class was totally unstimulating. All they did was fill out worksheets, watch movies, and occasionally do a little reading. Hardly any writing and definitely no tech stuff. The world we have been discussing in 506 is so far from coming to fruition in this woman's classroom. Early in my observation, I mentioned the computers class to my host teacher and she basically said that I would never be able to do "that kind of stuff" in her school. But she has no interest in trying to branch out and experiment with the "kind of stuff" that we are doing in 506. There was only one tech-related incident during my entire fifty hours. I cam in one day and we went to the computer lab to do what she called a "webquest" on the Salem Witch trials. I was excited for a minute, but as it turned out it, wasn't really a webquest. The kids visited a page on the National Geographic website to find out about the Salem witch trials. You guys can check it out here. It's kind of interesting, and I guess that it's good to bring in the computer at some point, but it just seemed like busy work.
I guess the experience in this class bothered me because everything that the kids do seems so pointless. This teacher is very comfortable with her setup, which consists of the units that she has planned out with all the worksheets to go with it. She is basically an 8 to 3 teacher. She came right out and told me that she doesn't like to take work home. So her class is boring but easy and the kids don't give her any problems, but I don't feel that they're getting much out of it, either. She doesn't seem to have very high expectations for the kids. I mentioned on the class blog, and I think that I've mentioned in class also, that she shows them films of the classics rather than having them read. It's only November and her Regents kids won't be reading another book until Spring. Instead they'll be watching the movie versions of Moby Dick and Huck Finn. And rest assured there will be plenty of work sheets to go along with them. i understand feeling like the kids won't read Moby Dick if you assign it. The book isn't one of my favorites either. So throw out Moby Dick and bring in some YA lit or something. The kids should be reading, period.
One of our major points in 506, aside from all the tech aps, has been exploring the "why"--why are we doing what we do in these classrooms? Why are your kids reading this and writing about that? Why are you asking them to do x, y, z? If nothing else, this is probably the most crucial thing that I will take away from 506. I hope that someday, if someone comes to my class to observe me, she won't sit there constantly asking herself "Why are they doing this? What is the point?" and finding no answer. It's a dreadful way to spend 50 hours, let alone an entire school year.
I guess the experience in this class bothered me because everything that the kids do seems so pointless. This teacher is very comfortable with her setup, which consists of the units that she has planned out with all the worksheets to go with it. She is basically an 8 to 3 teacher. She came right out and told me that she doesn't like to take work home. So her class is boring but easy and the kids don't give her any problems, but I don't feel that they're getting much out of it, either. She doesn't seem to have very high expectations for the kids. I mentioned on the class blog, and I think that I've mentioned in class also, that she shows them films of the classics rather than having them read. It's only November and her Regents kids won't be reading another book until Spring. Instead they'll be watching the movie versions of Moby Dick and Huck Finn. And rest assured there will be plenty of work sheets to go along with them. i understand feeling like the kids won't read Moby Dick if you assign it. The book isn't one of my favorites either. So throw out Moby Dick and bring in some YA lit or something. The kids should be reading, period.
One of our major points in 506, aside from all the tech aps, has been exploring the "why"--why are we doing what we do in these classrooms? Why are your kids reading this and writing about that? Why are you asking them to do x, y, z? If nothing else, this is probably the most crucial thing that I will take away from 506. I hope that someday, if someone comes to my class to observe me, she won't sit there constantly asking herself "Why are they doing this? What is the point?" and finding no answer. It's a dreadful way to spend 50 hours, let alone an entire school year.
Monday, November 06, 2006
Please Help Fight MD!
My fiance, Waylon, is participating in a fund raiser to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. He, along with many other community members in the Syracuse area, will be put in "Jail" and must raise $1200 in bail money, which will go to MDA. He has a website where people can go to make donations to MDA in his name, which goes toward his bail. He has to raise the money by Nov 15th.
Here is an email message from Waylon:
This year, I have the honor and pleasure of participating in MDA's 2006 East Syracuse/Fayetteville-Manlius Lock-Up to help "Jerry's Kids®". To reach my goal I need your help!
I'd like to include you or your company on my list of contributors who are helping me reach my goal. Your donation would help MDA continue the important fight against muscular dystrophy. Check out my web page by clicking on the link below. There you'll find all kinds of information about MDA, and be able to make your tax-deductible donation on-line using your credit card.
MDA serves people in our community with neuromuscular disease by providing clinics, support groups, assistance with the purchase and repair of wheelchairs, braces and communication devices, and summer camp for kids. MDA also funds research grants to help find treatments and cures for some 43 neuromuscular diseases that affect people of all ages, right here in our community.
I sincerely hope that you'll take the opportunity to support MDA. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to call or e-mail me.
On behalf of the families MDA serves, thank you!
Warmest Regards,
Waylon Dahl
I know that we are all poor college students, but if anyone is willing and able to donate anything, we would both appreciate it so much. Every little bit helps.
Click here to visit Waylon's participant page.
Thanks!!
Here is an email message from Waylon:
This year, I have the honor and pleasure of participating in MDA's 2006 East Syracuse/Fayetteville-Manlius Lock-Up to help "Jerry's Kids®". To reach my goal I need your help!
