Blog Post 10

After watching the video Do you Teach or Do you Educate? I felt very inspired to educate rather than just teach. I loved the the words that were used in the video. An educator is someone who provides his or her students with instruction. Teachers often just teach the materials needed just to get through the day. In the video they define the word educate as to explain, encourage, give information, give instruction, and help them learn and understand. As a future educator, I plan to work with my students in the areas needed. I must guide them and mentor them instead of pushing them to another teacher. I believe that teachers/educators are much more than that because in some cases certain students do not have the right guidance at home as they should. Peter Brougham said it just right and I quote" Education makes a person easy to lead but difficult to drive, easy to govern but impossible to enslave." When you educate someone the right way and they will hold all the information all in but if you don't then they won't. Just know what you are doing and try and do it the right way because that is why we are all going to school for to lear the correct way to do it.

I really enjoyed reading the blog post, Tom Johnson's Don't Let Them Take the Pencils Home! After reading through the other blog posts and after reading former EDM 310 students' blogs I came to the conclusion there was a war between the pencils and the computers. I find it funny that the man thought computers were lowing test scores. Some people don't exactly understand how helpful technology really is. Johnson goes on the explain that low-income areas believe that computers are used for fun and games rather than educational things because they were never taught how to use it. Johnson explains that he has met with the parents to teach them how to use the computers and when the students go home they have fun projects to keep them interested. I also believe that you should use computers but that you should also use pencils too. Never forget they were here first and they will always be here. Just because you have computers doesn't mean that you should put your pencil down. There are so many other things that you can do with it to that you can't do with a computer. Computers are our future however don't forget about pencils because what would you write with if there wasn't a computer their. You can't sign a check with a computer. You can't sign legal documents with a computer. I do believe that technology is very important to learn at a young age. Especially in today's society. And that some people of previous generations do not understand the importance of technology, like Gertrude, the School Curriculum Instructional Interventionist Academic Specialist. I think it is important for not only educators to understand technology but parents as well. Mr. Johnson's idea of having a program for the parents was and excellent one. As a future teacher I plan to incorporate technology in my everyday lesson plans.

Summary Post C4T Teacher #3

On October 21 I commented on The Parent's View, the first one I commented on was about Requirements, Requirements, Requirements. And the No Child Left Behind Act. Mrs. Martha explains how teachers are taken for granted. No one really realizes how much work teachers have to do and what guidelines they have to follow. She then goes on and talks about what the states requires of the teachers. All states have there own course of study which teachers have to follow and if they don't then they will get fired. Yes that is what she said they will get fired can you believe that. She then talks about a pacing system that is required that you have to follow. That doesn't really make since because you teach these kids the information so fast that they don't even have time to understand the information. Then she went on talking about Grants. When you receive a grant they to have requirement that you have to meet. With grants they come with a pacing guide and requirement, however may not meet state standards. So then the teacher has to figure out what is missing and fill in the blanks so that both the grant and state standards all met.
She then talks about classrooms that are all mixed up with special ed students and general ed student all in one class. And the state requires the teacher to get the test done by the deadline whether there is general ed or special ed in the class. So then she talks about how you should really thank your child's teacher every day because they really do a lot for your kids. Don't wait for teacher appreciation day do it just because.

This is what she quoted:
"Student teachers if you are not proactive and extremely organized go ahead and choose another career because this one is not for you."

This was my comment to her on Oct 21.

MY NAME IS VICKI NELSON I AM CURRENTLY GOING TO THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH ALABAMA. I JUST WANTED TO TELL YOU THANK YOU. YOU ARE SO RIGHT EVERY TEACHER DOES DESERVE TO BE PUT ON A PEDESTAL BECAUSE I KNOW I HAVE BEEN WORKING IN A SCHOOL SETTING FOR THE PAST 7 YEARS AND ABOUT 4 YEARS AGO DECIDED THAT I WANTED TO GO BACK AND GET A TEACHING DEGREE. SO I DO KNOW HOW HARD THEY WORK. AND HOW MUCH THEY DO. I THANK THEM EVERYDAY THAT I SEE THEM WHEN I SEE THEM AND WHEN I CAN BECAUSE WHEN I BECOME A TEACHER I WOULD LIKE THE SAME IN RETURN. SO AS YOU CAN TELL I CAN REALLY TELL WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT. IF I COULD TALK TO EVERY PARENT OUT THERE I WOULD TOO. BECAUSE THEY SHOULD KNOW HOW HARD THE TEACHERS WORK FOR THERE KIDS. WELL IT WAS REALLY NICE TALKING TO YOU.

