Today we were so lucky and blessed to have a few guest speakers into our class. We had MAC graduates from Kevin Hankinson in '08, as well as Larry Liu a good friend of mine who also graduated in '08. In addition, Andrea Clyne who graduated in '06 skyped in from Paris, France! In addition, Lauren Fardig who graduated from MAC.
Larry is going to the Dominican Republic to teach at the American School of Santo Domingo. He told us about incorporating technology into his classroom. He utilizes facebook in his classroom! That is completely different than my conception of how to utilize technology in the classroom. He also told me about how he utilizes podcasts in his classroom. He would record his lectures in a podcast for his students to review as well as for people who miss the class. It was really great to know that technology has been successfully integrated before. I hope to follow his example in this way!
Lauren Fardi also gave us the opportunity to ask a few of her students as well as herself questions about technology practice. I asked a question regarding her students' internet accessability in their homes. My concern was centered on how many students do not have access to internet in their homes. This in turn would hinder their ability to engage with integrated technology in the classrooms. Her response really surprised me. She noted that 70% of the students in her school in the Bronx had internet access in their homes, but because of the 30% that did not, she never created strict deadlines with regards to assignments that require the use of the internet. She noted that the most common way for them to access the internet is using their phones! Yet the main issue that she noticed was the lack of technological literacy. Her example was that most of the students knew how to utilize Microsoft Word, but were not inclined to utilize technology further due to a lack of knowledge.
I have a new found passion to impact students' in the form of technological literacy so as they do not fall behind in the economically driven technological world.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Thursday, July 28, 2011
IntaGenerationM
I would like to begin by discussing the "generations". These definitions are taken off of wikipedia:
Generation X: generation born after the Western post World War II baby boom ended genearlly including people born in the 1960s through the late '70s, sometimes as late as the early '80s, usually no later than 1981 or 1982.
Generation Y: members, who are commonly cited as born between 1982 or 1983 to the mid 1990s or early 2000s.
Generation Z: (aka Generation M), the Net Generation, or the Internet Generation. This generation is highly connected, and for the purposes of this post, M refers to Multitasking. "Lifelong use of communications and media technologies such as the World Wide Web, instant messaging, text messaging, MP3 players, mobile phones and YouTube".
I am writing this post right after I recorded my first official podcast, it can be seen here:
"The Wired Life: The Public and Private Spheres of the Gen M Community" by Klapperstuck and Kearns talks about how Gen M has not replaced older formats of media for newer ones but rather that they have added new formats to older ones essentially in a combination. For example, Gem M still watches TV but do so while texting their friends, doing homework on the computer, and using the internet. It is changing the rules of etiquette and of the conception of "rudeness" in terms of members of Gen M being together in the same physical space and yet are connected to others through media sources. This is seen in the example made in the article where two people are sitting in the library not breaking any rules of etiquette or ignoring each other but are texting their other friends and listening to MP3's.
"To those outside of Generation M this may seem either rude or unnecessary."
This quote was extremely interesting to me. Although I may have been born right at the cusp of the ending of Generation Y and the beginning of Generation M, I have definitely assimilated into Generation M's culture. Thus, through this analysis, I am beginning to step into the metaphorical shoes and lenses of my parents and what they see of this new generation that can never seem to pay attention amidst the sea of stimuli.
Another key difference in generations is their perception (and reaction) to privacy. Generation M's attitudes about privacy differ a lot more than the previous generations' attitudes as discussed in the article. Geneneration M is "less concerned about being targeted by advertising and do not feel that ad targeting is a form of invasion, rather that they want 'ads to speak to them' indicating a huge divide.
And the final change is essentially what you are reading right here, right now. Blogs becoming the new diaries and journals. Apparently according to Goodstein's research in 2007, more than half of the blogs are written by teens. Gen M is about creating and sharing t
heir lives online. This is also seen through social activism. An example of this is my voting once a day for Gracehaven Home Inc., a Christian organization that provides shelter and rehabilitation to girls under the age of 18 who have been victims of commercial sexual exploitation, via Facebook on vivint.givesback. This a way that Geneneration M moves from local to global. This is a way for our generation to actively overcome the "apathetic" and "rude" labels that are placed upon us by the older generations.
I will leave you with a quote by Klapperstuck and Kearns, "adults tend to use the Web as a supplement to real-world activities while teenagers tend to ignore the difference between online and offline."
So.. is online life an extension of one's own life or is it a supplement to real-world activities?
Generation X: generation born after the Western post World War II baby boom ended genearlly including people born in the 1960s through the late '70s, sometimes as late as the early '80s, usually no later than 1981 or 1982.
Generation Y: members, who are commonly cited as born between 1982 or 1983 to the mid 1990s or early 2000s.
Generation Z: (aka Generation M), the Net Generation, or the Internet Generation. This generation is highly connected, and for the purposes of this post, M refers to Multitasking. "Lifelong use of communications and media technologies such as the World Wide Web, instant messaging, text messaging, MP3 players, mobile phones and YouTube".
