My Wordle

Class Reflection

Email can be both formal and informal, such as in writing.  The audience is important to keep in mind.  PowerPoint is a very effective and engaging tool to use within the classroom.  The three PowerPoint presentations, "King Midas and The Golden Touch," "Tick Tock," and "Environmental Chemistry: Cyanide Fishing" displayed in class showed the significance of interactive learning.  The process of creating a PowerPoint presentation was valuable because I haven't used the software in years.  I need to practice my skills in PowerPoint to be more efficient.  Most of my lesson presentations were incorporated through Smart Notebook.  One great tool that I would utilize in my English class is Videothread.  Videothread is a good site to have students present a speech or a piece of writing (a story).  Words are very powerful.  The inflection, tone, emotion, and attitude of a speech involved are phenomenal.  Videothread reaches all types of learners. 

Chapters 8 & 9 Reflection

Both chapters focus on communication, but in different forms.  How can teachers and students communicate electronically is the key question answered in Chapters 8 and 9.  Teachers and students use the Web everyday to share information, but utilizing it the classroom is significant.  I had to present a lesson in one of my other education courses on Wednesday evening.  I was teaching students how to create a "Character Collage" based on characters in a novel.  After students finished creating the character collage, I explained how I would digitally scan each collage (image) into the class Web site where it would be a published piece of work.  My classmates acknowledged how important it is for students to see their own work.  I completely agreed with my class because I feel just as good as my students when I see my work posted on a Web site or blog.  People gain a sense of identity or ownership in viewing his or her published work.

Email has come a long way from when I first started using it in 2001.  If you don't have an email address these days, then you may be literally lost to both the digital and real world.  I've noticed how my father not having an email address has caused him to ask me for my email address in order to have paperwork sent that can no longer be found in stores, public libraries, or in the mail.  Email is also a good way to have students and parents contact me with questions pertaining to class or assignments.  I also noticed from teaching and having my own personal email address that it was much easier to communicate with students and parents due to different schedules.  Students, as well as parents are unaware as to how to write a formal email.  Most students write informally in emails, blogs, wikis, or instant messages that the standard forms of English are forgotten in the digital and real world.  Do schools have to start creating programs for students on formal and informal writing in the digital and real world?  I do like the idea of holding online office hours with my students.  There are positive and negative repercussions, but it's an efficient way to allow students time to ask questions that they may not one to ask in person during class.

Multimodal learning enhances the classroom for diverse learners.  The Smartboard is a great tool to use for multimodal learning because it allows various forms of media to be presented to the class.  When I was teaching the topic of photojournalism to my Journalism class, I used the Smartboard to display images from the covers of Time Magazine, National Geographic Magazine, The Daily News, etc. for students to interpret their own understanding.  The students had so many different perspectives based on images that I was able to present with a tool of technology (Smartboard).  After the students provided their own interpretation, I then played the audio version of the photojournalists' interpretation of the images.  The students were able to see the images and interpret them in their own words and then listen to the actual interpretation from the photojournalists.  Students were able to see the similarities and differences between their own interpretation and the photojournalists.  As a follow-up assignment, I had the students create their own cover of a magazine or newspaper with an epic photo (a photo that the student used with his or her own digital camera) and then present it to the class.  The assignment was effective because the students were engaged during presentations and they had many questions to ask the photojournalist (student).  If given the opportunity to teach another Journalism class, then I would definitely involve video-making in the classroom.  Videos in the classroom allow students to be creative in thinking and organizing the information to be presented to their audience.  I learned so much from making my own video that I can be positive in saying that students will have the same affect.

Questions:

1.  Has anyone ever developed their own PowerPoint Learning Game, or anything similar in the class?  If so, what were the positive and negative effects?

2.  Do you prefer a Teacher Blog, or Class Blog?  Why?

3.  How have you utilized podcasts in your classroom? 

Class Reflection

I was working on my paper version of my teaching portfolio today for the NYC DOE.  It's quite sad that I haven't worked on it since 2005, which was when I was student teaching.  Life has definitely changed for me in the past eight years.  As much as I am at a disadvantage for not teaching for years, I am looking forward in reflectling on the amount of digital literacy gained in EDU 7266.  The handouts provide guidance with the key concepts of a professional portfolio.  I was worried about the selection process, but it's like pieces to a puzzle.  The portfolio is my story of teaching.  In some way, I need to put my life on display.  It is now time to unveil my career path.  

Class Reflection

Wow!  I am feeling a little overwhelmed tonight, but in a good and bad way.  I enjoyed watching the Group Instructional Video Projects on "Fire Safety" and "School Bullying" because they provided positive and negative points to focus on for my group video.  Who knew that coming up with a topic for the group video would be so difficult?  I like how my group really concentrated on various ideas.  I think the class discussion and the sharing of ideas were extremely important tonight.  My classmates provided great feedback.  It was like a literature circle, but the discussion was based on different group topics.  I think most of the class benefited. 

Chapter 7 Reflection

Problem solving and inquiry learning are two important concepts presented throughout the chapter.  One best way to utilize these two concepts from my personal education, teaching experience, and classroom observation is by stealth learning.  Most people learn by doing an activity.  The ideas behind the activity are focused on academics and certain skills that people eventually learn without even knowing it.  I learn my best when I am the one working on a project.  For example, the video trailer.  I learned so much just by doing it myself, yet there were steps that needed to be taken to create a finished product.  I believe the same notion works for our students.  As teachers or educators, we provide the hidden concepts in the lesson for our students to solve and develop thinking skills.  The gaming world offers stealth learning.  Students enter a virtual world where different skills are needed to move further throughout the game.  Students are still learning, but with technology as an enhanced tool.

The virtual worlds and digital games reminded me of when I bought my eight year old cousin a Webkinz (Click Here) in 2008.  She was so excited to receive a plush looking stuffed animal with a specific identification number attached.  I felt like a digital immigrant because I did not understand the significance until she explained it to me.  The identification number attached to the Webkinz was to register the stuffed animal into the virtual world.  Apparently, there were children from all over the country registering Webkinz and interacting with each other.  Six years later, who knew I would be reading about it in my technology class.  My cousin, who is now fourteen, is continuing to socialize and interact with other people using technology in different ways, such as Facebook, Blogs, Chats, etc.  To this day, I am amazed at how many children use virtual worlds and digital games, but do not realize the skills that are being learned, or developed.

Questions:

1.  What are some skills-learning games for English teachers?

2.  How do you feel about video games being implemented in the classroom?  Explain.

3.  Writing is an important skill that is currently evolving in the digital world.  Do you think a course should be offered on digital writing?  Why or Why not?

Class Reflection

I presented the Visual Thesaurus web site on my recent blog, but Dr. Chen prepared a similar site that I enjoyed viewing, called Lexipedia.  Lexipedia is a visual tool to use in the English classroom for vocabulary.  Rebecca also provided a great site for children to go on a virtual tour (Click Here).  Game based learning resources, such as Minecraft is a different way of thinking.  I don't quite understand how the game works in content areas of teaching (English, Math, Science, History).  The class had the pleasure of interviewing a twelve year old boy who also confirmed that the game does not focus on the subject areas.  One important factor that the game enhances is cognitive development.  A child uses certain skills to build, or fight monsters in order to survive and move on.  I guess I need to play the game to understand it better.  If and when I do, I will let you know all about it.  I am curious.