Blog Post 6

The Networked Student by Wendy Drexler
I didn't think this video would keep my interest for very long when it first started but then I couldn't stop watching because I wanted to know what picture would come up next. Also, the guy speaking had personality and interest in this topic so it was hard not to listen to him. When it first started I kept thinking isn't this what I'm doing right now? By the end of the video, I knew for sure it is describing classes such as this one. I like that he said, "The tools provided are not as important as the connections provided by them". That is true in many reasons. Teaching does not depend on what you have, it's how you use what you have. Just by having more materials for something does not mean you will get more out of it than the person with barely any materials. It depends on the way it is taught and how students make connections to it. I learn more from this class just by using the internet and figuring things out on my own than I have in most classes with textbooks, lectures, handouts and notes. Teachers can give you all those things but what good does it do if you don't connect to it and learn how to use and apply it, just as this classes teaches. In all, I think this video is a great overview of this class and maybe should be shown at the beginning of the semester to help students understand more of what they can do with technology and will be doing throughout the class. If I would have saw this video when this class started, it would have cleared up some confusion and I know I would have understood what the point in a lot of this was. Assignments probably would have been easier to understand why I was doing it, as well because this video shows all the cool things technology can do. Now after each assignment, I seem to always think how cool it is that I know how to make a YouTube video or that I can talk to people across the world. And I had no idea kids were using all this technology in classrooms already! It did become more clear after each assignment, which I believe is the point, and now I totally understand and think students should be exposed as early as possible to this type of technology and how it can be used educationally.

A 7th Grader's PLN
This is a video of a Personal Learning Network made by a 7th grade student. The first thing I thought was wow, she's super organized and really smart to know how to do all this, especially being in the 7th grade. Even the way she talked on the video did not sound like her age, she sounded very mature and professional. She also said having this PLN gives her more freedom of how to do her assignments, which I agree. It helps students to learn in a way that's best for them. I also liked that they blocked out her name and school. That's one of the things I have wondered about, if parents realize their child is all over the internet with these blogs and videos. I'm assuming they had to have their permission, but I liked the fact that this girl kept her information private. It seems from watching this that creating a PLN takes a lot of time, even though in the end it looks like easy access to everything you use daily. I guess I'll see when I create my own!

Critique's of Smartboards
Both of these articles are bashing Smart Boards in a classroom. Mainly saying they are a waste of money for what they are talked up to be. Especially in the first article, the cons she listed, I seemed to have a pro for each. In other words, I could find an easy argument off the top of my head for the points she was trying to make. She mentioned things like it doesn't help teacher planning, the kids get bored still, etc. From my experience in a classroom so far, the kids love it! They love it because they are involved in it, being they can write on it and play games with each other. Teachers even use it as a center for the students to go to. It also is used as a DVD player, which is great because everyone can see the screen and it cuts back on a TV taking up space in your classroom. Teachers also use it as a whiteboard by writing assignments on it or teaching new lessons, instead of a chalkboard or white board, and having to stock up on markers and chalk. They are expensive but once you have it, it's one of those things you won't need to keep spending money on. Of course, I'm not a real teacher in my own classroom yet, so I'm not getting the experience of using one everyday, but as much as I'm in classrooms teaching from them (which is almost everyday), I can say they are positive for both teachers and students. I found this article backing up some of my points: Click here.