I am writing this post right after I recorded my first official podcast, it can be seen here:
"The Wired Life: The Public and Private Spheres of the Gen M Community" by Klapperstuck and Kearns talks about how Gen M has not replaced older formats of media for newer ones but rather that they have added new formats to older ones essentially in a combination. For example, Gem M still watches TV but do so while texting their friends, doing homework on the computer, and using the internet. It is changing the rules of etiquette and of the conception of "rudeness" in terms of members of Gen M being together in the same physical space and yet are connected to others through media sources. This is seen in the example made in the article where two people are sitting in the library not breaking any rules of etiquette or ignoring each other but are texting their other friends and listening to MP3's.
"To those outside of Generation M this may seem either rude or unnecessary."
This quote was extremely interesting to me. Although I may have been born right at the cusp of the ending of Generation Y and the beginning of Generation M, I have definitely assimilated into Generation M's culture. Thus, through this analysis, I am beginning to step into the metaphorical shoes and lenses of my parents and what they see of this new generation that can never seem to pay attention amidst the sea of stimuli.
Another key difference in generations is their perception (and reaction) to privacy. Generation M's attitudes about privacy differ a lot more than the previous generations' attitudes as discussed in the article. Geneneration M is "less concerned about being targeted by advertising and do not feel that ad targeting is a form of invasion, rather that they want 'ads to speak to them' indicating a huge divide.
And the final change is essentially what you are reading right here, right now. Blogs becoming the new diaries and journals. Apparently according to Goodstein's research in 2007, more than half of the blogs are written by teens. Gen M is about creating and sharing t
heir lives online. This is also seen through social activism. An example of this is my voting once a day for Gracehaven Home Inc., a Christian organization that provides shelter and rehabilitation to girls under the age of 18 who have been victims of commercial sexual exploitation, via Facebook on vivint.givesback. This a way that Geneneration M moves from local to global. This is a way for our generation to actively overcome the "apathetic" and "rude" labels that are placed upon us by the older generations.I will leave you with a quote by Klapperstuck and Kearns, "adults tend to use the Web as a supplement to real-world activities while teenagers tend to ignore the difference between online and offline."
So.. is online life an extension of one's own life or is it a supplement to real-world activities?
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
IntaPodcast
Following our conversation about gaming in class. I feel that I must refute one of the main points that were brought up against gaming before I continue about my post about Podcasts.
If one compares DotA to Basketball, they are strikingly similar when it comes to strategy in the mind, perhaps even more so as DotA has 104 different characters with 115 different items creating much complexity alone, without even considering the complexity of the agency of players using them. One can argue that Basketball engages the players physically and is a form of exercise, I do not dispute that at all, I am just proposing that DotA is a viable example that gaming can create an atmosphere conducive to learning, building key aspects of how one operates in the world.
One of my buddies brought up a point that in terms of communication in games, his experience was that it was rather anti-team-building and that most of the communication was badmouthing. While I do not dispute this, I would point to my example about basketball. There are countless examples of badmouthing in baketball games especially when competition is high, or if one player is not playing well. The same way in DotA. Especially when one enters the realm of professional level of playing (basketball or DotA), there is much clearer communication and affirmation in a team. Yet I would like to direct your attention to an instance in p
rofessional basketball now popularly referred to as The Brawl which occurred in Detroit when NBA players Ron Artest, Jermaine O'Neal, and Stephen Jackson were knocking out fans (not even players!) during a game against the Indiana Pacers. One cannot disagree that basketball does not have an aspect of team-building. In the same way, I would say DotA has just as much team-building potential as basketball does.
Movi
ng onwards, class last Friday was my first time making a podcast. We were assigned to create a podcast where we advertised an Edublogger that we follow. Mine was about Larry Ferlazzo, an edublogger in the realm of ELL, ESL, and EFL. I partnered up with another buddy of mine and we mixed it up with a few Korean Pop songs by After School and 2pm for the introduction. This was the first time I was on the creation end of this type of media and it was absolutely fascinating. I was reminded of one of my good friends who was a former MAC'er who was a teacher at Northville High who would make a (shorter) podcast for his lectures for students who missed class or for students to review material. Podcasts were thus his way to supplement his lectures. It sounds really cool. I hope I will be able to utilize this in the classroom in the future! Time to go figure out how to use garage band to make longer clips, and perhaps record a few of my songs.
If one compares DotA to Basketball, they are strikingly similar when it comes to strategy in the mind, perhaps even more so as DotA has 104 different characters with 115 different items creating much complexity alone, without even considering the complexity of the agency of players using them. One can argue that Basketball engages the players physically and is a form of exercise, I do not dispute that at all, I am just proposing that DotA is a viable example that gaming can create an atmosphere conducive to learning, building key aspects of how one operates in the world.
