Bye for Now...

The end is Finally here! It was a pleasure having you all in class with me. I wish everyone luck with their finals, future classes, and in your classroom when you make it their! So goodbye for now...

Things I have learned!

Blogging, Podcast, Videocast, Skype, igoogle, Foliotek, Google Gadgets, Picasa, Twitter, Delicious, iTunes, ACCESS, ALEX, and the use of html tag modifiers are just a few things I learned this semester. We covered so much this semester. I enjoyed everything I learned, I don't recall being bored at all. I have no regrets about anything I learned in this class. I did get excited every time we skyped someone. Technology is so powerful. I can say I'm technologically literate now thanks to Dr. Strange! Thx for everything!

Project 6 Personal Learning Network

Before this class I had never heard of a Personal Learning Network, but thanks to Dr. Strange I had the opportunity to create one. I established my PLN through Blogspot.com, Facebook, Twitter, and Delicious. MY most used PLN is blogger. Through Blogger I have had a chance to chat with Mr. Needleman, Dorthy and her class from New Zealand, Jabiz Raisdana (Kaia's father), etc. I've even got a chance to view my classmates reactions and comment on them. Had I not taken this class I would have never experienced these exciting opportunities or known the power of blogging. Through Facebook I've left messages on classmates profiles pertaining to school work, posted a question and recieved feedback instantly, I'm even a friend of my art teacher Dr. Baggett. Thank you Dr. Strange for giving me the opportunity to create a PLN. I will continue to develope my PLN after this class.

Things Teachers Should and Shouldn't Do

After viewing these two list by Doug Johnson Seven Stupid Mistakes and 7 Brilliant Things Teachers do with Technology, and a list of New Classroom rules by Education Innovation. I thought the two most important out of the three list were. Ignoring the intrinsic interest of tech use in today's kids and thinking Technology in schools will go away.
I think both of those are two really stupid mistakes to make. If your student's love technology why not incorporate into your classroom to catch their attention and keep them focused. Another thing is technology in general. People please wake up it's not going anywhere any time soon. Actually it's growing faster and faster by the day! You can either get with the program or get left far behind!

Believing, Inventing and Implementing Technological Pedagogies

I think Anthony Capps' did a great job at breaking down what Miller was trying to say. He went above and beyond in this blog Click here to see, and I really enjoyed reading it.

My Presentation

At The Teacher's Desk

I found At The Teacher's Desk to be a interesting, but useful website. On this website teachers experiment in professional learning, collaborate and share ideas.

I will keep this website in mind when I enter the teaching world. Hopefully I can get solutions to my problems by participating in this blog, or maybe I can help someone else. Thanks for sharing this website with us Dr. Strange, I look forward to using it!

Toward A New Future of Whatever- Michael Wesch

I really enjoyed watching this video by Micheal Wesch. I didn't know "whatever" could have so many meanings. I can honestly say I use "whatever" in all three ways: the 60's way, the 90's way, and in the future way. It depends on the situation as to how I use the word whatever. For instance if your talking about something I could care less about, I would probably use the 90"s whatever. If I was working on something as a team and the other person idea sounds better, then I would use the 60's whatever. But as a student ready to start my career, I will do whatever it takes by whatever means necessary to complete school successfully, therefore I am using the the future way of whatever.

Blogging

Blogging was a good experience for all of us, having a blog to post on different subjects really had us go into depth about certain topics and blogging also introduce us to new things like podcasting and videocast. The good thing about blogging is that you have the opportunity to view your classmates blogs and get their opinion especially if both of you are discussing the same topic.

Blogging was new to me. This EDM310 class blog was my first experience with blogging. Other things that could be change is to have the directions more simple, sometimes it was kind of confusing finding the correct location of the topic. Also one post a week would be great!

Over all blogging was fun to me and I am thinking about continuing making post to my blogs after this class. It was a fun experience and I hope you continue this in your teaching. This is something great for future teachers.

Access

I think Access (Alabama Connecting Classrooms, Educators, and Students Statewide) is a wonderful distant learning program for Alabama schools. Access offers advanced diploma courses, additional courses that a lot of schools do not offer, advanced placement courses, and remediation courses. Distant Learning is where instructors and students can be in two different places at two different times and communicate through technology.

I think Access is a good idea, and the answer to a lot of problems in Alabama school systems. I don't think any child should be denied the opportunity to take a class just because it's not offered at their school. Through Access a student will be able to take any class they desire! Access can and will connect students across the state, or anywhere in the world through technology. Access seems like a step in the right direction and the missing puzzle piece to Alabama schools.

