Dr. Strange's Summer 2009 EDM 310 Class Blog

The Wiki for the Technology Literate Teacher

2009-07-19T15:11:00.002-05:00

Nicole called to my attention that the URL for The Wiki for the Technology Literate Teacher was missing. Now you have it! I wondered why no one had used it yet!

10 Internet Technologies For Teachers

2009-07-16T09:48:00.003-05:00

Yes, I know I said no more. But this is really on target. And it's short. So read it as well.
10 Internet Technologies That Teachers Should Be Informed About

And yes, via Twitter @web20classroom

7 Stupid Mistakes and 7 Brilliant Things Teachers Make/Do With Technology

2009-07-15T10:48:00.003-05:00

Again, MUST read for Monday's discussion. But this is it! No more, even if I find something fantastic! I'll save the rest for next semester.

Seven Stupid Mistakes Teachers Make With Technology
Seven Brilliant Things Teachers Do With Technology

A Vision of Students Today

2009-07-14T17:45:00.004-05:00

Another REQUIRED watch for our discussion Monday. This movie was produced by students at Kansas State University and Michael Wesch.

The web page referred to in the movie is Digital Ethnography at Kansas State University. This website is a fantastic resource for the questions that we will address in class next Monday. I am only sorry that I did not know about it sooner. And, yes, I found it through Twitter! Thanks to @willswartz !

Social Learning

2009-07-14T15:41:00.002-05:00

This presentation, Social Learning, by Alec Couros,Professor of Educational Technology & Media at the Faculty of Education, University of Regina deserves your consideration. Since it was accompanied by a talk, you will have to THINK about what might have been said with each of these slides.

Social Learning

View more presentations from Alec Couros.

Possibly Useful for Our Podcast

2009-07-13T09:51:00.002-05:00

Sharon Stoerger, in her article The Digital Melting Pot: Bridging the Digital Native-Immigrant Divide, addresses a question that we have not placed on the agenda: Why should teachers(or learners) be proficient in the use of technology? Stoerger seeks to modify the argument that technology is necessary because students of today are already technologically proficient and teachers and schools must meet them where they are. Read this article if the questions intrigues you. Not a requirement for this class.

Counting the Origins of Failure

2009-07-13T09:41:00.002-05:00

Not directly related to the question for our podcast, but certainly an entirely different perspective: Counting the Origins of Failure by Ira David Socol. Read it and add it to the mix of things you are considering as you prepare for our final podcast.

Podcasts and Videocasts Now Posted

2009-07-09T15:34:00.006-05:00

The videocast and podcast done by Kitty Ruzic and Nicole Coomer are now available at It's Time for Technology Talk.

The videocast and podcast done by Megan Brown and Dana Reeves are now available at It's Time for Technology Talk.

The podcasts done in Mr. Sullivan's class will start Monday July 13.

$50 Later and the Wiki is Up (for a year)

2009-07-08T18:43:00.002-05:00

The Wiki is called Techliterateteacher.

Join the wiki. Then follow the instructions at the bottom of the first page of the wiki.

More on Monday.

And Even More ...

2009-07-08T11:01:00.002-05:00

Kelly Hine's Keeping Kids First: Web 2.0 Debate

Be sure you read ALL the comments and leave one yourself (with contact info).

More to Consider As We Wrestle with What Does it Mean to Be A Technologically Literate Teacher?

2009-07-08T10:57:00.004-05:00

Classroom 2025 From Dianne Krause

Here are the latest versions of Shift Happens

Shift Happens 2.0

Shift Happens 3.0

New Classroom Rules

2009-07-06T12:36:00.003-05:00

From Education Innovation
1. Come to school every day, unless you would rather just go on line.

2. Come to class on time, or log into your online class anytime day or night, whenever it is most convenient to you.

3. Leave your seat only when necessary, which should be often to go collaborate with others or demonstrate something to the class.

4. Bring required materials, including your laptop and cell phone every day.

5. Talk only when permitted, text at all other times.

6. Don't Talk to your neighbors, unless you are sharing your ideas, asking for help or giving help.

7. Use polite speech when speaking, blogging, texting, Twittering, instant messaging, etc.

8. Do not cheat, but remix, re-purpose, and sample other peoples’ work and ideas and give them credit.

9. Follow the teacher's directions immediately and your peers’ directions too.

10. Be polite, courteous, and respectful at all times in both physical and virtual space.

11. Complete all assignments neatly and on time and submit on line or post to your blog or wiki, and share it with your followers on Twitter.

