iBook Summary

This ibook is a summary of Dubai group's journey as students enrolled in EDM310. Though the road was not always a smooth paved one, we worked together as a group and learned many new and exciting things. Our ibook is a visual artifact that highlights our experiences as EDM310 students. Included are a group picture, each member’s brief personal bio, book trailer, my sentence/passion videos, favorite blog post, 10 personal photos, and a group discussion. We hope you enjoy our ibook as much as we enjoyed being students in EDM310.

Blog Post #15 My Final Reflection

C4T #4

For my fourth C4T, I'll be featuring Becky Goerend's blog: Live the Conversation. I'll be sharing some interesting facts and our interactions through comments.

In the first post I was able to gather some knowledgeable information about the duties of an educator. Mrs. Goerend provided a little piece of her life as an educator outside the classroom. She emphasized how the teacher is around the clock work, teachers are always working you will never know who you will run into! As teachers we have to always be on the ball just in case a surprise was to occur. For my comment, I introduced myself to Mrs. Goerend letting her know that I was currently a student in EDM 310 and majoring to become a future educator. I proceeded to inform her that I enjoyed reading her blog post. It was very fascinating! I agreed to her statement that as educators the teachers job is endless; the teacher has to continue to rather knowledgeable resources to create a higher ordered learning within the classroom. I stated how it was amazing how educators can make such an impact on students lives in and outside the classroom setting. I love how Mrs. Goerend provided a glimpse of her Saturday encounters with various students and their parents and how she handles each situation positively. She has helped me to realize that my job as a future educator is going to be fun yet also a lot of work. I am very excited about becoming an educator in the near future! I also informed Mrs. Goerend that I will be featuring some of her informative posts in my blog post and that she should check out my blog soon.

For my fifth C4T, I'll be featuring Becky Goerend's blog post on Thoughts on Wikipedia. In Mrs. Goerend's post she uncovers the use of Wikipedia with her students. She shares some good points on how utilizing this source can uncover the treasures of other resources that could lead to other helpful tools. Mrs. Goerends students were assigned to a social media site and asked to answer some questions about its history purpose, and use by individuals and businesses. In my response to Mrs. Goerens's post, I introduced myself being a student in EDM 310 at the University of South Alabama and was assigned to her blog this week. I informed her that I was very thrilled to be able to read more of her posts about the use of technology. I explained how this blog post has given me a better insight on how Wikipedia can help uncover helpful tools to use for my future studies and within my future classroom. I emphasized how the use of technology can help create an positive environment for higher ordered learning. I informed her that I'll be featuring our final comments within my blog this week and I hope that she will visit my blog soon. I thanked her for providing knowledgeable information within her blog to help students to think outside the box.

C4K Summary for April

C4K #9- “Island” By: Wesley a student in Miss. Ouano class

For this week I had a chance to observe Wesley's blog, he had some interesting post and the one I choose to read was his post on Island. I was so faschniated with his use of providing a visual picture to correspond with the creative thoughts he displayed about an adventure at the Island. He emphasized great details about the the different creatures that were seen in the water. Wesley provided a great importance on how certain sea creatures are dangerous to touch. I informed Wesley that I enjoyed reading his blog post, he did a great job with painting a visual picture of what was going on while at the Island. I let Wesley know that I could tell that he enjoyed doing this activity, simply by how he detailed everything in his post to help the reader feel lie they were actually on the Island. I also let Wesley know that I will be featuring his post within my blog in the near future, I informed him that he could check out my blog and to keep up the good work.

As future educators I think the engagement with the students and allowing them to express there thoughts through their blogs is a great way to create higher ordered thinking. Providing students with the use of technology and other useful sources expands the students minds to think outside of the box and let their imaginations roam freely. I will definitely encourage the use blogs with my future class, the idea of letting their work being seen be people from around the world will enhance the creativity within the student, hopefully sparkling an unknown talent.

C4K #10- ”Why is it Important to Learn how to Swim?” By: Alfa a student in Miss. Lavakula class

I had the pleasure of viewing Alfa's blog this week; I was very astonished by how creative his blog was put together! I introduced myself letting him know that I was selected to view his blog this week and how honored I was to be able to read some of his creative thoughts within this blog. I informed him that I plan on utilizing blogs with my future students, this is a helpful way for students to express their creative thoughts within their blogs for the world to see! I also informed Alfa that I was very impressed with the details he provided to his readers on the importance of learning how to swim, especially where he lives since it's surrounded by water. I told Alfa that I wasn't the best swimmer in the world but after reading his blog post I was convinced that I wanted to learn how to become a better swimmer. I told him how I loved his visual image on him and his friends in the pool. This was a great way to grab the reader's attention on how fun it is to swim. I informed Alfa that I would be featuring his blog post within my blog and hopefully he will check out my blog soon; Keep up the good work!