One of my buddies brought up a point that in terms of communication in games, his experience was that it was rather anti-team-building and that most of the communication was badmouthing. While I do not dispute this, I would point to my example about basketball. There are countless examples of badmouthing in baketball games especially when competition is high, or if one player is not playing well. The same way in DotA. Especially when one enters the realm of professional level of playing (basketball or DotA), there is much clearer communication and affirmation in a team. Yet I would like to direct your attention to an instance in p
rofessional basketball now popularly referred to as The Brawl which occurred in Detroit when NBA players Ron Artest, Jermaine O'Neal, and Stephen Jackson were knocking out fans (not even players!) during a game against the Indiana Pacers. One cannot disagree that basketball does not have an aspect of team-building. In the same way, I would say DotA has just as much team-building potential as basketball does.Movi
ng onwards, class last Friday was my first time making a podcast. We were assigned to create a podcast where we advertised an Edublogger that we follow. Mine was about Larry Ferlazzo, an edublogger in the realm of ELL, ESL, and EFL. I partnered up with another buddy of mine and we mixed it up with a few Korean Pop songs by After School and 2pm for the introduction. This was the first time I was on the creation end of this type of media and it was absolutely fascinating. I was reminded of one of my good friends who was a former MAC'er who was a teacher at Northville High who would make a (shorter) podcast for his lectures for students who missed class or for students to review material. Podcasts were thus his way to supplement his lectures. It sounds really cool. I hope I will be able to utilize this in the classroom in the future! Time to go figure out how to use garage band to make longer clips, and perhaps record a few of my songs.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
IntaDotA?!
Science, as James Paul Gee writes, is like a game. He deals with the "content" question of naysayers by responding to their assertion that "what you learn when you play a video game is just how to play the game" and yet some people think that learning in school is about "learning to play the game," that is, learning facts that can be memorized and resuscitated, yet those people, although they can pass a test, are unable to apply their knowledge to solve problems or think critically. Thus this brings me back to my point Science, is like a game, one must inhabit the identity the game offers, it isn't just "do whatever you want" there are rules to play by and you must see how "they can be best leveraged to accomplish goals."
I began to wonder think about the business world. Then I thought of DotA.
When I read Gee's "Good Video Games and Good Learning" article, I was stoked. I absolutely love games, however I have not had time to really get into all the
higher technology and newer interface games like Call of Duty or any Xbox or PS3 console game. DotA stands for Defense of the Ancients. It is the biggest custom scenario for the real-time strategy video game Warcraft III and it's expansion. It is argued that DotA is the most popular free, non-supported game mod in the world.
Anyway, in this game:
In addition, each game takes around an average of 40 minutes and no one game is the same, each game has a ridiculous amounts of variation even if each team is constant and each player chooses the same hero. The gameplay changes, and if you throw in the fact that there are 104 heroes to choose from with multiple modes to change it up (such as all random or random draft), this makes for a highly unpredictable game. Yet, one of the things I love about it is, if one messes up, one can play again the next game and it is a brand new slate! This resonates with one of the key points in Gee's article which was risk taking where he discusses how "good video games lower the consequences of failure" and how in these games, players are encouraged to take risks, explore, and try new things and that failure is a good thing as it allows one to learn from their mistakes. Gee argues that "school too often allows much less space for risk, exploration, and failure" and this can be rectified in the classroom by creating a classroom conducive to -- (haha, you thought I was going to say conducive to failure didn't you!) -- an openness for failure and its' utilization in the learning process.
So while Gee says that his suggestion is not to "use games in school" he does state that it is indeed a good idea. Perhaps the students should play DotA, and I can definitely be certified to teach that! It would definitely spawn quite a generation of people who would be efficient, knowledgeable, and able to work on a team.
After all, it did inspire one of the catchiest songs of all time which took #2 in Finland and #6 in Norway by an artist named Basshunter singing in Swedish:
I began to wonder think about the business world. Then I thought of DotA.
When I read Gee's "Good Video Games and Good Learning" article, I was stoked. I absolutely love games, however I have not had time to really get into all the
higher technology and newer interface games like Call of Duty or any Xbox or PS3 console game. DotA stands for Defense of the Ancients. It is the biggest custom scenario for the real-time strategy video game Warcraft III and it's expansion. It is argued that DotA is the most popular free, non-supported game mod in the world.Anyway, in this game:
- players on each side choose one of 104 heroes
- each have different abilities which create advantages and disadvantages over other heroes.
- The scenario is highly team-oriented; and just like Basketball, it is difficult for one player to carry the game alone.
- It requires one to kill the spawned units called "creeps" and to "last hit" them in order to get the money, thus there is a specific strategy involving the efficient gaining money (also called farming), which leads to the buying of items.
- One gains experience and gains levels to upgrade skills/spells, and if one dies, one loses gold and the opportunity for experience.
- The items bought can be used to create other higher tier items and these are known as "recipe" items.
- As each hero has different abilities and attributes, different items tailor to different heroes and knowledge of all these things are extremely important.
