My EDM 310 Blog Assignments are Now Complete

I enjoyed working with all of my classmates during this Fall semester. I wish all of them well in their future studies. I also hope that their futures hold good luck, happiness, and success for them.

ACCESS Assignment

ACCESS is an online educational program that allows students to learn by taking long distance classes online. ACCESS is an acronym for Alabama Connecting Classrooms, Educators and Students Worldwide. This program began in November 2004, and it is still advancing across the state of Alabama. ACCESS is used somewhat the same way online classes are taken by college students. The high school students usually take Advanced Placement and/or elective courses through the ACCESS program that aren't offered in their school's classroom settings.

The ACCESS program provides many technology uses that the teachers and students have to learn how to use. Interactive Video Conferencing (IVC) is one of them that is used in order for students and teachers to feel like they are in a real classroom setting. IVC allows the students to see and talk to their teacher in real time with the use of video and audio devices. The teacher can explain concepts by using visuals, show students how to perform experiments, and also take them on virtual field trips. The teachers and students also learn how to use various computer software that is essential in using the ACCESS program.

The schools provide many resources that the students make use of. The students high school provides them with laptop computers that are used for the ACCESS program. They are also provided with an ACCESS computer lab that is only used for the students to take their online classes. An ACCESS lab facilitator is also provided to help the students use the program during their class time in the lab.

During this fall semester, I visited Satsuma High School's ACCESS learning lab. The learning lab is set up almost like a regular classroom. However, it has technology uses such as the IVC devices and Internet access. The room is a little smaller than a regular classroom, but it is big enough for the students who use the ACCESS program.

Ms. Jennifer Phillips is the school's ACCESS lab facilitator. She wasn't able to be there during my visit, but the librarian, Ms. Catherine Smith, was available to help me during my tour. I asked various questions about the use of the ACCESS learning lab. I was told that the students don't use the lab as much and do most of their work in the library. The students don't use the IVC which is what I really wanted to see in action. The students are only able to make use of the computerized or web-based instruction portion of the ACCESS program. I was told that the ACCESS lab and the program may become more advanced used there next semester.

The courses that are mostly taken through the ACCESS program are German, Latin, and Creative Writing. Some of the assignments that the students have to do are broken down in weekly assignments that they can do at their own pace. There are some assignments that are fast paced as well. I was told that the creative writing teacher, Ms. D. Hartley, uses modules that show students when their assignments are due. The students have access to readings, quizzes, notes, e-mails, message boards, and much more while using this program.

Things I've Learned in EDM 310

I have learned so much this semester in my EDM 310 class. I didn't know that technology had changed so much in the classroom until I took this class. I learned so much about blogs in classrooms, how to create blog posts on my own blog page, and how they are used as teaching tools by teachers. I also enjoyed learning how to add pictures and links to blogs. Everything that I learned about iGoogle was interesting as well.

Podcasting was another technology that I learned so much about. I didn't like podcasts at first because of its negative use by others. I now know that podcasts are useful forms of media that can also be used as a teaching tool to enhance education. I also learned about many places on the Internet that have useful resources for teachers. Some of these places are The Alabama Learning Exchange(ALEX) and The Alabama Virtual Library(AVL).

I enjoyed learning about Alabama Connecting Classrooms, Educators,and Students Statewide(ACCESS). I was surprised to learn that high school students were involved with long distance online learning. I also learned more about word processing than I knew before taking this class. Some things such as subscript and superscript were new to me. Everything that we covered in class is pretty much what I was eager to learn.

Electronic Contact Assignment

Electronically contacting someone isn't that difficult if you have Internet access. There are several ways that people can make contacts and have conversations over the Internet. With the advancement of technology people can e-mail, blog, use Facebook, My Space and other avenues of electronic contact to talk to someone long distance. For my electronic contact assignment I chose to get involved in a discussion forum on Teacher.net.

I started a discussion by asking teachers questions about what I can expect during my first years of teaching. I received a few helpful responses to this question. One teacher said that my expectations will depend on how well college prepares me for teaching. I was also told by the same person that my personality can play a role in my experiences as well. Another teacher said that I will probably have to change schools or grade levels a few times because I will be at the bottom of the seniority list. The teacher also advised me to write lesson plans often during my student teaching.