12. Keep your hands to yourself, but share all your ideas and knowledge with others in your Personal Learning Network.

13. Be quiet in lines, hallways, and restrooms, unless you are at home and logged into your on line classroom, in which case you can dance and play music.

14. If you need help raise your hand, but don’t wait for the teacher get help from your neighbors and post your question to your online Personal Learning Network.

15. Know what you are supposed to be learning, why, and what you will do with the knowledge.

Links Needed For July 19 Blog Assignment

2009-07-06T11:30:00.013-05:00

Watch the following in order to prepare for your last blog assignment and for the podcast/videocast which will be the final examination for this course.

In a short movie entitled Next Generation Learning, British organization seeking to expand the use of technologies in a classroom, provides us with a slick presentation by a 6th grader showing a variety of ways technology can enhance learning. Watch it!

Will Richardson

The Networked Student
Wendy Drexler writes: "The Networked Student was inspired by CCK08, a Connectivism course offered by George Siemens and Stephen Downes during fall 2008. It depicts an actual project completed by Wendy Drexler's high school students. The Networked Student concept map was inspired by Alec Couros' Networked Teacher. I hope that teachers will use it to help their colleagues, parents, and students understand networked learning in the 21st century."

PS22 Chorus

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Vicki Davis

Also see Vicki Davis' blog Coolcat Teacher

Dr. Richard E. Miller Discusses Writing With Multimedia

2009-07-06T11:23:00.001-05:00

A remarkable presentation by Richard E. Miller of Rutgers University, a true "writing with multi-media" effort, that shows what can be done to change from a reading/writing culture to a listening/watching culture and still have our students (and faculty) contribute to the products being listened to and watched (authors, if you will). For the first time I see how my challenge to teachers to adapt to a listening/watching culture by teaching students to produce multimedia instead of just consuming it can be brought about.

Part 1

Part 2

This presentation reveals Dr. Miller's dream of how Rutgers should respond to the new approaches to teaching and learning that Dr. Miller advocates:

Course Changes

2009-07-06T10:21:00.015-05:00

I am making these changes to the course syllabus and related assignments

Topics to be Covered in Class

July 6
Google Earth
Professional Blog
Skype delayed until 7/13 because I forgot my power supply!
Video
Twitter
More About Blogs

July 13
HTML moved to 7/6 and replaced on 7/13 with Skype
Tags and modifiers: a, font, color=, alt= title= embed close look at URLs
Picasa and Photoshop
Understanding the Internet and Cloud Computing
Creating your own cloud:
Dropbox
Pogoplug
Google
.me

July 20
Review All Google Tools
Foliotek
Participate in a videocast of group discussion on the topic: "What Constitutes a Technologically Literate Teacher?" NOTE: This will be considered your Final Examination in this course - an oral video exam!

Changes to Blog Posts Assignments:

July 12
Omit #1
Substitute: Watch the three videos by Richard E. Miller (see separate post) who is Chair of the English Department at Rutgers University. Write two or more paragraphs in response to these ideas Dr. Miller sets forth and the examples he gives. Relate your comments to the podcasts we did in class as well as all of the other materials covered in class.

July 19
Omit #1
Omit #2
Substitute:
Watch the videos in the Post Videos for Last Blog Assignment. They will include
Next Generation Learning
Will Richardson
Networked Student
PS22 Chorus
Vicki Davis (Coolcatteacher.blogspot.com)

After watching these videos and thinking about them (and reading New Classroom Rules juts posted in a separate post), write an essay in which you set forth your answer to the question What do you have to know, be able to do, and have experienced to be a "technologically literate teacher." Remember that you have earlier discussed Karl Fisch's argument that if a teacher is not technology literate they should not be able to teach.

Then go to the open blog we will create together on July 6 and add your thoughts and ideas to that blog. If we create a Google Form as part of our development efforts tonight (July 6), you should also respond to that form.