- Players will eventually memorize these recipes as they play the game more.
In addition, each game takes around an average of 40 minutes and no one game is the same, each game has a ridiculous amounts of variation even if each team is constant and each player chooses the same hero. The gameplay changes, and if you throw in the fact that there are 104 heroes to choose from with multiple modes to change it up (such as all random or random draft), this makes for a highly unpredictable game. Yet, one of the things I love about it is, if one messes up, one can play again the next game and it is a brand new slate! This resonates with one of the key points in Gee's article which was risk taking where he discusses how "good video games lower the consequences of failure" and how in these games, players are encouraged to take risks, explore, and try new things and that failure is a good thing as it allows one to learn from their mistakes. Gee argues that "school too often allows much less space for risk, exploration, and failure" and this can be rectified in the classroom by creating a classroom conducive to -- (haha, you thought I was going to say conducive to failure didn't you!) -- an openness for failure and its' utilization in the learning process.
So while Gee says that his suggestion is not to "use games in school" he does state that it is indeed a good idea. Perhaps the students should play DotA, and I can definitely be certified to teach that! It would definitely spawn quite a generation of people who would be efficient, knowledgeable, and able to work on a team.
After all, it did inspire one of the catchiest songs of all time which took #2 in Finland and #6 in Norway by an artist named Basshunter singing in Swedish:
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
IntaBrandon Center
Today we were able to enter the Brandon Center before it's grand opening and use its' facilities thanks to Jeff and Kristen, our teachers from 504. It was quite spectacular. The room that my group worked in, there 
was a 60 inch touch screen TV with a wireless keyboard and mouse along with an Ipad. Our fearless leader was Rachel Goldberg, a librarian East Middle School in Plymouth, MI. Our topic was the recent Tsunami in Japan.
We began to utilize www.newseum.org/ which is a website that shows the front pages of newspapers around the world and also has archives! This is extremely useful for primary sources, accessibility to kids. Multimedia, visual, archives. Our goal was to view the same event from different perspectives and to teach them how to evaluate sources (ie. who is writing the newspaper). We wanted students to be able to differentiate between the assumptions based on the community that the newspaper was from. Thus we were able to discuss the ramifications of the Tsunami in terms of the country of Japan itself, then have a look at Detroit's car manufacturing woes, and then even to Ohio's revising of a lemon law.
Also, I must provide a description of the room we were working in:
60 inch touch screen TV with a wireless keyboard and mouse along with an Ipad!! It was an amazing environment conducive for learning and planning.
Our prompt was to discuss the intellectual and experimental opportunities presented with this topic and to create a mock lesson plan. We experimented with beginning with a learning objective and working backwards. Our learning objective was: For students to be able to explain the Political, Social, and Economic ramifications of a natural disaster. This is an interesting topic also because natural disasters are apolitical. This was followed by a transformation of our lesson plan into a unit plan with a class on each of the following topics: Political, Economic, Geographical, Social, and Advocacy.
Advocacy was the part that I was most excited about. It is so exciting that as teachers with a partial job of teaching students how to be citizens, we can teach them about their self-efficacy. Teachers can empower students to understand the power they have to change things on a national level, in terms of relief efforts for disasters, and on the world stage. This stems from the quote that I heard from an episode of The West Wing that I watched last night, "decisions are made by the people who show up" with regards to a "rock the vote" rally.
Overall it was extremely fun and satisfying because it gave us a small picture of what it would look like to formulate a lesson plan. We did this all on Wikispaces and our draft can be seen here.
There was one important learning moment though. Technology is fun, and in playing around with it, one can get lost on how it may or may not be useful as a teaching tool. We learned this as we were trying to utilize the 60 inch touch screen TV, yet it was much more difficult to navigate than we had thought. This is a definite point that I will bring into my teaching process. I desperately want to bridge the fear that teachers have in incorporating technology into the education process without getting lost in technology itself.
was a 60 inch touch screen TV with a wireless keyboard and mouse along with an Ipad. Our fearless leader was Rachel Goldberg, a librarian East Middle School in Plymouth, MI. Our topic was the recent Tsunami in Japan.We began to utilize www.newseum.org/ which is a website that shows the front pages of newspapers around the world and also has archives! This is extremely useful for primary sources, accessibility to kids. Multimedia, visual, archives. Our goal was to view the same event from different perspectives and to teach them how to evaluate sources (ie. who is writing the newspaper). We wanted students to be able to differentiate between the assumptions based on the community that the newspaper was from. Thus we were able to discuss the ramifications of the Tsunami in terms of the country of Japan itself, then have a look at Detroit's car manufacturing woes, and then even to Ohio's revising of a lemon law.
