Project #9b Instructional Timeline

United States Presidents of the 19th century and their Accomplishments



The following sources were used in the making of this timeline:

http://www.wikipedia.org/
http://www.blogs.villagevoice.com

C4K Summary Post 1

C4K #1

The first student I got the privilege of following is Aaron from Ms. Lugrin's class. Ms. Lugrin teaches 6th grade in Canada! I was very excited to be following a student from another country.

The first blog that I read by Aaron was about a skiing trip he took in Asessippi, Canada. He was there with his friend Jesse and they skied on several runs, including one called "Extreme Plunge!" This is what I had to comment on his first blog:

Hey Aaron, my name is Jenna Baxter and I am a student at the University of South Alabama. I am in a class called EDM310, and we get the privilege to read blogs from other students from around the world and comment on them. You are the first student that I get to comment on! I really enjoyed hearing about your skiing trip. It sounds like a lot of fun! I live in Alabama and we rarely ever get to see snow, much less go skiing! You seem really adventurous for going on a run called the "Extreme Plunge." Did you ever catch up with your friend Jesse? I hope he did not desert you for long! How often do you get to go on ski trips? I know it must be beautiful! I look forward to following your blog! You can follow my blog at baxterjennaedm310.blogspot.com.

C4K#2

The next student that I was able to comment on was a girl named Yasmine in Mr. St. Pierre's class. Mr. St. Pierre teaches 5th grade at Terryville Elementary School in New York. In Yasmine's blog, "Take a look at this!, she is showing pictures of some animals she saw in her backyard. She took a picture of a blue jay, a raccoon, and a cat, which she posted to her blog. Here is what I had to say to Yasmine:

Hey Yasmine, my name is Jenna and I am a student at the University of South Alabama. I am taking a class called EDM310, and in this class we get to comment on student's blogs from around the world. You are one of the students I get to comment on. I really think you did a good job on your blog post. I thought it was cool how you added pictures to your blog so we could see the animals that you saw. Is that your cat in the last picture? I have a cat of my own, named Saban, but I am not sure how he would react to raccoons being in his yard! Well, good luck in your classes and continue to do a wonderful job blogging!

C4K#3

The third student that I got to comment on was Rauf. Rauf is a fifth grader at Pt. England School in Auckland, New Zealand. His teacher is Ms. Squires. Pt. England School's blog page was nominated for the best class blog by Edublog in 2009. The blog that I got to comment on was an acrostic poem. This is what it said:

Eats lots
Smiles most of the time
Rides his bike for fun
Always listens to his friends
Hides in lots of places

Here is what I had to say on his blog:

Hey Rauf, my name is Jenna Baxter and I am a student at the University of South Alabama majoring in Elementary Education. I live in Mobile, Alabama (United States). I am taking a class called EDM310, in which we get to comment on other students blogs from around the world. I am commenting on your blog and a summary will be posted to my blog, which you can view by clicking here. First of all, let me say you are the farthest person from the United States that I have been able to comment on, and I am very excited to be able to view and comment on your blog. I really enjoyed reading your poem and, believe it or not, it really relates to my life! I love to eat, smile a lot, ride bikes, and I try to always listen to my friends. Is this poem about you? Also, what does ESRAH stand for, is it someone's name? If that is a crazy question, I am sorry! Once again thank you for letting me view and comment on your blog!

Project #9 Individual Timeline

Blog Assignment 5

Eagle Nest Radio and Class Blog

How cute and what a great way to learn! To hear those students doing a radio show about Ancient Rome was really great! These kids really seemed to know a lot about the architecture, gladiators, Cleopatra,and Caesar. I believe that students tend to learn better by doing things hands on, instead of just reading about it. This podcast was a great way to show that. I am sure these students learned so much more by having to do a radio show. It really takes effort and creativity to pull something like that off, and those kids really done it. I hope to be able to incorporate things like this podcast into my classroom when I become a teacher.

Since we had to do a podcast for Project 8, this audio was very useful. Many of the people in my group had never done a podcast before, so we needed some guidance. My group also incorporated the radio theme into our podcast. We also had a host like the kids on Eagle Nest Radio, and each member of our group had something different to report on. Once again way a great way to learn and incorporate technology into education!