I'd like to include you or your company on my list of contributors who are helping me reach my goal. Your donation would help MDA continue the important fight against muscular dystrophy. Check out my web page by clicking on the link below. There you'll find all kinds of information about MDA, and be able to make your tax-deductible donation on-line using your credit card.
MDA serves people in our community with neuromuscular disease by providing clinics, support groups, assistance with the purchase and repair of wheelchairs, braces and communication devices, and summer camp for kids. MDA also funds research grants to help find treatments and cures for some 43 neuromuscular diseases that affect people of all ages, right here in our community.
I sincerely hope that you'll take the opportunity to support MDA. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to call or e-mail me.
On behalf of the families MDA serves, thank you!
Warmest Regards,
Waylon Dahl
I know that we are all poor college students, but if anyone is willing and able to donate anything, we would both appreciate it so much. Every little bit helps.
Click here to visit Waylon's participant page.
Thanks!!
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Another positive thing to say?
Okay, I have another positive thing to say, so I guess that I can't jump to my death after all. My CAPP report is green!! Yeah!! Now that I am officially registered for student teaching and have taken both of the workshops, all of the requirements for my degree are either completed or "in progress." The end is in sight! Assuming that I make it through the semester alive and pass everything, student teaching is right around the corner. Yikes! I don't know about you folks, but I'm scared. It's so much responsibility: young, impressionable mind under our complete control! Am I ready? Am I actually cut out for this?
As most of you know from Tuesday's class, I met one of my host teachers last weekend, and she seems pretty awesome. Jen Donegan teaches 11th and 12th grade at Westhill High School which is thankfully quite near my house in Syracuse. She is really energetic and passionate about teaching, and also really into mulit-modal literacy-- film, music, literature, internet, etc all included as legitimate modes of literacy to be studied. After only one meeting and an email, I can already tell that she is going to be totally supportive of me and great to work with. She was fabulous when I expressed apprehension about student-teaching, assuring me that it's "actually a positive aspect." She gave me a copy of "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" which we will be doing in the Murder and Mayhem elective (which Karen showed the Urban Legends podcasts from). Apparently the kids usually get pretty into it, even though it's "old," so that should be exciting. I'll also be doing the 11R class, and Jen said that I can decide if I want to do short stories or Macbeth. I'm leaning toward short stories at this point. I was thinking of trying to come up with a short story enhanced podcast assignment for them, since Jen is pretty into technology apps. After they read a lot of short stories, they can write their own and read it in an enhanced podcast with photos to illustrate it. Or something. I don't know, let me know what you all think. Suggestions are definitely going to be welcome.
Okay, I'm going to get back to my piles of books and articles on informal writing-to-learn now. But, I have to say, two blog posts in one night is a pretty impressive feat.
As most of you know from Tuesday's class, I met one of my host teachers last weekend, and she seems pretty awesome. Jen Donegan teaches 11th and 12th grade at Westhill High School which is thankfully quite near my house in Syracuse. She is really energetic and passionate about teaching, and also really into mulit-modal literacy-- film, music, literature, internet, etc all included as legitimate modes of literacy to be studied. After only one meeting and an email, I can already tell that she is going to be totally supportive of me and great to work with. She was fabulous when I expressed apprehension about student-teaching, assuring me that it's "actually a positive aspect." She gave me a copy of "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" which we will be doing in the Murder and Mayhem elective (which Karen showed the Urban Legends podcasts from). Apparently the kids usually get pretty into it, even though it's "old," so that should be exciting. I'll also be doing the 11R class, and Jen said that I can decide if I want to do short stories or Macbeth. I'm leaning toward short stories at this point. I was thinking of trying to come up with a short story enhanced podcast assignment for them, since Jen is pretty into technology apps. After they read a lot of short stories, they can write their own and read it in an enhanced podcast with photos to illustrate it. Or something. I don't know, let me know what you all think. Suggestions are definitely going to be welcome.
Okay, I'm going to get back to my piles of books and articles on informal writing-to-learn now. But, I have to say, two blog posts in one night is a pretty impressive feat.
It's Snowing in Syracuse
I haven't blogged in a really really long time, so this will probably be my usual mishmash of incoherent rambling. First, I have to say that I am so overwhelmed right now that I am ready to toss myself over a bridge. In fact, it's a good thing that I moved away from Ithaca, or there's a high probability that my body would be discovered frozen and partially eaten at the bottom of a gorge. Okay, that was gross, apologies. And, of course, I'm not totally serious, but there's a huge part of me that's ready to throw up my hands in surrender. Some of you may have noticed that I decided to stay home from class tonight in order to work on other things. I've spent most of the day working on my journal article for Dr. Kennedy, which is still in its infancy, after observing this morning. About an hour ago I decided to take a break and get on the computer to look at the class blog. And it's like the blob. There was so much to read and try to process that my already overwhelmed brain pretty much blew a fuse. I've just had so much work to do and so little time to do it in that everything is getting pushed to the last minute and the time crunch is excruciating. But I have to say that I totally appreciated reading everyone's comments, in particular Dave's comments on doing "good enough." Because I am totally there, and it's not a place I generally find myself and it's not a place that I'm very comfortable.
I used to be smart. Like, really smart. I think I'm getting dumber as I get older. At an alarmingly speedy rate.