Alabama Learning Exchange

Alex is a website created by the Alabama State Department of Education. This website can be very useful and can be used as a resource for parents, teachers, students, etc. The Alabama Learning Exchange provides everyone access to know whats going on in the public school system. I think I will take advantage of Alex being that my daughter will be starting public school in two years.

I look forward to using Alex as a tool in my classroom as a future teacher. I will use Alex to make sure I am teaching my students everything they need to know according to state standards, plus much more. I think Alex is going to be a wonderful source to use in my classroom for guidance, additional teaching strategies, lesson plans and much more.

Kaia

Wow! This is an amazing story about Kaia and her dad and how they connected to the world unexpectedly. Picture's and blogs that they used to share with family and friends turned out to be a learning experience for Mr. Chamberlain class. Click here to see.

I can only imagine the feelings Mr. Jabiz Raisdana are feeling right now. I know if it was my daughter I would amazed, excited, nervous, and scared all at the same time. I know he was very excited when he received the vociethread and video from a group of eight graders in Missouri!

Now I see the power of Twitter and how it can be used as a personal learning network. Although I've been told Twitter could be used as a learning tool, honestly I just didn't see the relevance until now. Now I'm going to start using my twitter page on a regular basis.

Thanks to Mr. Raisdana, I will be more cautious about the amount of hours my daughter spend inside the house. I will be sure she spends more time outside playing and exploring! We will see where here curiosity takes her.

New Media Literacies

After the viewing this video NML staff08's channel, I believe everyone should know the new media literacies to keep up with whats going on in the world today. If you don't know some NML's you will not have the slightest idea as to operate internet, cellphones, camera's, etc. You probably could not even set up a myspace, facebook, or twitter page, which can be some useful sources for communication with people all of the world at no cost to you.

I posses 5 out of the 11 media literacies, but I plan to master by them all before long by practicing. I believe knowing media literacies will make me a better individual and open up more opportunities for myself as a future professional. Everything is so different now then it was years ago, so if you want to stand out practice your media literacies!

Networked Student

I just watched a video called, "The Networked Student". This was a very interesting video about a student who attends an American Psychology class three days a week, two days online that has no book. He learns by building his own personal learning network, much like the one we are suppose to be building for EDM310.

Overall I think this could be a great learning experience for students who are independent learners. However I think the class can and will be disaster for students who need lectures and guidance. I'm not really sure if I would want to take or teach a class like this. This class is a little more than advanced to me!

The question at hand is, "why does the networked student need a teacher?" Networked students need teachers for a lot of reasons. They need their teachers to show them how to build their personal learning network, for guidance when their stuck, and to show them how to manage all the material they find and help them keep it organized. Like I said earlier, I think this could be a wonderful learning experience for some students and a nightmare for others.

This is How we Dream

I thought both of the video's were very interesting. " This is how we dream Part 1 and Part 2." He was trying to make an important point that you no longer have to search newspapers or go to the library to do research. All the information you need can be found on the internet, or as he says, " all the riches of the world as far as research are stored on the web."

He also discussed in these videos about his love for books and how he grew up around books. He even wrote a book that you can now buy on Amazon for 59 cents, but you can read it on the web for free. The world is changing drastically! People are no longer reading and writing, they are listening and watching. I know I would much rather have visual information if I had a choice out of seeing and reading.

I think the web is very useful. You can do so many things on the web as far as research, films, podcast, and so much more. You can even earn a degree online without ever stepping foot into a classroom. I think it is very important for the world to become technological literate, not just students and teachers. I think being technologically literate is an advantage and can open up a world of opportunities.

Comment for kids week 5 10/7

Did you know that Feb 23rd was a holiday? Well you do now it's,"Dance Your Heart Out Day." I really enjoyed commenting on this blog. I thought it was cute how the student made up their own holiday doing something they like to do... Dancing!

Comments for kids week 5 9/30

I just commented on a short blog welcoming me to rocker108's blog. I'm glad I got a chance to comment on this blog to encourage the student to keep up the good work!

