This is it!

Well, this is my final blog and I just want to tell everyone how much I enjoyed blogging with you and sharing experiences. I learned a lot in this class and actually had fun doing most of it. It is amazing to me the technology we use on a daily basis and how much we take it for granted. There is so much out there available for educators to use. I really enjoyed many of your final projects and was impressed with your creativity. I wish all of you the best in your future endeavors and have a wonderful and safe holiday season.

Fun Technology

This was something sent to me and is an example of the fun things we can do with technology. I wish you all a wonderful and safe holiday season and a much deserved break! My daughters Hannah and Amy and our dog Max join me in this "elf" dance. Merry Christmas!

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1125377273

Virtual Classroom

The virtual classroom experience last Thursday evening was great. For those of you that do instant messaging, it will be a breeze for you. After participating I thought about what a wonderful tool it would be to use for a student who is out of school for an extended period of time - it has a whiteboard you can write on and provides opportunities to have conversations with the student. It could certainly be a benefit to the student in any number of situations.

Technology Creativity

I've been thinking a lot about the lack of opportunity for music and art in the classroom and how all this technology could provide answers for this problem. It will not be the solution that educators would like (funding for more art and music classes) but an opportunity to at least keep the creativity of the children alive and well. Allowing students to create powerpoints, podcasts, story boards, etc. we enpower the students to take control of their imagination and create "masterpieces" using musical pieces, photography, and other types of artwork. There are numerous ideas using hardware and software to incorporate more music and art into lesson plans for other areas of study. This at least gives the students exposure to some possibly new experiences.

Podcasting

Well, I got my microphone, created an account at OdeoStudio, plugged in the microphone and began recording audio clips. It has been really easy up to this point. Last night my daughter and I just played around recording clips and then clearing them. The big challenge will be actually creating the podcast from the audio clip and getting it posted and sent to our instructors. It has been a lot of fun, so far. I am looking forward to completing this project. I'm interested in knowing if anyone has had difficulties and what they have been. I have to admit that I'm kind of disappointed that our podcast has to be limited to such a short period of time because of the saving issue. Good luck everyone on the completion of your project!

Social Studies and Technology

After reading Chapter 12 I was a little discouraged about the lack of attention and funds for the area of Social Studies. Because of social studies not being included in statewide assessements and standardized testing it does not receive equal resources for materials, especially in the area of technology. This is another challenge for teachers in the upper levels with a Social Studies concentration. As an educator in this field, one will be called upon to be creative and prudent in their use of provided materials and possibly use of some of their own resources. Investigating the free technology available will be necessary as a Social Studies teacher to be able to incorporate new and creative ideas into their lesson plans. Another glaring example of the lack of funding for areas outside the realm of statewide assessments and the reduction in offerings would be the arts. As a parent today I am very concerned about the narrow focus our children are exposed to in the schools today - english, math, and writing. Please don't misunderstand me - these are all extremely important in a child's education and probably, for a certain period of time, were not focused on enough. In an age, though, where the potential of unlimited resources are available to bring such vast and diverse information to our children I feel some of the schools today are falling short because of the obsession with standardized testing and assessment.

Mainstreaming

I have some real mixed feelings about mainstreaming and inclusion. 18 years ago a very good friend of mine fought to have her son mainstreamed when he began school. I wasn't sure how I felt about it then and to tell you the truth I don't think I have any better grasp of the situation now. I know that several of you have had classroom experiences and would like to know how you feel. Part of me understands as a parent wanting their child to have the same experiences as a normal child with exposure to the same stimuli, but on the other hand, are they getting short changed on time with the teacher (even though they usually have an aid) and adaptive technology that has to be shared among numerous classrooms - if children with disabilities were all together would they not have more time to experience some of the technology developed specifically for them? Also, is it fair to advanced students to be restricted in their own educational growth because the teacher is required to attend to such a diverse group of students? I guess I feel there has got to be a better way to address the variety of students' needs without sacrificing one group or the other. I would like to hear any of your thoughts on this subject.