Also, I must provide a description of the room we were working in:
60 inch touch screen TV with a wireless keyboard and mouse along with an Ipad!! It was an amazing environment conducive for learning and planning.Our prompt was to discuss the intellectual and experimental opportunities presented with this topic and to create a mock lesson plan. We experimented with beginning with a learning objective and working backwards. Our learning objective was: For students to be able to explain the Political, Social, and Economic ramifications of a natural disaster. This is an interesting topic also because natural disasters are apolitical. This was followed by a transformation of our lesson plan into a unit plan with a class on each of the following topics: Political, Economic, Geographical, Social, and Advocacy.
Advocacy was the part that I was most excited about. It is so exciting that as teachers with a partial job of teaching students how to be citizens, we can teach them about their self-efficacy. Teachers can empower students to understand the power they have to change things on a national level, in terms of relief efforts for disasters, and on the world stage. This stems from the quote that I heard from an episode of The West Wing that I watched last night, "decisions are made by the people who show up" with regards to a "rock the vote" rally.
Overall it was extremely fun and satisfying because it gave us a small picture of what it would look like to formulate a lesson plan. We did this all on Wikispaces and our draft can be seen here.
There was one important learning moment though. Technology is fun, and in playing around with it, one can get lost on how it may or may not be useful as a teaching tool. We learned this as we were trying to utilize the 60 inch touch screen TV, yet it was much more difficult to navigate than we had thought. This is a definite point that I will bring into my teaching process. I desperately want to bridge the fear that teachers have in incorporating technology into the education process without getting lost in technology itself.
Sunday, July 17, 2011
IntaPictures
After growing up in the technological age, I have ceased to think of pictures as technology anymore. Yet, they are, and here's how I regained my understanding:
The Japan Tsunami was a result of an earthquake that scored a 9.0 on the Richter scale. I would have never thought that it could be used as a tool for education. It seemed to be such a catastrophic event and I could not get past the physical ramifications of the disaster itself.
EDUC 504 Teaching with Technology's assigned reading: Teaching Ideas: The Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan provided so many ideas for teaching.
What turned out to be the most influential was the before and after pictures. This interactive site allows you to drag from the left to the right an aerial picture of an area of Japan with a picture after the tsunami had passed.
The brightness was completely off, all the lush greenery was gone and replaced with darker shades of grey and green. There are 20 pictures on that site and they catalog the tsunami's effect on towns, cities, and even the nuclear power plants.
I've realized that growing up all my life with technology, the most basic multimedia does not even seem "technology"-esque. Perhaps this is the loss that occurs with the current generation of teachers and their students with regards to their view of technology. Technology seems less a typewriter and more as a macbook pro to the students of 2011.
The Japan Tsunami was a result of an earthquake that scored a 9.0 on the Richter scale. I would have never thought that it could be used as a tool for education. It seemed to be such a catastrophic event and I could not get past the physical ramifications of the disaster itself.
EDUC 504 Teaching with Technology's assigned reading: Teaching Ideas: The Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan provided so many ideas for teaching.
What turned out to be the most influential was the before and after pictures. This interactive site allows you to drag from the left to the right an aerial picture of an area of Japan with a picture after the tsunami had passed.
The brightness was completely off, all the lush greenery was gone and replaced with darker shades of grey and green. There are 20 pictures on that site and they catalog the tsunami's effect on towns, cities, and even the nuclear power plants.I've realized that growing up all my life with technology, the most basic multimedia does not even seem "technology"-esque. Perhaps this is the loss that occurs with the current generation of teachers and their students with regards to their view of technology. Technology seems less a typewriter and more as a macbook pro to the students of 2011.
IntaHootSuite
So this past class we discussed the use of twitter and how it can be made even easier than it was before. They introduced Hootsuite.
At first, I thought they said Woot, which is a website that gives a deal per day, and is (perhaps) most popular for their Shirts (found at http://shirt.woot.com/) to which they almost have a cult following online with their witty and cute shirts.
(An example of one of their shirt designs)
I was about to become so excited and title a post called Intashirtwoot with a catalog provided and everything. This was all going on in my head for about five seconds yet alas, this was not the case and I was brought back to reality that it was called HootSuite. But it was perhaps an even more exciting find.
HootSuite is a social media communications dashboard that allows one to monito
r keywords, manage multiple Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and etc accounts. It was quite the hoot, literally. It was the first time I have ever made use of the #hashtags. I think I have a special eye out for #smac504
everywhere I am. Sometimes I am driving and I see an exit, and I can almost see the hashtag there. It reminds me of a friend that I have who thinks she sees facebook notifications everywhere in life. Perhaps this is an example of getting too Inta Technology. See what I did there? I just reinforced the theme of this blog utilizing prior knowledge while making a pun. Win.
At first, I thought they said Woot, which is a website that gives a deal per day, and is (perhaps) most popular for their Shirts (found at http://shirt.woot.com/) to which they almost have a cult following online with their witty and cute shirts.