Comment for kids week 4

Have you ever heard of, "The Little Red Riding Hood"? If so, what about her brother, "Big Blue Riding Cap". I just commented on a kid retelling the story of, "The Little Red Riding Hood". I really enjoyed reading and commenting on this blog post.

iPods in Instruction

I viewed this web page Duke iPods. The page discussed the following: The academic uses of iPods, the benefit of academic iPod use, the problems incountered with academic iPod use, and Institutional impacts of the iPod project. I found that the iPod could be very useful if used correctly, but could be a headache if not.

Me personally, I think I would love to use iPods in instruction here at South Alabama. I understand that learning how to use iPods in instruction could be a challenge at first, but the end result would be rewarding. Just think you could listen to lectures over and over, especially the difficult portions you may have problems with.

I do think some students would abuse the use of recorded lectures. Either the students would sleep through lectures,(in class or in the bed) or they would simply just cut class, because they know they could listen to the lectures later at their conveince. Overall I like the idea of using iPods in instruction, but as we see there are pro's and con's to it as there are pro's and con's to everything. Just make sure the pros' outweigh the con's!

iTunes U

After I watched the presentation about iTunes U Don't Waste Your Time, I realized their is so much more to iTunes than music and movies. It has audio and video content that you can take wherever you like on your iPod or iPhone. Everything in iTunes U comes from reliable resouces and the information is free.

To me iTunes is like a University that you can attend for free and learn about any subject matter that maybe interesting to you. You do not have to go a hour long class and listen to lectures to hear this information. All you have to do is download to your iPhone or iPod and listen to the podcast whenever and where ever it's convienient for you. I thing iTunes U is a very good website that a lot of people should take advantage of. I know I will!

An iPhone gets Zipcar drivers on their way!

I visited this website and was shocked to see what all the iPhone can do. I knew it was famous for navigation, games, and roadside assistance. I had no idea it could lock and unlock a car and start the engine. This makes you wonder what will the next iPhone be capable of doing?

I don't think people really understand how important it is to keep up with the latest technology. The world is advancing in technology with or without you. I must admit I was not a big fan of technology until I started taking EDM310, but the more I find out about technology the more I want to know and learn. I am very grateful for having to take this class!

At The Teacher's Desk

I really enjoyed reading Mr. Mcclung's post! I must admit I'm so nervous of how my first year of teaching is going to be. Actually I'm terrified, nervous, excited and anxious all at the same time. I really don't know what to expect, because I know when you get into a classroom all by yourself it's a different ball game than student teaching. I'm also told there's nothing you can do to prepare yourself for this. Therefore I'll have to deal with the situation when it arrives.

I agree with Mr. Mcclung when he said you need to focus on our student's and not on yourself! You have to learn how to read your student's and provide their needs. Show them that you care about them and it's not all about a paycheck! You have to know how to communicate and be flexible with your student's. Last but not least don't set the bar to high for your student's and set them up for failure, let them set the bar themselves.

Can Wikipedia be Trusted?

I don't think Wikipedia can be trusted source for information. This bothers me because I have always used this site to look up information that I needed for class or some research paper. I had no idea that it could be edited by anyone at anytime. I can say from here on out I wont being using Wikipedia to look up any valuable information until they get some kind of security on the site.

I really can't faul Wal-mart, Dieblod, or anyone else for going into Wikipedia doctoring their images so they won't look as bad especially if what is wrote could tarnish their future. I probably would do the same thing if I was in their shoes. Who wouldn't, it's not like it illegal.

Comments for kids week 3

I just finished commenting on Studamyer, Logan, and Ahsin retelling of the story, "The Lion and The Mouse 2." These kids did a very good job! I encouraged them to keep up the good work!

Comments for kids week 2

I just finished commenting on Alexis's blog. He had some really awesome pictures he made from this website called befunky.com. When I get some free time I really plan on visiting this website and making my own pictures.

Angel Marial Dixon

Did You Know 4.0

This video, "Did You Know 4.0 has once again shocked me with it's interesting facts. I'm not surprised because the world is changing drastically everyday, and technology is playing a huge role in it. I wonder what the world would be like to years from now. Will everything be operated by computers and technology? If so I can sure say I want be surprised!!

Randy Paush's Last Lecture

I enjoyed this inspirational yet long video. Mr Paush is a very intelligent man who is living everyday like his last. He's a mot just a professor he's a motivator that makes you want to succeed. His talk was about persuing your childhood dreams. Anyone can be almost anything they want to as long as they set their mind to it, and if you can't be it you can learn from it.

