Blogpost #8

The Schools of Tomorrow


     In this video, Dr. Richard E. Miller explains how writing has changed over time. Writing was once paper and pencil, and information stored in books and magazines. Now it is multimedia. Information is all over the web. He showed us how he was able to do all his research for an article he put together and never had to step foot in a library. I never go in the library anymore to do research. I only use the computer. The only time I step foot in a library is to take my children once in a while to check out a book, or check out a book of leisure for myself.     
     Dr. Miller points out how we can communicate and get information instantly from across the globe.  Information is constantly being updated on the web. Newspapers are on the web. You can watch news broadcasts on the web. It is amazing what you can find on YouTube. Dr. Miller posted a publication on YouTube and received 9000 views within 3 months. He explains if he had written it down into text, then it may have gone into publication two years from now.
     Technology is advancing. I can remember having to write papers when I first started college and now all we do is type. I took a typing class in high school in 1989. Typing was not offered in my middle school, just high school. Today's children need to take a typing class at least by 6th grade. My son is in 6th grade. They are requiring him to type papers and they have not taught the basics of typing. He holds his hands wrong on the keyboard and even though he knows the general area of where the letters are he still struggles. We searched the web and  found a free tutorial typing program for him to practice on. Now we need to get him to use it. My son's school has also downloaded all his textbooks to disc, so he does not have to tote the heavy textbooks back and forth. He loves being able to use his laptop for homework. He is always on his laptop. He is definitely becoming a multimedia student.
    One more thing that Dr. Miller mentioned was how we need to share our ideas and use others ideas to create. I think we have done this all along even with hard copy text. Ideas and information is in abundance on the web. When planning most of my themed birthday parties, I Google ideas all the time. Some of the ideas I come up with on my own. Most, though, are ideas I have found on the net. It is important as educators to share ideas and use ideas of others. I remember when we visited Mrs. Stevens for our podcast presentation, she had mentioned when she first was trained for Smartboards she wanted to create all her lessons on her own.  Then, she found a site with all the ideas already created. She decided no since in being stubborn and wanting to do it all on her own. Instead, she downloaded the already prepared lessons and slightly changed them to her style.

The Chipper Seriesand
EDM310 For Dummies

The Chipper Series is a short movie created to show what happens when someone procrastinates. I thought this was a comical video. Chipper's idea of procrastination: "Turn your work in late and it is still on time." This video just shows us how as educator's we need to make sure we turn our work in on time, show up on time, and be present as much as possible. WE have to be responsible! The adventure just keeps getting worse and worse. She fails as an educator, as a waitress, and cannot find a job. Chipper finally has an epiphany as a garbage collector and realizes she needs to do better.
EDM310 for Dummies was funny, also. It showed how procrastination makes us frustrated and then causes us to fall behind. I do try not to procrastinate in this class. I try to do a little a day because waiting to the last day does stress me out.
Critiques of Smartboards

Michael Staton, Why Smartboards Are A Dumb Initiative
Bill Ferriter, Why I Hate Interactive Whiteboards
     Both of these articles, say why they do not like smartboards. They both argue that smartboards do not make learning any more effective. Ferriter said "They are tools that do little to promote independent discovery and collaborative work? Sure, you could argue that when used as an instructional center, whiteboards become more interactive, but that is one really expensive center, don’t you think?" Teachers are in control even though the boards are suppose to be interactive.
     Again, when we did our smartboard interview with Mrs. Steven's she showed us how the smartboard is interactive. She told me that her children love using the board. They love touching it. I experienced this excitement first hand when I subbed at a local school. The children loved going to the board to do the interactive lessons. They enjoyed using the magic pen. I enjoyed a lesson that Dr. Baggett did in my Art Class with the smartboard. She downloaded a podcast on Salvador Dahli's "The Persistence of Memory." I liked how she circled the parts of the painting and the smartboard put a spotlight on the circled piece, or she drew a square and it enlarged the area the podcast was talking about. It was a cool way to display and focus on the parts being mentioned instead of just pointing at them in the picture with a pointer.
    Dr. Strange commented on one of my blog posts before stating that he would prefer that schools spend money on the Ipod touch or Ipad because these are tools that are used directly and regularly by the students. I would love to see this also, but I am still skeptical about the idea because what if the child loses the Ipod or Ipad. Who will replace it?  Will the tools only be used in school and not be allowed to be removed from the school. If they were never removed, then I could see this idea taking off. It would make learning more meaningful and interactive for the student.
     I am on a fence with both of these articles. I really need to see more of what the smartboard and the Ipad has to offer, before I can agree with the articles and Dr. Strange. I really like what I have seen of the smartboard so far and I am interested in learning all it has to offer. The Ipad, I have not seen in action accept for one of the videos we have watched and I did not understand the whole idea of the Ischool Initiative.