(An example of one of their shirt designs)HootSuite is a social media communications dashboard that allows one to monito
r keywords, manage multiple Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and etc accounts. It was quite the hoot, literally. It was the first time I have ever made use of the #hashtags. I think I have a special eye out for #smac504 everywhere I am. Sometimes I am driving and I see an exit, and I can almost see the hashtag there. It reminds me of a friend that I have who thinks she sees facebook notifications everywhere in life. Perhaps this is an example of getting too Inta Technology. See what I did there? I just reinforced the theme of this blog utilizing prior knowledge while making a pun. Win.Thursday, July 14, 2011
IntaTwitter?
So I have to admit, Twitter was one of those things that was trending for the past few years that I absolutely refused to give in to (partly because I did not have a smart phone, and bec
ause I did not want to give into the hype). Yet this EDUC 504 - Teaching with Technology has provided me with resources of its benefits. My twitter username is: IntaEducation (alas, Twitter does not allow a "-" in their usernames). These are the top five things through which my perspective on twitter has changed on:
1. I did not know that Twitter was anything more than a mundane form of social networking.
(Many of my fiends in undergrad would spam hashtags for no reason).
2. It is a huge networking tool if used correctly.
(Librarian Shannon McClintock Miller cites Twitter as an avenue to learn about many online resources)
3. Twitter is one of the avenues where PLN comes together.
(PLN - a community of people that are learning together around the world)
4. Twitter utilizes the cognitive dimension of creating - producing and synthesizing one's thoughts about a particular subject -- it is a way to share information in 140 words or less.
(Which brings me to my main point)
5. 140 words is actually practicing how to make one's comment concise and relevant
(Ie. hashtags)
In addition, there is a ridiculous amount of flexibility in terms of use for the classroom on Twitter. For example, it allows students to post a thought, reply to others, post pictures, url's, or even affirm one another by retweeting their fellow classmates' comments. And against popular belief (or perhaps, just my old view), Twitter is an excellent way to check for understanding. As mentioned above, it allows students to synthesize their thoughts and produce a product in 140 words or less! This can be used in assessments and class participation through students' posting up their own comments in addition to backing them up with photos or videos!
It is pretty exciting stuff!!
Also, I want to share something else that my good friend Larry Liu introduced to me right when I started the Secondary MAC Program:
That's right ladies and gentlemen, something so simple, yet quite revolutionary. It belongs to a family of similar programs such as Amazon Cloud, iCloud, and Microsoft Skydrive, yet it is more flexible and faster.
What Dropbox does is essentially creates a dropbox folder in your computer which syncs to the online dropbox at all times (as long as you are connected to the internet). I have all my class files and folders on there. So let's say I need to print something on M-Print, yet M-Print does not have the flexibility to print a few pages in a document (it only gives the option to print the entire document). I also so happen to be fresh out of flash drives in my life, but I do not worry because I can go to the computer lab in the School of Education and log into my dropbox account online and download the files there!
It doesn't stop there! You can create a folder and share that with a friend, and have multiple folders that are shared with multiple friends, an extremely easy way to share files, essentially eliminating the need for the phrase "let me e-mail it to myself," who emails to themselves anyway? (I did).
In addition! This program is free (for the first 2 GB's) and can also be installed on a smartphone, also free! Now you can take your dropbox with you wherever you go with 3G.
I tend to be easily awed by technology when I become enlightened to its' many applications. To balance out the yin to my yang, let me go outside and stare at the sky for a while, just like I did after watching Transformers 3, to remember that there is an equally awe inspiring world around me.
ause I did not want to give into the hype). Yet this EDUC 504 - Teaching with Technology has provided me with resources of its benefits. My twitter username is: IntaEducation (alas, Twitter does not allow a "-" in their usernames). These are the top five things through which my perspective on twitter has changed on:1. I did not know that Twitter was anything more than a mundane form of social networking.
(Many of my fiends in undergrad would spam hashtags for no reason).
2. It is a huge networking tool if used correctly.
(Librarian Shannon McClintock Miller cites Twitter as an avenue to learn about many online resources)
3. Twitter is one of the avenues where PLN comes together.
(PLN - a community of people that are learning together around the world)
4. Twitter utilizes the cognitive dimension of creating - producing and synthesizing one's thoughts about a particular subject -- it is a way to share information in 140 words or less.
(Which brings me to my main point)
5. 140 words is actually practicing how to make one's comment concise and relevant
(Ie. hashtags)
In addition, there is a ridiculous amount of flexibility in terms of use for the classroom on Twitter. For example, it allows students to post a thought, reply to others, post pictures, url's, or even affirm one another by retweeting their fellow classmates' comments. And against popular belief (or perhaps, just my old view), Twitter is an excellent way to check for understanding. As mentioned above, it allows students to synthesize their thoughts and produce a product in 140 words or less! This can be used in assessments and class participation through students' posting up their own comments in addition to backing them up with photos or videos!
It is pretty exciting stuff!!
