FINAL REFLECTION

Summary C4T#4

My C4T#4 was Mr. Ferlazzo. He is a teacher at Luther Burbank High School in Sacramento, California.  His blog is about teaching for ELL( English Learning Language), ESL (English as a second language, and EFL (English as foreign language). His first blog post I commented on was entitled "The Best Places To Find The Most Popular (and Useful) Resources For Educators- 2010. He chose resources from Popular Children's Books to Most Visited Sites on the Web to Most Popular Flickr Photos. I found this post very interesting and useful. He did the same kind of post for 2009. Here was my response:

Mr. Ferlazzo,

My name is Gaillard Broughton and I am in Dr. Strange's EDM 310 class at The University of South Alabama. I was assigned to read your blog and leave a comment. I will leave another comment on one of your blog posts in about 2 weeks and then summarize my responses on my blog. Feel free the check it out!

I really enjoyed this blog post. It is very useful. I think it is great that you have put together the resources you find most helpful so other people can benefit. I have explored your blog site some and find it absolutely amazing. You have so many helpful, beneficial and great posts. I am going to add you to my PLN. As a future teacher, I need all the help and advice I can get. Thanks for sharing all this great information!

Like I said before, I will be summarizing my responses to your blog posts on my blog in about 2 weeks, so feel free to check it out!

The second blog post I commented on was entitled "There Are Some Right Ways & Some Wrong Ways To Videotape Teacher- And This Is A Wrong Way".This blog post was about the right and wrong way(s) to videotape teachers. I found it very interesting. This was my response:

Mr. Ferlazzo,
I commented on one of your blog posts about two weeks ago. I will be summarizing this blog post and the previous blog I commented on. Feel free to check it out on my blog. http://broughtonsydneyedm310fall2010.blogspot.com/
I think that having someone who is competent to videotape lessons and then critique them is such a great tool! It can really help with self-evaluation as well when the teacher watches the video. I think that it was so great that you chose to share the video with your class. That seems like such a enlightening and fun experiment.
I really have enjoyed reading your blog and will look forward to reading more in the future.

FINAL PLN

Click image above to access my Symbaloo

I used Symbaloo for my PLN. I really enjoyed making it. I have all the teachers that I commented on throughout the semester on my PLN. I also have some students in my EDM310 class that I found helpful. I have Dr. Strange, the EDM 310 blog, Dr. Baggett, and Anthony on my PLN as well. I also have Facebook, G-mail, and Twitter. I think that using Symbaloo to make a PLN is great. I love how I have all the websites I view the most all in one place and I can get to those websites in one click! I also have USA's Homepage, JagMail, and USAonline as well. Having a PLN is a great tool for learning, sharing, and getting information!

Summary Post C4K#8- #11 and Special C4K Post

C4K#8 Alex


Alex is a 1st grader who drew a picture of what he was dressing up for for Halloween. It was a picture of Optimist Prime. I responded with this :


Hey Alex!
My name is Gaillard and I am in Dr. Strange's EDM 310 class at The University of South Alabama. I really like your Optimist Prime picture. I bet you looked just like him. I was a pink power ranger when I was your age. I hope you had a great Halloween! Keep up the good work.

C4K#9 Nikita




Nikita is a 7th grader. Her blog post was a response to a book called The Otherworldlies by Jennifer Anne Kogler. I responded with this:

Nikita,

My name is Gaillard and I am in Dr.Strange's EDM 310 class at The Univeristy of South Alabama in Mobile, Alabama. I really enjoyed reading your blog post. You did a great book review. I also like how you related to the main character in the book. You seem like a very smart and intelligent girl with a good head on your shoulders. Stay true to yourself. With that said, I really did enjoy reading this book review. I may just have to check that book out myself! Keep up the good work!

She then responded by saying:


Thanks :) I really try to do my best in these response journals!
Again thank you for those inspirational words
– Nikita –


C4K#10 RWill  

RWill is a 3rd grade student. His blog post was about he was learning about mnemonics. He came up with two mnemonics. This was my response:

Hi!

