The results of my sound statistical study show that CSE 694 members prefer Fantasy/Adventure to Science-Fiction or any other way you may want to interpret these results.
28 % - Lord of Rings
28 % - Indiana Jones
14 % - Star Wars
28 % - Harry Potter
I wish all of my fellow colleagues and Denvy much joy in your careers (mostly teaching I believe), and together we will anticipate the next great fantasy adventure movie. Any word on a Robert Jordan movie in the making?
About Me
- Heather
- Woman, Wife, Mom, Student, Airman, Runner, Follower of Love, Compassion, Truth, Mercy, and Kindness.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Reflection - Blogs in Education
Learning about blogs and the application of blogs in education has been an exciting and enlightening experience. I have learned that blogs are a great communication tool. They are a way to manage and maintain a flow of information enhanced and supplemented by multi-media and links. With design features and settings, they are a great option to consider in place of a personal website. Blogs are interactive and allow for comments and feedback. As a teacher, I plan on using a blog as a communication tool with students and parents.
With respect to my overall experience, it's amazing how building, creating, and thinking facilitate such a rewarding experience. This class has allowed for familiarization and the development of confidence with technology and related tools to enhance classroom education. I feel such a sense of accomplishment ending the class with my own blog and portfolio of my experience. What a motivating way to encourage ownership and engagement. The structure of this class has made learning easy as it allowed my creative juices and my own thoughts to develop with ease and interest (Some good Intrinsic motivation). What a great application of how we, as teachers, want to motivate and create interest in our students. We want them to take ownership of their lives, their learning, and understand the great rewards and benefits that await them as they pursue learning as a life long venture. Thanks Denvy for this experience, your wisdom, and the way you have guided and facilitated learning in this class. Thank you to all my colleagues for your reflective words, passing on of learning and information, and for enhancing my learning experience.
With respect to my overall experience, it's amazing how building, creating, and thinking facilitate such a rewarding experience. This class has allowed for familiarization and the development of confidence with technology and related tools to enhance classroom education. I feel such a sense of accomplishment ending the class with my own blog and portfolio of my experience. What a motivating way to encourage ownership and engagement. The structure of this class has made learning easy as it allowed my creative juices and my own thoughts to develop with ease and interest (Some good Intrinsic motivation). What a great application of how we, as teachers, want to motivate and create interest in our students. We want them to take ownership of their lives, their learning, and understand the great rewards and benefits that await them as they pursue learning as a life long venture. Thanks Denvy for this experience, your wisdom, and the way you have guided and facilitated learning in this class. Thank you to all my colleagues for your reflective words, passing on of learning and information, and for enhancing my learning experience.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
A Piece of the Puzzle - Marketing a Blog
What I'm noticing after reading some blog posts and articles on how to market a blog is the value of good people skills (interpersonal skills) to attract and keep an audience of readers. It seems that when marketing a blog, just like running any business or promoting any product, people skills are a key aspect to attracting and maintaining buyers, investors, readers, etc.
When people talk to you, respond to them in a polite and timely manner. In blog terms, when people make a comment, respond to the comment. It would be seen as rude to ignore someone in person, why not online? Don't be abrasive or rude in your writing. Don't take an attack stance. Use acceptance and tolerance to lay the ground work for thought provoking and reasonable conversation about a topic. Also, taking an egotistical or self-glorifying stance always turns people off. This same social rule applies in our everyday interactions with people. I remember in 4th grade when I started bragging about my good grades and how great I was... Let's just say the response wasn't positive, and I learned that it is not socially acceptable behavior to talk about how great I think I am.
My conclusion... Professional, considerate behavior and a tone of acceptance are as equally important online as they are offline, and they are one piece of the 'marketing a blog' puzzle.
When people talk to you, respond to them in a polite and timely manner. In blog terms, when people make a comment, respond to the comment. It would be seen as rude to ignore someone in person, why not online? Don't be abrasive or rude in your writing. Don't take an attack stance. Use acceptance and tolerance to lay the ground work for thought provoking and reasonable conversation about a topic. Also, taking an egotistical or self-glorifying stance always turns people off. This same social rule applies in our everyday interactions with people. I remember in 4th grade when I started bragging about my good grades and how great I was... Let's just say the response wasn't positive, and I learned that it is not socially acceptable behavior to talk about how great I think I am.
