Final Post Reflection

Course Reflection

This course has taught me a lot about technology and great ways I can use it in the classroom. I know how to blog, make instructional videos, record sound, create questionaires, use google docs, and so much more. The part I enjoyed the most about the class was getting to see all my peers work and blogs and work of teachers and students all around the world. Technology has opened so many doors for education we would be crazy not to utilize them. I think that my classroom will definitely benefit from me taking this course I have learned about so many tools that I can use to make my classroom fun and up to date with the world around us. Using things like blogging and learning to really use the smartboards are two of the things I will use the most!

I think that it is so important for teachers to use all the tools that are available and this class has definitely got me started in learning some of the tools that are out there. I have learned that you can learn a lot from working with other people and that when it comes to technology people will always surprise you and you will also surprise yourself. I learned that I still have a lot of learning to do and I'm excited to learn more. Teachers should always be life long learners and if you do not like to learn then you should not be a teacher. Overall I learned a lot and will take what I learned and use it in my classroom in the future.

Future EDM 310 students

Here are a few tips to help get through EDM 310! This class is a challenge. Be prepared to spend many hours on the computer, watch a lot of videos, do a lot of commenting, and a lot of blogging. Get all your assignments done on time because it is very hard to catch up!! Find good people to work with on the first day of class because having a good group of people to work with will be important!!! Coming to the lab helps even if it is not require and don't be afraid to ask questions.

This is a great class where you will learn a lot about technology. You will get to see student and teachers work from all over the world. Having this class will definitely give you great resources that you can take with you into the classroom. Worth the time and effort!!! Hope you do well!!

Final Project

http://marigee817.glogster.com/ginas-edm-310-educational-journey/"Please Click Here To See Full Glog

Teach Someone Project

Record your screencast online

Comments For Teachers 1-6

Comments For Teachers 1-3: At the Teacher's Desk

I really enjoyed reading this blog. It had a lot of great ideas and links to other great blogs. I really enjoyed reading the end of the year reflection the most. I think it is so great for newer teachers to share their experiences with those of us entering or already in education. I will definitely continue to follow this blog well after this assignment. That is what makes blog so great you can learn from people that have much more experience than you. Overall just a great blog with great resources.

hbhinton said...

Hi my name is Hillery,
I found your post really interesting. I think technology will definitely help our schools to survive as times get tougher. Online classes are being used more and more frequently throughout all school systems. I do not believe that it will be the answer to all of our problems and some schools will be repurposed again but I think it will help to improve the situation.
I am reading you post as part of an assignment for Dr. Strange's EDM 310 class at the University of South Alabama. I will be doing a summary of my visit to your posts on June 30. You can see this by going to my blog:http://hintonhilleryedm310.blogspot.com/
The class also has a blog: http://edm310.blogspot.com/

June 9, 2010 9:54 PM

Wm Chamberlain said...

Hillary, thanks for the comment. I have never actually taken an online class. I suppose this is becoming more prevalent though. Not sure how I feel about them since I believe strongly that the teacher/student relationship is so important to the learning process.

June 16, 2010 9:47 AM

hbhinton said...

I really enjoy your post. Since I am on my way to becoming a teacher it is inspiring to read what you go through and have learned along the way. It makes me excited to become a teacher! Thanks for sharing! USA EDM 310 student

hbhinton said...

I think that schools can never be totally free. I do not think asking $30.00 is a lot for one year. Then the teacher can get the things the class will truly use in the class. There will always be those that will not be able to pay the fees but I think it is a good idea. USA EDM 310 student

July 21, 2010 5:29 PM

Comments For Teachers 4-6: Jenny's Learning Journey

This was also a great blog! She seems to really use a lot of technology. I love that she shares her experiences throughout the year. She post a lot of different videos and links that I also enjoy. I like that she puts things that she uses in her classroom on the blog and if the worked or did not work. Like the task board just from reading her blog I got a new idea and some do's and don'ts. How great is it to already get some insight before I ever enter the classroom!

hbhinton said...