Blog Post #13

For this week, Dr. Strange assigned the class to create their own blog post according to their area of interest. Since I'm majoring in Elementary Education I will be incorporating all subjects within my future classroom. The main focus for this week's creative Blog Post will focus on Literature & Moral Development within the classroom.

The assignment: In this week's blog post, students will explain how they will promote moral development within their classroom. Students will explain why should blogging be helpful for an English class?

The reply:

Morals have to do with an action being right or wrong. In order to teach morality and enhance the moral development of my future students, I must set up classroom rules that require moral behavior. These rules should be fair in their creation and execution; everyone needs to be held to the same standards. They should reinforce positive behaviors and seek to eliminate negative or amoral ones. Rules of this nature involve respects for people and property, as well as responsible behaviors.

When students follow the rules and buy into the reason behind the rules, they help one another follow them as well. When students have to think about classroom rules, they also think about the reason behind the rules and they begin to use those reasons to inform their decision-making. As students learn to apply classroom morality to the real world, they form an understanding of the overall concepts of morality and justice. The reason for promoting moral development in schools is to train children to grow up to be morally grounded adults. Children who learn to follow rules in the school will eventually follow similar rules in society.

After students get the moral concept of the reasoning behind following the classroom, students are still curious to why must they blog in Literature rather than make use of the blank paper.

Why blog...

While literary studies might seem to be a very easy task, it is in fact a conversation. Of course, one is always in "conversation" with the text being examined, but a good writer is also in a conversation with others writing about the same text. When blogging students broaden their audience: suddenly their classmates can be in conversations with them; even when we're not in the classroom. Therefore, blogging is a place for individuals to practice writing. From my own experience, I found out that the best way to improve one's writing is to practice and allow others to share thoughtful and meaningful writing to help improve their views on certain interests and ideas.

Project #12 Part B

Blog Post #12

Blog Post #11

Project #10

C4K Summary for March

C4K #6- "Weekend Story" By: Te-Manea a student from Mrs. She 2nd grade class

For my next C4K, I got to check out Te-Manea's blog! Mrs. She had her 2nd grade students make a video using IMovie on something special they did over the weekend and use Kid Pix program to draw pictures that incorporate their stories. For my comment, I introduced myself, and let Te-Manea know that I'm a student in EDM 310, and a little about what our class is about. I told him how impressed I was with his "Weekend Story" and that his video he created was very cool. I also mentioned how being able to share information with others from around the world was an awesome way to communicate. I sent a link to my blog, just in case he wanted to check out the cool projects I've created, and I told him to keep up the good work!

C4K #7-”A Poem about Me” By: Flora a student from Mr. Barks & Mrs. Nua class

My next C4K observation was on a young courageous girl named Flora! I was able to read some amazing facts about what makes this 12 year old girl unique and different from the rest of her peers. For my comment, I introduced myself and let Flora know that I'm a student in EDM 310, I described a little about what our class is about and how we use different tools to communicate with other people from around the world that share the same interests. I told her how amazed I was with her not being scared of anything. I let her know that I haven't met many 12 year old girls that aren't afraid of anything. I also shared the same values are Flora in her poem with cherishing family and friends. I let Flora know that my family and friends keep a smile on my face. I concluded my conversation with Flora by telling her to keep up the good work!

C4K #8- 2014 Visual Mihi By: Mary a student from Ms. Squires class

For my next C4K observation, I had the chance on viewing Mary's blog post on her 2014 Visual Mihi. She utilized the tools Hyper Studio, Photo Booth and Comic Life to create this collage of things that represented her. For my response to her post, I informed Mary that she did an excellent job with creating symbols that represented her culture, nationality and the things she loves. I shared with her a little about my experience in EDM 310 and how the use of technology has expanded my knowledge on communicating with other people that share the same interests. I let her know that she did a wonderful job with making a collage from the tool Comic Life and I plan on utilizing this tool with my future students. I shared with Mary that I really enjoyed reading her post and to keep up the good work! I was fascinated to see the creative ideas students can express within the classroom utilizing technology. I plan on incorporating fun critical thinking assignments where students are able to gather the appropriate materials using technology as a source to express their interests and ideas.

C4T #3

For my third C4T, I'll be featuring Joey Feith, a physical education teacher from Canada. In the first post I checked out, Mr. Feith post about the idea of the #PECHAT. Mr. Feith discusses how this topic became very engaging for the girls in physical education. This chat created a huge step towards bridging the gap between academics and practitioners. I informed Mr. Feith that the idea of utilizing #PECHAT is a great and useful way educators can communicate with others and share their ideas and interests.

Although I'm not planning on being a Physical Educator, this source is a helpful way to becoming an effective educator if the teacher has the willingness to learn. I believe this is an effective way to get girls engaged in Physical Education using technology. It's a positive thing that teachers has reached a point that they are thinking about to what extent they are responsible for the level of disengagement experienced by their former student. This is a wonderful sign that teachers are open to change and willing to take the necessary steps to become better. Open hearts and minds to everyone of or learners is an effective way to create a Physical Education environment. I think we must educate ourselves and learn as much as we can on an ongoing basis.

