Blog #8

 For your week 9 blog (your 8th entry...), I want you to look into social networking sites and the implications of their use. Specifically, I want you to enlighten yourself to their privacy (or lack of) policies. Do some digging in Facebook's policies and see if there is something that catches your attention, surprises you, shocks you or, worse, horrifies you :-). Copy the phrase/sentence/concept that caught your eye and write a reflection on: HOW you reacted, WHY you reacted the way you did and WHAT you think the implications of this policy are.

When I first got my Facebook in high school I didn't put any privacy settings on because I was naive and just didn't care. I posted immature things and me and my friend talked about stuff on our wall that we probably shouldn't have been talking about for all of Facebook to see, but we thought we were "cool" and nobody could tell us otherwise. Once I got into college and accidentally changed my Facebook to the timeline setting, I went back and looked at my past conversations and was absolutely horrified and completely embarrassed about what I had written. I deleted a lot of stuff but it didn't matter anymore because it had happened so long ago. Also, after talking about Facebook and privacy in my English 102 class last quarter I went on to my Facebook and went through my privacy settings and changed them all to mostly the most secure settings. I think that people take putting out all of their information for granted because they feel safe on Facebook and don't realize that anyone can see that information, not just there friends. I was shocked when I read this statement while perusing through the privacy information:

Remember: the people you share with can always share your information with others, including apps.

I was shocked by this because it doesn't seem right to me that people can share my information without my consent. I have 715 friends on Facebook and most of them I don't even really know and it scares me that any of them or their friends can look at my information and do with it whatever they please. I had never thought about this before until now and it is very eye opening. After reading about privacy I decided to look through some of my friends pages to see what information they had available on Facebook and I was shocked to see how many of them put of so much of their information like their cell phone number, e-mail address, birthdays, and where they live. People need to start being more careful with their information and putting it out on the internet for all to see. I'm glad I looked into this information because I had never really done it before and I think that it was very eye opening.

Blog #7

For your week 8 blog (your 7th entry...), please do a quick search on the web and find an online EDUCATIONAL game. Post the link to your game in your blog and take your best shot at analyzing why this game may prove useful in the classroom. Don't just say: "because it is fun," rather, give some pedagogical (you can read and refer to Gee's principles if you like--see this week's "at home" folder for a link to this article) or ODE standard-related reason for using the game. You may also consider giving a brief summary of what the game does in order for your readers to understand the post.

  The game that I chose is called The Blood Typing Game. In this game you draw the blood from patients and then try to figure out what blood type they have by putting the blood into three different test-tubes all containing different solutions. Then, once you've figured our what blood type they are, you hook up the blood bags that correspond with the patients blood type to the patient and give them a blood transfusion until they are 100 percent better.

I liked this game a lot. Going into the game I knew next to nothing about blood types, but after playing it for a couple minutes I caught on and I actually learned from the game! I think that this game would be useful in the classroom because you get to be the "doctor" and use a syringe and draw people blood and figure out what type of blood type they have which is challenging for people who don't know anything about blood types, like me. Also, there are different levels, a mission based game and a quick game (I played the quick game) so that students who learn at different speed or those who want a challenge can all participate and enjoy playing the game. Another perk is that there are points and high scores which will challenge kids to compete and beat their friends. Also, after I had won the game and went to the main menu, there were tabs that I could click on to read more about blood typing and blood transfusions. Additionally, for those who do not like the sight of blood, the blood in the game did not look real and the patients did not look real either. Overall I really liked this game because I learned from it and it was fun so I think that biology or anatomy students could learn from it too. 

http://www.nobelprize.org/educational/medicine/bloodtypinggame/game/index.html

Blog #6

For your week 6 blog, please take a few minutes to reflect on your experience as either a teacher or student in the first (and/or second) lesson plan presentation. Did it make your reflect on your own future teaching? Technology tools in the classroom? Any other thoughts from the experience?

 Today I got to participate in the first of our classes group presentations. At first I was a little worried because sometimes stations don't work out as well in real situations as well as they do in theory because of timing but I think that this group did very well with the stations. I was engaged the whole time and had a lot of fun coloring (one of my favorite things to do) our own hurricanes and getting to name them, doing the crossword puzzle (a favorite past-time of mine), do a computer game that was fun and educational, and doing a packet. I think that all of these activities were age appropriate for the age of kids that they were pretend teaching. I also think that having us draw and name our hurricanes was really creative and entertaining. Also, I learned a lot about hurricanes that I never new before so that was cool.

The groups use of only four computers made me think about how to use a limited number of computers in the classroom without using computers as the main focal point of the lesson. I think that the group did this very well by their use of stations and it gave me an idea of how I will be able to use limited computers in my future classroom. Even though the group only had four computers to use, they still made the lesson fun by having a coloring and crossword station. An ineffective way a teacher might have tried to do the same lesson would be if they had tried to have the crossword puzzle, packet, and  the computer game on the computers. Instead, the group though ahead and used the computers to find or make the packet and to make the crossword puzzle but they printed them out ahead of time so that the students could do it at their desks. I think that this as a very good example of thinking ahead and using their limited technology to their advantage, I will have to remember this when I start my teaching. Overall I really liked their lesson and I think that they did a great job for being the first group to present.

Blog #5

For this week I would like you to read at least three article reviews in the discussion board.
Choose ONE that interests you most and write a blog entry (Blog #5) on your reaction to the article.
As always, make sure your blog entry is insightful, interesting and typo-free!

