Week 7 - I'm Done!

So this is it, the final posting for my blog required for Educational Technology 533. I have to say, it has really been fun to blog, even if no one is reading this. I don't think I'm going to continue to blog as I don't think anyone wants to read about the homework I'm doing or how cool I think Portland is. I will save my blogging for my future classes - lucky them.

This is my third snow day in a row. Monday was fun, Tuesday was pushing it, and today just seems ridiculous. Over the course of today the weather went from winter wonderland (Portland style) to melty mess. I think I will certainly be back to work tomorrow, but I can't complain. Having these few days off was wonderful in helping me complete my final technology assignment and some make up work. If you are interested in looking at my final assignment, there is a link from the homepage of my website. There is a link to my website just to the right hand side of your computer screen...or is it the left?

I am happy to be done with my class but don't know what I'm going to do with myself and all of my free time until January 5th. I'm sure I'll manage.

As a last note, it was so nice to have the opportunity to turn in late work for credit. In my short time at Concordia and what I have learned about assessment, as teachers our objective should be teaching students, not training them to turn things in on time.

Week 6b - Snow Day!

Oh the wonderful gift of a snow day! How exciting it was to open the blinds this morning and find a blanket of white had covered the city! Snow, wonderful snow! Tom and I spent a great part of the day tromping around Southeast running all of our usual weekend errands by foot. In addition to the normal stuff it is also Steve's birthday today so we joined him and Colleen at Jam for brunch. They certainly know their way around a tofu scramble and Bloody Mary! So much fun and so much delicious food! This wonderful weekend, complete with Tom's band playing a show last night, was topped off by my office being closed tomorrow. So there will be a Snow Day part two! Sleeping in is especially sweet on a Monday.

Okay, so I did do some homework as well...

This week we read articles about access to technology being a social issue. I had really never thought about this before but the more I do think about it the more I wish this class is not an online course. I would love to hear what my cohort think about this issue. It's certainly something we should have been having in the back of our minds while learning all of these different tools for integrating technology in the classroom. I'm so glad we got to read about this but wish it would have come earlier in the course.

We also learned how to manipulate spreadsheets using Excel 2007 which ended up being incredible. I'm amazed how easy it is to create charts with this new version. I only learned how to create charts recently but with Excel 2003 and there really is a huge difference in how easy it is to navigate the program. I'm really glad we were able to have this as part of our curriculum.

So, happy Snow Day! Only one more post to go...

Week 6A, One More to Go!

This is the next to last week of this class coming to an end. With all of the work we have done I am afraid of what the final week will bring. A website, a weblog, a podcast, a PowerPoint with audio and video, a week off(!), and this week a wiki - what else could we possibly be doing? I am a bit afraid to look...

This week I learned how to create a wiki. It was easy and actually seemed like a tool that could be useful in the classroom for group assignments and writing projects. Out of all we have done I think using a wiki would be most useful to me as an instructor and easiest for students to work with collaboratively. One thing about this week's assignment that was different from the rest is that we got to see our classmates wikis. This was so interesting and useful to me because it was my first glimpse into the creative work of my peers. While we get to post and comment on each others' discussions it was so much more fun to see the wikis they created. I certainly think if you teach this class again, you should have the students share their web logs, websites, and other creative projects with one another. It certainly helps to see your classmates' work and feel assured that you are on the same page - especially with an online class!

It was certainly nice to have a week off (thank you) and I'm looking forward to just one more web log post!

Week Four

I feel like I don't have very much to write about this week. I'm trying to be more positive about this class as this blog is for the class and I don't want to seem like I'm constantly complaining or incapable of getting all of the work done. I was able to get everything done before Sunday night as I am trying very hard to manage my work throughout the week a bit better. One thing I am frustrated about (briefly) is that I still have not received the Office 2007 software from school and I needed it for our assignment this week. I am frustrated with all of the points I've been missing on assignments when it seems to be for things that I cannot control. Okay, I feel better.

Some positive things that happened this week -

My tutoring at LEP High School is going well. For some reason the kids seem to listen to me when I'm telling them to do (or mostly not to do) something. I am always surprised when this happens as I am completely unsure of myself when I am left in carge of the room.

I made some delicious chocolate chip mint cookies this afternoon. There's no way an outsider would be able to tell they're not vegan!

I had an awesome Saturday evening going out for beans and rice and hanging out at Steve and Colleen's listening to Christopher Cross and A-HA! Does it get any better?

I had an old friend get ahold of me by googling me and finding my web log - is that what technology is for? I have always been so anti social networking sites but I do have to admit it was wonderful to get an email from an old friend who was thinking about me.

I got my first birthday present on Friday!!! Let the birthday week begin! I received the incredible cookbook Veganomicon from my mom and it arrived almost a whole week early. She was wonderful to let me open it!

And...we have a break from school next week. I may still do a little web logging just because Tofurkey day and my big b-day are on Thursday so I'm sure I will have something to report.

Check out the new book:

http://www.theppk.com/nomicon.html

Week 3 - How am I going to get all of this done?