Hi! I'm from Dr. Strange's EDM 310 Class. Wow this young lady is pretty amazing. I think that she makes wonderful points and it is important for adults to take kids seriously. I think we should learn from anyone who is willing to teach us and students love to teach adults new things. I really enjoyed your post and video! Thanks for sharing!

hbhinton said...

Hi! I'm from Dr. Strange's EDM 310 Class at the University of South Alabama! I really enjoyed reading about your task board. I think that this is a great idea. I also like that you included the things that you have found to work and not work with task boards that way other teachers can learn what might work for their own task boards. I am working on becoming a teacher and the task boards are definitely something I am going to keep in mind.

hbhinton said...

Hi! I'm from Dr. Strange's EDM 310 class! I think it is so great that you share what you have gone through over the year. I think that as a student in education it is great to be able to learn from those already in education. From reading your post it seems that you have came a long way in technology in a short amount of time! I hope to to the same I definitely have a long way to go! Love your blog! thanks for sharing!

Comments For Kid 1-4

Comments For Kids One: Winter has Arrived in 2KM!

This class used a wordle and a poem to express what winter meant to them!!! They did a great job and came up with great responses. It was really great to see how much they used their class blog! My comment is below!

By: Hillery Hinton on July 10, 2010 at 1:39 am

Hi! I also attend the University of South Alabama and am majoring in elementary education! I enjoyed reading your blog! How creative your students are to come up with so many different endings to what winter is. I think that your classes use of technology is great! Thanks for sharing!

Comments For Kids Two: Pt England School

This class used their blog to post work and show everyone what they have done so far. The particular post I read was about Justin Biebier. The class seemed really interested in him and wrote about his life and how his career began. My comment is below.

hbhinton said...

Hi Mary! I'm a student at the University of South Alabama. I really enjoyed reading your post. You know a lot about Justin Biebier! Isn't it great how much technology can change our lives, without YouTube Justin might not have ever gotten his start! Keep up the good work!

July 10, 2010 3:46 AM

Comments For Kids Three: Watching The Grass Grow

The post I commented on Mr. McClung's class was their grass growing competition. They were growing grass and allowed to water the grass in anyway they want in order to get the best outcome. My comment is below.

Hillery Hinton Says:
July 20th, 2010 at 3:32 PM

Hi I am also from Dr. Strange’s EDM 310 Class. I think this a great assignment. Making the grass growing into a competition is a great way to keep the students interested in the project. I am definitely excited to see if anyone changes how they water the grass. Great Idea! Thanks for sharing!

Comment For Kids Four: Mr. Wildeboer 9th grade Science Class

The video I watched used clay models to explain transition metals. It was a really creative way to share what the students learned. My comment is below.

Hillery Hinton

July 21st, 2010 at 7:59 pm

Hi! I’m also from Dr. Strange’s EDM 310 Class. I was assigned to watch the video about transition metals! What a great way to review or teach transition metals. I think that any project that allows students to be creative and do something different is a great way to learn. I have been a student for a long time now and I think that I would really retain the information if I did a project like this project! Keep up the good work!!!

Summary of my Google form

I asked very general questions in my questionnaire. I learned that most of my classmates were education majors and everyone has a different reason for choosing the major. The amount of year everyone has attended USA was spread out pretty evenly. Almost everyone has taken at least one computer class before this one. I asked which class students liked the most so far in their college experience and I got many different answers. This shows how wide range of interest students have.

Then I got off of the general questions and asked more questions about technology like how often they used the Internet and what website everyone visited the most. Almost everyone used the Internet everyday and the most common site that everyone answered was facebook.com. This really makes me realize that everyone uses the Internet and how important social networking really is to everyone. I think that google forms are great ways to collect information and I will definitely use them again in the future.

Post 13

Alba Middle School Students

These students did a great job making videos. What a great way for students to express their feelings about the things going on around them. They not only get to use technology in a great way they get to really use it as an outlet to express themselves. It is so great to see a class use technology like this in the class.