One positive thing that I do have to say about my life at this point: I loved making the imovie. Even though it was a ton of work, and even though the limited access to the mac lab was incrediably frustrating, it was definitely one of the most positive experiences that I've had this semester. Charm and I collaborated well together. She came up with a great idea for a film, and I helped tweak it a little bit with added suggestions. We shared the responsibility for filming, audio and editing pretty evenly (even though I am an admitted mouse-hogging control freak--sorry Charm!). We learned how to assemble our film--adding music, voice track, transitions and credits--mostly through experimentation. When we got stuck, we had two heads to figure out a problem. We had fun. And, most importantly, we produced something that we love and are really proud of. I definitely support Alex's assertion that he will have students work together on this project in the future. Even though it's hard to arrange time to get together when trying to accommodate two disparate schedules, I think that working with a partner made the whole experience infinitely better.
Oh, it stopped snowing. But now the trees look so pretty. Hmmm....did blogging just improve my mood? I think it did.
I used to be smart. Like, really smart. I think I'm getting dumber as I get older. At an alarmingly speedy rate.
One positive thing that I do have to say about my life at this point: I loved making the imovie. Even though it was a ton of work, and even though the limited access to the mac lab was incrediably frustrating, it was definitely one of the most positive experiences that I've had this semester. Charm and I collaborated well together. She came up with a great idea for a film, and I helped tweak it a little bit with added suggestions. We shared the responsibility for filming, audio and editing pretty evenly (even though I am an admitted mouse-hogging control freak--sorry Charm!). We learned how to assemble our film--adding music, voice track, transitions and credits--mostly through experimentation. When we got stuck, we had two heads to figure out a problem. We had fun. And, most importantly, we produced something that we love and are really proud of. I definitely support Alex's assertion that he will have students work together on this project in the future. Even though it's hard to arrange time to get together when trying to accommodate two disparate schedules, I think that working with a partner made the whole experience infinitely better.
Oh, it stopped snowing. But now the trees look so pretty. Hmmm....did blogging just improve my mood? I think it did.
Friday, October 20, 2006
Look, Ma! Links!!
Check out this article about using video games in the classroom. Of course it immediately made me think of Matt (check out his post on the NYSEC conference--informative and funny) our resident viedo-games-in-education guru, but I think that it's noteworthy for all. This came from Yahoo! news, and was the first thing that I saw when I opened my browser this morning. Which, to me, signifies that the whole thing is going kind of mainstream. And what's particularly interesting is that the article is about scientists, not educators, touting the benefits of using video games in the classroom: "The Federation of American Scientists — which typically weighs in on matters of nuclear weaponry and government secrecy — declared Tuesday that video games can redefine education." And they are calling for more research on the issue, which all of us 663 alums know is essential for good pedagogy. Maybe with these "big guns" in the corner of educational gaming, the federal government would be willing to spend some money on curriculum development and teacher training... Of course, that would mean spending tax money on education instead of war, so...
Something else that caught my attention while surfing was this great post from Will Richardson's blog about his kids spreading the blogging gospel to some new friends. Many of you may have already seen this if you read his blog regularly. I just thought it was so adorable that I had to share. And blogging does seem like a perfect tool for kids who are homeschooled and may feel a little left out of the kind of social network that going to school with other kids provides. And who knew that Richardson was so crunchy-granola? What a cute family.
Now, everyone can congratulate me for finally including some links in a blog post! Yay for synthesis!
Something else that caught my attention while surfing was this great post from Will Richardson's blog about his kids spreading the blogging gospel to some new friends. Many of you may have already seen this if you read his blog regularly. I just thought it was so adorable that I had to share. And blogging does seem like a perfect tool for kids who are homeschooled and may feel a little left out of the kind of social network that going to school with other kids provides. And who knew that Richardson was so crunchy-granola? What a cute family.
Now, everyone can congratulate me for finally including some links in a blog post! Yay for synthesis!
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Pink is the New Black
I am really enjoying Daniel Pink's A Whole New Mind. Maybe because it's something that I would read in my free time. It addresses some of the same issues as Friedman's book, but for some reason it doesn't scare the crap out of me like Friedman is apt to do. I don't know, it's not as dark or something. Pink makes all of these changes seem more manageable than Friedman, which diminishes its "doomsday" quality. I love the way he breaks down the right and left halves of the brain and how each contributes its particular "expertise," if you will, to the cognitive task at hand. When he talked about someone whose right hemisphere is damaged and so they have to rely more heavily on their left side, this immediately made me think about my nephew Zach and his Asperger's Syndrome. He takes everything literally and has a hard time understanding figurative language because it just doesn't make sense to him. And he is so detail oriented that he notices and remembers the most minute detail of every single thing he sees. He could probably tell you the color and style of shoes that someone who walked past him in the mall last week was wearing. It made me wonder if people with Autism and Asperger's use the left side of their brains more or have some problem with the right sides of their brains.