My name is Gaillard Broughton and I am in Dr. Strange's EDM310 class at The University of South Alabama. I think mnemonics are really cool! You came up with some good ones. In one of my college math classes, we looked up mnemonics to remember the digits of pi up to 10 decimal places. Mnemonics is a great learning technique. Keep up the great work!

C4K#11 Knudtson


This is a 2nd grader. This student talked about how his/her's class Skyped with another class and what they learned about each other. This was my response:




Hi! My name is Gaillard and I am in Dr. Strange's EDM 310 class at The University of South Alabama in Mobile, Alabama. I really enjoyed reading your blog post! I think Skype is such a cool way to communicate with people. I just started using it about a year ago and I love you. I think it is so cool that your class got to Skype with another class and find out information about one another! Keep up the great work!


Special C4K Yasmine


Yasmine wrote about how much she loves horses. She talked about how she rode an Anglo- Arab horse in Tunisia. This was my response:

Hey Yasmine,


My name is Gaillard Broughton and I am in Dr. Strange's EDM 310 class at The University of South Alabama. I am so glad you enjoyed your trip. I love horses. I always wanted one when I was little, but I never got one. My great-uncle had tons of Tennessee Walker horses. They were show horses, not riding horses. I have been reading your blog and I have really enjoyed it. Keep up the great work!

FINAL PROJECT

Blog Assignment # 13

ALEX - Alabama Learning Exchange

ALEX is an amazing website for teachers. I am so glad Dr. Strange assigned us this blog post, because I will definitely use ALEX in the future. This website has so many useful resources. These resources include: Courses of Study, Web Links, Lesson Plans, Search, Personal Workspace, Professional Learning, Podcast Treasury, and ALEXville. Using the Courses of Study, you can browse all of the Alabama Content Standards and you can also search to find the courses of study by grade level, or keywords. Using Web Links, you can search teacher web resources, student web resources, and administrator web resources. you can also search for web resources, recommend a web resource or report broken links. There is SO much useful and awesome information. Using Lesson Plans, you can browse TONS of different lesson plans in every subject and grade level. This is seriously the coolest thing ever! The lesson plans available to you are endless and with just one click you can receive amazing lesson plans. You can also search for lesson plans by title, author, or school. Using the Search icon, you can search the ALEX/thinkfinity database and can find whatever you are looking for. Using the Personal Workspace, someone can create an account so you can create a personal workplace for storing and submitting lesson plan and teacher web pages. This is so amazing. The Professional Learning icon is absolutely fantastic. You can learn everything about ALEX. You can also visit different Alabama Department of Education Program websites to find things from teaching tools to lastest news and so much more! You can also view different pages to find tips, tricks, and tutorials on tons of different technology tools. The Podcast Treasury is so great! You can access different podcasts and add your own!  This is truly amazing. ALEXville is where you can get all the lastest news about ALEX and all the cool stuff that the team is doing!

This website has had a HUGE effect on me. I am in awe of ALL the amazing stuff this website has to offer. ALEX (Alabama Learning Exchange) is truly an exchange of so much information between teachers. I love this website! I highly recommend everyone to visit this website, especially teachers. You can go to ALEX by clicking HERE . 

Additional Assignment # 4

Tom Johnson's adventures in Pencil Integration

Just Teach Them to Solve for X

This post was about solving for X in a math problem. John Spencer got his students to draw a picture for X instead of just telling them what X is. Not everything in life is easy, just like solving for X is not always easy. I think the students understood the math lesson more using this brilliant idea then the same ole' lesson. 

 Sketchy Portraits: 8th Grade Identity and Pencil

John Spencer uses a pencil as a metaphor to describe middle school students. Middle school students are constantly changing and trying to figure out who they are. A pencil changes as well. You can draw different types of lines. A pencil is temporary and can be erased. As middle school students change their moods, attitudes, desires, they are ,too, like pencils. I really enjoyed this post. This is the post I decided to comment on. John Spencer is a great teacher who treats his students with the respect that they deserve and he understands the trials these students go through while trying to figure out who they are. 