I was really great to see the students interview people around the gulf coast and get their opinions on the oil spill. All the videos were great and really well done. I hope these students keep making videos and using technology and set an example for other classes.

Post 12

Mr. McClung Reflects on Year 2

I always learn a lot from Mr. McClung's post. I think that his reflections probably reflect what most newer teachers go through and it is nice to be able to read and learn from a new teacher. It is hard for me as a student to imagine what it is going to be like my first few years in the classroom but Mr. McClung gives a really good picture. I think that it is good to see him learn from his mistakes and also share his mistakes with everyone.

His post had a large part on adapting to whatever the situation might be and I think that for teachers that it is so important to do this. He had to do this because a lot of things changed from his first year to this second year but I think we have to do this all the time because even if we do not change grades or schools our students change from year to year. We have to change to fit whatever students we have at the times needs. I really liked all the points he made throughout the post. Always a great read!

fablab4teacher's Channel.

Here are the links to the three videos I watched:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PS0slgM4ztY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_JTBb-6Iw4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_0Id8yeIVQ

This is such a great way for students to learn. I have always loved any type of hands on learning and this is such a great way for students to get to really build and manipulate the things they make on the computer. The students in these video really seem to be enjoying using the technology and were really proud of the things they have made. They get to have a good time and learn at the same time can't get much better than that.

In one video their was a member of administration and she discussed the use of the technology in the class. She said that the students in the school struggle in science and math so this program is perfect for helping with those skills. Also in on of the other video the boy using this program was only five! This shows that no matter what level you teach that we have endless possibilities.

My PLN

http://www.netvibes.com/hbhinton#Personal

My PLN is two tabs one for personal and one for school. My personal tab has all the things I need and links that I use often. My school is the same it has a lot of the sites we use for this class and those I use for others. I think that it is a work in progress but will grow as I continue to use technology.

Post 11

Ms. Cassidy

I really enjoyed watching what Ms. Cassidy's class could do with technology. This class proves to anyone with doubts that it does not matter what grade you teach that technology is useful and important. These students used blogs, wikis, and so much more, they can do things that some adults can not even use. Students love using technology it makes everything so much more interesting and fun. There is no reason why a classroom should be boring with all the technology we have to help change that.

I hope to use some of Ms. Cassidy's ideas and techniques. She has been really successful and a real advocate for technology. I think that classroom blogs are so beneficial, parents can see their students success and progress. Also the students made it clear how much they enjoyed the blogs and other tools. One thing that I never really thought that much about was comments. I mean we have to comment on everything and I learn from the feedback but I never thought about how much a first grader would enjoy getting a comment on their work! I learned a lot from Ms. Cassidy and hope to have a classroom that uses technology often.

Interview discussion

Post 10

PLN

This 7th grader's PLN was impressive. She did such a great job and was really using it for her class. I loved that as time went on she was finding things that she found interesting and added them to her network. This is such a great way to motivate students to want to learn and discover things about what they are learning. My PLN at this point is not quite as extensive as the one this student has created but she definitely gives anyone making one great ideas. I liked that she keeps her school and personal stuff somewhat separate. Such a great job.

Two Questions that can change your life

This was a short but great video. I loved the question of "Was I better today than yesterday?"

I agree that by asking ourselves this question everyday that we will be better. We need to make sure that we are getting better in life instead of going down or leveling out. We will never reach our peak if we do not know where it is. My sentence was harder to come up with than I thought it would be so it is in future tense, more of what I intend to accomplish. So for now anyways my sentences is, "I will become a great educator that helps to make a difference in my student's lives."

Smartboard Project

Post 9

Morgan Bayda and Dan Brown

My college experience has been a lot like these two students. They both have had teachers that do not know their names, had classes that lecture for hours, teachers that never use the book that is required, and overall just boring. While I have had these classes I have also had some great classes that encourage collaborative learning, made an effort to get to know me, and did more than just lecture. I agree that our systems are going to have to change with rest of the world but I do believe some educators understand and are moving in the right direction.