I also love the way Pink uses humor in his book. I laughed so hard when he talked about the designer toilet brush because the last time I had to buy a toilet brush for my new apartment, I literally stood in front of the selection of toilet brushes for about 20 minutes trying to decide which one to get. And there's this little voice inside me screaming, "It's a toilet brush! Something to clean your GD toilet with!! Just pick one!" But there are just too many choices, and of course I must get the right toilet brush, what if I get it home and realize that I should have gotten another one? And it's exactly the same scenario with every little mundane thing that I buy. Seriously, it takes me forever to pick out everything--a stapler, a binder, a wastebasket, a blender. Whatever it is, there will be fifteen different ones to choose from in various colors, styles, and features, and I will stand in the aisle forever trying to weigh the pros and cons of each and feeling utterly ridiculous. Because what difference does it make in the end? As long as it's not some cheap piece of crap that's going to fall apart the next day (which the "designer" broom that I purchased from target actually was and I now detest it and wish that I had bought one of the twenty-five other designer brooms available), everything functions in much the same way. Life is too short to spend it standing in the aisle of target trying to decide which shower organizer would look best in your bathroom. Yet, somehow I can't stop myself. Is this what the modern world has come to?
I also love the way Pink uses humor in his book. I laughed so hard when he talked about the designer toilet brush because the last time I had to buy a toilet brush for my new apartment, I literally stood in front of the selection of toilet brushes for about 20 minutes trying to decide which one to get. And there's this little voice inside me screaming, "It's a toilet brush! Something to clean your GD toilet with!! Just pick one!" But there are just too many choices, and of course I must get the right toilet brush, what if I get it home and realize that I should have gotten another one? And it's exactly the same scenario with every little mundane thing that I buy. Seriously, it takes me forever to pick out everything--a stapler, a binder, a wastebasket, a blender. Whatever it is, there will be fifteen different ones to choose from in various colors, styles, and features, and I will stand in the aisle forever trying to weigh the pros and cons of each and feeling utterly ridiculous. Because what difference does it make in the end? As long as it's not some cheap piece of crap that's going to fall apart the next day (which the "designer" broom that I purchased from target actually was and I now detest it and wish that I had bought one of the twenty-five other designer brooms available), everything functions in much the same way. Life is too short to spend it standing in the aisle of target trying to decide which shower organizer would look best in your bathroom. Yet, somehow I can't stop myself. Is this what the modern world has come to?
Monday, October 09, 2006
Potpourri
I am here going to attempt to capture the mishmash of various thoughts that I've been having in the past week or so, as they relate to the class, the flat world, technology, etc. etc.
So, as it turns out, I am not the world's best blogger. And I've kind of been musing lately about why that is. Because I have a lot of thoughts that would probably make interesting and at least somewhat relevent blog posts. And I certainly do a lot of reading of others' blogs, and I read the course blog at least once a day. I try to keep up with current events as much as I can stomach, and there's certainly fodder for blogs there. But for some reason, I just don't blog very much. Maybe because these thoughts come to me while I'm doing something else, like driving (I spend a lot of time in the car), or during observation or other classes, while working on other assignments, or watching TV. By the time I get to my computer and get it warmed up and check my email, it's like the moment has passed. Or, what I've been thinking about pertains to something that was addressed in class weeks ago and just doesn't seem as pertinent anymore. It's the lightning speed of this flat world. If I don't capture something in the moment, it feels like it's too late. And then there are blogs like James's, which is just a shining example of blogging at it's best, complete with the synthesis that Richardson cites as true blogging rather than just online journaling, which is my blog to a T. But the thing is, I don't really surf the web. Like, ever. When I get on the computer, it's for a specific purpose: to check email, look something up, get directions somewhere, do a class assignment. I have specific sites that I go to in order to accomplish something, but I don't really just browse around to see what's out there. Which obviously limits my blogging ability, especially my "true blogging" ablility because I don't have links to other interesting sites that I want to comment on. I guess I should make a conscious effort to work on that and to explore what's out there a little more so that I can improve my blogging skills.
I think that I'm sort of an interesting breed of digital immigrant. I have pretty decent skills when it comes to computers, at least PCs (macs are another story, but I'm working on it). I know how they function, and I can usually figure out how to use programs just by playing around. I pay my bills online, I use email and message boards to keep in contact with family and friends, I even know a teeny-tiny amount of html. I use a computer every single day. But I don't have a "digital mindset." My first instincts about how to go about something fall in line with the 2.0 world. If something interests me, I jot it down on a piece of paper--with a pen! I would rather sit down with a copy of Newsweek than go to newsweek.com for the same stories and photos. And the thing is, I'm not that old, so it's not a matter of, "Oh, I grew up without computers so I'm not used to them." We had a Commodore 64 and a Colecovision. I literally cannot remember not having some kind of computer in the house. So is it just my temperament? Hmmm...
Moving on, I finally have a placement for Kennedy's class (yay!), and did about 12 hours last week. I am in 11R and 11 honors, as well as journalism and SUPA, both for 12th grade. The teacher is less than inspiring, but that's a subject for a whole other blog post (coming soon). One of the things we had to do was give the students a reading/writing attitudes survey, which I did on Thurs. Anyone who took the class last year might remember this. The survey asks them about how much reading and writing they do outside of school, what they enjoy, what kind of writing activities or projects they have enjoyed in school. Reading their answers and discussing it with the kids a little bit really made me think about "What Does Reading Look Like Anyway?" So many of the students said, "I don't read outside of school," because they don't read books. I prompted them to think about other kinds of reading--blogs, comic books, emails, magazines, etc (there's a question on the survey that addresses this specifically)--and you can probably guess their response: "That's not really reading." Like the students that Kajder discusses, they think that only certain types of literacy "count." And, it seems to me, that they think the more likely they are to enjoy something, the less likely it is to count as true literacy. When, actually, the opposite is true. If the students enjoy something and find it meaningful, it is closer to true literacy than something they do because they have to or just for a grade.