The Benefits of Podcasting in the Classroom
By Joe Dale

This video does a great job of showing the many benefits of podcasting. Being fairly new to the idea of podcasting, this video really showed me the wide range of things that can be done. Joe Dale really hit on a lot of things that I had never thought of. One thing that I found good about podcasts was that students who are sick no longer have to come to school and expose others to their germs. These students can stay at home until they feel better, but will not be missing out on important lectures. I think this is reason enough to use podcasts in the classroom, but there were also other things I found interesting.

The students in Mr. Dale's classroom seemed to really enjoy learning through the podcasts. They found that it kept them more interested in the lesson and they could relate better. I believe anything that gets the students more involved is beneficial to everyone. I also liked the creativity that is used in making the podcasts. By encouraging our students to create their own podcasts, we are putting creativity back where it belongs- in the classroom! These are just a few of the benefits of using podcasts in the classroom, but they are enough to convince me!

Podcast Collection
By Judy Scharf

This website was really helpful. In her Podcast Collection, Judy Scharf shows teachers how to incorporate podcasts into their classrooms. She also lists some very helpful tips including getting to know how to use Audacity and listening to other podcasts before creating your own. While I did not get used to Audacity as much as I would have liked to before doing my podcast, I did listen to how other people did their podcast and I thought it was useful.

Scharf also gives some very interesting podcast topics and shows you some ways to research those topics. Some other great things about the Podcast Collection are the links to YouTube and TeacherTube, which show you how to make a podcast. Scharf also gives reasons for why podcasts should be used in the classroom and leaves a rubric that can be used to grade the podcast. I believe this website was very useful and look forward to using it a lot when I become a teacher.

Project #8 Podcast

Click here or the picture below to listen to our podcast about E-books in education.

This podcast was a collaborative effort by: Jenna Baxter, Woodie Holloway, Kristan Steele, and Kelsey Robinson.

Blog Assignment 4

Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please?
By Scott McLeod

First of all, a little bit of what I found out about Dr. McLeod. Dr. McLeod is an "Associate Professor in the Educational Administrative program at Iowa State University". He is also the "Director of the UCEA Center for the Advanced Study of Technology Leadership in Education." Dr. McLeod has really been as asset in advancing technology in education. I found all of this information, plus more, on http://scottmcleod.net/bio/.

Now on to the blog! I really enjoyed Dr. McLeod's use of sarcasm to show the dangers and importance of technology. Sure the internet is a dangerous place, but please try to show me somewhere that is completely free of danger. Using technology responsibly can only lead to greater advances in education. I read the comment left by Dr. McLeod and agree that most teachers and parents do not know enough about this "new" technology to teach their kids to use it responsibly. As upcoming teachers, it is our job to learn as much as we can about using technology in the schools and show our students all of the benefits. By teaching our students some fundamentals of internet safety and the ways they can use these technological advances in the classrooms, the possibilities are endless!

The iSchool Initiative

While I am usually leery of technology taking over schools completely, I am really looking forward to the schools described in this video. In this video, Travis Allen lays out his plans for a better educational system- the iSchool! Allen showed all the apps that are already available to be used in the classroom and this blew me away. I wish that I would have been able to use this technology when I was in high school. Being able to look up information about the solar system, the presidents, using the calendar to keep track of assignments and due dates; this truly is the schools of tomorrow!

Allen also shows that using the iTouch in schools will not only enhance the learning system, it will also save the students and the schools money. With drastic budget cuts, our schools could definitely use something to help save money. According to the presentation, costs would go from $650 per student to $150 per student. This amount of money is tremendous. Students would also benefit. No longer would they have to carry around heavy book bags filled with four or five books, notebooks, pens, and pencils. Everything could be stored in one device! Also, talk about going green! All the trees that could be saved and all the other resources, this device could really save our planet. I sincerely hope that schools look into this initiative, and that one day all of our schools can be run this way!