For my next post for C4T, I had the pleasure of selecting another blog post from Joey Feith! Mr. Feith's blog post focuses on a fun activity entitled #PEPics:2014 Edition. Mr. Feith shares a great way to engage society in a creative photo/video challenge using the hashtag #PEPics for the assigned themes for the month of April. At the end of the month, various creative individuals will be chosen from the challenge to be added to their free resource to help promote the #physed community. I responded to Mr. Feith's blog by introducing myself and letting him know that I was a student in EDM 310 at the University of South Alabama. I informed Mr. Feith that this activity challenge was an interesting way to get individuals engaged in utilizing social media to their advantage to spread informative information with other people that share the same interests. I let him know that I plan on trying out the challenge that they have set for the month of April and I couldn't wait to see which selected individuals will be featured in their resource tool. I provided Mr. Feith with a link to my blog and informed him that I will be sharing my interactions with him with my fellow classmates and hopes he will visit my blog soon.

Project #12 Part A (using the SMARTboard tools)

Project #15 Lesson Plan

Beyond the Naked Eye!


"Beyond the Naked Eye" is a week long project based lesson plan that will teach 7th grade students about the difference between animal and plant cells. This project will be done individually. After a brief introduction to the material, students will be able to get familiar with iCurio, Google Docs and Discovery Ed as research and presentation tools. The objective of this lesson include distinguishing the key organelles and their function with an animal and plant cell. My driving question is: How do the parts of a cell work?

Blog Post #10

What can we learn from Sir Ken Robinson?

After watching Bring on the Education Revolution, Mr. Robinson provided a brief overview of the climate crisis obviously on human resources. Fundamentally as individuals we make poor use of our talents. Mr. Robinson explains how people think that they aren't good enough at anything so they settle for something else than to challenge themselves.

I can testify to this statement, I once had a fear of not being able to distinguish what my passion was; I had the mindset to work and move up within the company I'm working for rather than challenge myself and use the unique talents I have for children in the field of education. This issue has been resolved, now that I've found out my passion for educating and inspiring children. Mr. Robinson made a great point when he stated that if people don't enjoy what they do, they endure it. Everything in life doesn't come easy; society needs to rise with the occasion. As educators, it's important to create new solutions to better understand our students and their interests. Aiming for student achievement, teachers will need create strategies to bridge the gap different worlds the students operate in. Understanding students is very important to teaching. In order to plan how to teach your students or ways to present a subject in an interesting manner a teacher needs to know what motivates the students, what background the students are bringing to the classroom, as well as the students interests. Mr. Robinson stated education should be an organic progress, allowing students to explore their aspirations is a great way for them to discover their hidden talents and express it creatively. My goal as a future educator is to get to know every student, to make them feel like they matter and their opinions are valued.

Blog Post #9

Interview with Kathy Cassidy Part 1

After watching the first interview from Mrs. Cassidy and Dr. Strange I was provided with a different outlook on the use of technology in the classroom. I gained knowledgeable information on how to prepare myself for the 21st century's use of technology. Mrs. Cassidy explains how some teachers don't want to change, but with change there are numerous of ways that technology can help with exploring new ideas and finding resources to help build higher ordered learning for the teacher and the students. Mrs. Cassidy emphasizes that technology isn't going away. The 21st century is changing creating so many opportunities with collaborating with other individuals which helps develop relationships but the individual has to keep in touch with technology. Blogging is becoming very useful, this tool contains an audience which others can see things that strike an interest and leave comments. The importance's of utilizing online tools help individuals learn at their own pace and have good supporters that have the same interests provide information. Mrs. Cassidy talks about how excited her students are when they are able to express their thoughts online and have other people comment on their posts. I am excited about mastering new skills to help engage my future classroom. It's fascinating that Mrs. Cassidy allows her students to Skype with other individuals to share meaningful information, which is one of many ways to collaborate with others from around the world.

Interview with Kathy Cassidy Part 2

In Mrs. Cassidy's second part of her interview provided different methods on how to utilize the Internet, post comments and protect individual's identity from being compromised. Mrs. Cassidy instructs her students on utilizing the Internet and other tools to find things that interest them. For instance the use of Twitter, a source that can help students collaborate with other individuals that share the same interests which can help develop new ideas for future projects. Another great point Mrs. Cassidy instructed was to never leave negative comments on another individual's blogs, this is a great way to emphasize how to treat others the way they would want to be treated. When evaluating peers blogs leave positive feedback. I think students should be given guidelines on how to properly utilize technology and also avoid pictures of themselves on their blogs. Allowing students to become creative and use such useful tools to express their interests and knowledge is by far the best way to motivate them to think outside the box.

