SOAR!!!

Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Visualization in Technology

What is technology without visuals? It is the first thing that draws us into any type of technology, because we like the way it looks. The bold words that peek your interest or the face that draw you in; sound enhances it, but the visuals catch our attention. I don’t think Michael Steinman’s class would have been able to be as effective as they were with their message if they did not have the internet as a medium to get their message out there. Vice versa, if their message wasn’t powerful, I don’t think no one would have cared, because we all know there is a lot of junk on the internet that we bypass every day.
So to me what this all means is, if you have a powerful message and you want people to listen to it, get to the point like the Death by PowerPoint video suggests, have something meaningful to say, and make it visually catchy. The picture of the student’s house that was foreclosed on enhanced her point; likewise, the video shots of the buildings that were deserted as a result of this economy allowed the viewer to see that it was not just the student’s that were affected by the economy, the damage has decimated their community also. In most communities around our country you could see building boarded up, especially here in Victorville. I believe their message was powerful because although their message was personal, they were able to show and voice what many people around our country are going through.


Friday, February 24, 2012

Technology Blog Review


After first browsing David Warlick’s site http://davidwarlick.com/2cents/, I clearly realized he is an experienced educator who has great insight. The topics he chooses to discuss are thought provoking. I came across his blog from December 5, 2011 titled, “What if curriculum was an adventure?” This initially caught my eye because with having three boys, they love anything that has to do with adventure, and I have always wondered how I could get them to love learning as much as they their video games. In this blog, Warlick discusses among other things, “can a learning game be made fun like regular games?” If Warlick could facilitate this technology, I would love to shake his hand. The closest I have come to using my sons video games to educate them is through metaphor. His collaboration with others, his experience, wealth of ideas, and insight are a great resource for a student like me.
            On Vicky Davis’ blog http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/, she reviews technology, gives insight into how technology is being used, and how that affects the student and teacher. She is also a coauthor of Flattening Classrooms, Engaging Minds: Move to Global Collaboration One Step at a Time. This topic links back to some of the websites we looked up for the group project like, Global SchoolNet. I once heard someone say that, “it is a lot harder to hate someone up close”; this is what I feel this worldwide education collaboration could accomplish. It is truly a larger-than-life venture, and I have been asleep to the whole thing until now, but no more.
In Jeff Utecht’s The Thinking Stick http://www.thethinkingstick.com/, I especially found his post on the “5 Gmail Tips for Teachers” useful http://www.thethinkingstick.com/5-gmail-tips-for-teachers/. I particularly liked the feedback other educators were giving him. Carey Pohanka wrote about sending incoming emails straight to a label and bypassing the inbox. I can see that being very useful to our professor. There were so many other great tips educators gave that I will utilize as we navigate the world of Google in this course, and I am sure I will use this site in the future to better give my students a technological edge in their education.  

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Shift Happens and Jing

            In Shift Happens, they talk about the increasing gap between the population of the U.S., India and China. How 351 babies will be born in India during that presentation compared to 60 in the U.S. and 244 in China. I immediately thought about the 20/20 episode I saw on December 9th in 2011. In this episode titled Disappearing Daughters, it is explained how female genocide is being tolerated by many in that country, to the tune of tens of millions being killed or aborted simply because they are female. I realize that there are many stories like this around the world, but I had no idea. I have inserted the link so you may watch this devastating, but eye opening news story. The video is approximately 40 minutes long, but this story does not begin until about 14 minutes into it.
With India being reported to take over China in 2030 as the leader of the greatest population on earth, I wonder how many females will be allowed to live to see that future. I realize that knowing this information is one thing, and doing something is another, and many times we feel helpless to do anything about it. I felt that way after watching Disappearing Daughters, but I have found a website dedicated to fighting this cause. Although I have no personal connection to India besides my name sake (my aunt’s childhood best friend from India named Chanda), I feel that not only being a fellow human being, but also being born a female, I have an obligation to do what I can. I realize that times are hard for many people right now, but that does not stop us from caring, and though some may not be able to give money for this cause we do have our voices. The following link is an article that further illuminates this cause. At the bottom of that page you can sign a petition that will be sent to the world organizations listed on the page. Take a look and lend your voice to a worthy cause.
                Jing could be used in the classroom by giving students a project to research a worthy cause and creating a page using photos, video or other media highlighting their chosen topic, which will then be posted onto the class web page. Students will be able to show their families their work and learn how to recognize that they do not live in a bubble, but are a part of a much larger world community. This is the presentation I created using Jing to take the screenshots. 


Poll Everywhere and Google Docs


            The benefits of online collaboration using Google Presentations could be really beneficial to students and teachers in the classroom. By embedding Google Presentations onto Google Blogger I could teach a group lesson on science and assign a project to each group giving a specific part to every student. They could individually upload their findings to their particular project on the blog. There would obviously need to be blogging parameters, only allowing information that has to do with the project onto the blog. The blog could be pulled up in class and I could question them on their latest findings. Students will feel more involved because they are actively participating.

            This is all theoretical since I have not ever done this in particular. After reading about this topic in our text, it seems doable. Sometimes new technology seems a bit daunting at first, but with a lot of practice, I believe that this is something I could utilize in the classroom. I believe students will appreciate the 21st century twist, and I would benefit in knowing that my students are learning something while enjoying it at the same time. For example, when we added our polls from www.polleverywhere.com to Google Presentations, it was educational and entertaining. I think students of all ages would love to create their own poll for their classmates to answer. Students could create group polls with educational content collaborating on the questions presented. This is the multiple choice poll I created in class; I see that I have two votes so far. Try my other poll and pay homage to your favorite teacher.