One of the things he said in this video that really caught my attention was," brick walls are there for a reason; they let is prove how badly we want things." I can relate to that phrase so much. Prior to coming to the University of South Alabama I went to Bishop State where I was taking up physical therapy assistant. It wasn't something I wanted to do, it was something my parents wanted me to do. I was in the PTA program and when the work load picked up I lost interest, not because I was dumb, but because it wasn't something I wanted to do. That's the brick wall Mr. Paush was talking about!

Is It Okay To Be A Technologically Illiterate Teacher?

Wow!!! I must admit I am speechless with Mr. Fisch and how he was so blunt about his opinion on teachers who are not technologically literate. I do agree to him to a certain extinct, but I don't agree that someone is smarter than the next person because they are not technologically literate. I mean we have some older doctors that I'm pretty sure is not up with the latest technology. I think technology is quicker not better. I know it may be a lot of people who may disagree with me, but everyone is entitled to their own opinion.

As for me, I'm not up with the latest technology, but I want to learn for the simple fact I think it's going to be beneficial for my students. What I'm not going to do is criticize or step on anyone else toes for not wanting to learn. Like Mrs. Hines stated, " technology is useless without good teaching." There are effective teachers that have been teaching for years without technology impacting thousands of students lives, so if technology is not what floats their boat so be it!

"It's Not About the Technology" by Kelly Hines

I agree with Mrs. Hines about a lot the things she stated in her blog. Just because you have completed a specialized teacher preparation program doesn't mean you've learned everything you will need to know to be a successful teacher. You must be prepared to go above and beyond to reach your students. You must fine ways to keep them interested in learning, because most kids see school as something they are forced to participate in by their parents anyway.

Mrs Hines also stated, "technology is useless without good teaching." I strongly agree with this. I do not want a teacher who's going to teach me through power points or video's. I want a teacher that's capable of teaching me the material I need to know and if they need to incorporate technology in there lesson to make me understand better then that's fine. I mean if your going to school just to teach through power points, why are you going to school, anyone can do that!

Micheal Welsch: A Vision of Students Today

This documentary by Micheal Welsch is very true and captures my college experiences. I have bought so many books that I have never opened more once or twice. Some classes are so crowded that the teachers don't know hardly any of there students. Needless to say the students may not know them either. Most of the time I just know the time, subject, and place I suppose to meet for class.

Technology is not used in most of the classrooms. This bothers me because people are coming up with new technology everyday. As far as being a teacher, you should try to incorporate technology into your classroom to capture your students attention and keep them engaged in learning. Because I know when im sitting in a boring classroom listening to lectures im there physically but not mentally. Think about if your students have access to a computer or phone, I will say 8/10 are not paying attention to you.

Comments For Kids

I enjoyed listening to the students retail there version of The Little Red Riding Hood. It was a great opportunity to see how teachers are teaching all around the world, and incorporating new technology into the classroom. It also gave me a chance to encourage the students to keep up the good work. I think encouragement engages students in learning and keep them focused!

Last Summer Podcast

I'm not the one to criticize, so let me start off by saying all the podcast from last summer were descent. While listening to the podcast there was some room for improvement. During the some of the podcast some people sounded like they were reading straight from their paper with no prior knowledge of what they were talking about. Then you had some people who sounded like they had rehearsed their part like they were getting ready to give a speech. What I mean is they didn't sound natural at all.

From my understanding a podcast should sound very lively. You should do your research on your topic until you fully understand whats going on so you can podcast about it. I think one of the biggest mistakes by some of the students last semester was they didn't really understand the information. I don't think you should try to inform anyone about a topic if you don't understand whats going on yourself. Lastly I think I was privileged to listen to the podcast from last semester so hopefully I don''t make some of the same mistakes.

I must admit, I was not a big fan of podcast, nor am I up with the latest technology because I hate change, but I've found more pro's than con's with using podcast. Especially if you have some important information you would like to share with the world. I think it is one of the most effective way to interact with people. The thing that fascinates me the most is that you can talk to numerous of people all around the world in seconds

Also I found podcast to be a very effective tool for teachers. I like the idea that it gives parents a chance to see whats going on in there child's classroom. That way there will be no more wondering what's going on in the classroom they will actually know! It's also offers distant learning opportunities for students who are at home sick and can't be in the classroom. That way the student won't feel so or overwhelmed after missing a day or two of school work, or try to come to school sick just so they don't get behind.

