Reflection Blog

CEP 416 was my first experience with an online class. Before I registered my dad told me it wasn't a good idea for me, and he was right because he knows me all too well. I am a major procrastinator and this was not helped by indefinite deadlines. This class was not what I expected, but I did learn a few valuable things. I learned about some new technologies that I will definitely be able to use in my classroom, but I was disappointed overall with this class. The labs were to just go to websites and watch their tutorials, and I feel like thats not it should have been. I wish there had been more discussions about actual classroom use rather than just how to use these applications. I also felt very awkward writing this blog the whole semester, I'm not someone who loves to talk about what I think and I definitely don't enjoy putting my thoughts on the internet. I feel like I am bashing this class and thats not what I want to do, because a lot of the information was important. I think the biggest emotion I feel about this class is disappointment, disappointment in myself for the grade I am going to recieve, disappointed that I proved my dad right, and disappointed in overall content of the course.
The biggest thing I learned was that technology can be a great supplement to learning, but I don't think it should be the only avenue. Not having a face-to-face connection with the instructor made me feel less responsible for my work, because I don't have to see them everyweek and they can't put a face to my work. This hurt the time I spent working on assignments and the quality of assignments I turned in. I think I come away from this class knowing just how important it is to make a connection with my students and let them know they are accountable for the work the hand in.

My Highlights Video

http://screencast.com/t/sdUWDld7

This video is just a highlight of a few things I have learned and made throughout the semester, enjoy!

Movies in the Classroom

I know that movies are not always useful in classrooms, but I think they are a technology that teachers don't take advantage of. They watch movies to fill time, and often the movies don't involve learning. I think there are many movies out there that have content and are enjoyable for students.

Wikispaces

This class was my first experiences ever with wiki, so creating my own was challenging to say the least. There are a lot of differences between blogs,  weebly and wikispaces. All of these applications involve interacting with others on the internet, and in that sense there is a place for all of them in a classroom. The biggest difference between a wiki and blog is that with a blog you are writing and others can comment on your posts, but no one can actually change what you have written. With a wiki you are working with a group of people to create and share information. I don't see many similarities between weebly and wiki spaces, because weebly is again your own personal website, where you are the sole producers of the content published. Because of these differences all three can be used in a classroom, but they all have very different roles.

As at teacher I can not see myself using wiki instead of a weebly to communicate about things happening in the classroom, but I can see it being used by students. Most people don't like working in groups, but I think using a wiki can solve a lot of the problems involved in group work. Its a great place for students to share information with each other and work together to produce something they can all be proud of. I think it might be a little advanced for elementary school, but in middle school and high school I can think of many projects that could be done using a wiki.

Google Docs

This was my first time ever using Google Docs and after I tried it I found it weird that it hasn't been utilized in any of my college classes. So far in the semester this is the most useful technology I have learned about this semester, and there are SO many ways it could be used in a classroom. I think you could begin using it in 3rd grade, when students are really getting into writing complete stories or essays. I remember in 3rd grade we were assigned an animal and had to write a report about them, I had otters and to this day I still know a lot about them. I think this would be a great way to integrate google docs in the classroom. Then students can work on them at school and home, and peer revision is simplified. Students would be put into groups based on their animals similarities and then those students would help revise your work. The way google docs makes documents so portable is great for students and teachers. Students could submit their work from the docs, and there's no paper wasted. I also think it could be used to get parents involved with their students writing. They can look at the document at work or home. I think using parents as peer revisers can be helpful. Overall this is an application that will simplify any writing activity in the classroom.

Tikatok

This week I decided to learn more about the online application Tikatok. With Tikatok you can publish your own book online in three easy steps. 1:Write your story, 2:Add pictures, 3:Order your book. Because the website is easy to navigate and use this application could be used for almost any grade. Another aspect that makes this appropriate for younger students is that the website has a section called "Story Sparks", this section has subjects for stories and a little bit of a theme to help the child write their own story. This application could be used in almost any writing assignment, students could make poetry books, cartoon books or even just stories of their own.

There are some major advantages and disadvantages to using this website in a classroom. One advantage is that when a child has finished a book they will have a quality product they are proud of and can take home to keep. This is also a new and interesting way to incorporate technology in a writing assignment. I think the biggest disadvantage is the price of the books. The least expensive book is 18$, and that is too much to ask for from parents. I also don't think there would be room in any classroom budget to afford these books. Another disadvantage is that with the "Story Sparks" students may not be giving all of their effort if the project is already started for them. Overall I think this program would be great to use for a writing assignment if we could find the means to pay for it, otherwise it would be disappointing to work on it and not get to see the final project. I'm going to look for a site that has a similar function, but costs less.

Waiting for "Superman"

Last night I was reading a really interesting article in the New York Times (http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2011/03/06/why-blame-the-teachers?ref=education) and one of the authors mentioned the movie "Waiting for "Superman"". I had never heard of this movie, and then I felt dumb for being out of the loop. But I quickly found a place where I could watch it online. Although I know you must take documentaries with a grain of salt, this movie gave me a lot to think about. One of the major things I couldn't understand was why we don't talk about these issues in any of my education classes! I know I am only a junior, but I hope MSU will educate us on unions and every other option we have out there in terms of schools to teach at and teaching philosophies that are out there. The movie focused on children in inner-city schools entering raffles to be accepted into charter schools in their area, because the public school they would be moving to was not up to anyones educational standard. By the end of the movie only two of the children are accepted and the other children must make due with the "failure factories" they are placed in. I think the charter school system seems like a good idea, but I haven't been educated on what them. This movie was the first time I gained any information on them. Why hasn't this been brought up before? I just can't believe this and I feel like the college of ed. has failed me in this area. I want to learn about these different options and I especially want to learn about my options with my union choices or anything about the teachers union really. But more on the union issue later...