He Just Likes the Class for the Pencils

This post is about a student-teacher relationship. John Spencer is an amazing teacher. He does not talk at his students, he talks to his students. This post is about a "problem" student and a teacher who does not respect this student. She demeans him, etc. John Spencer respects this student, as he does with all of his students. He talks about how he does not try to be the "fun" teacher who is everyone's pal, but students tend to really like him because of the respect he gives his students. I hope to be as a great of a teacher he is!

The Medium Shapes the Learning

I think that this post was about technology and the negative and positive effects of it. I am not completely sure, but I believe that John Spencer was saying when teachers try to add all this different things to a lesson to try to make it more "fun" or intriguing, it can actually change the whole lesson completely, but teachers do not recognize it sometimes.  

Project # 15

Blog Assignment # 12

For this blog assignment we were asked to come up with our own blog assignment that Dr. Strange should have given us this semester in EDM 310. After searching the internet, I found a very interesting YouTube video called "Pay Attention." It is by the Jordan School District (Transforming Teaching Through Technology). I would ask students to watch the video and summarize what the video was about and what they thought about the video. I would then ask them to visit the Jordan School District website as well and look around by clicking   here.

This video reminded me some of the video "Did You Know." "Did You Know" showed the viewer very interesting and mind blowing statistics regarding technology. "Pay Attention" also showed interesting stats, but it was more geared towards teaching students using technology. We have been learning about how important and useful technology is in the classroom this whole semester. This particular video reinforced that belief. It had great ideas and ways to integrate technology. The statistics shown were very interesting. Students really do not think what they are learning in school now is interesting or worth knowing. We need to engage them in ways that they are familiar with and that is technology. Using technology (there are TONS of different ways) will keep students engaged and interested. I also believe technology can transform a boring lesson into something exciting and interesting. Cell phones, iPods, laptops, etc. should not be looked down upon in the classroom. Instead, teachers should embrace these great inventions and use them to teach their students. Let's start teaching like we are actually living in the 21st Century, not the dark ages. After all, teaching in the past has proven to not be effective. If we want our students to be effective learners, then we need to be effective teachers.

Progress Report on Final Project

I am working with the same group (plus two more) that I worked with on Project 15. We are going to meet this upcoming week and discuss our ideas for the final project. I have some ideas in mind and I know my other group members do too!

Form results for Project # 6

My form was about the new recreational center at South Alabama. I asked ten questions regarding the new rec center. I created this form because of how I feel about the rec center and wanted to know what my fellow classmates thought about it. I wonder if there is a correlation between the rise in tuition and the cost of the new rec center? I never used the old rec center and have not used the new one....yet. I really want to, but I feel like I do not have much time. Plus, I like exercising outside.

I found out that most of the students who took my survey live off campus. I ,too, live off campus. Most of the students who did not use the old rec center have not used the new one. More students have used the new rec center than not. One of the questions I asked was to select the reason(s) of why you have never used the rec center or do not use it more. I had the following answers to select: I am not active in physical fitness, not interested, not enough time, too crowded, and other. I found out that the number one reason was not enough time, which I can relate to. Another question I asked was if my surveyors thought the rec center was a good investment. Most of them said it was.

I learned how students feel about the new rec center through my survey. A lot of them feel the same way as I do. I do want to go and try it out soon, because I heard it was pretty awesome!

Blog Assignment # 11

First Graders in Ms. Cassidy's Class

This video really impressed me. I think blogging is such a great tool for students. It helps with writing, communication and tons more. The students in this video really seem to enjoy blogging. They are going to be great learners. I liked all the projects they did using the internet. For instance, the students were learning about traditions and they used a wiki to get information from other people. I think that students learn better and enjoy learning when technology is used. I was very impressed with this video and all that technology has to offer!

Skype Interview with Ms. Cassidy

This interview was very interesting. Mrs. Cassidy uses a lot of technology in her classroom. She stated that technology was here to stay and that we can not ignore it. I agree with her. I feel like we need to embrace technology and not be afraid of it. She talked about how she had support from her principal which I think was great! I really like how Ms. Cassidy uses technology in her classroom. I want to use technology in mine as well. I feel like the opportunities are endless. I believe students have so many more opportunities with technology because they can use it to communicate with other people, not just people in their class. I believe students learn better using technology as opposed to just reading a textbook. I would definitely use blogging in my classroom, as well as other things Ms. Cassidy uses.