On Oct 30th I commente on another one of Martha's story's where she wrote about Charter Schools.
She was saying that is was the answer to our country's education problems? A little further down she wrote no not really. She said that a lot of people have been watching the "Waiting for Superman" documentary and I guess from that movie have come to that conclusion that Charter Schools were better. It should them that children that put their future only in Charter Schools was a high level view. In the video the only school that was viewed apparently was a Charter School and all the children in the video lived near it. Martha also told us from the documentary that not all Charter Schools are wonderful because in the video it told her that. She then say that we need to open our minds our children and families are simply seeking schools that will educate their children. MArtha explains that people are simple escaping a failing school and for others it is to get into a school that does not track them based on information and allows them the same opportunity for education as it does everyone in the school. She then goes on by saying that there are people out there that are looking for Charter Schools and thinking that they are good schools but in all reality all schools are the same. It is just like the lottery. You just have to pick and choice and hope that you pick the right one for your child. Just because one is expensive doesn't mean that it is the best one for you.

And this is where I commented on it on Oct 30th .


Hi Martha! I am a student at the University of South Alabama in Dr Strange's EDM310 class. I was assigned to your blog this week. And I was reading this it was very interesting to me because I have three boy of my own and there education is very important to me. Along with there safety. However where my kids go to school and it is a public school it isn't all that bad they have good teachers and it is very safe. My boys never get in to fights and never cause fights so I am not worried about that I know that them are going to get there education. One school my be more expensive then the other but I don't know about better then the other because we have good teachers every where. And hopefully more to come. I too agree that the definition to a good school is where the students and teachers work together.

My comment will be posted on my blog, if you would like to look at it. nelsonvickiedm310.blogspot.com

Blog Post #9

I really enjoyed reading the blog post What I've Learned This Year (09). Mr. Joe McClung explained in his post that he learned seven major things in his first year teaching.
1.) How to Read the Crowd-You have to be able to listen to the students in order to teach them.
2.) Be Flexible-When I read this part I realized that I am going to have to be very flexible with my students. And try not to lose my temper when things are going just right.
3.) Communicate-We should always communicate with our students it always works better that way.
4.) Be Reasonable-We should always encourage students never put them down.
5.) Don't be Afraid of Technology-Because technology is always there to help you.
6.) Listen to Your Students-It is always important to listen to your students because if you have the respect of your students then they have respect for you.
7.) Never Stop Learning-As the students are learning every day we also need to broaden our minds to more learning. Cause there are always more to learn and more to teach the kids.
I learned so much about being a "young and experienced teacher" from reading his post. During my first year of teaching I plan to follow Mr. McClung's words of advice to make me a better teacher.