Also, I want to share something else that my good friend Larry Liu introduced to me right when I started the Secondary MAC Program:
That's right ladies and gentlemen, something so simple, yet quite revolutionary. It belongs to a family of similar programs such as Amazon Cloud, iCloud, and Microsoft Skydrive, yet it is more flexible and faster.What Dropbox does is essentially creates a dropbox folder in your computer which syncs to the online dropbox at all times (as long as you are connected to the internet). I have all my class files and folders on there. So let's say I need to print something on M-Print, yet M-Print does not have the flexibility to print a few pages in a document (it only gives the option to print the entire document). I also so happen to be fresh out of flash drives in my life, but I do not worry because I can go to the computer lab in the School of Education and log into my dropbox account online and download the files there!
It doesn't stop there! You can create a folder and share that with a friend, and have multiple folders that are shared with multiple friends, an extremely easy way to share files, essentially eliminating the need for the phrase "let me e-mail it to myself," who emails to themselves anyway? (I did).
In addition! This program is free (for the first 2 GB's) and can also be installed on a smartphone, also free! Now you can take your dropbox with you wherever you go with 3G.
I tend to be easily awed by technology when I become enlightened to its' many applications. To balance out the yin to my yang, let me go outside and stare at the sky for a while, just like I did after watching Transformers 3, to remember that there is an equally awe inspiring world around me.
Monday, July 11, 2011
IntaTechnology?
“I believe that education therefore, is a process of living and not a preparation for future living.” John Dewey (My Pedagogic Creed, 1897).
Education does not stop at school, it continues throughout your life. If one stops learning throughout life, they become left behind and are unable to keep up with new developments. If anything, looking at the current generation shows evidence of this idea. Take the example of technology with our parents. My mother has just gotten an iPhone 4, and instead of making her life more convenient, it is making her life (and mine) more complicated. What is simple and intuitive for this generation is not for the old because they are somewhat unwilling to delve into the technology because they have the older heuristics about technology. In order to continue to excel in one's field, one must strive to keep up with your field's newest innovations. F
or education, in addition to increasing our understanding of the achievement gap and how to better facilitate learning in students, teachers must learn how technological innovations can be used in the classroom before deciding whether or not to use them.
If anything, educators should be even MORE on the cusp because our job is to grow students and facilitate their learning process. One must be able to relate to students in order to gain a common understanding and trust, and as younger generations are continuously investing more time and energy in technology, we should be teaching them how to utilize technology to their advantage. Sure there may be some factors about technology that could be a detriment to the learning process, there are also many functions of technology that provide for a better learning environment. This looks like the the use of technology in:
- pooling of students prior knowledge through the use of a Google Docs collaborative document or Wikispaces,
- applications to aide organization such as online index cards,
- the communal facilitation of summarizing and synthesizing that can be seen in utilizing twitter, blogposts, and facebook.
EDUC 504's goal is to explore the possibilities that exist for putting educational technologies in the service of teaching and students learning. In order for teachers to understand these tools, we explore how we utilize them and give us a hands-on community experience of learning how to use technology together. As mentioned in the previous post, this is my first blog since xanga in the early 2000's, and the existence of this blog is also a result of this class in order to summarize and synthesize our experiences in this program, especially regarding technology. I also have mixed feelings about getting a twitter (required for this class..)
Education does not stop at school, it continues throughout your life. If one stops learning throughout life, they become left behind and are unable to keep up with new developments. If anything, looking at the current generation shows evidence of this idea. Take the example of technology with our parents. My mother has just gotten an iPhone 4, and instead of making her life more convenient, it is making her life (and mine) more complicated. What is simple and intuitive for this generation is not for the old because they are somewhat unwilling to delve into the technology because they have the older heuristics about technology. In order to continue to excel in one's field, one must strive to keep up with your field's newest innovations. F
or education, in addition to increasing our understanding of the achievement gap and how to better facilitate learning in students, teachers must learn how technological innovations can be used in the classroom before deciding whether or not to use them.If anything, educators should be even MORE on the cusp because our job is to grow students and facilitate their learning process. One must be able to relate to students in order to gain a common understanding and trust, and as younger generations are continuously investing more time and energy in technology, we should be teaching them how to utilize technology to their advantage. Sure there may be some factors about technology that could be a detriment to the learning process, there are also many functions of technology that provide for a better learning environment. This looks like the the use of technology in:
- pooling of students prior knowledge through the use of a Google Docs collaborative document or Wikispaces,
- applications to aide organization such as online index cards,
- the communal facilitation of summarizing and synthesizing that can be seen in utilizing twitter, blogposts, and facebook.
EDUC 504's goal is to explore the possibilities that exist for putting educational technologies in the service of teaching and students learning. In order for teachers to understand these tools, we explore how we utilize them and give us a hands-on community experience of learning how to use technology together. As mentioned in the previous post, this is my first blog since xanga in the early 2000's, and the existence of this blog is also a result of this class in order to summarize and synthesize our experiences in this program, especially regarding technology. I also have mixed feelings about getting a twitter (required for this class..)