Teach Someone (Project # 14)

SUMMARY POST C4K #3-#7

C4K#3
 My C4K3# was Junior. He drew a picture of Ronald McDonald holding a stop sign for people crossing the street. I told him that I really liked the picture and the colors he used. I thought the man holding the stop sign for people crossing the street was very creative.

C4K#4

My C4K#4 was K. She made a podcast about Shackleton's Journey. She had awesome sounds effect. I told her that her podcast was excellent and that the sound effects were great. I really felt like I was there on Shackleton's Journey.


C4K#5

My C4K#5 was Bianca. She had a blog post about search engines. I really liked her blog post because she had a few different search engines. Some of them I had never heard of before. I told her that I only use Google. Her post gave me some new resources to use when doing research. I like how info.com gets results from all different search engines.

C4K#6
 My C4K#6 was Grace. Her blog post was a little poem about how much she hates snow. I commented that we do not have a lot of know where I am from, so I really like it when it does snow. I may not like it if snowed all the time though!

C6K#7

My C4K#7 was a girl from Alba Middle School. She took a really cool picture of the railing on the perimeter USS Battleship. There were all this cool lines and shadows that the railing and other objects made. She asked her readers what they would call the picture. I told her I would call it "Lines on the Bay."

Summary C4T#3

The Comment 4 Teacher # 3 I was assigned to was Becky Goerend. She is a sixth grade teacher from Iowa. The first blog post I commented on of hers was called, "The Little Things." She talked about how she had been in a slump for a few weeks. She said is all comes down to choice. She wrote about how in their study hall time it can get really loud and it frustrates her. She CHOSE to make a playlist to play during their study hall time. She said it lightened the mood. The second thing she had become frustrated with is an assignment she had her students do. They share about their independent reading in a notebook once a year and turn their letters in. Some of her students had been last. She CHOSE to give her students three different choices of doing this assignment: turn in their letter, record their response on a Flip Camera, or blog their response in their classroom blog. She was excited because two students who used the Flip Camera to record their response were usually late with their work, but this time they were on time. I think it is great to she CHOSE to change things that ended up benefiting both her and her students. I responding saying that I really enjoyed her blog post. You can either do what you have always done or try to solve problems in a creative way. I said that I hope I will be able to solve problems creatively in my classroom. I also found it great that the two students who were usually late with their schoolwork got their work in on time when they could use technology. I said that kids are motivated in many different ways.

The second blog post I commented on was called, "If You Give Kids a Meaningful Project...". She talked about how someone had dropped off some technology stuff from AVerMedia to her classroom. She asked her students to learn about it, research about it, and teach her about it. Her students were so excited. They had to teach themselves a lot about the equipment they were using. They all helped one another and collaborated ideas. I responded by saying that we learn a lot about technology in our EDM 310 class. Sometimes I had to teach myself to do things or do research to figure things out. I explained that I like teaching myself sometimes, but it is also great to have a teacher their for some guidance, just like she had been there to her students and Dr. Strange has been to us. I said that technology is a great teaching tool and that I have learned a lot about it in my EDM 310 class. I also said I thought it was wonderful that her students were so motivated and that I liked how her students chose their own groups based on their strengths and weaknesses. That is true collaboration. I really enjoyed Becky's blog posts.

Additional Assignment # 3

Sir Ken Robinson: Changing Educational Paradigms 

I there are a lot of important things in the presentation, but if I had to pick one I would say that the most important thing is how we drug our kids because they can not concentrate. For example, children with ADHD. I do not know if ADHD even exists. I like how Sir Ken Robinson said that children have so many distractions now (Ipods, computers, video games, tv, etc) and we expect them to not be distracted. Maybe educators should change everything about the old teaching system and find ways to keep kids interested by using technology! That is what I believe! I do not think I disagree with much in this presentation. It had many excellent points. I believe that Sir Ken Robinson's position are congruent with what I am been taught in education at South, especially in EDM 310. I believe as a future teacher, I can encourage all types of learning (groups, alone or with partners), encourage creativity and be creative in my lessons so that my students are interested. If I were to do a project like this, I would want to play the role of the narrator. This video was very inspirational and definitely made me think about education today.