The Lost Generation

The way this video was made was definitely different, but I enjoyed it. On first reading it I was scared, but when it was read in reverse it was inspiring. A video like this really catches one's eyes and makes you thing. I believe that everything said was true. We do live in a quick fix society, our jobs do tend to come before family, we are destroying our environment, and we do feel that there is nothing we can do to change this. But like what was said in the video, this is all a lie. We can chose to change the future, and we must. We must put our families first, we must start thinking about our impact on the environment, and we must believe that we "live in a society of our own making." The future is ours and we must decide what to do with it!

Virtual Choir
By Eric Whitacre

Wow! This video really shows how powerful the internet is. It is hard enough to get 185 singers who have never met to perform together, much less when it is all done on the internet. This shows how the internet has truly transformed communication. I have always believed that the internet takes away from that person to person contact, and this video proves me wrong. These singers come from 12 different countries, and without the internet they would have never met or sung together. The internet is a turning point in communication, and when used in the right way can really allow you to connect to the world!

Teaching in the 21st Century

So the question is "what does to teach mean in the 21st Century?" To teach in the 21st Century means you have to stop presenting only facts and statistics to your students, and start teaching them the skills they will need to be successful. I don't mean that we should totally abandon everything we know about teaching today, but we should add to that knowledge. We all realize how important technology has become in today's society and now it is time to incorporate that into our schools. Why not show our students how to use the internet, and all it has to offer, in a way that is actually conducive to learning. Instead of letting the students try to figure out how to use Google or other search engines on their own, let us give them the skills to perform a search that is going to give them the answers they actually need instead of a bunch of useless junk.

Since we know how important the internet is in today's society, why not incorporate it into our classroom. This is a wonderful way to get the students engaged in learning, instead of listening to boring lectures and not really learning anything. As the video shows, kids now days can get all of the information we give them in the classroom by just using the internet. While I used to think this seemed scary, I now think it can be useful. Instead of spending all of our time trying to teach our students all of these figures, we can teach them how to find this information on their own. This will empower them to try to learn even more on their own once they see how fun it can be. Technology is not going away and we must realize that, and see what we can do to add it to the educational experience!

Special Assignment 2

Watson vs. Jeopardy Stars
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2011-02-09-kurzweil09_ST_N.htm

This article really concerns me. While I am glad that technology has advanced over the years, I am worried if there will ever be a stopping point. Sure it will be great for our students and children to be able to get an answer for any question with just a few key strokes, but if they are able to do this will there be any need for teachers or many other careers? I am not quite sure that I want a computer to be smarter than humans. While this is most likely a reality, with Watson possibly beating some of the best Jeopardy players, I think it is best to be prepared.

We need to continue learning everything we can about computers and how to use them. We must not allow ourselves to ever be that far behind technology. And this notion that computers will be inside our bodies! Please just count me out! I hope that we can find some kind of middle ground between technology being useful and dangerous. I think the next few years are going to be interesting, and I will just continue to expand my knowledge on technology in order to keep up.

Special Assignment 1

A Light Bulb Moment
By Dina Tillman

Watching "Piano Stairs" was a great special assignment! It really made me think how you can get almost anyone to do almost anything if you make it fun. This will be a really great tool to use in the classroom and I can't wait to watch more videos and get more ideas. Also, Dina Tillman is an Elementary major at the University of South Alabama and a former EDM310 student. The video was also sponsored by Volkswagon.

My Sentence

Blog Assignment 3

"A Vision of Students Today"

By Michael Wesch

Okay, so this video was different. While I can agree with some of the experiences these students had, I have had some different ones also. I have been in several classes of more than 50 and sometimes more than 100. These sizes just are not as conducive to learning as smaller classes. Instead of being able to talk to the professor about a subject you use clickers to communicate. While this has its advantages, you are still missing out on the face to face time. Another point I agree on is how many professors actually know there students names. I would be surprised if 18% of my former professors knew my name. Once again, this goes back to class size. I can also relate to the multitasking that most college students have to do. I work full time, go to school part time, and have a family and house to take care of. Not to mention making time for friends, working out, eating, and sleeping. Students today have so much on their plates that it is a wonder anyone graduates! I would also have to agree with how much school work students have to do that will not even help them in their future career. It is crazy that a lot of what we learn has no bearing on our future!