Video in the Classroom Introduction

I found this to be a very creative video. Mr. Needleman found ways to increase his students reading and writing skills. I think Mr. Needleman is a very effective teacher because he is going above and beyond to impact his students lives. When I start teaching I hope I can find ways to impact my student lives also.

Checking out podcast

After listening to a couple podcast, I realized they were not that boring. They kind of sounded like a radio station or an interview on television. Podcast are very informative and gives you a great deal of information that is useful for teachers, students, parents, etc. The publishers of these podcast keep you updated on the latest classroom tips as well as tips to help with your everyday life.

The first podcast I listened to was, "Smart Board Lessons". It was hard for me to focus on what they were saying at first, then I paused a minute to listen to Podcast #130 (Peer Coaching). Ben and Joan gave some important tips about using Firefox 3.0 and how it had improved from Firefox 2.0. What caught my attention was when they said Firefox 3.0 has an option to expand the text or image to help the students in the back of the class be able to view the screen and participate in the classroom activity. This was very important to me because I know how I struggled with my vision as a student in the back of the classroom. I could not see the screen to save my life.

The "Kidcast" podcast was not as interesting to me. I don't know if it was because he didn't have a co-host or what. The podcast did give you some helpful information about Podcast and Video cast. After listening to two of more podcast I learned that podcast can be useful for a lot of different things. I believe podcast is a great addition to the wonderful world of teaching and will get better with time.

In conclusion I don't really know if I will use pod casting in my teaching days because I'm not that good with computers, but I do think it's a great tool to use to communicate with different teachers all around the world. I do think I will continue to subscribe to different educational podcast and take plenty of notes!

Ken Robinson says school kill creativity

I found this video to be very humorous but true. I definitely agree with Mr. Robinson when he says school kills creativity. They want every student to be functioning on the same level. I think this handicaps our advance kids and set our below the average students up for failure. This also raises the question, why would you want everybody on the same level. Everybody is not going to be doctors, or lawyers lets just face that.

Public schools always try to dictate whats correct or appropriate in the classroom. Who is to say whats correct and what the students should and shouldn't be doing or learning? I think that they should just let the students do what they know best and strive for success, no matter if it's in art, math, music, science, or language arts and stop criticizing and stigmatizing people for what they are good at.

Vicki Davis: Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts

I strongly agree with this video. I believe I would not be as lost as I am now with this class if I would have had taken a class like the one on this video when I was younger. I believe technology plays an important role in education. Not only is Vicki Davis is letting her students use the latest technology and software, but she is letting them communicate with different students all over the world.

Mr. Winkle Wakes

I think this video was kinda cute. It reminds me of our elders who are a lot like Mr. Winkle. They are so afraid of new technologies. Most of them avoid them as much as possible. Half of the elders in society today do not even know who to text message on a cell phone, need less to say use a computer.

This video makes you think. How will society differ 100 years from now? It's kinda scary to even think about it. Will we have computers doing everything? One thing about it, no matter how technologies have changed in office and hospital buildings, it has pretty much stayed the same in the classroom. Same old teacher, students, lecture, pencil, and paper to me. I don't know if this is a good or bad thing. Should our kids be learning how to use these new technologies. There going to have to learn one day, why not now. I do I hope I can keep up with most of the new technologies so I don't wake up feeling like Mr. Winkle!

Did You Know?

This video was very interesting to me. It certainly raises your awareness about everything going on in the world around you .A lot of technologies are advancing by the minute. It also sucks that a lot of the things I learned my freshman year is now outdated. and now there talking about inventing this super computer that is way smarter than a human being. Pretty soon there will not be any jobs, because they will have computers doing them all.

This video was also scary to me because it stated,"China will be the number one English speaking country in the world." It also stated,"25% of India population with the highest IQ's is greater than the population of the United States." What does this all mean? Is the U.S. that far behind? I mean how can another country speak our language that we have been speaking all our lives better than we can. This video is not just scary its crazy. I can honestly say the title fits the video perfectly, because half of the video, I didn't know.

About Me!!!

Welcome to my blog! My name is Angel Dixon and I am a 23year old mother. I have one daughter name Madison Cooley and she is the joy of my life! I attend the University of South Alabama were I'm majoring in Elementary Education. I love kids and enjoy working with them, so I believe I have chosen a great profession. Prior to coming to South Alabama I attended Bishop State Community College were I received an associates degree in science. I'm currently employed at Walmart as a cashier in the garden center. During my spare time I love to travel and spend time with my family and friends. Thanks for visiting and I hope you enjoy my blog!