Through this assignment, I experienced a new type of technology. I listened to my first podcast. I have heard about podcasts, but I never gave listening to podcasts a chance. After listening to six different podcasts, I feel as if I understand how the majority of podcasts work and how they are produced. Some podcasts are more helpful than others, and some podcasts are more boring than others. I listened to all of the suggested podcasts except one. I substituted the ConncectLearning podcast for Teachers Teaching Teachers podcast. Teachers Teaching Teachers podcast can be found at the iTunes store under audio podcasts for K-12 education.
My favorite podcast that I listened to was the SmartBoard Lessons. I learned a lot of helpful information and actually enjoyed listening to this podcast. My favorite part that I listened to during this podcast was the mentioning of the math video link. They brought up some very popular movies that contained math in them, and I enjoyed knowing that because we tend to not think math is popular outside the classroom. I learned a lot from this podcast as a student as well as a future teacher. This podcast was like a morning radio show for me. I could listen to this podcast on my way to class, where as some of the other podcasts were much less interesting to listen to.
The KidCast podcast was helpful in understanding the differences between video and audio podcasting. This podcast was helpful, but this podcast was not as interesting as SmartBoard Lessons. During this podcast, Dan mentioned why and when people should use video podcasts over audio podcasts. Dan made the point that audio podcasting has much less pressure than video podcasting because it is "easier to slice and dice" in an audio podcast.
The two podcasts I enjoyed the least were MacBreak Weekly and This Week in Photography. These two podcasts were pretty much about features on Mac computers and features on different types of cameras. The one thing I did like about This Week in Photography was the realization of how far our camera technology has developed. I did not care for these two particular podcasts because it was basically a show about people advertising and speaking on behalf of their products. Although the podcast information can be helpful if you own a Mac or certain type of camera, they do not help every person.
The structures of the podcasts were built around the topics of that week. Each show had more than one host except for KidCast, with the host being Dan. The majority of the podcasts included personal stories and/or experiences from the hosts. As I mentioned earlier, I think I get the idea of how podcasts are done. I also noticed and noted that most of the podcasts had hosts or guests that were not in the studio. The feature mentioned most was that of Skype.
During all six of these podcasts, I heard different vocabulary mentioned that I would like to explore to find out more about them. I am just now becoming familiar with iTunes besides downloading music. I enjoyed this week's posts because it made me explore the other things iTunes offers. All of the podcasts had good audio except EdTechTalk. Pretty much all of the podcasts were sponsored by the same company as well. All of the podcasts were educational in some way. Some podcasts are for everybody while others are for a more specific audience. It is interesting to see how far we have come in today's technological world. I think it is great that we have a feature like the podcast to share different teaching techniques with each other. Podcasts make it much easier to share with others around the country and world. I also think it is very beneficial to students because it gives another way to create ideas.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Vicki Davis: Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts
I enjoyed this presentation on Vicki Davis because I think we need more teachers like her teaching children the importance and knowledge of different types of technologies. Until this EDM 310 class, I have not had a computer class since high school, and that class focused on typing alone. Before EDM 310, I thought I was up-to-date with technology, yet now I understand that I need to be updated on technology. I am very thankful to have a class such as EDM 310 offered to me because prior to this class I did not know how to blog, and now I have a blog that I post to weekly.
The presentation on Vicki Davis was impressive to watch; Vicki Davis has taken a rural school and connected the students and staff to areas far beyond their town. I think that more teachers should teach technology classes because our world is a technological world. Students need to be up-to-date on the different types of technologies available to them. Every child has learning potential, and Vicki Davis stated "Where children have trouble is when you have only paper and only pencil then only certain types of children are going to succeed" (Vicki Davis: Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts). There needs to be a balance between paper and technology. Educators have to realize that not every student learns or tests the same, and Vicki Davis focuses on the technology aspects of her students. Vicki Davis understands the strengths and weaknesses of her students, and she develops her lessons around her students' abilities.
This presentation on Vicki Davis was very informing because it allows people to know that children need to be able to know what is going on around them and around the world. I think Vicki Davis has a great lesson on letting her students communicate to other students across the world. I think communicating at a young age to others across the world is smart not only because it will teach students about others' cultures, but also it can teach all students that our world can come together and help each other out. The main point that Vicki Davis mentioned that I liked most was her point on making her students feel comfortable with any technology.
The presentation on Vicki Davis was impressive to watch; Vicki Davis has taken a rural school and connected the students and staff to areas far beyond their town. I think that more teachers should teach technology classes because our world is a technological world. Students need to be up-to-date on the different types of technologies available to them. Every child has learning potential, and Vicki Davis stated "Where children have trouble is when you have only paper and only pencil then only certain types of children are going to succeed" (Vicki Davis: Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts). There needs to be a balance between paper and technology. Educators have to realize that not every student learns or tests the same, and Vicki Davis focuses on the technology aspects of her students. Vicki Davis understands the strengths and weaknesses of her students, and she develops her lessons around her students' abilities.
This presentation on Vicki Davis was very informing because it allows people to know that children need to be able to know what is going on around them and around the world. I think Vicki Davis has a great lesson on letting her students communicate to other students across the world. I think communicating at a young age to others across the world is smart not only because it will teach students about others' cultures, but also it can teach all students that our world can come together and help each other out. The main point that Vicki Davis mentioned that I liked most was her point on making her students feel comfortable with any technology.