Some of my different experiences include not spending time online during class. I don't have a laptop so I definitely don't get to browse Facebook or any other social networking sites during class time. I actually try to pay attention and learn something in the classes I am paying for. Another difference the students not reading assigned material. Maybe it's just me, but I always try to read materials assigned to me in class. I believe reading is very important in learning something new. One thing I would change to reflect these differences is to show the statistics of how many students can actually afford a laptop. Also, show the grade differences between people who read assigned materials and those who don't. I do believe that the educational system does need to be reformed, but I also do not believe it can be done overnight.

"It's Not About the Technology"
By Kelly Hines

This blog really tells it like it is. I could not agree more with Ms. Hines on all of her points. While integrating technology into the classrooms in important, if the teachers using the technology do not understand it how can that be useful? Also, education should not be solely about teaching students how to use technology in order to get ahead in life. Ms. Hines does a wonderful job drawing the line between technology being useful and technology being destructive to learning.

I thoroughly agreed with Ms. Hines' list of four things teachers need to realize.Teachers need to be able to relate to their students on some level if they are to be successful in teaching them. Knowing what interests your students can only make your life easier as a teacher. With this knowledge you can mold your lesson plans to teach these students in ways they can understand. I also agree with teaching and learning not being the same. If you are teaching your students and they are consistently not learning, then clearly you need to reevaluate your teaching skills. See what you can do to improve the learning experience for both you and your students. As stated earlier, technology is useless if teachers do not know how to incorporate it into their teaching. Ms. Hines' proves this point. It is our responsibility as educators ( and future educators) to keep up with technology and find new ways to use it in the classroom. Finally, I like the framework for learning provided by the Partnership for 21st Century Skills.
It does include technology, but it also includes creativity and innovation. These two things definitely need to be reincorporated into the curriculum. This blog was very informational and I really enjoyed reading it.

"Is It Okay to be a Technologically Illiterate Teacher"
By Karl Fisch

Reading this blog I am left with mixed opinions. First of all, I would like to discuss Terry Freedman's "list of standards for teachers." I do agree with the first statement that all teachers should be technologically literate, however, Freedman loses me afterwards. Teachers should not have to be embarrassed about being technologically illiterate, nor should they be proud. We should not judge these teachers until we have made an effort to enhance their knowledge on the matter. On to the next item on the list: digital natives and digital immigrants. I am not sure there should be a dividing line between "natives" and "immigrants", can't we all be people who are trying to expand our knowledge of technology and work together instead of being labeled. The last three items on the list just make me more aggravated! Why do we have to keep blaming people instead of helping them? Let's just throw principals and other high ranking officials to the wolves just because some teachers have not caught up to today's "standards"! We should all be working together to help the children in our classrooms instead of fighting over who is better with technology. I am sure most teachers need to be updated on the use of computers and other technology in the classrooms, but this does not mean we should scald them pets who have done something wrong. Let's help each other to help the children!

I am much more agreeing with Mr. Fisch's post on teacher illiteracy. He does not want to throw these teachers to the wolves, he only wants them to see how important technology can be in the classroom. The quote in this blog, "If a teacher today is not technology literate- and is unwilling to make the effort to learn more- it's equivalent to a teacher 30 years ago who didn't know how to read or write", really made me think. After reading further into the blog, I really think I can agree with Fisch. In today's society it is becoming increasingly difficult to succeed without knowing how to use today's technology. I can attest to this first hand. Before EDM310, the things I knew how to do on computers was severely limited. With this class I am learning how to do more and more, and I know this will help me when I reach the classroom. Mr. Fisch, along with several other bloggers that I have read, seem to have the same opinion as me: in order to teach our students something, we have to learn it with them. Teachers never truly stop learning!

Social Media Count

These changes are really scary! I mean, you never know what is going to happen in the next few seconds, much less the next two years while I am in school. While I don't believe teachers will ever be obsolete, it still frightens me to see how technology has changed everything. To see how much money and time are spent on computers is eye opening. I guess that I had better catch up with this technological literacy before I get left behind!