Mr. McClung's second post What I Learned This Year (10) was about his second year of teaching in a new state and a new subject. He explained that he was defiantly out of his comfort zone but that teachers should adapt to their surroundings. He had to teach a whole new subject and curriculum and he had to adapt to his new school and subject. McClung decided that he had to find a way to make social studies interesting to the students. Because he really didn't know much about it so he did some research and figured out some different and exciting ways to teach it.  He goes on to explain that when someone first becomes a teacher they should find a "school momma" which is someone that has been there longer and could help you through the tough times. Joe McClung states that he learned to leave his ego at the door and that other teachers should too. Also, he explains to teachers not to lose sight of what really matters. That the longer you teach the more you learn yourself. The more new ideas you learn to teach the kids. He explains that every year will get easier because you will start learning new things and teaching new things.
Joe McClung's last post was What I learned This Year (11). This year has been the first year that he has taught at the same school for more than one year and it has brought more change into his life. He explains that he is a coach of the cross-country team and he is also the computer applications teacher. Once again, McClung goes through the things/lessons that he has learned throughout the year.
1.) Know Who Your Boss Is-We should always leave are personal live at home and be professional at school and make sure you keep the students first.
2.) Don't Expect Others to be as Excited About Change as You Are-Here he is trying to tell you that you need to be strong in your faith of education. And try not to let anyone talk you down or bring you down to where you think there could never be any changes because there can always be changes.
3.) Don't be Afraid to be an Outsider-He explains that you shouldn't worry about being an outsider. It is good to have a relationship with your students where they can trust you, rely on you, and depend on you. Every teacher should have a relationship with their students so that they can depend on them.
4.) Don't Touch the Keyboard- This telling us if we do the work for the students then they are not learning the skills and will then never master them.
5.) Don't get Comfortable-Never get comfortable in one place and don't start a routine. Because when you start a routine you end up doing the same thing every day at the same time every day. But the way that he said was you should join new clubs so that you don’t have a lot of spare time on your hands. If you don't have spare time then you don't have time to do the same thing over and over again.                                                                                                                                                          
 I can honestly say that I enjoyed reading Joe McClung's blog posts. Like McClung, I plan to have an open mind and learn every single year that I am a teacher. I am excited to see the challenges that I face and the changes that will happen throughout my years as a teacher.

PROJECT #13 SMART BASICS BY CHARTRES CATHEDRALS

Blog Post 8

After watching This Is How We Dream Parts 1, I realize that the web is so much more helpful in finding information. Mr. Miller explains that all of his projects that he worked on were written with multi-media. He was able to quickly find information about our government rather than searching for it in a book or library. I believe that I am prepared to write in multi-media and that EDM 310 is helping me tremendously with it. If it wasn’t for this class I wouldn't know this much already.  Thank you so much Dr Strange.  I plan to teach my future students the importance of writing in multi-media because it will be their future also.

In the video This Is How We Dream Part 2, Mr. Miller discusses the different ways to write in multi-media. The information is updated instantly right before your eyes. Miller explains that there are people who make visual representation of a certain subject and how they collect the data to compose it. iTunes U is another wonderful thing that is available . Miller thinks that there will be a time that students will not only compose their information on word processor, but on "digital composing material". He explains that his publication was distributed through YouTube and within three months it was all over the web. If he would have just written and sent it off it wouldn't have come out until at least two years later. Miller states that this is a way to push ideas into our culture and we should all want to do that. He ends the video by talking about his dream to build a building into the building that he teaches in the building would bring together the best of the sciences and the best of the humanities.

I am willing to learn more about ways to write in multi-media and how to be better at it. As a teacher, that I hope I will be great at one day will be teaching my students how to be technologically advanced, I believe that it will be important to teach my students all about multi-media. I am eager to learn more about technology and what I can use in my classroom. This, I believe, will make me a better teacher.

Carly's Post

 I believe that Carly does an excellent job at writing her blog post she is a creative and smart young lady. I loved her videos.  I also think that her idea of an assignment was quite interesting but time consuming. It fits Mr. Miller's hopes of writing in multi-media because everything assigned is through multi-media. It let the students explore the media by using other "digital composing material". It is a wonderful idea because it makes you look internally at what you want and how you want to help those students who you will have in your classroom. 

The Chipper Series /EDM310 For DUMMIES

I enjoyed both of these videos.  The first The Chipper Series was very cute. Procrastination is what a lot of people’s problems. I know that it is know of mine. With kids and work homework all was comes last. But I sure am trying to change that. And I see in the video Chipper learned her lesson too. The second video EDM310 for DUMMIES some days I wish there was a book. Because there are nights where I wish I could just open a book and it could talk me threw the steps. So I really sympathize with that video. 

Learn to Change, Change to Learn.
I have to agree with the arguments made in this video because I feel that "schools are like technology deprived." I can remember when I was in elementary school we only got to go to the computer lab once a week. It was a little disappointing because we all loved it so much. I believe that schools should incorporate all types of technology in the schools, starting in elementary.  If the federal system would stop taking the schools money I know that we would be able to have technology in all the schools. Computers and other technologies are such a part of children's lives. A statement made on the video”when you shut off a computer/cell phone you essentially shut off that student". It made me think that this is really true cause every kid now days have a phone or computer. It is really sad isn't it? 