Blog Assignment # 10

 Morgan Bayda

Morgan Bayda is an educator who completed her teaching degree in Spring 2010. Her blog post reflects her thoughts on the video called  "An Open Letter To Educators" by Dan Brown. Click here to watch the video. Dan Brown dropped out of school because "his schooling was inferring with his education." Morgan Bayda talks about how North America still using the same schooling model that it did hundreds of years ago. She talks about feeling cheated at the university she attended. After all the time, hard work and many lectures, she did not feel like she was getting anything out of school. This is because North America's schooling system is so out dated. She talks about how she was not allowed to speak about certain topics or give her opinion on them. She compares that certain class to her Ed Computers class. In her Ed Computers class she could share ideas, opinions and topics through a variety of technological sites (Twitter, her PLN, videos, photos, etc). She discussed how these tools even helped her outside of school and how they also opened up many opportunities! She even found out about an inexpensive volunteer opportunity in Costa Rica through Twitter. She simply stated what she wanted and someone commented on her tweet the next day with a lot of great information! I think that technology is a great tool to help people collaborate and share ideas! I am happy to know that more and more schools are starting to integrate technology in their classes. We are in the 21st Century, so we should start teaching and learning like that!


Tom Johnson's Dont Let Them Take the Pencils Home

In this blog post, the teacher was not allowed to let students bring pencils home. He was told that it lowered test scores. The other teacher who told him this only had test scores on her mind. She was saying that if students only played with their pencils at home then they would not be learning anything. Learning can be fun! How does she know that the students were not learning anything? This blog post was interesting. 

Two Questions That Can Change Your Life by Daniel Pink


This video was very inspirational. It talks about self  motivation. It talks about how people need to find a sentence that can help motivate them in everything (work, school and for the rest of their lives). It also says that you need to ask yourself the question, "Was I better today than I was yesterday?" This video really spoke to me.


MY SENTENCE:
I can achieve anything I want with hard work, determination, perseverance and a positive attitude!

Smartboard Lesson

Skype Interview

Blog Assignment #9

For this blog assignment we had to read "What I've Learned This Year" by Mr. McClung. Mr. McClung is an elementary school teacher. I enjoyed this blog post very much. I think all teachers , present and future, should read it. It has some excellent points and advice. He talked about making sure you know if your students are comprehending your lessons, being flexible, being able to communicate effectively, being reasonable with your students, not being afraid of technology, listening to your students and to never stop learning! All these are excellent points. I believe that we need to be able to read our students to see if they are comprehending . I definitely agree that we need to be flexible when it comes to teaching. Everything is not always going to be perfect. Communication is very important, with students and fellow teachers. We always need to know how to communicate effectively. I believe technology is a great learning too and we do not need to be afraid of it. We need to embrace it! This blog post was very enlightening and I look forward to reading more of his posts!

Short movie Project # 11

Blog Assignment # 8

This is How We Dream

Reading and writing have changed so much the past few years and will continue to change as technological advances increase. Most every book or article can be found online. People no longer have to go to libraries to do research or get information they are looking for. Almost everything can be found online. To be honest, I do not remember the last time I checked out a book in the library for research purposes. I get all my information on the internet. The sources are endless.

As with books, articles in magazines, etc., they become outdated or thrown away. With the internet, these books and articles are always available and are just a click away. The internet also makes documents more available to the public. I think it is amazing how someone can put a discussion on the internet and it can be viewed over thousands of times in such a short amount time after it was posted.

When I think about technology, I get excited. As a future educator, I want to use technology as much as I can because I believe it is a great tool. Since technology is always changing, I will have to keep up with these changes. I am willing to do that because I believe in the benefits of technology in the classroom. I have to admit though, I sometimes feel confused, overwhelmed or stressed when working with technology because it can be challenging. After saying that, I still think it is worth all the stress and confusion. I always end up figuring it out!