Both of these former students made very good points about education. I think that it is important for students to be inspired and motivated to want to continue to learn and the mark is being missed. I hate the classes that I have attended where the professor comes in and pretty much say they do not care if you show up it is your grade. I know that we are adults in college and there is a certain level of responsibility but who wants to attend a class where the professor does not even act like they want to be in the class. Overall I enjoyed reading and watching their comments.

ALEX

This is a great resource for teachers. It provides lesson plans, web links, course of study, and many other helpful tools. The lesson plans are great because it breaks them down into different grades and topics. This makes it user friendly for teachers to find any ideas they might need. The course of study is also broken down into grade and subject which makes them easy to find and use.

Anther great aspect of this site is that it has web links and a podcast gallery. So this is a great way for teachers to find extra information to incorporate into their lessons. Its just a great collaborative site for teachers to be able to share and find great resources.

Vocaroo Recording

Thirteen Original Colonies Timeline

Post 8

What I Have Learned This Year

This is such a great article for new teachers and for those of us aspiring to be teachers. I think that it is good for us to be able to read what other first year teachers go through. We can learn from others experiences and learn from them. He makes such great points about communication and listening to your students. I am not a teacher yet but I know from being a student that I have had a lot of teachers that I never had a relationship with and would have respected them more if they did try a little harder to listen to what me and my peer had to say.

Another part of the post that I found interesting was we he talked about being flexible. I know that I am going to have to learn this the hard way because I already like things to go a certain way. Overall I really enjoyed reading what this teacher had to say about his experience and am glad that he shared.

Podcast Project

Post 7

The last speech Randy Pausch

This was such an inspiring speech. He made me really go back and think about all my childhood dreams. He has accomplished so much throughout his life and really inspires you to want to accomplish all your goals. He also gives great advice on how to accomplish them. Some of the things that stuck out for me was when he talked about his football dreams and the experiences he gained from not accomplishing the dream and how much he learned.

The things his students were able to achieve through his class was amazing. He really gave them the freedom to be creative. He made class fun for his students. Also his class was project based and the masters program he helped create was also project based. These are great techniques because I think that students respond well to a class that is not traditional and gives them the space to really explore what they are capable.

I really liked his positive outlook on everything. The brick walls were something that everyone can relate to, we have all met them in some point in our lives. I think that failures make you stronger and agree that brick walls are put there to make the people who really want it to work hard and stop those that do not.

I also liked the point he made about helping others and focusing on other beside yourself. I think that we have to remember others and those that have helped us along the way. He gave a great example for us to follow. He was a great speaker and made a wonderful last speech.

Post 6

Watch Richard Miller: This Is How We Dream

Technology surprises me more and more everyday. With every video I watch I become more aware of how much there is to learn. I think that technology has definitely affected the way students write. I know that I never write papers without using some for of technology. I mean research papers can be done solely on the Internet. I think that as future teacher we have to be prepared for our students to write with multimedia because that is the direction classrooms are taking. I am definitely not prepared right now but it will be something that I will begin learning about so when the time comes I can help my students use the technology.

Students stay so far ahead that I definitely think that students will be able to use multimedia to write. The video showed more advance ways of writing with multimedia than I have ever used but we have already come so far from the pencil and paper ways of the past that I am sure that me and my students will be able to use this in our writing in the future.

I think that the video was a really great example at tying in so many things to make a great piece. Making a timeline with videos and links to so much information is such a great idea. It makes it so easy for anyone to share a vast amount of information with so many people. I am excited to learn more and am sure that I will see more and more of it in the future.

Watch The Networked Student by Wendy Drexler

This was a great video because it is so true. I think that we forget how connected students are and how this affects students work. Students have so much access to information, the technology provide a way for us to be connected with millions of people at just about any time of any day.