Interview with Kathy Cassidy Part 3

In the last interview session with Mrs. Cassidy, she provided some fascinating facts on how to adapt to the changes that technology will bring. She provided useful tips on how to utilize blogs to update information for students if changes were to occur. Teaching is going to consist of constant learning, gathering data and collaborative work to prepare for the 21st century. As a future educator I will have to provide my students with the importance of collaboration within and outside the classroom, only in a safe way. I will create a HUB for my students and parents to visit to gather sources and helpful tips on projects the students are preparing learn. I will allow students to create blogs for uploading videos, assignments and sharing their creative ideas. I believe that technology will engage students and encourage them to embrace and share ideas with the world when guided properly.

Project #14 Lesson Plan

Effects of Gravitational Force

“Effects of Gravitational Force” is a week long project based lesson plan that will teach 5th grade students about identifying characteristics of Newton's Law while providing them with hands on learning objectives. This project will be done individually. After a brief introduction to the material, students will be able to get familiar with iCurio, Google Docs and Discovery Ed as research and presentation tools. The objectives of this lesson include distinguishing the effects of gravitational pull from other natural forces and identify characteristics of Newton's Law. My driving question is: Identify contributions of Newton to the study of gravity.

Project #9

Blog Post #8

Bringing more creativity to classrooms energizes teachers as well as students, and it means being passionate, innovative, and thinking outside the box. Preparing students for the 21st century is by providing the resources and training necessary.

The use of social networking is a great way to start discussions and share ideas for projects. An appropriate tool to use in my future classroom is called Edmodo, a social-media site for education, to connect parents with the lively conversations happening in the classroom. Using social networking for a serious purpose builds students' 21st century skills of communication, collaboration and critical thinking. I think this a helpful way to connect families with the classroom. I plan on utilizing Edmodo in my classroom everyday. Not only to post daily assignments, but I will hep the calendar current with various events. When I find additional curricular related materials (videos, flash cards, etc.) that I think may help the students understand the concept better. I would post links with a note on how it will help the students especially beneficial to students that are absent. Documents will be created in Google Docs and can share with the class in several different ways. Edmodo also allows you to create quizzes, but I will also use Flubaroo to auto-correct the quiz and have the results sent directly to the student for feedback. This tool is a great way to increase students/parents knowledge and capabilities in the 21st century.

C4T #2

For my second C4T, I'll be featuring Royan Lee's blog: The Spicy Learning Blog. I'll be sharing some interesting facts and sharing our interaction through comments.

C4T #1 Comment/My Response

"Comfort with a Blank Page,"discusses how student need to get really good with the use of a blank page. Mr. Lee provided great facts on how students being able to embrace there thoughts on paper are more likely to: plan well, appreciate complexity, like solving problems and are reflective. Mr. Lee points out how he can contribute to helping the students obtain this knowledge by providing sketchbooks, teach handwriting, teach students to draw ironically as opposed to realistically, share and present visual art are just some of the few he listed. His approaches gave a different insight on how he chooses to introduce lessons to his student.

In response to Mr. Lee's blog post I introduced myself and shared links to my blog as well as the class blog with him. I provided information about the EDM course and how it was mandatory to gain knowledge that we have to become independent learners. Mr. Wheeler was also informed that I'll be featuring some of our comment interactions on my blog. I also let him know that I enjoyed reading his post and I plan on gathering information trying to incorporate the usage of blank paper within my future classroom.

C4T #2 Comment/My Response


For my second post I was able to check out Royan Les's blog post, "What makes a Teacher Credible?" He discusses how he allowed his students to evaluate the importance of a persuading an audience. Mr. Lee provided examples of how the students responded to watching the debates on climate change with Bill Nye, the students stated hoe talking calmly rather than hyper or angry is more of a persuasive way to get their point across.

For my response, I informed Mr. Lee that his blog provided great points on how engaging an audience can be easily influenced by positive gestures and being confident in the material that's being presented. I also let Mr. Lee know that allowing students to provide their feedback allows them an opportunity to see positive/negative ways to keep an audience involved and learn from those lessons. I also informed Mr. Lee that I would be featuring a brief summary of my experience reading his blog posts within my blog and encouraged him to visit my blog soon.

Project #13 PBL

Ferris Wheel of Water – Lesson Plan

“The Ferris Wheel of Water” is a week and a half long project based lesson plan that will teach 5th grade students about the water cycle while providing them with hands on learning objectives. After a brief introduction to the material, students will be placed in groups of 4-5 (depending on class size) where they will be introduced to iCurio, Google Docs and Discovery Ed as research and presentation tools. The objectives of this lesson include collaborative research, completing an assessment rubric, and effectively using Google Docs and the SMART board to present the information they’ve learned. Dubai group’s driving question is: What are the components of the water cycle?