There was another discussion that I started with teachers in the state of California. I asked for some classroom management techniques that really work. One teacher responded with helpful advice. The teacher recommended that I read Harry Wong's book titled "The First Days of School" and some of the articles on the website under his tab as well as some other things that I can do. I responded back to the teacher to offer my thanks and to tell of my experience with Harry Wong's book from my classroom management class.

The state of New York was another place where I contacted teachers. I asked about what I can expect if I plan to teach in New York. I received several responses that helped me think twice about teaching there. My reason is mainly because some of the teachers responded that there are no jobs and another said that I should expect disrespect there. I responded back to one of the teachers by answering two questions that were addressed to me about my certification and why I chose to teach in New York.

Blogs

Blogging has been an interesting experience for me. I never thought that learning about blogs and how to post them would ever do me any good in the educational field. After learning about blogs in my EDM-310 class, I have posted many of them and so have my classmates. I have recently viewed the blog posts of one of my classmates. After comparing our experiences with blogs, I have found that blogs in a classroom have advantages and disadvantages.

The advantages of blogging in the classroom are those that really help everyone involved with education. Teachers use their classroom blog pages to post communications to parents and students. These communications can be picture and report postings that keep them up-to-date on what's going on in the classroom. Teachers post about upcoming events or past school events as announcements along with pictures to draw interest of parents to come along as chaperones. The class can also communicate with other classrooms in different areas of the world.

Teachers use their blog pages as educational tools as well. They post weekly homework assignments for students and parents to view. Students can also find an extra study guide that can be used to study for an exam. Teachers also post test preparation activities that students can use as practice. They also post links to extra resources that students can use for help in a specific subject area that the class is working on.

The disadvantage to blogging in the classroom is simple. It's the Internet itself. Everyone knows how hard it is to maintain appropriate web pages that they have designed. Basically, teachers have to take the time to thoroughly screen any content they plan to add to their blog page. Otherwise they can end up with information that is far from what they intended to add as educational content.

Duke University Center for Documentary Studies

Duke University's Center for documentary studies has audio podcasts that pertain to African-American history, how our world is changing, and tragedies that our world has faced. Some of the podcasters talk about how many African-Americans aren't recognized in our historical references but did great things for our country. They talk about what the South meant for people who were Black, White, or Black and White. There is talk of myths about the Black Panthers. It is also recognized that they served justice for all races, not just Blacks. There were other podcasts that brought to my attention that there are some cultures slowly fading away because of influences from other parts of the world. The "911" podcast was the podcast that touched me as well. It brings forth the reactions that people have toward the tragedy and also how many people began to appreciate who they are as Americans.

EDM 310 Podcasts

The night that the podcasts were recorded we were all nervous. This is mostly because some of us didn't know what to expect. This was the first podcast recording for some of us. I am excited to say that we came through our new experience successfully and now it is time to evaluate our accomplishments.

The podcasts that I listened to had variations. Some of the podcasts that I heard sounded as if students were reading from scripts. There were others that sounded like real conversations. The scripted variations were very informative in the area of interest that the future teachers were talking about. The conversational variations were informative and interesting as well.

I think that the conversational podcasts were great, but some of them could have been more informative. Some of the scripted podcasts were mixed with real conversations, but these can also use an adjustment. The adjustment that can be made is to read from the script to make it sound as if it is a real conversation.

Mathematics Podcasts

The "Mathematics with Technology" and "Thinking Mathematically" podcasts are excellent ways to communicate the importance of technology and how to engage students in a math lesson. In the "Mathematics with Technology" podcast Ms. Judy Chandler, a technology integration specialist, informs that technology helps to enhance learning and keeps students engaged. She also mentioned that technology can also be used as tools for many things such as manipulative experience, visual representation, immediate feedback, etc. Ms. Chandler also says that a learning activity can be composed of several lessons from a math book. This can give the teacher more instructional time. The "Thinking Mathematically" podcast was informative as well. Ms. Chandler tells of the importance of asking students questions in order to keep them engaged in the math lesson, help them use critical thinking skills, and extend their learning.

The "Mathematics with Technology" podcast is a very good use to me as a teacher. It helps me to understand how I can use technology in my classroom. I can give my students added instruction, more experience with the lesson, and different ways to show that they have learned the subject material. I can also use technology to keep my students focused on the lesson as well.