The Chipper Series and EDM 310 For Dummies

I really enjoyed watching these videos. I thought EDM 310 For Dummies was really funny. At the beginning of the semester I felt overwhelmed and stressed about all the assignments we had to do in EDM. Dr. Strange urged us to watch this video and I did. EDM 310 For Dummies made me feel tons better about this class. I also enjoyed The Chipper Series as well. I would enjoy being in a short movie like this. I think it would be fun to make a video like these for other students coming into EDM 310.

Smartboards

There are good points on both sides of this argument. I have not been exposed the world of smart boards a lot, so I do not really have an opinion. Although, like I said before, both sides make good points. I do think it is ridiculous though, that schools will spend tons of money on smart boards when they could be spending it on tools that aren't so outrageously expensive. I think that if teachers really know how to use smart boards and can tell a positive difference in their student's learning then go ahead and use them, if the school has enough money to buy them. Here is a link for teachers who like smart boards and think they are just wonderful tools for the classroom. www.teacherslovesmartboards.com

Timetoast Instructional Project #9b- Harper Lee

Additional Assignment # 2

The following questions are about the video, "How Kids Teach Themselves." This video was really cool and interesting.
1.. What do you think? If learners are motivated, can they teach themselves?
I definitely believe that if learners are motivated then they can teach themselves.


2. If those motivated learners are kids, can they teach themselves?
Yes. I believe if children have the proper guidance and have motivation to learn, then they will be able to teach themselves. Just like in the video, the kids taught themselves because they wanted to learn! They were interested.
3. What conditions are necessary for kids to teach themselves? For anyone to teach him or herself?
Teachers need to be able to step back, watch and let the kids learn and teach themselves. Step back and let the kids experiment on their own. Also, there needs to be materials available. Like in the video, a computer was put in a small community and people became curious and started playing on it

4. What role do computers and internet access play in the process?
I believe computers and the internet play a very important role. Computers and the internet play a huge role in learning. Computers and the interent make is easier for people to learn on their own.

5. What role does motivation, a desire to learn?
You will learn something if you want to learn it. If you are motivated and have a desire to learn then you will.

6. What roles do a problem, a question or multiple problems or questions play in the process?
I believe if you are teaching yourself, and you have a question, you have to do research and try to figure out the answer yourself.

7. How do you motivate someone to learn?
I believe that you can motivate students so many ways. Simply place something in front of them and see what happens. In this video, kids were interested and curious about the computer. Therefore, they were motivated to try it out and learn.

8. How are you motivated to learn?
I am motivated to learn a lot by my teachers and my classmates. I also like compliments and positive feedback. If a classmate or teacher tells me that I did a good job on something, then that motivates me!

9. Can anyone who is not motivated to learn learn?
I think it depends. I believe that teachers play a part in motivating their students. I also believe firmly that if you are motivated than you will learn because you want to.
10. Do you teach yourself? When? Why?
I teach myself sometimes when I am by myself. When I do not have a teacher or classmate right there to ask then I beginning researching and teaching myself on my own.

11. What role does a teacher (either answer generally or use a specific example) play in your learning?
They play an important part, but I think teachers should be more there for guidance.
12. What is the most important idea, question or emotional response you take away with you as a result of watching this video?
That people can learn on their own. I believe that as a future teacher, I need to step back and let my students experiement. Students also learn from their classmates, so I believe that working alone or with a classmate is actually more beneficial then a teacher just teaching it all to you.
13. What other questions or issues are raised by this video that should be considered and discussed by aspiring teachers?

I think that the video shows that the internet is such a good resource in the classroom. I believe that teachers lecturing all the time will be obselete in the future.

Project # 10 PLN Progress

This progress post does not really include much progress. I am embarassed that I have not progressed as fast as I should. So far, I have deleted tiles on Symbaloo that I did not want on my PLN or that I did not find beneficial. I have added iTunes U and organized some of my tiles. I am still a little confused as to what to do, but will be in either both or one of the labs this week for help. I think Symbaloo is really cool, and I really like how I will be able to have a website where all of the websites I go to are just one click away and are all organized. I want to add our EDM 310 Class blog, South Alabama's Website and a lot more. Here is a screen shot of my PLN so far.