Sir Ken Robinson: The Importance of Creativity
Out of all of the videos we have watched this week, Sir Ken Robinson's presentation on the importance of creativity was my favorite. His presentation was very interesting and fun to listen to due to his humor, and really made me think more about the creativity of children. I enjoyed his example stories that he shared in order to prove a fact or statement he was trying to get across to people. His example of Gillian Lynne really makes me understand why educators and parents should not deny the right of children to use their creativity. Without creativity, our world would be boring, and not all children would be expressing themselves.
Robinson had three themes about his lecture which were the evidence of human creativity, being in a place where we do not know what is going to happen in the future, and the fact that children have extraordinary capacities. My favorite quote by Robinson was "Creativity now is as important in education as literacy" (Sir Ken Robinson: The Importance of Creativity). By that comment, I take that he is trying to say that there are many different aspects to an education, and basic literacy will not stand alone. People have to be able to express themselves or everybody would end up being the same. Robinson goes on to explain that if people are not prepared to be wrong in life, then people will not be able to be creative or original. I support Robinson's view that education is a way of taking our unknown world into the future. Without education, I believe that nothing would exist because it is the education we receive that enables us to do great things. As Robinson was talking about the topic of education, he states "It's one of those things that goes deep with people" (Sir Ken Robinson: The Importance of Creativity).
Robinson's presentation of the importance of children's creativity should not be taken lightly; I fully agree with what Robinson is trying to get across to people. Robinson explains why it is important for children to be able to use their creative skills. Every child is different, and if the world holds back children's creativity then we would not have our creative minds in the world such as Gillian Lynne.
Robinson had three themes about his lecture which were the evidence of human creativity, being in a place where we do not know what is going to happen in the future, and the fact that children have extraordinary capacities. My favorite quote by Robinson was "Creativity now is as important in education as literacy" (Sir Ken Robinson: The Importance of Creativity). By that comment, I take that he is trying to say that there are many different aspects to an education, and basic literacy will not stand alone. People have to be able to express themselves or everybody would end up being the same. Robinson goes on to explain that if people are not prepared to be wrong in life, then people will not be able to be creative or original. I support Robinson's view that education is a way of taking our unknown world into the future. Without education, I believe that nothing would exist because it is the education we receive that enables us to do great things. As Robinson was talking about the topic of education, he states "It's one of those things that goes deep with people" (Sir Ken Robinson: The Importance of Creativity).
Robinson's presentation of the importance of children's creativity should not be taken lightly; I fully agree with what Robinson is trying to get across to people. Robinson explains why it is important for children to be able to use their creative skills. Every child is different, and if the world holds back children's creativity then we would not have our creative minds in the world such as Gillian Lynne.
Did You Know? 3.0
This presentation's statements/facts were shocking only because I know our world is technologically advanced, yet when facts are stated, it can be overwhelming. Our world is advancing every single day, every single minute. Not only are new technologies being discovered/invented, but our older forms of technologies are being advanced in order to keep up to the newer forms of technologies. We have gone from radios to television and from television to the internet. Our world is a technical world, and older forms of communicating, researching, and daily life are slipping away due to the popularity of technology. We live in world full of technological devices, and this presentation made me realize how many of those devices exist.
The world that we live in is the world that humans have created; humans have advanced the world that we live in. I remember when online dating was unpopular and not advertised, yet now "1 out of 8 couples married in the U.S. last year met online" (Did You Know? 3.0). Also, this presentation made me realize and think about how our world relies primarily on internet devices to communicate and research. About thirty years ago, the world did not have the internet, yet now our world could not understand what life would be like to not have access to the internet. With the internet, people can communicate across the world, work from home, and research information in about one minute.
I really enjoyed this presentation because this presentation is a simple, quick piece of information that allows people to realize how far advanced our world has become. Nobody knows exactly what the future holds, but it is going to be interesting to see what people invent next. This presentation mentioned that we are training students for jobs that do not exist yet. "We are living in exponential times" (Did You Know? 3.0).
The world that we live in is the world that humans have created; humans have advanced the world that we live in. I remember when online dating was unpopular and not advertised, yet now "1 out of 8 couples married in the U.S. last year met online" (Did You Know? 3.0). Also, this presentation made me realize and think about how our world relies primarily on internet devices to communicate and research. About thirty years ago, the world did not have the internet, yet now our world could not understand what life would be like to not have access to the internet. With the internet, people can communicate across the world, work from home, and research information in about one minute.
I really enjoyed this presentation because this presentation is a simple, quick piece of information that allows people to realize how far advanced our world has become. Nobody knows exactly what the future holds, but it is going to be interesting to see what people invent next. This presentation mentioned that we are training students for jobs that do not exist yet. "We are living in exponential times" (Did You Know? 3.0).
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Who's Allison Benton?
Hello everyone! My name is Allison Benton. I am an elementary education major, and I love it. I just started my education at USA this fall. I recently attended the University of North Alabama. I moved to Pensacola, and I decided to transfer to USA. I was a majorette at UNA, and I am also a sister of Zeta Tau Alpha. I am very excited about taking EDM 310. I look forward to learning more about new and different types of technologies through taking this class.
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