The "Thinking Mathematically" podcast is also useful to me as a teacher. This podcast will help me promote thinking skills that will help my students learn by asking them various content related questions. I can ask questions that can lead a pathway to better understanding and successful learning. I can also ask questions that can start class discussions. This can also help students develop social skills while they are learning mathematics.

"Growth" vs. "Fixed" Minds Podcast

This podcast involved Dr. Carol Dweck, a professor of psychology, who talked about how it is important for us to have a growth mind-set. She said that there was an eight session workshop where students were divided into half. One-half of the students learned about study skills and the other half learned about study skills and growth mind-set. The students were also taught how to apply what they learned to their schoolwork. She talked about how the students who attended the study skills and growth mind-set session did much better in school than the other students who only learned about study skills in the other session. She said that teachers noticed that some of the students were doing so much better in school than others.

The podcast also tells us that New York students who have a growth mind-set do better than the students who have a fixed mind-set. This I believe because the fixed mind-set students only do what they think they are capable of doing. The students with the growth mind-set believe they can accomplish further knowledge and do more beyond what they are capable of doing now. Dr. Dweck says that we should continue to learn new things to keep our neurons connecting.

As a teacher, I can use the useful information from the podcast to motivate my students to learn. I know that I will play a big part in helping students accomplish many goals that are set for them in school. I can do this by helping them create a growth mind-set within themselves through an interesting curriculum. I believe that students should have a growth mind-set in order to become successful. They have to believe that they can accomplish new goals that are set for them and that they set for themselves.

Grades K- 12 Podcasts

There are podcasts that are uploaded to iTunes which are useful for grades K-12. The podcasts that I found deal with geography in the subject of science. The podcasts are excellent to use in classrooms to show scientific demonstrations or short video clips. They educate with better explanations of an area of interest and can be very useful to teachers in their classrooms. I viewed and listened to various podcasts that were very interesting to me from grades K-12.

I viewed and listened to a podcast for grades K-5 that was of interest to me which was titled "Solar Eclipse". It would also be an excellent video to show my students. They can see how the moon casts a shadow on the Earth when it is between the sun and the Earth while revolution and rotation takes place. They can also observe what an umbra (full shadow of the moon) and a penumbra (partial shadow of the moon) looks like on Earth.

I also viewed and listened to a grades 6-8 podcast titled "Why Doesn't the Moon Fall Down?". This podcast is very informative and demonstrative of how the moon does constantly fall down around the Earth because of gravity. It shows how its steady balance of speed and gravity creates an orbit without it hitting or falling down to the Earth. The grades 9-12 podcast "What is a Planet?" will also be interesting to show to my students. This podcast tells about how there may be more planets in the universe than the ones we know of today.

"A Night in the Global Village" and "The Edible School Yard"

The podcasts about "A Night in the Global Village" and "The Edible School Yard" were interesting to watch. " A Night in the Global Village" was about living the lives of other people from different places around the world such as Guatemala, Thailand, Zambia, and Refugee camps. Students from a school in Denver participated in the Global Gateway Program which gave them a chance to live the lesson that they were being taught. This gives them a sense of how people live and why. The students actually lived the same way as the people that their teacher picked for them to be. They also followed the rules for their area and who they were. After they had their experiences, they told about them in skits to everyone else.

"The Edible School Yard" was about a garden that is planted by students at the Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School in Berkley, California. This garden was started by Alice Waters in 1994. The students use the school yard to plant, harvest, and eat. The garden and adjacent kitchen are learning labs for social studies, math, science, and life. The garden is the center for most of the teaching and part of it is done in the classroom.

Both of these podcasts helped me actually see the fun ways in which students can learn. As a teacher, I would love to use the same methods or similar methods to teach my students. Much of what is done in these methods of teaching is giving the "head fake" approach.

The podcasts about "A Night in the Global Village" and "The Edible School Yard" caters to many of the students learning styles. What was very interestingly used was visual and kinesthetic. These activities helped students to see and do what they were learning. This is the approach that I want to offer to my students. This gives some of them a better understanding of the lesson they are being taught.

The Alabama Virtual Library

The Alabama Virtual Library is an online website that has many resources. This website has many resources for teachers as well as students. It is just like a library but actually entered by going to its website. Teachers can access resources that are very useful to their classroom such as information on various topics in KidsInfoBits and TeacherToolBox.