Blog Assignment # 7

This video is absolutely amazing. Actually, the word 'amazing' does not give this lecture enough credit. Dr. Randy Pausch lived his life to the fullest and with such a positive attitude up until his death on July 25, 2008. Dr. Pausch, at the time giving this lecture, had been told he had 3-6 months to live due to 10 tumors on his kidneys. His lecture is called "Achieving Your Childhood Dreams" or as he preferred to it, "The Last Lecture." His lecture focused on three main points. 1) His Childhood Dreams 2) Enabling the Dreams of Others 3) Lessons Learned

Dr. Randy Pausch begins his lecture talking about all his childhood dreams, which he did accomplish in his lifetime in one way or another. There are so many things I could say about this lecture, and I encourage everyone to watch it. It is a little over an hour long, but totally worth it, and the time goes by very fast! Dr. Pausch was so very passionate about education, learning and teaching. He really genuinely cared about his students and wanted to help them achieve their dreams, no matter how big or small. A lot of his quotations, or ones that he had heard, were so inspiring. Two of my favorites were, "When people stop correcting you or telling you what you're doing wrong it means they have given up" and "Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted." Dr. Pausch talked a lot about brick walls (things that people run into that can either slow dreams down  or keep you out completely). He stated, "Brick walls are there for a reason: They let us prove how badly we want it." I totally agree with that statement. If you want something badly enough, you will make it happen.

I really liked how he talked about "head fake learnings". "Head fakes" are something that make people think they are learning something else. For example, when children make games or movies they are really learning how to program, but they just think their having fun! I also liked how at the end of the lecture he gave the audience two "head fakes". 1) This lecture really wasn't about achieving your childhood dreams, it was about being a better person and 2) This lecture wasn't for us, it was for his three children. Wow!

Dr. Pausch was such a brilliant man. He basically made up a degree for students to receive at Carnegie Mellon University. This degree was about make virtual worlds. He achieved so much in his lifetime and impacted so many lives. He had such a positive outlook on life (no matter how long he had). He also came up with The Alice Project. The Alice Project is a teaching tool to help teach and learn introductory program concepts. Students learn how to make video games, movies, etc. I love when Dr. Pausch says, "Millions of kids are having fun while learning something hard!" That is another thing that Dr. Pausch was passionate about: FUN. He had fun all the time, everyday and even when he was dying. What an amazing man!

I can not tell you everything Dr. Pausch discussed in his lecture and what I thought about it. Therefore,  I encourage you to watch his lecture on YouTube. There are a few things I would like to add before finishing  up this blog post. Dr. Randy Pausch stated a few things before ending his lecture. Here are some of them:
1) Decide if you are a Tigger or an Eeyore.
2) Never lose the child-like wonder. It is too important, and it is what drives us.
3) Help others
4) Loyalty is a two-way street.
5) Get feedback and LISTEN to it.
6) Show gratitude
7) Don't complain-- just work harder!

Dr. Randy Pausch was a brilliant man who will continue to live on through his students, family, colleagues, friends and many projects. We all need to strive to be more like him. What a gift he was! I am so glad Dr. Strange assigned this video. It was so inspirational. 
 

Summary Post C4T # 2

The teacher I was assigned to was Kelly Hines. Her blog is called "Keeping Kids First". Go to this link to check it out http://keepingkidsfirst.wordpress.com/ . The first blog post I commented on was entitled " When I Grow Up." She discussed the question everyone has heard in their lifetime at one point or another, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" She talked about how she had been asking herself that question lately. She also stated that she does not really ask her students that question anymore because she can not predict the future. Instead, she teaches her students and encourages them to be creative thinkers and problems solvers. She also encourages them to explore many different topics, interests and passions.I love how she stated, " I want to help students be who they want to be today." Mrs. Hines said that she had also been asking herself the famous question, "What do I want to be when I grow up?" This may seem funny since she is a college graduate and a teacher, so in many people's eyes she has already made her decision. She wrote about how she may change her mind later about what she wants to be, but as of right now she loves teaching kids and adults. She also wrote about how she did not have her Master's degree, but that she may pursue one later.