Additional Assignments Due Monday July 6

2009-07-01T11:33:00.009-05:00

1. Explore Google Earth. Create ("Make") a Tour. See if you can figure out how to do it yourself. It is a bit tricky so if you can't figure it out from the following tutorials, we'll go over it is class Monday night. Make a tour with about 8-10 "stops". Include a movie (also called a "tour") if you can. In any event, have a PLAN for a trip with you on Monday night if you have trouble executing the tour itself. It is not difficult by it is sort of messy!

Here are some places to start
Creating a Narrated Tour
How to Create A Simple Tour in Google Earth
Google Touring: A Tutorial

More can be found by searching Google for Create Tour in Google Earth and other similar searches.

Notice also that the buttons open a new window. This is a feature that is probably new to you. To accomplish this you add target="_blank" immediately after the space that follows the a in the a tag. I will show you how this is done on Monday.

2. Be prepared to work on your Professional Blog. Have your outline ready at the least. See the instructions previously posted as well as the examples given in a previous post.

3. Have a great 4th of July and don't worry about the Google Earth assignment if you have trouble. We'll cover it all in class. But if you can figure it out on your own, that is great!

New Assignment

2009-06-23T17:56:00.002-05:00

Patrick Welsh had an opinion piece in today's USAToday entitled "Txting away ur education". It is directly related to our discussions last night.

I have written a reply to Mr. Welsh. Read his article and the comments that have been made. Be prepared to include these materials in your podcast plans for next Monday night.

New Assignment - Review These Podcasts/Videocasts

2009-06-19T12:08:00.004-05:00

Ashton and Jake, students in Mr. Lamshed's Class (6th grade) created this podcast/videocast entitled Chameleon.

Armel and Mitch, also in Mr. Lamshed's class, created this podcast/videocast Lions.

Watch these two podcasts/videocasts.

Leave a comment for both of these posts when you visit the posts on Mr. Lamshed's site. Tell the students what you thought of their work.

Then write a post on your blog in which you create a link (that works) to their podcasts and answer these questions:

1. Are you prepared to teach these students?
2. What do you need to do to be able to be an effective teacher in classes where students are already doing videocasts?
3. Any reactions to what is happening? podcasts? international links? 6th grade students? your preparation to teach in this new world where new communication tools seems to emerge daily?

New Generation Learning

2009-06-18T06:48:00.005-05:00

If you are keeping up with the posts on the blog At The Teachers Desk you will have seen Mr. Fawcett's (@TeacherNZ) post on the web site New Generation Learning. It is an important site and will give you a better understanding of what is being attempted in other countries in the use of technologies and learning and will also provide you with examples of what can be done! You should read this site. Expect a modification to yur assignments which will make that assignment explicit.

And if you are not reading (and watching the associated videos and exploring the links in the posts) At The Teachers Desk in its entirety, on a regular basis, I am now making that an official assignment. At The Teachers is a fantastic resource. Read it! Watch the Videos. Explore the links. Regularly. And when you do, leave a comment for the authors. It helps them understand how readers respond to what they have written. In addition, you will be building your network of professionals who are actually contributing to education in significant ways. And furthermore, they are all over the world. And the world is quite different from Alabama!

Monday June 15 (Week 3)

2009-06-16T16:24:00.005-05:00

What we covered:
1. Presentations
a. Sharing
b. Embeding
c. Audience
d. Chat with Audience
2. Tweet Deck
a. Follow this week
b. Create special columns for key people you are following. Shows their tweets and tweets to them (with @)
c. Direct tweets
d. Responses (@)
3. Podcast Assignments
a. Kitty and Nicole will interview me around my claim that what is needed for education is a permanent link to the internet, not classrooms as presently conducted. Be prepared to challenge this assertion with facts, arguments and examples.
b. Megan and Dana will interview me on my assertion that we have moved into a culture of "listener/watchers rather than reader writers and that the 3Rs need to be replaced with the 6 Cs. I also contend that the "Big 3" are no longer Ford, Chrysler and GM but rather Apple, Amazon and Google. Be prepared to challenge this assertion with facts, arguments and examples. See a separate post for example podcasts. The podcasts in that post are to be substituted for the podcasts referred to in your Blog Assignments.
We will practice next week and record the video and audio in week 5.
4. Weeks 4 and 5 are switched
5. I reviewed how iTunes works and encouraged you to explore the voluminous content available through iTunes which can be used for instructional purposes.
6. I asked you to review my Professional Blog as well as the Professional Blogs done by some of my students last semester. Read the instructions on Professional Blogs that can be found on the class blog. Think about the key attitudes, attributes, tools that you intend to bring to your teaching. Begin making you list. See a separate post for student examples. Also, you should read "A Letter to My Students".