Blog Post #7

After watching Randy Pausch Last Lecture: Achieving Your Childhood Dreams, I enjoyed how he intertwined philosophy with humor while he engages his audience in his past experiences in his life and how it shaped him into the person he has become. This lecture was such an inspiration to have faith to achieve my own career and personal goals. Some of the key factors that stood out in the lecture are when Randy stated, "When you screw up and nobody's saying anything to you anymore, that means they gave up." This is a reminder that criticism may not be intended to hurt but another way of showing that they love you. Mr. Pausch gave important details on how to achieve your childhood dreams and the rules of life to accomplish these goals. What drove Mr. Pausch is the passions for helping other people achieve their dreams too.

His speech is all about "self," specific instructions for yourself and no other people. "The bricks walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out; the brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something." Overall it is a very touching lecture which has transformed many lives worldwide. This is one of the most moving speeches I've ever had a pleasure of watching, I believe this made me a better person and I regret not one minute spent.

Project #6 (C4K Summary for February)

For project #6 I'll be summarizing my interactions with other younger students through their blog! This will be my first interaction with younger students from around the world. The project that Dr. Strange has assigned to our EDM 310 class is called C4K, which simply means Comments for Kids! I think the goal of this project is to utilize technology to reach out to teachers and students to get a better insight on how they interact in their classrooms and submit their thoughts to their blogs. Encouraging comments for kids will introduce students to the power of communication all over the world through blogs. It teaches kids to take pride in their work by creatively jotting down their thoughts and giving ideas to their peers for feedback. I'll be posting some interesting comments shared with my C4K students to my blog. I'm very excited to share the student’s reactions to my comments on their blog posts!

C4K #1- "All About Me" By: Jamie O. a student from Ms. Toal's 4th/5th grade class.

Summary of Comment:

Hey Jamie,

My name is Ryan Knight, I'm 28 years old. I'm a student at the University of South Alabama. I'm studying to become an Elementary School teacher, like your teacher Ms. Toal in the future. I'm a student in a class called EDM 310, we have a class blog were you can read about many projects the class is creating. Your blog was really fun to read because you provided good details on your favorite sport. I like how you demonstrate being a team player by not being greedy with the football. I never played football before but I enjoy watching my younger brother play basketball. He plays for the Sacramento Kings in the NBA. What's the highest amount of points have you scored in one game? I encourage you to keep practicing your football skills; you'll become a great player! Keep up the good work!

C4K #2- "What would you do if you were locked inside your favorite department store overnight?" By: Mary a student in Mrs. Caddy's 5th grade class.

Summary of Comment:

Hey Mary!

My name is Ryan Knight; I'm a student in a class called EDM 310. I attend the University of South Alabama, studying to become a future Elementary School teacher. In our class we are studying numerous of ways to utilize technology and to communicate with other individuals from around the world! My instructor, Dr. Strange, assigned me to your blog to get an insight of the fun and creative assignments you’re engaging in within your blog. I really enjoyed reading your post on being locked in a department store overnight. My favorite part is when you stated that you would shake up soda pops and put Mentos in them to make rockets. That would be pretty awesome to see how high it would shoot into the air! If I was locked in my favorite department store I would try so many clothes and shoes! I love fashion, so I would use my imagination to create a runway as I try on different clothes. I will definitely take pictures too to show my friends once I go home! Do you enjoy using your blog? This will be my first year creating a blog, so far I love it! Technology is so awesome, a great source of communication. Keep up the good work!

C4K #3- "Kamo had a Dream" By: Kyree a student from Ms. Ruiz's 3rd period.

Summary of Comment

Hey Kyree,

My name is Ryan Knight. I’m a student at the University of South Alabama. I’m studying to become an Elementary School teacher, like your teacher Ms. Ruiz's in the future. I’m a student in a class called EDM 310, we have a class blog were you can read about many projects the class is creating. Your blog was really fun to read because you provided good details on what your ideal dream would be if it were to become realistic. I like how you provided a distinctive description of how you would like your exotic house to look inside and outside. I also noticed your statement on being rich instead of famous. I totally agree with you on this statement. I think being famous is a lot of responsibility. Always being in the public eye can sometimes be a hassle. To live comfortably and not have to worry about what others think of you would be my idea dream. Keep up the good work!

C4K #4- "Mixtape" By: Gullie a student from Mrs. Long's 10th grade class.

Hey Gullie,

My name is Ryan Knight. I’m a student at the University of South Alabama. I’m studying to become an Elementary School teacher in the near future. I’m a student in a class called EDM 310, we have a class blog were you can read about many projects the class is creating. Your blog was really interesting to read especially when you distinguished your interests in mix tapes. I think there are varieties of different artists that have very meaningful songs that are out now. My favorite genres to listen to are R&B, Pop, and Rap. I also enjoy listening to a mixture of music in my spare time. I think you’re very interested in the music industry, I think if you stay focused there are numerous of opportunities that are out there for you in the future. Keep up the good work!