This also goes into the classroom, teachers have to find way to use the technology that students have access to because there is no way to keep them from it and we should utilize any tool we have. I think that the video was also correct in its reasons why these students need a teacher even though they are so connected. They need someone to guide them in the right direction and help them decipher between what is fact and fiction. Technology gives us so much information that it can sometimes be overwhelming teachers can help narrow down what students should be looking for. Overall a good video simple and to the point.

Michael Wesch

I really enjoyed watching this video. It was put together so well. I think that the idea of research the word whatever is something that I would have never thought to do. Also we they looked deeper into youtube videos and gave all the insight. I found that really interesting because when I watch a video I never think of all the aspects of the process.

I think that it showed how much we have changed and how much we have not changed. Technology might change a lot from generation to generation but the people have not changed that much. I love that youtube is a way to give people an identity and voice.

Post 5

http://www.teachersnetwork.org/ntny/nychelp/technology/smartbrd.htm

The Smartboard debate

I think that both sides make good arguments. Staton's argument was the weaker of the three to me because his facts were not all that good. He seemed to be venting instead of making a valid argument. While Ferriter made some great points. Both of these blogs pointed out that this was not changing the way teachers taught it was just enhancing the way teacher already teach. Smartboards are still at the front of the room and are made to help teachers give lectures and the same things they do without the boards. Money was also a big theme in both blogs, they both seemed really concerne d that schools were throwing money away on the boards when they could be used for other things the schools need. That you can not buy change.

The other side of the argument list great ways that teachers can use the board in the class. This teacher raves about how much use she gets out of her smartboard. She talks about how much more exciting the smartboards make her lessons even things like reviewing tests. The blog also discusses how many workshops and videos are out there to help you take full advantage of the smartboard. All the blogs make some strong points. The first to make me want to go and take all the boards out of the classroom while the last one makes me excited to learn more.

Chipper And EDM 310 for dummies

Both of the videos were really fun to watch. I think that both were creative ideas and a EDM for dummies should definitely be written. I think that I would like to be in any project that helps other students. I always think its nice when friends prepare me for a class that they have already taken. I think it would be helpful if there were a rate my professor type website but with classes maybe even through video where students could be more informed about the classes they were going to take. Of course there would be draw backs to this because of the negative things that could get passed along but some information is better than none. I think that any kind of resourceful video would be something I like doing.

Short Movie

Post 4

Judy Scharf Podcast Collection

This site gave a lot of useful information about podcast. She gave great ways to use podcast in the class and even gave grading criteria. I think that it is great to have a place like this site to go because it is a great resource for teachers that do not know that much about podcast and want to know more.

I think that podcast are a great way to put information out and make it convenient for people to see and learn. She had great ideas for useful ways to use podcast. Its such an interactive way for students and teachers to learn.

EPN

This site is a collaborative site that brings together many different sites. I think that this is such a great idea, it make podcast easy for teachers and anyone to access. This is a great example of technology and how much it can be used in the classroom and this site makes it easy to use podcast.

The easier it is for teachers and anybody to use the more it will be used. I hope that people can see that sites like these are out there and make it easy to use. This just only enforces that teachers have no excuse not to use technology in the classroom.

Podcast and More

This site gives many ways that students can use their ipods and podcast to study. This site give great ideas for studying tools like learning Spanish and even city guides. Their are endless possibilities to what can be done with podcast.

Studying is another great use for podcast. Students can upload these program onto their ipods and take them anywhere the need to. As teachers we should utilize these programs and use them to our benefit and come up with creative way to include them into our lessons and homework.

The benefits of podcasting in the classroom

I really realized how helpful podcasting could be by watching and reading this site. It really outlines the use of podcasting. Podcasting is so great for long distance learning. I never really thought about how useful it would be for parents also. They can see what their children are doing in the classroom.

Podcasting is a great way for students to get creative. We have seen in other videos how important it is for students to be able to express themselves in different ways and I thing that podcasting is a great way to do that.

Overall from reading and watching all these sites I learned that podcasting is very useful for teachers and students. It is such a great way to share information with a lot of people in a short amount of time. It is technology that can be taken anywhere.