Okay, I am going to close here, as this post is getting incredibly long, but there are still a lot of thoughts floating around, so stay tuned. Oh, but one last little anecdote in response to Karen's comment about the flat world and Outback Steakhouse (where I have the pleasure of bringing people steak for a living for those of you who didn't know). If you had asked me a week ago what Outback has to do with the flat world, I would have said "Probably nothing" because we are kind of low-tech as chain restaurants go. I mean, we still hand-write our tickets and physically give them to the cooks. How 2.0 can you get? But now, even the old Outback is going 3.0 with the introduction of our new online safety survey. All of the restaurant's employees are required to go online and listen to a safety presentation and then take a quiz about what we have learned. This is not available in paper format. The results of the test are sent to Outback Central or something electronically, and everyone is required to take it and pass. I'm wondering if they are going to face some of the issues with access that we teachers have been discussing, as I'm not sure that everyone toiling in the kitchen for $7 an hour has a computer with internet access. I think I'll ask my boss if that's an issue and how they're addressing it. In the immortal words of James Beach, technology marches on...right into the Outback.
So, as it turns out, I am not the world's best blogger. And I've kind of been musing lately about why that is. Because I have a lot of thoughts that would probably make interesting and at least somewhat relevent blog posts. And I certainly do a lot of reading of others' blogs, and I read the course blog at least once a day. I try to keep up with current events as much as I can stomach, and there's certainly fodder for blogs there. But for some reason, I just don't blog very much. Maybe because these thoughts come to me while I'm doing something else, like driving (I spend a lot of time in the car), or during observation or other classes, while working on other assignments, or watching TV. By the time I get to my computer and get it warmed up and check my email, it's like the moment has passed. Or, what I've been thinking about pertains to something that was addressed in class weeks ago and just doesn't seem as pertinent anymore. It's the lightning speed of this flat world. If I don't capture something in the moment, it feels like it's too late. And then there are blogs like James's, which is just a shining example of blogging at it's best, complete with the synthesis that Richardson cites as true blogging rather than just online journaling, which is my blog to a T. But the thing is, I don't really surf the web. Like, ever. When I get on the computer, it's for a specific purpose: to check email, look something up, get directions somewhere, do a class assignment. I have specific sites that I go to in order to accomplish something, but I don't really just browse around to see what's out there. Which obviously limits my blogging ability, especially my "true blogging" ablility because I don't have links to other interesting sites that I want to comment on. I guess I should make a conscious effort to work on that and to explore what's out there a little more so that I can improve my blogging skills.
I think that I'm sort of an interesting breed of digital immigrant. I have pretty decent skills when it comes to computers, at least PCs (macs are another story, but I'm working on it). I know how they function, and I can usually figure out how to use programs just by playing around. I pay my bills online, I use email and message boards to keep in contact with family and friends, I even know a teeny-tiny amount of html. I use a computer every single day. But I don't have a "digital mindset." My first instincts about how to go about something fall in line with the 2.0 world. If something interests me, I jot it down on a piece of paper--with a pen! I would rather sit down with a copy of Newsweek than go to newsweek.com for the same stories and photos. And the thing is, I'm not that old, so it's not a matter of, "Oh, I grew up without computers so I'm not used to them." We had a Commodore 64 and a Colecovision. I literally cannot remember not having some kind of computer in the house. So is it just my temperament? Hmmm...
Moving on, I finally have a placement for Kennedy's class (yay!), and did about 12 hours last week. I am in 11R and 11 honors, as well as journalism and SUPA, both for 12th grade. The teacher is less than inspiring, but that's a subject for a whole other blog post (coming soon). One of the things we had to do was give the students a reading/writing attitudes survey, which I did on Thurs. Anyone who took the class last year might remember this. The survey asks them about how much reading and writing they do outside of school, what they enjoy, what kind of writing activities or projects they have enjoyed in school. Reading their answers and discussing it with the kids a little bit really made me think about "What Does Reading Look Like Anyway?" So many of the students said, "I don't read outside of school," because they don't read books. I prompted them to think about other kinds of reading--blogs, comic books, emails, magazines, etc (there's a question on the survey that addresses this specifically)--and you can probably guess their response: "That's not really reading." Like the students that Kajder discusses, they think that only certain types of literacy "count." And, it seems to me, that they think the more likely they are to enjoy something, the less likely it is to count as true literacy. When, actually, the opposite is true. If the students enjoy something and find it meaningful, it is closer to true literacy than something they do because they have to or just for a grade.