Examples of Student Professional Blogs Spring 09

2009-06-15T20:52:00.004-05:00

Here are some examples of the Professional Blogs created by a few of my students kast semester. They are not perfect, nor are they necessarily the best from last semester, but they are examples which should stimulate your thinking about what you would include in your Professional Blog. Yours will be different, because you are you. But you will probably learn some important things about what I want you to do in creating your Professional Blog by reading and reflecting on these samples.
Kimberly White
Christina Moore
Rachael Callahan
Amber DeVore
Megan Green
Marikate Howell
Michelle Kennedy
Helen Ramsay
Jessica Courville
John Dunlop

In addition, it is VERY IMPORTANT that you consult A Teacher's Manifesto as you work on your Professional Blog. Mr. Chamberlain has undertaken a similar effort. His colleagues have offered suggestions, amendments, questions, support, and disagreement with his "Manifesto." Read his "Manifesto" AND the comments to his post. You will find this "conversation" extremely useful as you work on your Professional Blog.

Listen to Podcasts

2009-06-15T20:02:00.002-05:00

Listening to these podcasts will help you prepare for your podcast. They are not perfect, but they are similar (in some ways) to what you will be doing. In addition to following the process of the podcasts, think about how they can be improved. What would make them better? more interesting? more informative?
The Strange Crystal Ball: A Conversation About the Future with Dr. John Strange
Reader/Writers and Listener/Watchers: An Interview with Dr. John Strange
An Interview with Ms. Angela Rand"
Burp Back Education: A Discussion with Dr. John Strange

A Strange South African Safari

2009-06-15T19:21:00.000-05:00

Adding A Picture to A Post

2009-06-08T20:11:00.003-05:00

Creating a Link

2009-06-08T19:32:00.004-05:00

1. Make sure that the EDit HTML Tag is selected.
2. Click the link icon. It looks like a link in a chain.Spring Class Blog

To Be Covered in Class

2009-06-08T18:06:00.003-05:00

We will cover as much as we can of the following:

Using the Electronic Library at USA

Delicious
1. Bookmarks in the Sky!
2. Collaborative Bookmarking

Blogs
1. Do on time!
2. Adding Comments. ALWAYS make comments when you read other blogs!
3. Adding links to your blog.
4. Adding pictures to your blog
5. Always click on Edit HTML Tab
6. HTML Tags
7. Layout Options

Presentation
1. Storyboard
2. Reduce "Size"of pictures
3. Using Google Documents Presentation

iGoogle
1. Searching for Gadgets
2. Adding Gadgets
3. Removing Gadgets
4. Window Shades
5. Adding Tabs

RSS Feeds
1. Adding Feeds
2. Using Google Reader

Google Search Techniques

Twitter
1. Setting up a Twitter accout
2. Following
3. Contributing
4. Using Tweet Deck

Professional Blog
1. Examples
2. Content
3. Different Blog Techniques

Read Your GMail!

2009-06-02T10:54:00.001-05:00

Remember, I am communicating with you via GMail. Check your GMail regularly. I just sent you a GMail this morning!

Confused? Don't Worry!

2009-06-02T10:33:00.002-05:00

The only way you can learn what we cover in class is to PRACTICE. But one night a week especially in the summer) make that hard to do with help.

So... CALL ME anytime. I really mean that! My phone number is on the syllabus.

I have very few students who do call me, but I enjoy it and learn a lot about how I can be more effective. Students reports it helps as well.

So call me!

Welcome!

2009-06-01T10:42:00.000-05:00

Welcome to my Summer Session of EDM310. I have posted a Syllabus and other materials on this blog. Links to them are found on the right.

I have also included links to other important blogs and website. They are in a separate section on the right.

I look forward to seeing you tonight!