The Alabama Virtual Library uses KidsInfoBits to separate different areas of study. Those areas are links that branch off to others that are related to them. For example, you can click on People, click on one of the related topics that popped up such as Political Leaders, then click on Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom and her biography is shown.

This website will be very useful to me as an elementary school teacher. I viewed parts of the Alabama Virtual Library website such as the TeacherToolBox that gives teachers access to various materials. Some of the materials that were of interest to me were the web templates. These can be created and used so students can remember information. This helps very well when writing reports that deal with comprehension.

"Accessibility for All" Presentation

The "Accessibility for All" presentation that Mr. Steve Sullivan gave was interesting. He talked about how it is the law to make internet material on websites accessible to people with disabilities who can't view them as we do. He talked about the various software and devices that helps the disabled hear, read, and type text on a computer monitor. The software that was shown and demonstrated in the presentation was Screen Reader, Text Enlarger, Voice Recognition Software, and a braille device. This presentation has brought to my attention about the various ways that I can help my special needs students. This presentation has also educated me on the computer software that I can use to make their educational process go much more smoothly.

Podcasts on iTunes

There are various podcasts on iTunes that are educational and interesting. These podcasts are done in different unique ways. Some of the podcasts that I viewed and listened to have audio, video and audio, or pictures and audio which is almost like a powerpoint presentation. The numerous podcasts that are done by a group or a single person are called episodes. This is similar to what we see on our televisions. These episodes are numbered and also titled.

The SmartBoard Lessons (episode 146) podcast that I listened to and viewed is in audio only. The only picture that is shown is of two cartoon graphics of a woman and a man talking. There is also music played in different parts of the podcast. Connect Learning (episode 96) podcast is in audio as well. The only picture that is shown is of David Warlick on what looks like a book cover.

Kidcast (episode 33) podcast is a real video of a podcasting conference in Texas. It uses technology that shows names of the people who are talking to the audience in the video. They do this just like it is done on television. MacBreak Weekly (episode 164) podcast is also a video of live people. In this podcast they are demonstrating True 3D Motion on a computer. They show a view of how to form 3D shapes on a computer and it looks as if your doing it yourself on yours.

EdTech Talk (episode 31) podcast is a video podcast with photos which shows and talks about how to back up data on your computer by building your own hard drive. They do this by giving step by step instructions. This Week in Photography (episode 24) podcast is also in visual and audio. This podcast shows a video about how to convert your photos to black and white on a computer in photoshop.

Randy Pausch's Last Lecture

Randy Pausch's last lecture was very inspiring. Although this lecture was addressed to his children, we all can learn from it. He talked about life lessons we all should adhere to that pertain to how to achieve your dreams and how to live your life. He talked about his experiences as a child and as an adult. He shared with us some of the things he learned from many people and how he applied those lessons in his life.

Randy Pausch also talked about teaching methods that I found very interesting to use in the classroom as a teacher. He emphasized that most of what we learn, we learn indirectly. This is known as "head fake". He said that this is the best way to teach someone something hard because they actually think they are learning or doing something else that is fun. This is a helpful strategy for many children who have trouble with various subjects.

He talked about a lesson that he assigned to his students. When he saw that the students were done and their work was perfect, he was told to have them to do more. He did this by telling them that they can do better. When the work was done it turned out as a big project that everyone wanted to see. This is what he must have meant when he says to work harder. Many students need this every once in a while because it's rewarding to them in the end.

Randy Pausch talked about students working in groups as well. This is a teaching strategy that is helpful to many students because it helps them socially and educationally. Students are given the chance to collaborate with some of their classmates while pulling together their ideas and knowledge. They later bring everything in as a whole to complete a project by using teamwork. This is also a very important technique used in classrooms today.

International Classroom Blogs

In 2007, Ms. Rachel Boyd used blogs in her room 9 classroom at the Nelson Central school in New Zealand. Her classroom has a blog from last year that is very interesting. This blog page has videos posted by the students in this classroom. There are also links to their class writing blogs, blog archive, podcasts, other classroom blogs from Nelson, and even more interesting links. Ms. Boyd also posts a video about why we should let students blog. You can also click on the link they titled "Our 2008 Blog" to find out what her class is doing this year.