Two out of the three articles I read were about the same article that I reviewed, but finally, in my third attempt, I came across a review of a different article. The review that interested me the most was the one that was different from the article I, and two other people, reviewed. This review was Katie's and it was about the article Using Technology to Create a Dynamic Classroom Experience. I liked it because she said that the article talked about different technologies that students use outside of the classroom (like video games). I think that this is very good information to include because video games interest kids a lot so if the teacher can find a way to integrate video games into a lesson that might makes the students more involved or more excited about the topic. I also liked how the article talked about how technology influences kids motivation to do work and what effect technology has in the classroom. I expected to read that technology would have a negative effect. I was surprised to find that the article said that "technology did not appear to influence the amount of learning which takes place in the classroom, but they did tend to increase the engagement of the student." Most of the articles that I have read have usually focused on the negatives or the positives of technology in the classroom so I was surprised to see that this article said that technology did not appear to really have an influence on the amount of learning that takes place. Overall I think that she wrote a really insightful article review.

Blog #4

We have spent four weeks practicing how to integrate technology into the classroom. The importance of learning these skills is a given, but is the integration itself at all levels of education? How Young Is Too Young (the reading for week 4) addresses the issue of age limits—what do you think? Is there such a thing as being "too young" for technology? Does technology really interfere with young child socialization?

Today kids use technology from the time they are toddlers and their parents hand them their cell phone to play on, even though they don't quite know how to use the technology, kids are becoming more and more comfortable with using technology at younger and younger ages. I do not think that there is such a thing as being "too young", especially in our technology based world. The sooner kids start to use technology, the more comfortable they will be with it when they need to use it in the classroom eliminating time that teachers would otherwise have to spend teaching their students how to use the technology.


I do think, though, that technology interferes with socialization. It is so important that children learn how to interact with their peers at a young age so that they can carry this skill with them through out their life. If students start to rely computers too much they may not develop the skills necessary to interact with their classmates. In our technology based world communication has become more and more reliant on technology while face to face contact has gone by the way side. In a time when texting, e-mailing, and Facebooking are kids major forms of communication it's no wonder that face to face interactions have become so "out dated", we have become so comfortable behind a screen that talking to new people in person has become intimidating. This is evident by the fact that if you walk around campus, many of the students are on their phones texting or checking Facebook and not interacting with their piers or classmates. In my opinion, technology, as a communication tool, has become too heavily relied upon.

Blog #3

Blogging is about writing to an audience. Do you feel like anyone is reading your blogs (aside from me!)? For this week I would like you to read at least FOUR other blog entries by fellow classmates and comment on them. Then, I would like you to write in your own blog a few insights about what you read: For example, did it feel good to read what other preservice teachers were writing? Was this medium helpful? How did you feel about posting the comments? Do you feel like this exchange gives you any insights into running blog exercises with your own students?
I really enjoyed reading my fellow classmates blogs! Most of them were in the same boat as me in that this was their first time blogging. For me its hard to think of what to write about in these blog entries since they are for a class and I am so used to writing formal papers for classes. After reading some of the other blogs, though, it gave me a better idea about what type of writing is appropriate to use when writing a blog. Even though getting to read these blogs was helpful, I was a little hesitant at first about posting comments. When I came into this class I only knew one person and we are the only two early childhood education people. I had a lot of fun reading the blogs and getting to know my classmates a little better but once it came time to comment my brain just shut down and I couldn't think of anything to say, I just stared at the screen hoping that I could think of something, anything, to write. And then when I did actually write my comments I realized after that I started all of them the same way, "this is my first blog too!" I hope as the quarter progresses I get more comfortable with what to say both in my actual blogs and also in my comments.


I liked reading my classmates perspectives on blogging and seeing how many of them said that they hope to use it in their own classrooms. The idea of using a blog in a classroom, to me, seems like an excellent idea! The only problem is that I would like to be a kindergarten teacher and I do not think that a five year-old would benefit from blogging. If I was teaching a grade level where using a blog would be more appropriate, though, I think that I would definitely use it as a tool in my classroom. I think that blogging is a great was to incorporate writing and technology because it is a way to appeal to a larger group of kids. Some kids hate writing but love technology so by being able to to integrate the two this might give the kids who hate writing an opportunity to actually enjoy it and have fun doing it!

Blog #2

We just delved into Constructivism—for some of you, this seems intuitive. Still, my guess is that for most of you this was not typical of your K-12 (or even some higher-ed) experiences. What does Constructivism, as you understand it so far, mean to you? Reflect on your past as a student and how you hope to apply this concept (or not apply it, as the case may be) in your career as a teacher.

My understanding of Constructivism is that it is a very open learning environment that encourages students to explore and come up with solutions on their own. It also seems like it would involve a lot of trial and error on the students part; this will make them figure out different ways to do something rather than the teacher just telling them one specific way to solve a problem. I also think that Constructivism encourages group work and students collaborating to discover different ways to solve a problem or answer a question.

Since I want to become an ECE teacher, I hope to use Constructivism in my class room as much as possible to encourage a passion for learning and exploring in my students from the very beginning. Hopefully, if I am successful in doing this, my students will enjoy learning and want to learn instead of just learning because they are forced to go to school.

I wish that more of my teachers would have used Constructivism in their classrooms. I think this would have made going to school a lot more fun instead of sitting and listening to lectures all day. Also, I hope that I, as a teacher, do not get stuck in a rut of using worksheets and busy work to fill up my class time. I hope that I can be a teacher that inspires kids to want to learn and to enjoy going to school.