Project #5 Google Presentation

C4T#1 Post Assignment 1

Ask the Google
Published by Liz Davis
http://edtechpower.blogspot.com/2011/01/ask-google.html

In this blog Liz Davis discusses the importance of Google in today's society. She goes on to say that for any bit of information that we need, the first place we usually go is Google. The downside to Google, according to Liz, is that human-to-human communication is often lost. We may be missing out on connections and relationships that would be gained in the days before Google. Liz does not believe that we should totally abandon Google, but that we should find some middle ground between computers and people.
This is the comment I posted to the blog:
Hey, my name is Jenna Baxter and I am a student at the University of South Alabama. I am taking EDM310 and you have been assigned as my first teacher to comment on. I will have a post summarizing my visits available by Feb. 6. The link to my blog is baxterjennaedm310.blogspot.com and the link to the class blog is edm310.blogspot.com. I thought that your blog made a lot of sense. Until a few years ago if you would have asked me what Google was, I would not have been able to tell you. Now I rely on this search engine on a daily basis. While I do rely on Google, I also believe it is important to form connections with other people. If you can find a person to give you the same information attained on Google, why not go to a person with real experience on the subject.

"My Educon Struggle"
By Liz Davis
http://edtechpower.blogspot.com/2011/01/my-educon-struggle.html

In this blog, Liz Davis discusses her frustrations after returning from an Educon conference. She feels that the same topics are discussed every year, while nothing is done to solve the problems discussed. While she enjoys the conference, and believes everyone does a good job in their presentations, she still feels like more should be done. Davis also feels that some of her frustrations are in part because her expectations were so high. Davis attended her first Educon conference in 2008 and really learned a lot. She was introduced to a lot of new ideas, and also met several people that were influential to her. Davis says she is also tired of complaining about what schools are not doing right, and would rather focus on improving education for the children.

This is what I commented on the post:
This is Jenna again from EDM310. I will be commenting on this blog as well and will have my summary posted by February 6. My blog address is baxterjennaedm310.blogspot.com, and you can find me on Twitter @jennabaxter1988.

While I may only be an Elementary Education student, I was quite interested in this blog. After reading it I was interested in finding out what Educon was, so I did a little research. This seems like a great conference where you get to discuss a lot of great topics, especially the importance of technology in education. I understand how depressing it must be to feel like you discuss the same things every year, but maybe some good can come out of it. By discussing the same topics every year you hope to get new insight from teachers who may not have been at previous conferences. Also if the same topics are still being discussed then that means there must still be problems that need to be solved. While you may feel like you can do nothing to solve the problems, talking always helps. Maybe if we all continue to work together we can improve our education system and give our students the future they deserve. Thank you for letting me comment on your blog, it has truly been educational!

Blog Assignment 2

Did You Know 3.0
By Karl Fisch and Scott McLeod

Wow, the statistics in this video were astounding! The way that technology has advanced, over what is not considered a great period of time, is truly mind blowing. To think, it took the radio 38 years to reach 50 million, and then it only took Facebook 2 years to reach 50 million. If technology continues to grow at the expected rate, I wonder if there will be any jobs for humans to do. Why pay a person to do a job that a computer can do just as well, if not better. I think it is a little frightening to think that in just a few short years there will be a computer that is smarter than the human race. I really feel the need the expand my knowledge on the computer greatly, otherwise I will not be able to compete on the job market.

One other statistic that I found interesting on this video was that "25% of India's population with the highest IQ's is greater than the total population of the US". This is really eye opening. Our nation tends to think that we are the smartest and greatest nation and this proves that this in not true. We must continue to expand our knowledge in all subjects if we are to continue to compete in the world market. I believe that I learned a lot of good statistics in this video, and am glad to have this insight into the technological world.

Mr. Winkle Wakes
By Mathew Needleman

I think this was a cute video that shows the sad truth. While technology has advanced and is shown to be useful in the working world and in the health care field ( as well as most other parts of society), are classrooms are still behind the times. I know that we did not have computers in our classrooms through any of my schooling. If you wanted to use a computer you had to go to the school library, and even then your options were limited. There were a few computer classes that made use of computers to teach the students, but once again even this teaching was limited. If we can use technology to keep people alive or speak to people on the other side of the world, why can't it be used in the classroom to give students more ways to expand their learning.

