Week 13

This was a productive week. The learning curve is finally curving. I just took a while to catch on to the website things. I really think I've got a lot of what I need to do figured out. I did not look at the templates that Leping found, that was too big a jump for me today, but I did get the one we all have working for me.

I feel like I can actually get the basic page done before our next class and maybe even find a way to make it fancy.

Progress

Thea's Plan

Week 12 Figure out how to access MavDisk at home--done--doesn't look right

Make 4 changes to my website--done--name, link names

Come up with overall plan for Activity 5---------keep changing my mind

Week 13 Have two things loaded to website (don't laugh at my terminology)--done plus---links to activities (2 or 3) Changed email on index and...one other page

Have specifics planned for Activity 5

Week 14 Create the projects for Activity 5

Week 15 Finish Website

Week 16 Everything that I didn't get done

Last week we worked on our activities and web pages. I did figure out a lot about my webpage, but have run into a snag at home. I'll keep plugging away at it. If I can't get it to work I'll use my flashdrive and do the work on campus.

Two weeks ago I thought I had this great idea for the final project. But last week I couldn't seem to get the same feeling. I worked on some good ideas, but nothing cohesive. I'm feeling stuck. I think I'll get it all straightened out soon. I'm just on information overload right now.

Week 11

Last week was a good class. We talked about a lot of different things that have been confusing in class. I enjoyed seeing what Esther was doing with the research from class. It was very interesting.

Week 11 Reading

I already talked about some of my thoughts on the reading in Stephanie's blog. A common comment in public schools is as long as you aren't caught you are fine. Public school teachers copy, cut and paste all the time. I'm sure that if the copyright police were to look at public schools that 98% of the teachers would be in jail. Schools are underfunded and teachers have to choose between textbooks and technology. Often we view textbooks as something we can make due with and choose to buy supplemental materials we would need with new books too, but have to choose between the two.

As far as movies go, they are such a great tool for teaching. I used an episode of "The Unit" to talk about civil rights in conjunction with "To Kill a Mockingbird" I also have the students compare/contrast the book to the movie that we watch as well. Social teachers use Schindler's List to help them understand the holocaust better. The choir teacher uses different musicals to help them understand different concepts. 10% of any of these videos would be absolutely insufficient to meet the needs. Teachers won't quit until we are all in jail.

Class 10

Looking at HotPotatoes last week was interesting. I think that the types of activities that can be built on the site are useful in the classroom. Those types of quizes take time to write and time to grade. By taking the time to write it the time to grade it with Hot Potatoes is eliminated. That is a great thing for a teacher. Time is so darn precious when working in the classroom that anything that saves time is worth the effort. These are things that can be designed and used over again without comprimising your integrety. I greatly dislike reusing tests and rewrite them every semester, taking bits from here and bits from there. But the type of activity here is more like a worksheet or a quick check of comprehension. This is something I can wrap my brain around. It's too bad I'm not teaching right now, because by the time I get back to the classroom I may not remember about the site.

I'm still struggling with the webpage. I understand the concept and what I need to do. I just need a decent amount of concious time at my computer. All the documents I would use on the website are on my home (desktop) computer. It would not make sense for me to devote a ton of time on campus to this, because I wouldn't actually get anywhere. The biggest obstacle right now is figuring out how to access my mavdisk at home. That is an issue I have with MSU. Students who did their undergrad recently here (or probably other colleges) have a great grasp on what is available and how to get there. I graduated college in 94 and 96-we didn't even use email for classes. We were excited that we could register for classes by phone. This does not mean I don't know how to use computers. I find information, email, play games, watch tv and use discussion boards on-line. I play games, write papers, and even used to program at home. I digress.

When I came to MSU I was never given any information about what was available here. In my first class the instructor was talking about deeTool (d2l) I had no idea what dee Tool was. I was pretty sure she was insane. Then I remembered my student teachers talking about d2l and I was able to search the site and find it. We went to a computer lab that week too. I couldn't get in to the site...my college registration was wrong and I did not have an account. They'd established an email account, but not a d2l account. I never knew we had money to print anything on campus, so I've exclusively used my home computer, paper and ink. I would think this was totally unfair to me, but I know other grad students who are in the same boat. The things that are available to us were never told. I've never had a tour of campus, a list of things available or any type of orientation. I think I'm doing well for the little information I've recieved over the past year. I use d2l fairly well. I send papers via email that everyone can open, even though I can't open theirs. I download programs for test taking, audio files etc with no problem. But I never knew, until this class, what MavDisk was...let alone how to access it.

Yes, I find technology to be a huge pain in the kiester, but I also value it. There are so many ways I use tech, but if I don't have a specific goal I don't really find the uses. Personal mental block.