Overview

I was thrilled to be able to read the various students blogs that I was assigned to. I noticed how each of the students was able to share their thoughts and interests in some of their posts which made them stand out compared to the other students. I think this method is a creative way to interact with other students from around the world and learn other interesting ideas that students are learning within the classroom.

Project #8 Book Trailer

Blog Post #6

What is PLN? This information was vague to me until I was intrigued by the video of a 7th grade student who knows how to accurately maneuver through the internet with the help of useful tools. She stated how it was important to allow students to have freedom to explore technology, providing students with the responsibility of how and when they will gather information on projects. I think this process will allow students to become engaged with the learning process and gather information that interests them. Another amazing fact she pointed out was her ability to create scientific project using her PLE and connect with scientist from around the world using email and Skype to retrieve knowledge on how to improve her project. Steven Anderson’s interview was another great source of information on PLN. He discusses how students already utilize their PLN through Skype, Facebook, Twitter etc. but we need to extend our thinking. Networking is a key aspect in gathering information; we don't have to know everything. AS future educators we can network to ask questions and reflect on material covered in class. Information can be gathered from across the world, utilizing technology to gather sources is as simple as leaving the classroom. It's important to be an active learner and thinker, being able to collaborate with fellow educators increases the knowledge you can provide to your future students.

As future educators we have to prepare for the 21st century, technology is constantly growing. Personal learning networks provide great resources for individuals to extend their teaching and learning experiences. In Michael Fawcett discussion video I was able to obtain valuable information on how to connect with fellow educators and share common interests. Mr. Fawcett advises individuals to seek new ideas by connecting with others and share inspiring information. I was very astonished by Mr. Fawcett utilizing twitter for a question and receiving a response within thirty minutes! Being able to use virtual environments in education has definitely been an eye opener. In my future classroom I plan on allowing students to voice their opinions through their own personal learning network. Being able to surround students with other ideas from around the world would be a great way to help them engage in the lessons being taught. There are numerous of resources and tools to help extend knowledge, the key is to get connected. I think as future educators we must always remember to be a student and never stop learning.

Blog Post #5

To become an effective teacher in the future Dr. Strange and Anthony Capps summarized some great points in various videos. These videos gave a great insight on what future teachers should consider while perusing their dream of becoming an educator. The sources I gathered my information on were from: Project Based Learning Part 1, iCurio, and Additional Thought about Lessons.

iCurio is a digital search engine for students and teachers. The usage of this tool is to provide teachers with the ability to help their students with their work. It allows teachers to become more flexible with creating easy lesson plans that fits the education standards; producing higher ordered learning for students. iCurio is a creative way to get students motivated in the subjects their learning. It provides students with the opportunity to become independent learners and learn how to sort information in folders, teaching them how to become organized. Students are able to become more hands on with technology. This is a great resource for all grade levels if students are familiar with the internet. This method allows students to gain knowledge to prepare themselves for the 21st century. As a teacher you will have to learn to "always be a student and never stop learning." There is always something to learn as a teacher. There are many components to education, to improve lessons the teacher has to be willing to collect research on and off the clock. Never limit students to one thing, create an opportunity for them to analyze and critique. Providing students with an opportunity to expand their knowledge and respond to certain situations allows them to creatively expand their thinking habits. Don't expect perfection, allow the students to become familiar with technology. The students may be able to demonstrate new features that the teacher hasn't been introduced to! As a future teacher I've learned that there is no ending process for gathering materials to keep my students engaged in lessons being taught. I have to learn to become flexible when certain situations arise and respond accordingly. Always work hard with anything I do, being open to criticism helping me to make things better. The goal of project based learning is to get students engaged while meeting all Common Core Standards and presenting the material that is relevant to student's everyday living. Being an effective teacher takes a lot of work and planning to get positive results.

Project #7

My Sentence is...

My Passion is...

Project #3 Presentation

Blog Post #4

What do we need to know about asking questions to be an effective teacher?

After reviewing sources: The Right Way to Ask Questions in the Classroom and Asking Questions to Improve Learning , I was able to gather some great insights on how teachers can become more effective when asking students questions. Asking questions is a key aspect of a teacher's interaction with their students. This way it provides teachers with the ability to check for students understanding of the material being taught. Teachers mainly benefit from this method. To indulge in students performance teachers should ask deeper effective questions.

By asking specific questions teachers are able to access what the students know based on past experiences or on the material being discussed. Ways to deepen the students thinking skills is to encourage higher order thinking. Students that don't grasp the material usually don't participate; to keep those students involved try to rarely use the method of total physical response. When asking questions randomly select students, this creates an atmosphere where all students will be forced to think. Also, make sure questions are clear and specific for the appropriate grade level. Allowing students to answer a variety of questions will avoid open ended answers. When students respond to question require them to state the reasoning behind their answer. I think teachers should enforce students to use hand gestures when they're in agreement or disagreement with their peers. This technique will show the teacher which students are engaged. Utilizing Bloom's Taxonomy will be a great factor within the classroom to help teachers become more effective in asking questions. Being consistent and open to new changes will help teachers in the near future to keep a positive environment in the classroom.