While I think that technology in the classroom is important, I do understand there has to be restrictions to keep students from coming across certain sites not suitable for them. With training at an early age and the restriction of sites not deemed appropriate, computers in the classroom can have a tremendous effect on learning. How great would it be for your students, even in the elementary setting, to be able to connect with other students from around the world and to see what they are learning and to be able to compare notes. I hope that I am able to incorporate some of the things I learn to help my students better understand technology and its role in the society.

The Importance of Creativity

I thoroughly agree with Ken Robinson. Schools tend to focus solely on what they believe are the fundamentals of education, and in doing so they cut programs that foster creativity in children. When money is tight in schools the first programs to go are the arts and extracurricular activities. While I don't believe that cutting mathematics programs or language arts would be better, I do believe that there has to be a cut off point. If we keep taking these opportunities from our children, how will we ever know their full potential.

I also liked what was said about adults being afraid to make mistakes, and thus losing their creativity. Most of us were taught not to make mistakes and if we did something that was not exactly as the teacher told us, we were wrong. This kind of thinking on the teacher's part teaches children that is not okay to be creative and come up with your own ways to solve problems. As future educators, we should be looking for ways to help students show their creativity and to teach them that they can solve problems on their own if given some tools. Each student learns in their own way,and just because it is not the way you learn does not mean that it is wrong. Give students a chance to show you what they can do and it may surprise you.

Cecelia Gault Interviews Sir Ken Robinson

Cecelia Gault seems like a wonderful student who is very eager to learn. The way she conducted herself during the interview and through her research really shows what a great education she has had so far. While everyone cannot go to a Performing Arts school, I do believe it is important to incorporate the arts and technology into all schools.

I think the best way to ensure that all of our students have an equal opportunity at education is to allow them to show their creative side and allow them to use what they know about computers and videos to help. By doing projects, such as interviewing experts in their field, we are allowing the students to broaden their horizons and learn things they may not have otherwise. It is important to cater to all your students needs, to the best of your abilities, to ensure they get everything they can out of the learning experience.

Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts
Vicki Davis

Vicki Davis has done something that most teachers only dream of getting their students to do: learning skills on their own with only small guidance from the teacher. I think she has done a great job incorporating technology into her classroom. To see these students working together with other students from all around the world is truly amazing. In today's society it really is important to know how to use different software in order to compete for jobs, or advancement in a current job.

Vicki Davis has given her students an invaluable tool that will continue to help them throughout their lives. It is one thing to teach your students, but it is so much more when you give them the tools to teach themselves. I will try my best to use similar techniques to Mrs. Davis in order to give my students every opportunity to receive a great education.

Blog Assignment 1

Hello, my name is Jenna Baxter and I am 22 years old. I was born and raised right here in Mobile, Alabama. I have a four year old son named Hunter and I am happily married to my husband Heath. I consider my family the most important people in my life and that is why I decided to go to college. I want to be able to provide my son with every opportunity I can, and I believe advancing my education is the way to do that. Elementary Education was not my first major of choice. I started out majoring in Nursing. After pretty much wasting my first three years of college (several of my classes would not transfer over), I realized nursing was not for me. Education has always been my back-up plan and I am very excited about this journey to teaching. I have always felt closer to children than people my own age, and I believe this will be a great opportunity to make an impact in someone's life.

Some other interests that I have include softball, bowling, spending time with family and friends,and listening to music. I played softball at a local park for six or seven years before I had my son. I love this sport because it keeps me so active and look forward to playing again when my schedule permits. I have recently renewed my interests in bowling, as we have been taking my son to play, and hope on joining a league during the summer. Being able to spend time with my family and friends is also very important to me. Whether it is just sitting at the house together or planning a trip somewhere, as long as I am with people I love it does not matter what we do. Something else you may want to know about my life is that I consider myself a hard worker. I have been working at the same job for almost 6 years, as well as going to school and raising my son. It is very important that I work to help my husband in providing for our family. This is just a small snapshot of my life and feel free to comment or ask any questions you may want to know more about.

Practice Post

My first post