Parents love to know what is going on in their children lives and podcasting is a great way to let them know what is going on. The studying tools that are available for students are endless and if teachers really use the information that is out there it could really make a difference in their classroom.

Post 3

Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please?

I really liked the way that Mr. McLeod presented this information. It really catches your attention and makes you want to continue reading and even go on and read other posts. I think that it is so important to incorporate as much technology as teachers can into the classroom. Those teachers that are against technology are not looking out for their students best interest. Technology is not going anywhere it is growing at a rapid rate and is only going to continue to grow. So all teachers need to be equipping their students with the tools to become successful in the the coming years and without technology it simply can not be done. So those students who are in classrooms that their teachers are taking advantage of technology are definitely going to be on top of those who are not.

As far as what I found out about who Scott McLeod, according to his short bio he is an Associate Professor and Coordinator of the Educational Administration program at Iowa State University. He is also the director of CASTLE. He also was the co-creator of the Did You Know? video. He seems to have a passion for technology in the classroom from what I have read on his blog. I really enjoyed reading his perspective.

The iSchool Initiative

This was a very informative video. I knew that the itouch had a lot of helpful apps but it was interesting to see all the ones that go along with education. I think that this student has a lot of great ideas. I believe that this should definitely be an idea along with many other that schools should be taking into consideration. Our schools need us to start getting smart and come up with solutions to the problems they are facing and I think this would definitely be a step in the right direction.

With that being said I do not believe that this would solve all of out school's problems like this student states but it is a good idea. So many students already own these devices and many others we should utilize them instead of banning them from the classroom. Students would love to come to class and play on an itouch all day and they would be learning while doing it.

The Lost Generation

This was a awesome video I loved the way it was done. It was sad in the beginning before the facts got reversed. It makes you stop and think that we can influence what is going to happen in our generation if we try. We have to want to reverse things and want to make the out generation better than the one before us.

The reversal of the video was a surprise. I really like the way it worked out, the technique had good impact. I think that this was such an great way to get the point across, to see how thing could be if we do not try and reverse things.

Eric Whitaker's Virtual Chorus

Wow! So crazy the things we can do with the Internet now. I would have never thought of being able to put together a chorus of that many people without them ever truly meeting. It is actually pretty mind boggling. It was a great thing to watch and see. It just shows yet again how fast technology grow and how many endless possibilities their are when we try.

Internet gives us so many options that we can use as teachers. It gives us educational tools that would be a shame for them to go to waste. This is just one example of so many things that can be done. I hope this puts into perspective for people how great technology really is.

Blog 2

Michael Wesch: A Vision of Students Today

This video was depressing! It really focused on the negative aspects of college, and I agree with most of the points that it made but not all. I think that while colleges could use changes their is so much more positive to be gained than negative. This video captured some of my college experiences such as the big class sizes and teachers not knowing my name but that was in my freshman and sophomore years of college. Some of the points were things I had never really thought about, like the that some jobs that students will be doing when they graduate have not been invented yet! How crazy is that to think about.

Some things the video could have added to more reflect my experiences are a lot more positive because college is not a negative experience, at least not for me. We might come out in debt, had teachers that will never know us, and some classes we will never use but it is also about friends and experiences that you have along the way. College is such a great time to grow, learn, and really start to express yourself as an individual. So I would have liked to have seen a better representation of both.

"It's Not About the Technology," By Kelly Hines

I really enjoyed reading this post, her ideas were really inspiring and she definitely got me thinking. I have been some what worried because students are so far advance with technology these days and I might not be able to keep up with my class and in turn not be a good teacher. I agree so much that its not about the technology. I feel like if I strive to be the best teacher that I can be then technology will not be the determining factor in whether or not I am a great teacher but will only aid in taking me to the next level in reaching my students. I think that it is so important to always learn new things and use all the resources that we have a our disposal.