Okay, I am going to close here, as this post is getting incredibly long, but there are still a lot of thoughts floating around, so stay tuned. Oh, but one last little anecdote in response to Karen's comment about the flat world and Outback Steakhouse (where I have the pleasure of bringing people steak for a living for those of you who didn't know). If you had asked me a week ago what Outback has to do with the flat world, I would have said "Probably nothing" because we are kind of low-tech as chain restaurants go. I mean, we still hand-write our tickets and physically give them to the cooks. How 2.0 can you get? But now, even the old Outback is going 3.0 with the introduction of our new online safety survey. All of the restaurant's employees are required to go online and listen to a safety presentation and then take a quiz about what we have learned. This is not available in paper format. The results of the test are sent to Outback Central or something electronically, and everyone is required to take it and pass. I'm wondering if they are going to face some of the issues with access that we teachers have been discussing, as I'm not sure that everyone toiling in the kitchen for $7 an hour has a computer with internet access. I think I'll ask my boss if that's an issue and how they're addressing it. In the immortal words of James Beach, technology marches on...right into the Outback.
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Studio 60
I was watching TV last night (big surprise), and a had a total "connection with 506" moment. There's a new show called Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip that's about the behind-the-scenes world of a variety show like SNL. There was this great scene where two of the characters were talking about blogging. The scene opens with Tommy, sitting at his laptop, reading aloud a bad review of the show from The Bernadette Blog:
Simon: Stop reading the Internet
Tommy: Bernadette of The Bernadette Blog says--
Simon: Bernadette is writing this in her pajamas. Tommy, why do you care? She’s got a freezer full of Jenny Craig and she’s surrounded by her five cats.
Tommy: The New York Times is going to quote Bernadette so that the people can be heard and The Times can demonstrate they’re not the media elite. I preferred when they were elite. I’m a fan of credentials. It’s like we’ve all spent the last five years living a Roger Corman film called Revenge of the Hack. I have to care about the Internet, Simon, you know why? Because everybody else does.
I just thought this really captured my own feelings of ambivalence about technology, the Internet, etc. I think credentials are important, especially if you are going to be quoting something and passing on information, or if you are going to be basing decisions on something someone has said. At the same time, everyone should have a voice, there should be room for the "little guy" to have his/her say. So...I don't know, I'm still deciding what I think about it all. But, either way, this scene totally speaks to how important blogging has become.
Simon: Stop reading the Internet
Tommy: Bernadette of The Bernadette Blog says--
Simon: Bernadette is writing this in her pajamas. Tommy, why do you care? She’s got a freezer full of Jenny Craig and she’s surrounded by her five cats.
Tommy: The New York Times is going to quote Bernadette so that the people can be heard and The Times can demonstrate they’re not the media elite. I preferred when they were elite. I’m a fan of credentials. It’s like we’ve all spent the last five years living a Roger Corman film called Revenge of the Hack. I have to care about the Internet, Simon, you know why? Because everybody else does.
I just thought this really captured my own feelings of ambivalence about technology, the Internet, etc. I think credentials are important, especially if you are going to be quoting something and passing on information, or if you are going to be basing decisions on something someone has said. At the same time, everyone should have a voice, there should be room for the "little guy" to have his/her say. So...I don't know, I'm still deciding what I think about it all. But, either way, this scene totally speaks to how important blogging has become.
Thursday, September 21, 2006
It's Addictive
Bored? Cruisin' around the Internet looking for a little fun? Sick of doing work? Then you must visit http://www.jacksonpollock.org and make some modern art. Procrastination rules!
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Yay for blog help!
Okay, yes, I do at times have "mood swings." I am feeling a lot better about my podcast, which translates into better feelings about life in general, now that I have gotten some feedback from the class blog to help me with the issues I just described in an earlier post. Which people can now actually read because they will be able to get here from the class blog. Thanks, Alex, for fixing that for me. I definitely feel much better.
And this made me think about an earlier post in which I talked about blogs as classroom tools (which no one in the class probably read, either, ha ha). How great would it be for a kid at home, struggling with a homework assignment or a project, if he could jump on the class blog and ask questions or request feedback on what he's accomplished so far (or she, of course)? Instead of giving up in frustration, kids would have access to their friends and teachers and be able to carry on when they get stuck. Just like I will now be able to do with my podcast. And with websites, you would be able to put up pictures along with your questions and discussions, so that in some cases you can actually show what you are talking about. Of course, there is still the problem of universal access, but having my colleagues help me out with my own project issues has really illustrated how useful this technology can be for kids.
And this made me think about an earlier post in which I talked about blogs as classroom tools (which no one in the class probably read, either, ha ha). How great would it be for a kid at home, struggling with a homework assignment or a project, if he could jump on the class blog and ask questions or request feedback on what he's accomplished so far (or she, of course)? Instead of giving up in frustration, kids would have access to their friends and teachers and be able to carry on when they get stuck. Just like I will now be able to do with my podcast. And with websites, you would be able to put up pictures along with your questions and discussions, so that in some cases you can actually show what you are talking about. Of course, there is still the problem of universal access, but having my colleagues help me out with my own project issues has really illustrated how useful this technology can be for kids.
Blog Malfunction
Does anyone know why all the cool stuff on the side of my blog is now way at the bottom? This happened out of the blue for no apparent reason and I have no idea how to fix it, but it is really bugging me!