This particular post made me think. I responded saying that even though I am an Elementary Education major and children are my passion, that does not mean I will be teaching elementary school for the rest of my life. I also stated that I did not know what the future has in store for me. I do want to get my Master's Degree, but that my change. I am only twenty-two years old, so my journey really has just begun!


The second post I commented on was called, "Reflections on a Lecture." Mrs. Hines made comments on a lecture she heard from Dr. Tomlinson at Western Carolina University. Dr. Tomlinson talked about five points regarding differentiation in classrooms today. I totally agreed with what Mrs. Hines said regarding this lecture. I stated that I agreed that we needed to validate our students and communicate to them that they are important. Our students may not get that validation or experience that type of communication in their homes or communities, so we may be the only ones giving it to them. I also agreed with her about making sure we take a great amount of time getting to know each one of our students. Mrs. Hines also talked about technology in the classroom and how great of a tool it is. I told her that I really did not know the positive impact of technology in schools regarding learning and teaching until I began taking EDM 310. She also spoke about how drastically and quickly education is changing. We will need to make sure we stay constantly on top of these changes in order to be effective educators. Mrs. Hines really liked the fifth point Dr. Tomlinson made, as well as myself. Her fifth point was "ALL students need a pedagogy of plenty-- high ceilings, high relevance and high personalization. I responded by saying that students really do need those principles throughout their entire educational journey.


If you would like to check out Dr. Tomlinson's lecture go to http://www.wcu.edu/3067.asp .

Timetoast Individual Project #9a

Blog Assignment # 6

The Networked Student by Wendy Drexler

This video was very interesting. It really got me to understand the importance of a PLN (personal learning network). The 21st century student has no textbooks and spends more of the time online learning than in the classroom. This semester most of my classes are hybrid classes, which means that a lot of the work is done online and not in the classroom. I can relate with the 21st century student because of hybrid classes I am taking.

The video asked the question, "Why does the networked student even need a teacher?" I believe teachers are still important with the networked student. Teachers help guide students and answer questions. I do not think that teachers should be taken out of the whole equation. Even though networked students do a lot of their own learning, they also need a teacher to help them along the way.

When I first started this semester and found out about hybrid courses, I was not excited at all. I thought I was the type of person that could only learn in the classroom with a teacher always there. I never considered learning on my own without a teacher all the time. Now, I really enjoy learning on my own. Don't get me wrong, I am constantly e-mailing my professors and asking questions. I am still new with online learning, but I have amazed myself at how quickly I have adapted. It is definitely not as bad as I thought it would be. I actually like it!

A 7th Grader's Personal Learning Environment

This video is about a seventh grade girl talking about her PLE. This video really helped me understand a PLN . I think it is good that students are learning about this type of technology. Every day she checks the class blog to see what they are learning for that day. I like how students can do that. It is very helpful. I also feel like it makes students better learners as well. Her PLE is kind of like my PLN. I used some of the same things she did. This video helped me understand a PLN better and will help me while working on mine.

The Machine is Changing Us

I really enjoyed this video. I liked all the funny video clips he provided to viewers. I can relate to how he talks about students not being engaged in the classroom. I liked the different ways he talked about engaging students. He also talks about the word "whatever" and how much it has been used. He also talked about YouTube and how it is a very useful tool. To be honest, before this class, I never watched intellectual YouTube videos. I did not know (before this class) that YouTube could be such a great learning tool! Watching this video really made me want to try to engage my students at all times!

Summary Post C4K # 1 and #2

The C4K I was assigned to was Kyla. I made three comments on her blog. The first comment I made was in regards to her learning to post pictures. She really likes dogs, so she had a lot of cute dog pictures posted. The second comment I made was in regards to her slide show presentation. Her slide show presentation was about building a tree house. The tree house looked great and so much fun. She did a really good job on the slide show. It was very interesting! The third comment I made was in regards to her voice thread. She did such a great job on her voice thread. The pictures were great and funny! Her voice thread was about her dog Charlie and was excellent! I was very impressed.

Podcast Project # 8

3 Amigos Podcast about three high school science websites.