Friday, July 8, 2011
"IntaEducat-ion" Explained
Hey guys!
So this is my first blog post since xanga in the early 2000's. First let me explain the Blog Title: IntaEducat-ion. This is a pun in two different ways, and has a combined meaning.
To break it down, let's start with Inta. Inta is from the most delightfully delectably delicious smoothie place in the world called IntaJuice which is a pun to mean "I'm Inta this Juice." It has
flavors such as Tango Mango (Mango, Peach, Strawberry, Watermellon, and Vanilla Frozen Yogurt), Love Potion #9 (Watermelon, Raspberry, Blackberry and Strawberry), two of my favorites. I have frequented this place over 100 times as for personal, business, and social reasons during my undergraduate career at Ohio State.
However, they have recently undergone a name change and are now called Berry Blendz but the name IntaJuice will live on, if only in my blog title.
The next pun Educat-ion originates from my first actual Chemistry class in my life, which I took in college. Chem 101 was the name, and I two words that I would describe Chemistry-lingo are "completely disorienting." To give some background, I graduated OSU with majors in Political Science, International Studies, and Chinese Language, and suffice to say, I had absolutely no science background. I proceeded to dive into my book and attempt to understand the intricacies of the elements, which went quite well. I saw a few confusing terms such as Ag as silver, and Fe as iron, yet I learned these and went onwards, and then came the roadblock. My natural response was to ask the professor whom I would be seeing later that day. So the conversation goes as follows:
Me: Hey professor! I have a question for you!
Prof: What is it?
Me: So what's a cation?
Prof: ...? A what?
Me: A cation..?
Prof: A cation?!!?
Me: Yes..
Prof: Are you joking right now? Because this is not funny.
Me: (What is going on right now..)
Prof: You mean a cat-ion? The opposite of an anion?
So how was I supposed to know that cation was pronounced cat-ion? I followed standard grammatical English and utilized my prior knowledge of words that I could associate with the same pronounciation such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers favorite, Californiacation, or other words such as Vacation, or even Education. Nobody says "Hey I hope you have fun on your Vacat-ion!"
So yes, it is quite ironic that the latter pun is used as my blog title, but here is my justification. IntaJuice was firmly embedded within my educational experience at Ohio State, and Educat-ion was my defining learning experience in Chem 101. These two puns combine together to form the word IntaEducat-ion simultaneously representing getting into the education process on my end, and representing the facilitation of getting my future students into the education process without the embarrassment I experienced entering into Chemistry.
So, the title IntaEducat-ion stands!
So this is my first blog post since xanga in the early 2000's. First let me explain the Blog Title: IntaEducat-ion. This is a pun in two different ways, and has a combined meaning.
To break it down, let's start with Inta. Inta is from the most delightfully delectably delicious smoothie place in the world called IntaJuice which is a pun to mean "I'm Inta this Juice." It has
flavors such as Tango Mango (Mango, Peach, Strawberry, Watermellon, and Vanilla Frozen Yogurt), Love Potion #9 (Watermelon, Raspberry, Blackberry and Strawberry), two of my favorites. I have frequented this place over 100 times as for personal, business, and social reasons during my undergraduate career at Ohio State.However, they have recently undergone a name change and are now called Berry Blendz but the name IntaJuice will live on, if only in my blog title.
The next pun Educat-ion originates from my first actual Chemistry class in my life, which I took in college. Chem 101 was the name, and I two words that I would describe Chemistry-lingo are "completely disorienting." To give some background, I graduated OSU with majors in Political Science, International Studies, and Chinese Language, and suffice to say, I had absolutely no science background. I proceeded to dive into my book and attempt to understand the intricacies of the elements, which went quite well. I saw a few confusing terms such as Ag as silver, and Fe as iron, yet I learned these and went onwards, and then came the roadblock. My natural response was to ask the professor whom I would be seeing later that day. So the conversation goes as follows:
Me: Hey professor! I have a question for you!
Prof: What is it?
Me: So what's a cation?
Prof: ...? A what?
Me: A cation..?
Prof: A cation?!!?
Me: Yes..
Prof: Are you joking right now? Because this is not funny.
Me: (What is going on right now..)
Prof: You mean a cat-ion? The opposite of an anion?
So how was I supposed to know that cation was pronounced cat-ion? I followed standard grammatical English and utilized my prior knowledge of words that I could associate with the same pronounciation such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers favorite, Californiacation, or other words such as Vacation, or even Education. Nobody says "Hey I hope you have fun on your Vacat-ion!"
So yes, it is quite ironic that the latter pun is used as my blog title, but here is my justification. IntaJuice was firmly embedded within my educational experience at Ohio State, and Educat-ion was my defining learning experience in Chem 101. These two puns combine together to form the word IntaEducat-ion simultaneously representing getting into the education process on my end, and representing the facilitation of getting my future students into the education process without the embarrassment I experienced entering into Chemistry.
So, the title IntaEducat-ion stands!
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