Final Thoughts....

At the beginning of this class I was intimidated because of all the upcoming assignments. Everything seemed so foreign to me, Mr. Tashbin however is a wonderful instructor, he made everyone feel comfortable and he explained things very throughly. I really enjoyed learning about Google tools before I had no idea Google even offered such things, and I look forward to using them in the future. Also learning how to put together a blog page was exciting, I had heard of blogs but had no idea where to even start to make one. This class has been very beneficial in teaching me new things about technology and how to put them to use in the future. I do enjoy doing group work, and the podcasts were fun I believe that if I would have had to do one by myself I would not have enjoyed it as much. And I believe that my favorite assignment out of all was the Google presentation I really enjoyed getting to know my classmates the project allowed us to get to know each other and made the class more enjoyable. There are so many classes were you never even know the person beside you, and that makes for a long semester, so thanks for making this class a true FUN learning experience!

Texting Away

After reading this article I seen some points that I agreed with, however I think some of the points were blown out of proportion. I for one love my cell phone and the use of text messages just as the next person. I do agree with the fact people not just students are addicted to cells and texting its everywhere people can not even sit in a restaurant and eat a meal with out looking at there phones. I do not think cells should be allowed during class because it interferes with learning, but its hard to stop it completely if teachers try to say no cell phones students are just going to go against the rules and find ways to do it anyways. As a teacher you can find an agreement with the students for example let them use there phones during down times, breaks etc. If students are given some privileges they may be willing to obey and respect the rules. I had a professor at my junior college that would count you absent for the day if your phone went off. Either way you are still going to have students who will break the rules, but I think there are better ways of dealing with the problem.

Being an Optimist

I enjoyed reading Mr. McClung's blog about being an optimist, I for one was a very below average student I have always had a difficult time studying taking test. In high school my freshman year we had around 65 students by graduation we had around 32 all from drop outs, students were encouraged to drop out if they failed the graduation exam. I hope to be more of an optimist with my future students, I know how if feels to not have anyone backing you up. I was not expected to graduate according to my teachers and fellow classmates but I have graduated and went on through 4 years of college so far. I agree with the fact most students are sold short of what they can really accomplish which is sad. Every student should have the same opportunities what they chose to do with those opportunities is there choice, but no one should ever be told what and who they can be.

What we would do...

I enjoyed the three blogs I read, all the ideas the teacher had was very interesting and I agreed with most of them. I think the three questions are great questions for all educators to think about and possibly make there own list.

If I were brave I would do the same thing many teachers would do I would stop all the testing, true learning does not necessarily come from a test but more from experience. I know that personally I have a very difficult time with test and many students are the same way, and I do not think it is fare because many of the students that have a problem with a test actually know the material. Most of the time you can ask a student a question about something and they can talk about it all day but if given on a test they forget completely, so if I were brave I would find more ways to help students learn than by giving test.

Ways I would make my school unique is I would try to have more educational field trips and activities for the students, to stimulate them. Also I would try to organize ways for educators to be more connected with one another, most teachers go to work and then go home. I think more teachers need to interact with one another even if its outside the school. By doing this they can share thoughts and ideas and better their own teaching skills.

Why I love teaching I am sure once I start teaching the reasons will grow, but with my experience as a substitute I have developed a bigger love for teaching than before. I love the look on a students face when he or she accomplishes something and they are so proud of what they have done. Also from another outlook, kids now days have it hard so many parents are busy working, getting divorces, or many on drugs that the children have no one to turn to and school is there only outlet. As an educator I want to be fully aware of these situations so I can better help students. I recently had the opportunity to substitute a second grade class where a child was just removed from his school because of being taken away from his parents the child was reserved and kept to himself. The day I was there the class was to practice counting money, and as everyone finished he was still sitting and trying to figure it out. I asked the boy to come sit with me that I would help him, and as we worked he slowly got the hang of it and he was the happiest child to be able to count money! At the time of helping him I did not know his situation but it goes to show always be sensitive because you never know what a child faces at home, that is why I love teaching!

6 C's

I agree with Dr. Stranges article on the six C's, to often teachers use the quick way out for example giving you the information you need to pass the set curriculum for the class, it makes it easier on the teacher and also on many of the students. By doing this students are not forced to be creative or interested in learning more, Students should be encouraged to want to ask questions to learn more. Also the use of technology needs to be incorporated into classrooms more often, technology is advancing everyday and not only the students but also teachers should be more interested in keep up with the advancements. Teachers should try to become more creative with lesson plans to stimulate the students and connect other classrooms as Dr. Strange said "classrooms without walls" , more teachers should encourage the use of the six C's

No "Burp Back" Education

I completely agree with Dr. Strange's article about "burp back" education, I went to a small school where teachers were old fashioned and used old fashioned teaching methods. Even into high school I remember the teachers were more concerned with the class being quite and doing a test or handouts so they could do what they wanted, rather than the teacher standing and having a real discussion with the students. The high school I attended had a drop out rate of half of each class because students could not pass the graduation exam, simply because teachers did not want to teach. Now as a student at a University I see what I missed in elementary school and even into junior college. As a future teacher I hope to bring new teaching methods to my class so that I may help others learn more and actually retain the information. I had a history professor explain to me one time the importance of history is not exactly being able to tell what event happened, when and where, but rather why is happened and the outcome of it. After hearing that I realized how often facts are pushed into students heads and what good are facts if you know nothing about them?

Blogging Internationally

The international link that I found was for room 18 Point England, this blog page has recently posted the announcement for a new teacher with her video on it. This is a group of 6th graders who are part of a cluster school that focuses on digital storytelling, blogging, and podcasting, for literacy. I thought it was neat that the students actually posted a video for advertisement of a new teacher, and the teacher that was hired posted her response on the upcoming position. I can tell that blogging is a very important tool in there education which I think is great. http://pesroom18.blogspot.com/2009/05/room-18-are-hiring.html