Podcast Woes
So, I tried to assemble my enhanced podcast in class last night. I thought that I had some really good ideas about capturing the "mood" of the flat world. My whole theme is the feeling of urgency, competition, fast-paced, etc. It's sort of supposed to reflect Friedman's assertion that we'll have to run faster and faster just to stay in place. So, I had all these pictures of crowds, people running races, people at rallies trying to make their voices heard, traffic jams, speeding cars, stuff like that. Sounds pretty good, right? So I went in to Garage Band and started laying my pictures out the way I wanted, and then I added some music, just for practice. But when I tried to preview my podcast, almost every single picture looked like modern art--as in, nothing discernible. So, my podcast that I thought I had made so much progress on was basically a bunch of pixels with about 3 actual photos. Now, I'm not the most tech-savvy person, so I may be wrong, but I'm assuming the pictures that I chose are too small, so when Garage Band blows them up to fit its parameters, this is the result. So, now it's back to the drawing board I guess. Does anyone out there have any suggestions for appropriate size? Or any similar tales of woe just for comfort's sake? As hard a time as I've been having so far this semester, this is like the proverbial straw and camel.
Saturday, September 09, 2006
Blogs R Us
I've spent a lot of time lately reading Will Richardson's book, Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms. I guess most of the class finished it ages ago, but I'm pretty over-whelmed this semester, and I'm just trying (and mostly failing) to keep up. His chapters on using blogs in the classroom are really interesting, though, especially his discussion of including other website urls in the post and commenting on it. According to Richardson, much of what we do as "bloggers" isn't really blogging but rather more like online journaling because it doesn't include these evaluated links. If kids are truly blogging, then they are incorporating various links and discussing them, truly integrating reading, writing, and critical thinking skills. This seems so much deeper and more significant than having kids just write in their journals at night. Richardson writes, "more than just reading, bloggers that write this way learn to read critically because as they read, they look for important ideas to write about...this, in turn, requires critical thinking skills as they consider their audience and clarify the purpose of their writing" (30-31). He also quotes Samuel Johnson, which I love: "I hate to read a writer who has written more than he has read."
The thing about blogging in the classroom, though, or trying to incorporate ipods, cell phones, etc., is that you are making the assumption that all kids have them. A class that is very blog-intensive would require home access because it just wouldn't be realistic for kids to spend that much time in the school computer-lab. And in most districts, can we assume that every single kid has a computer at home? Isn't this just calling more attention to the kids without, who already probably feel bad about having less than those around them? I feel like this issue isn't really acknowledged because we think, "Oh, everyone has a computer" but I don't think that is necessarily so.
The thing about blogging in the classroom, though, or trying to incorporate ipods, cell phones, etc., is that you are making the assumption that all kids have them. A class that is very blog-intensive would require home access because it just wouldn't be realistic for kids to spend that much time in the school computer-lab. And in most districts, can we assume that every single kid has a computer at home? Isn't this just calling more attention to the kids without, who already probably feel bad about having less than those around them? I feel like this issue isn't really acknowledged because we think, "Oh, everyone has a computer" but I don't think that is necessarily so.
Friday, September 08, 2006
My Blog: Take Two
Welcome to the new, improved version of my blog! Now that I have transferred my content over to the "beta" version of blogger, I have easily been able to add cool features and really spruce it up. Yay, technology! See, folks, I am getting into the spirit. And like any good narcissist, I love being able to make my blog all about me. Unfortunately, I was unable to transfer the comments over from my previous blog. Ah, well, I remember them fondly anyway.
And, making me feel even more technologically savvy, I bought a flashdrive today so that I will be able to take content back and forth between my home computer and school. I did have to read the written instructions, though. Yes, Stearns, I know that my accent is showing. But as I've always said, accents are sexy! ;-)
More exciting posts to follow. In the meantime, feel free to peruse some of my exciting links. You just might learn something. Like how interesting I am.
And, making me feel even more technologically savvy, I bought a flashdrive today so that I will be able to take content back and forth between my home computer and school. I did have to read the written instructions, though. Yes, Stearns, I know that my accent is showing. But as I've always said, accents are sexy! ;-)
More exciting posts to follow. In the meantime, feel free to peruse some of my exciting links. You just might learn something. Like how interesting I am.
"Transmissions from the satellite heart..."
It's an album title. Special kudos from me for anyone who can name the band. But for some reason, I felt it was an apropos title for my first blog, my first transmission into cyberspace from my own personal Sputnik.
After exactly one day, this course (computers and the study of English, for anyone random that might be reading my blog--it's here for the entire world to see afterall, isn't it?) already has me thinking quite deeply, and about some rather uncomfortable subject matter. Technology, computers, the internet, a fundamental shift in the world and all society as we know it, the collapse of the once all-poweful United States--heavy, right? I guess that it's mostly Friedman's book that has given me food for thought, but it's also the questions and comments that have been generated in our class discussion and in our class blog. Truthfully, the majority of what I've read and been thinking about in connection to this class scares the crap out of me. I guess I'm a traditionalist and I'm not crazy about change, so I view the technological revolution just getting underway with more trepidation than excitement, more foreboding than hope. I've always been a "glass is half empty" kind of girl, and so I see technology being used by the government in a very negative, Big Brother way (wiretapping is the least of it, folks), or by al-Qaeda in a "Death to America" kind of way. Maybe because I just watched V for Vendetta the other night (highly recommended, by the way), or maybe because I watch the news once in a while.