Technology can not make a bad teacher a good teacher, but it can make a good teacher better. I think that teachers should have a desire to learn to use technology or any tool that helps to give their students a richer experience. How can a teacher expect their students to have a desire to learn if they do not have a desire themselves. We should be willing to do whatever we need to in order to give our students the tools to be successful in today society.

Karl Fisch: Is It Okay to Be A Technologically Illiterate Teacher?

I think that it is definitely not okay to be technologically illiterate. So many things are done on computers and on the Internet in schools that I do not see how teachers can still be. Most schools do roll and lunch on computers at least. Teachers should not be proud of being technologically illiterate instead they should do something about it. I think in order to be a good teacher you have to find out what works best for your class and I do not believe that this can be achieved with out some technology. Teachers can not be afraid to try new things and strategies just because they do not know everything about it, technology changes everyday nobody knows everything. We can not be scared to fail.

Although I think that all teachers should have some knowledge of technology, I do not believe it is the most important thing. Teachers can be great teacher without technology because they have been for many years. The point is that teachers should want to be technologically literate because our students need us to be.

Gary Hayes Social Media Count

This is a great counter to show just how much technology everyone does use every day. It makes you think about how many messages, e-mails, apps, songs, etc. you buy and use everyday. This is just one way to prove how important it is for teachers to incorporate technology into the classroom, it is everywhere why should the classroom be an exception?

Numbers are such a great way to present information like this because its something that most people do not ever think about. It will be interesting to see what the counter looks like a few years from now. People depend on technology, kind of a little scary to see how fast things go.

Post 1

Did You Know? 3.0

This video was short but full of interesting facts. It really surprised me how quickly technology has changed over time. The comparison of the U.S. and China was eye opening. I think that it is important for everyone to realize how important technology is a

nd how imperative it is to learn all that we can. This video was to show the progress that our country and other countries have made in such a short amount of time.

Numbers are a great way to show progress, people like to see numbers and it really puts things into perspective. This was also kind of scary to see how fast things are change and that they are more than likely going to continue to change. One of the numbers that really affected was the number that discussed how if a student in college used a type of technology their first year that by their third year it would be outdated. So overall it was a good video to watch.

Mr. Winkle Wakes

This video was about an old man waking up after one hundred years. It was a simple video but true. When he went into offices and hospitals they were updated and everyone was using technology but the schools were not. I do not think that I totally agree that schools have not changed at all in the past one hundred years but the changes have definitely been minor compared to other places.

This is a huge problem. Schools should be utilizing technology the most and using every resource that is available to them. Students love to use and work with computers and any other new gadget that is out so why not play to their interest. The more students enjoy the class the more they learn. Lecturing students and using the same old techniques are not going to be effective. Students are constantly changing so our schools should be changing with them.

Sir Ken Robinson: The Importance of Creativity

This video made some great points on fostering creativity and not killing it. One point that the speaker made was that the arts were always at the bottom of importance of schools every where. This is a shame because art, music, dance, and other art programs are great ways for students to express themselves. Not all students learn the same and some need different outlets and these provide them.

My favorite thing that the speaker said throughout the video was that we should treat creativity the same as literacy. I agree with this because I have heard many stories of teachers punishing students for creativity and not showing it any importance. Teachers should not be the reason that students do not go after their dreams of being a dancer, artist, or whatever it is that they want to do, instead we should be one of the people giving them the tools to fulfill those dreams.

Vicki Davis: Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts

This was a nice video to see because this teacher was taking advantage of new technology. She is a great example of how new techniques can be effective and that we do not always have to do the same thing for our students to learn. She lets the students teach and create things on their own. She is not scared of trying things that she does not know everything about and I think that with the constant change in technology that we all should be that way.

I have always found as a student that I do better with subjects that I am interested in so why would my students be any different. I think that finding new ways to present information is a great way to make not so interesting material easier to learn. Why should our students suffer just because we are not up to date on technology, they deserve to get the best education that we can give them. This teacher is a great example of how any teacher can use technology in their classroom.