This week has been a lesson in time management. I do not remember a time when I have ever taken a class that has had so much work. Of course, this is an online class and I do need to factor in the six hours a week that I would be spending in a classroom that I am not. That means I should have six hours of work per week plus the time I would normally spend doing homework outside of class. I am certainly spending six hours plus trying to get all of the reading and assignments done. Especially this week.

The assignments for this week were not especially difficult, just incredibly time consuming. I looked at what was required for this week last Sunday and worked to manage my days so I could get a little bit done everyday and not have too much waiting to be completed on Saturday and Sunday. I am done with everything at this point but am waiting for help on my pod cast before I can record it.

I don't mean to be constantly complaining about this course, it's just a bit out of my comfort zone and I feel I am forced to commit a lot of time and effort in completing the assignments. I do certainly feel like I am getting my moneys worth as I now know how to blog, create a website, and record a pod cast - all of which I had no idea how to do three weeks ago. I am glad to learn how to do all of this and now have more tools in my toolbox to work with when I do get into the classroom, I just don't know how likely I will be to actually use these tools with my students. I would love to know more about how teachers are incorporating cell phones, blogs, and pod casts in classrooms today, not just how they should work ideally or in theory.

Not class related, this was a wonderful Portland weekend. The sun was shining and sky was clear both Saturday and Sunday. I went on a couple of really nice, long walks through South East exploring Laurelhurst park and the neighborhoods between Burnside and Hawthorne. I also saw an amazing moving, Man on Wire, about the French wirewalker, Phillipe Petit, who succeeded in securing a wire between the World Trade Center buildings in 1974 and 'dancing' on the wire for 45 minutes to the amazement of the world. The movie is a documentary that focuses on this unique person and his passion for life. I definitely recommend it!

Week 2 - President Obama and Ed Tech Gripes

Wow, this week has been a whirlwind of life changes and crazy assignments. I moved on the 31st, the election was on the 4th, we had final research projects due on the 4th and the 6th in Lichau's class, and there was a ton of work to do in the MAT 533 class. I kind of wasn't sure I was going to make it through but it's 3:11 on Sunday afternoon and I think all of my assignments are complete.

The election was unbelievable and inspiring. After the let downs in both 2000 and 2004 I was beginning to doubt we could ever elect a Democrat back into office. I was actually beginning to believe it was impossible. I forced myself not to let my hope for a President Obama get too out of hand. Unlike Kerry in 2004 I truly believe in Obama and the policies he introduced during his campaigning. In 2004 I never believed in a President Kerry, I was merely praying we could oust Bush once and for all. This emotional, incredible, historic event was only clouded by the fact that we were in class giving final presentations when the votes were coming in. Not seeing his acceptance speech in real time was incredibly disappointing, but I could not be happier with the outcome.

On a more class related note, the assignments we had for our MAT 533 class were time consuming this week. I am not sure if other people had an issue managing their time but with the final research project for Lichau and doing so many website credibility surveys, a reflection, two discussion board postings, and creating a website, it was a lot to manage. I felt like there was so much work. I was really overwhelmed by the creation of the website. It was fun to do and I am happy to be able to create a website, of course, but there was just too much to do for one week. Hopefully now that we are down to only the Ed Tech class I will have more time to do an hour or two every day instead of trying to do it in two or three sessions.

Using Blogs in the Classroom - Assignment 2

I like the idea of using blogging in the classroom to teach civil discourse, as outlined in the article, "Don't feed the trolls". It is true that providing students with a platform for discussion could go very well and enrich the learning environment, or could be potentially disastrous or negative. These outcomes will be determined by the guidelines provided surrounding the assignment or creation of blogs and the monitoring that is done by the teacher. As discussed in the article, guidelines for having a civil, productive, enriched discussion on student led blogs should be similar to guidelines given to students to lead a productive life: i.e. no name calling, think before you speak (type), respect your peers, etc. Assuming the students will abide by the rules, the medium of the blog is a great environment to teach them assessment, reflection, and discussion skills. Using a blog is also a way to reiterate lessons learned in class, spark dialogue around topics brought up in class, and share web based resources with students in real time.

The example provided for a blog used in a classroom environment, Mr. Harbek's Math Blog, was interesting. From what I saw of the blog he really used it to assign and explain homework on a level that his students were most comfortable with. He was clever in adding YouTube videos to add in explanation of difficult math concepts and had great links to pictures and chatrooms which gave his students space to share and contribute thier ideas. It seemed as though his blog provided space for his students to upload their assignments without having to turn them in during class time. It seemed like an interesting use of time, but not one I would feel comfortable with in a math class.

After reading the article "Don't feed the trolls" I would have preferred to have an example of a class blog where civil discourse was actually taking place rather than a teachers space to reach out to his students on their level. While the math blog was interesting, it's not anything I would like to integrate into my classroom.

Very First Blog Post - Assignment One

My name is Kimberlie Larson.

I hope to teach Language Arts and Health in the Middle School and/or High School levels.

My favorite animal is a giraffe. I think they are beautiful and extremely adaptive. They are also wonderful specimens of evolution.