Of course, I am not a complete cynic or the next Unabomber. There are many positive aspects of technology that even I acknowledge and embrace. I love being able to keep in touch with friends and relatives who are scattered throughout the country. I get to talk to them about both the important and mundane, see pictures of their homes, kids and pets. This kind of contact would be much more difficult without my computer. Probably impossible, actually, considering how lazy I am. Then there's one of my most favorite modern conveniences, the DVR. For someone who loves TV a little too much but is rarely home in the evening, the DVR is the perfect way to maintain that glamorous couch-potato lifestyle. And where would any of us be without our cell phones, particularly when driving a not-too-reliable car alone at night?
I guess what I'm getting at (rambling about?) is that I have pretty conflicted feelings about technology and how important it's become. In some ways I feel like it's just as isolating as it is connecting. Sure, you can have thousands of "friends" on your myspace account and innumerable people can comment on your blog, but how meaningful is that? Can it take the place of real, intimate, face-to-face conversation? I feel like people are so wrapped up in cyber communities of people they will never meet in real life that they don't bother to get out and interact with their actual community. Most people don't even know their neighbors.
Something that really struck me when I was reading Friedman's book was the story about the soldier who was killed in Iraq and his family's failed attempt to gain access to his Yahoo! email. The famliy wanted something of their son, in his own words, to remember him by. If we were still in the era of letter-writing, his personal letters and papers would have been given to his family, but with email, everything is just sort of "out there" in cyberspace. Friedman writes, "As we get rid of more and more paper and communicate through more and more digitzed formats, you better sort out before you die, and include in your will, to whom, if anyone, you want to leave your bits." And it just makes me think about how much what we know about history comes from the written record people have left behind, experiences that were captured in letters and journals. Will we have that in the future, the same kind of graphic, first-hand account of historical events? Will we know as much about the men dying in Iraq as we do about our grandfathers who fought in WWII? I suppose that there are those who would say that it doesn't really matter. Email or a paper letter doesn't make any difference, but I fear that we may be losing something without really realizing it. It's kind of sad.
I still really want an ipod, though ;-)
After exactly one day, this course (computers and the study of English, for anyone random that might be reading my blog--it's here for the entire world to see afterall, isn't it?) already has me thinking quite deeply, and about some rather uncomfortable subject matter. Technology, computers, the internet, a fundamental shift in the world and all society as we know it, the collapse of the once all-poweful United States--heavy, right? I guess that it's mostly Friedman's book that has given me food for thought, but it's also the questions and comments that have been generated in our class discussion and in our class blog. Truthfully, the majority of what I've read and been thinking about in connection to this class scares the crap out of me. I guess I'm a traditionalist and I'm not crazy about change, so I view the technological revolution just getting underway with more trepidation than excitement, more foreboding than hope. I've always been a "glass is half empty" kind of girl, and so I see technology being used by the government in a very negative, Big Brother way (wiretapping is the least of it, folks), or by al-Qaeda in a "Death to America" kind of way. Maybe because I just watched V for Vendetta the other night (highly recommended, by the way), or maybe because I watch the news once in a while.
Of course, I am not a complete cynic or the next Unabomber. There are many positive aspects of technology that even I acknowledge and embrace. I love being able to keep in touch with friends and relatives who are scattered throughout the country. I get to talk to them about both the important and mundane, see pictures of their homes, kids and pets. This kind of contact would be much more difficult without my computer. Probably impossible, actually, considering how lazy I am. Then there's one of my most favorite modern conveniences, the DVR. For someone who loves TV a little too much but is rarely home in the evening, the DVR is the perfect way to maintain that glamorous couch-potato lifestyle. And where would any of us be without our cell phones, particularly when driving a not-too-reliable car alone at night?
I guess what I'm getting at (rambling about?) is that I have pretty conflicted feelings about technology and how important it's become. In some ways I feel like it's just as isolating as it is connecting. Sure, you can have thousands of "friends" on your myspace account and innumerable people can comment on your blog, but how meaningful is that? Can it take the place of real, intimate, face-to-face conversation? I feel like people are so wrapped up in cyber communities of people they will never meet in real life that they don't bother to get out and interact with their actual community. Most people don't even know their neighbors.
Something that really struck me when I was reading Friedman's book was the story about the soldier who was killed in Iraq and his family's failed attempt to gain access to his Yahoo! email. The famliy wanted something of their son, in his own words, to remember him by. If we were still in the era of letter-writing, his personal letters and papers would have been given to his family, but with email, everything is just sort of "out there" in cyberspace. Friedman writes, "As we get rid of more and more paper and communicate through more and more digitzed formats, you better sort out before you die, and include in your will, to whom, if anyone, you want to leave your bits." And it just makes me think about how much what we know about history comes from the written record people have left behind, experiences that were captured in letters and journals. Will we have that in the future, the same kind of graphic, first-hand account of historical events? Will we know as much about the men dying in Iraq as we do about our grandfathers who fought in WWII? I suppose that there are those who would say that it doesn't really matter. Email or a paper letter doesn't make any difference, but I fear that we may be losing something without really realizing it. It's kind of sad.
I still really want an ipod, though ;-)
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