My conclusion... Professional, considerate behavior and a tone of acceptance are as equally important online as they are offline, and they are one piece of the 'marketing a blog' puzzle.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Part 2 - Managing Students' Blogs
Okay, so I do not think I will be using student blogs in my classroom. I will be teaching high school math, and I hope to use one classroom blog as a resource and supplement to the classroom. I did find some information about managing student comments. I read some ideas from a blog titled, "Utilizing Blogs in the Classroom." It discussed issues of avoiding anonymous comments, how to hold students accountable for their posts, and minimizing spam comments. It also discussed how to set up comments so students could post using their initials and avoid using personal information. You can check out this information at the following link.
http://classroomblogging.wordpress.com/2007/05/21/managing-student-comments/
http://classroomblogging.wordpress.com/2007/05/21/managing-student-comments/
Monday, January 17, 2011
Part I - Managing a Blog
Previously I stated... In order to use a blog effectively and efficiently as a supplement to the classroom, I believe it requires commitment, practice, and continual adaptation. I also believe that the teacher needs to set clear expectations for the blog, understand and set limits regarding time and interactions, and adapt to transform the process to best enhance learning.
More specifically, I believe that it is important to set specific expectations and goal/goals for a blog. For example, my classrom blog will exist in order to keep parents informed of daily classroom lessons, activities, and homework. Then set a schedule or method to what you post on your blog. For example, every morning post a summarized version of your daily lesson plan online with the homework assignment for that day. Establish a way to receive feedback from parents on the value and usefulness of the blog. Set a time every evening that you check the blog for comments, concerns, etc. Stick to it, reflect on the outcome, and adjust/adapt if changes are needed or if goals are not being met. Focus on making the goal of the blog clear to parents and students. Communicate a process that parents can use to deal with other issues that are not acceptable to address on the blog page.
More specifically, I believe that it is important to set specific expectations and goal/goals for a blog. For example, my classrom blog will exist in order to keep parents informed of daily classroom lessons, activities, and homework. Then set a schedule or method to what you post on your blog. For example, every morning post a summarized version of your daily lesson plan online with the homework assignment for that day. Establish a way to receive feedback from parents on the value and usefulness of the blog. Set a time every evening that you check the blog for comments, concerns, etc. Stick to it, reflect on the outcome, and adjust/adapt if changes are needed or if goals are not being met. Focus on making the goal of the blog clear to parents and students. Communicate a process that parents can use to deal with other issues that are not acceptable to address on the blog page.
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Blogging - Features and Usefulness in Teaching
For teaching purposes, the blog is a great communication tool. It is a great way to pass and share information whether it is informative or procedural. Blogs are an excellent forum for posting and explaining assignments, answering questions, and giving feedback to students regarding assignments. I believe they are also a valuable way to share and communicate with parents regarding what is going on in the classroom. Blogging allows for the use of multi-media to reinforce classroom learning and assist different learning styles. A blog could also be used to pass hints and memory tools for students or to pass on information that isn't covered in class. Such information could aid in the creation of a more friendly classroom environment. A teacher could post information regarding interpersonal skills, communication skills, collaborative skills, conflict resolution, and problem solving skills.
I see that blogger.com is a bit limited in design features. Maybe I need to interact more with the features, but there seem to be set ways in which you can move and add gadgets. This feature creates ease of use, but limits creativity. I do appreciate the array of gadgets and the ease of use. It is very useful to be able to embed videos, pictures, and links. Especially to give students a variety of learning tools to blend and enhance classroom learning.
I see that blogger.com is a bit limited in design features. Maybe I need to interact more with the features, but there seem to be set ways in which you can move and add gadgets. This feature creates ease of use, but limits creativity. I do appreciate the array of gadgets and the ease of use. It is very useful to be able to embed videos, pictures, and links. Especially to give students a variety of learning tools to blend and enhance classroom learning.
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