C4T #1

For my first C4T, I'll be featuring Steve Wheeler blog: Learning with ‘e’s. I'll be sharing some interesting facts and sharing our interaction through comments.

C4T Comment

"Backchannels, hashtags and learning," discusses how the usage of technology has enhanced learning. Mr. Wheeler allows former college students to embrace how technology has impacted their lives. The students were able to provide how technology has progressed in their lives and how social networks provide useful links to retrieve important information. One student describes how he uses a laptop software called "dragon" to verbally speak his thoughts to the computer and it translates it to text. This blog post helps you to understand how technology is used through various sources to expand the thoughts of other individuals.

My Response

In response to Mr. Wheeler blog post I introduced myself and shared links to my blog as well as the class blog with him. I provided information about the EDM course and how it was mandatory to gain knowledge that we have to become independent learners. Mr. Wheeler was also informed that I'll be featuring some of our comment interactions on my blog. I also let him know that I enjoyed reading his post and I plan on utilizing social networking to my advantage and explore the use of blogging my thought in the future.

C4T Comment/Response

The second post I had to opportunity to check out Mr. Wheeler blog post, "Memory Full". He discusses how the human memory works in different modalities, through auditing and visual coding. Mr. Wheeler provide a great example of how learners can be given content on a screen and based upon how effective the material presented to the student results in how easy it is for the student to learn the material. This post provided some great facts on how to help learners understand and remember materials in the future.

For my comment, I informed Mr. Wheeler that his blog provided a great insight on how the Cognitive Load Theory can create such an impact on students learning. It was a great way to provide learners with the appropriate media for higher order learning. I also let Mr. Wheeler know that I think the student should be encouraged to use their limited working memory efficiently, especially when learning a difficult task. Upon thanking Mr. Wheeler for providing ways to reduce over thinking, I informed him that I finally finished his post for my class blog and I'll be featuring his blog posts in my blog.

Blog Post #3

How can you provide meaningful feedback to your peers without coming off as rude? Peer editing consists of helping someone your age, improve or revise their writing. After viewing the information from sources: "What is Peer Editing?", "Peer Edit with Perfection Tutorial" and "Writing Peer Review Top 10 Mistakes" I was able to point out one important key factor to keep in mind while editing, is to stay positive! When making suggestions on an individual's writing make sure the information is clear and detailed. Peer editing can be very helpful, but if not done correctly, your peer can take it personally. There are three steps to remember when peer editing which are: making compliments, suggestions and corrections. This method will help the reader feel better about their writing instead of pointing out all of their mistakes.

Peer editing is definitely something that makes me nervous! By using the steps mentioned in the material I can avoid these issues. Now that I've been provided with the proper materials to succeed I feel like I would be able to successfully help my peers in the near future. Peer editing is a very helpful method to use in EDM 310, allowing me to practice with my peers to become a better critique. I’ve learned that you should care about what is being edited and the comments you are receiving. You should strive to be positive and be specific. As future educators we must be able to critique other students work and help guide them to become better writers.

Blog Post #2

Mr. Dancealot

The movie Mr. Dancealot demonstrated the incorrect way to teach, this shows me what not to do when teaching my future students. He taught his dance course in a lecture hall where students could not participate. If the class was placed I an open area the instructor could provide visual examples rather than standing behind a desk where the students could not see. When students are placed in a boring and unfit environment it causes the students to lose interest and not do well in the course. The students were confused on the material being taught. The key to making students successful starts with the professor by getting the students involved. Providing ways to interact with the students allows the professor to distinguish the student's strengths and weaknesses. As a result, the students are more engaged in the material and are eager to learn.

Teaching in the 21st Century

Kevin Roberts is certain of what it will mean to teach in the 21st century. I think Mr. Roberts is providing society with another glimpse of how much more advanced technology has gotten over the years and how it will progress in the near future. Anyone can learn anything they could possibly imagine by using such amazing resources like Google Docs, Smart board, YouTube, Internet etc. to find relevant information. With the help from teachers the resources can be put to good use to gain knowledge on anything imaginable. Mr. Roberts has inspired me to be a "filter" in my future students' lives. I will help them to grow individually, understand what information is correct and to use technology to their advantage. Students need to be taught to apply, understand, analyze, evaluate, and to be creative based on the things they explore through technology. This video has added excitement about what new technology will I will embrace in my future classroom. As the teacher I will provide professional teaching styles to engage my students in learning.

The Network Student

After watching The Networked Student by Wendy Drexler, I was enlightened on how beneficial it is for students to network in order to build independent learning. Through various tools technology can be learned by diverse connections and social networking. Why do students need a teacher? Teachers are a guide to motivate students, help when stuck and to point us in the right direction. Although students have access to tons of resources teachers still play a major role in the classroom. I think there should be a balance between teacher interaction and independent learning. This will allow students to have open learning to discover their interests. Boundaries have to be set to show the students how to communicate properly with others and differentiate good and bad information. Teachers hope that when the students leave their classroom that the students maintain the learning network and help use it to solve the world's problems. Overall the theory of connectivism is beneficial. I'm excited to utilize these techniques in the future.

Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts

The video Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts is definitely an eye opener to the usage of technology. Vickie Davis believes that every child is capable of learning, the use of paper and pencil limits the type of learners that are going to succeed. Mrs. Davis classroom is constructed in a way that her students are able to learn the same material but customizes it according to the students' interests. Mrs. Davis teaches her students how to use technology to share their assignments with others around the world. When Mrs. Davis introduces a term that her students are unfamiliar with, she expects them to use Google to gather information to get a better understanding. The students are responsible for completing assignments and being able to teach the lessons to their classmates. This method allows the student to gain an understanding of the material being presented to the class and discuss it in a way the class will understand. Allowing the students to use technology to their advantage gives them the skills to strive to become better learners. This video provided a great insight of burback information helps the students become more knowledgeable about technology.

Flipping the Classroom

Upon watching the video Flipping the Classroom I had no knowledge on this strategy. I think this approach will be very useful in my future classroom. As a teacher I will be able to create strategies for all types of learners. This approach allows the students to work at their own pace or work ahead when mastered the material. I can imagine teachers being overwhelmed with not enough time for effective differentiation within the classroom. Allowing the students to creatively use technology at school and home brings learning to new level. Students are able to obtain background knowledge on the material and even provide discussions around the material. I think with this approach it will allow all students to become engaged and challenged.

Blog Assignment #1

Upon entering EDM 310 I heard a lot of negative comments. The comments consisted of: the class is time consuming and it's hard and you may want to take that class by itself. Others stated that they hated the class and they were glad that it was over and wished me the best of luck this semester. I think the workload is demanding in this class but once I get in the routine of what's expected of me in the class and ask questions then the class should be very informative.

The only fear I have with EDM 310 is not fully understanding the tools that will be used with completing the daily tasks that are assigned to the class. I also dread if I'm unsure of an assignment and ask for help and I get ignored.

EDM 310 compared to other courses taken in my past semesters is definitely different, an eye opener. In EDM you have to be organized daily, the same amount of time in class is valuable. The information you gather in class will help you to prepare you for the next assignment being given to help further your studies. The technology part of this course is also a big attribute in the field of education. EMD 310 will provide ways to use technology to engage other individuals on learning new material, allow the students to reflect on the information learned at the end of the course. Other courses are somewhat similar to EDM 310 due to usage of computers and studying the material to pass the course.

The most difficult thing that I will encounter while in EDM 310 is balance with my school and work load. If I keep things organized and done on time I should be able to succeed in this class. The best way for me to address the difficult aspect of EMD 310 is staying positive and push myself to do the best I can no matter how hard the class may seem. I don't have any questions for this class, but I am eager to learn ways to incorporate the knowledge taught in this class and to share with others.

Test Post

test

Practice Post

My name is Ryan Knight. I’m 28 years old, the oldest of my six siblings. I was born in Mobile, AL and mainly raised in Birmingham, AL after I graduated from middle school. In Birmingham I attended Jefferson State Community College, majoring in Elementary Education and working at a daycare center called Patty Cake Academy. After completion of the Junior college I took a break in completing my education due to family issues causing me to further put my education I hold. I moved back to Mobile two years ago due to me getting ill. I'm currently a Junior at South Alabama continuing my studies in Elementary Education while working as a part-time teller at Wells Fargo. My family members are CHARACTERS; there is never a dull moment in our house. I have two brothers (DeMarcus and Jaleel) and three sisters (Jesslyn, Jessica and Auriel). Momentarily I live with my mother who I adore, a great role model in my life who always reminds me to stay humble and true to myself.

The main reason I entered the field of education is my family and the fact that I love to be around children. Majority of my family members are educators. My grandmother was a teacher and aunt is currently a principal at W. B. Robbins Elementary School. The guidance and continuance to further my education from the educators in the family pushed me to become a great role model in other children of various walks of life.

As a student at South Alabama I rarely have any free time but outside of working and school I enjoy surfing the internet on the latest fashion trends and shopping (my addiction). I love to mix and match different prints and try to set “new” trends. I’ve always been told I have a special gift in styling but I’m still trying to figure out if I should pursue some of my energy in that field or not. I want to get better at not letting stressful situations get me down, sometimes I become so overwhelmed that I get to myself and don't want to be bothered. I'm learning now that if I take it one day at a time and plan ahead things will work out, if not then as long as I tried my best then that's all that matters. One interesting fact about me is that I once modeled for Project Runways designer Ken Lawrence in Birmingham.

My Test Post

This is my First Post. I clicked the HTML button which I should always do in EMD310. I am now a Blogger!