A teacher from a Manaia kindergarten classroom in New Zealand uses the classroom blog to post pictures of the students at work. In some of the photos they are making good use of technology by working on kindergarten concert invitations on the computer. The teacher has also posted blogs about events outside of the classroom that the students participated in. This blog page also holds links to other blogs from the same school and elsewhere. The teacher has also posted other links that are of interest to the students.

U.S. Classroom Blogs

Salem Elementary School in Morganton, North Carolina has teachers who use classroom blogs. One teacher, Mrs. Putnam, has a fifth grade classroom blog that informs about what the students are learning in the classroom. I noticed that she posts the class homework assignments and information about future tests as well. This is also where the students can go to find the 50 states and their capitols if they shall need it as a reference. The students can also find other links that are useful and links to other classroom blogs. Mrs. Putnam also makes good use of her blog page by expressing how well some of her students are doing in her classroom.

Springtrail Elementary School in Carol Stream, Illinois also has teachers who use classroom blogs. One teacher, Mrs. Cindy Blakely, has a kindergarten classroom blog that keeps up-to-date information about what is going on inside as well as events that occur outside of the classroom. She has also provided links to educational games that her students can play to help strengthen their knowledge of the games subject area. Parents also have a link that can be accessed for further understanding of what their child is learning in the classroom and ways that they can help them in certain subject areas. Mrs. Blakely also has links to other U.S. and International classroom blogs on her classroom blog page.

Alabama Connecting Classrooms, Educators, and Students Statewide

The Alabama Connecting Classrooms, Educators, and Students Statewide which is also known as ACCESS is a program that provides distant learning to high school students. This program is used over the internet and makes use of technology. ACCESS gives high school students who attend schools thatado not offer advanced courses the opportunity to take those courses online. Students can have the feel of still having a teacher and a class right there with them through video conferencing technology. Amazingly, activities that are normally done in a regular classroom can also be done online.

Teachers have access to various resources through this program. Some resources continue to educate them and keep them up to date on the technology they are required to use in their instruction. Teachers are also able to use technology to educate students beyond their normal classroom setting.

Alabama Learning Exchange

The Alabama Learning Exchange or ALEX is a gateway to educational resources for teachers, administrators, and students. ALEX has a variety of resources that are helpful in aiding educators to create lesson plans, keep track of Alabama Course of Study Standards for their grade level subjects, and also enhance teaching skills. ALEX is an excellent tool that teachers can use in order to help their students reach Alabama Course of Study goals as well. ALEX also has seperate web links for students and administrators that help them enhance their knowledge of particular areas of interest.
ALEX works for educators in several unique ways. One way is to help a teacher who wants to find a created lesson plan that targets the content standards for a subject area he/she is teaching. When the full, detailed lesson plan is in view, the targeted standards are shown as well. Teachers can also create their own lesson plan that ensures effective teaching and targeting content standards. The Alabama Learning Exchange can be accessed at http://alex.state.al.us by doing a search in Google.
When I begin my teaching career, I will use ALEX as one of my resource tools. I will primarily use the sections that will ensure that I target content standards and use various learning styles in my teaching. I will also use the web links for teachers so I will enhance my professional development. This is a great tool for everyone to use especially for math.

Information About My Presentation

My "All About Me" project will include me being a wife, mother, student, and substitute teacher. It will show how Iam interested in becoming an effective teacher which is also one of my aspirations. I will talk about my job as a substitute teacher which has helped me focus on becoming a teacher. I will also talk about my family, and my children will be the focus of that topic. I will also talk about how I like to work in the classroom. My presentation will include how I hate the fact that I still have problems juggling everything that I have to do at one time. I will also will tell how it feels like an adventure when I go fishing. Last and not least, I will talk about some of my favorite things.

My Introduction

My name is Tomeka Washington. I am a wife, mother of two children, substitute teacher, and a junior at the University of South Alabama. I attend the college as a full-time student and my major is Elementary Education. I was told by many teachers that I should become a teacher because of how well I do in the classroom as a substitute teacher, and I agree with them because I enjoy working with children.

I have various interests such as cooking, reading, and spending time with my family. I also enjoy working in the classroom because it gives me training on what to expect when I become a teacher and how to use what I have learned at USA in a regular classroom before I begin my student teaching and become a teacher.