Project #7 C4K Summary. 1

In my first C4K I wrote to a little girl in Mr.Wolfe's Class named PA2011 she took a trip to Disney World and loved it and was talking about a talking trash can. I had told her that I had three little boys and they love going to Disney World too.I also asked her if there where any other rides there that she liked going on. She also responded back to me and said yes she did, however she did name any.

My second C4K I wrote to a little girl in Mr Wolfe's Class named CJ2011 she was talking about her little sister. How much she loved and cared for her. And how her sister wants to be a cheer leader just like her. I responded to her that I have two sisters my self and that I love them dearly that you always need your family. I also had read how she loves plants and I told her that I love plants too but I always kill them because I forget to water them . I had told her that I believed that her sister would be a great student as long as she followed in her long sisters footsteps. She wrote me back and she said that she hoped that her sister followed in her footsteps too. I also was read on her page and she wrote a post to the students of the University of South Alabama that she really loved all the kind words. And she was thanking us a lot. I wrote her back and told her that she was so very welcomed.


My third C4K I wrote to St Elmo's Elementary School. I told them that I was a student in EDM310 at the University of South Alabama. And that  I so happy to so that Ms Lucy gave the students  the opportunity to explore with the IPads. It is a wonderful thing that the children are already exploring the internet, and are getting a head start on their careers in technology.

Then I wrote to Hunter and I told him I was a student in EDM310 at the University of South Alabama. And that  I read his  post to Ms. Lucy and it was inspiring. I told him that he was such a lucky student to be able to have the chance to explore on the IPAD. And he told me that he loved going on exciting field trip. So I reiterated for him to continue the good work.

My Fourth C4K I wrote to EM she is a little girl that was talking about wanting to go to Japan. She had a teacher one time that was from Japan and she wants to go there now. She also wanted to learn how to sing and dance like the Japanese do. I wrote her and and tole her that I had never been to Japan but that I would love to go. I also told her that I lived in Foley Alabama near the Gulf of Mexico. I told her that the only place I had been out of state is Mexico. But that I would love to visit Japan . And that I have a sister that lives in Alaska and that I would love to go there to. I ask her if that would be one place she would like to go. She wrote me back and said that she would love to go to Alaska the it would be fun to build snow mans, and have snow ball fights.  Then she asked me what Alabama is like because she has never been here either.I wrote her back and told her that there was a lot of stuff to do here like shop, swim, go to the beach, the water parks, and anything that you could think of. Well that is my summary Dr Strange I hope that is what we wanted.

Blog Post #6

The video The Networked Student by Wendy Drexler explains that a student who attends 21st Century High School three days a week and online the other two days of the week. The student has no textbook and must research information on his topic of American Psychology. His teacher believes in connectivism which allows them to connect with other students through social media. Which is very helpful because when students self teach their self, they are getting ready to learning it.

The question "why does the networked student even need a teacher?" was asked at the end of the video. The video goes on to explain that the teacher is there to help the student build a network and explain how to use it. The teacher is also there for guidance when the student gets stuck and teaches the students how to communicate properly. You can learn to ask respectfully for help from experts, how to differentiate between good and bad, and vent a resource. Last but not least, the teacher explains to the students how to turn web search into a scavenger hunt.

As I was watching this video I began to think how very help teacher are when you need them. The video explained exactly why a networked student does need a teacher. For example, the student wouldn't know the proper rules for web searching if it wasn't for having a teacher on the side. I believe that there should be more classes like this in high school and even in middle schools. It would prepare students for future schooling and jobs. Because I know if it wasn't for Dr Strange and his peer helpers I wouldn't know what I was doing at all. I believe that I am ready to teach children about web search and show them the potential that they have.

Wendy also feels very confident that this will work as long as she has the help of other teachers and peer helpers. She understands that it is going to be a challenge but she knows it is going to work.

After watching the video, A 7th Grader's Personal Learning Environment,I believe that every school should allow the classes to be like the one in the this video. There are many pros and cons about having a class online. But more pros. It would teach students to be very organized and creative. Having a class online allows students to express their creativity more than doing busy book work. It also is helpful to have everything you need for the class right in their computer. I am very excited to learn more about technology and the way that I can use it in my classroom.