Open Educational Resources

The picture above pretty clearly states where I stand on this topic.  OER seems to have a good thing going.  Free resources available to the entire public. Where could you go wrong? In my opinion,  I believe that it is possible to use this expanding tool as a learner and a student, but I feel that for a student to effectively use the materials for a class, a teacher must point them in the direction of the materials they want them to use.  I realize this seems limiting, but it really isn't.  For a teacher to use these resources they have to look at the materials and see what works for their classroom.  After they direct students to specific material and activities, the students then get to explore the other materials while already having a general idea of what their teacher is talking about. Using a website like Internet Archives is a place that is easily navigated by anyone and easy to give students intructions on getting to specific material. Therefore,  the student knows that they have all the information their teacher wants, but they have expanded on their own.  As a teacher this is how I would use the tool and how I would like my teachers to have me use it as a student.  This gives a path to follow but allows for exploration and for me, I need guidelines to follow or I always end up way off track. If a teacher finds something that isn't and OER they can visit Hewlett to apply to have that material available as an OER. As learners I believe this tool is a great way to find  reliable information.  Everybody knows how hard it is to google a topic and recieved contradicting information from every other site,  this tool allows an independent learner, like myself, to investigate and know they are recieving information that they can trust. Also because it is a new tool to many of us as learners there is always help in navigating your way around it and finding out what is reliable. I found a blog that is very helpful in answering many of my questions Over all I think this is the best idea that I've heard all semester.  

This I Believe Reflection

This project was the most fun out of all the projects we created.  I think it was pretty easy because it was based on our opinions and feelings.  It's always rewarding when you can explore what you think about something, because you learn about others thoughts on the subject and your opinions may be changed by some of the things you learn.  I learned that I can actually navigate through garage band and turn something into an MP3 file.  Thinking about how I would use this in my classroom, I wouldn't.  There really isn't any reason to show this video to my class. I would, however,  use a project like this.  I could assign a projectto make a video on something we are talking about in class.  I then could show the video as an example of what it should look like.  Below is my finished project.  Enjoy!

This I believe

This I believe...

           Teachers are what made me into the person I am today.  Not only in the sense of what I want to be when I grow up, but also in the way I treat people, why I continue to strive for the best, and why I don't give up.  Throughout my highschool career, I have had some of the best teachers available. Every one of them has helped shaped me in someway.  These qualities also show in the real world.  One of my teachers helped me push through hard times, another geared me into the science world that I love, and the last taught me to never give up on anything.
           The first teacher to impact my life was unexpected.  I was taking his class for an easy credit my junior and senior year.  I wasn't interested in art but I knew it would be an easy class.  Little did I know that my art teacher, Mr. Humes, would be there to pick me up when my world came crashing down.  He was the type of teacher that kept a serious relationship with most students, but was more like a father to a select few. I was blessed to be tucked uner his wing.  Not only did he listen to my woes of the day, but he responded with help.  He knew how much my education meant to me and what I was struggling through to get where I wanted to be.  He helped me in so many ways.  He was present at my senior project presentation and kept reminding me how close I was to graduating.  He was the voice that kept me going.

          
 The next teacher solidified the idea that I was meant to be in science.  I took my highs school science classes with her.  Mrs. Prokopchalk had such a passion for science that it rubbed off on me.  She told me what influenced her to become a teacher.  I was always just interested in animals, but she taught me that science is what makes the world go round. When science started to seem a bit crazy and twisted, she brought it into perspective.  She helped me understand a confusing subject that soon became my passion.

         The last teacher taught me to never give up.  My calculus teacher, Mr. Berringer, challenged me in my senior year.  I wasn't even going to take calculus because I didn't want to do poorly in my last year.  After he did some slick talking it seemed calculus was the only way to go.  Looking back it was the best decision, because he was the best teacher to have learned this troubling topic from.  Whenever class became overwhelming, he took the time with each student to find out where the problem was.  In teaching such a challenging topic I think that all teachers should realize they need to spend the extra time to help students understand.  Mr. Berringer understood how to help different types of learners and accomadated us all.  He was the only teacher that I had that actually knew how to teach to the whole class.  Even though the subject was tough, I never gave up and it showed in the end. I owe where I am today to all of my teachers throughout my life. 

I believe

When we started talking about the upcoming project it reminded me of a past project I did in highschool I hope everyone likes it.  :) 

Top Ten Cool Tools for School

My Top Ten Choices

10) Pegby from Michael Carbonara

   Pegby is a tool that I can see being used for teacher interaction or student interaction. Having this tool would make it a lot easier to have students do group projects.

9) Virtual book from Aleah's Blog

          I find this tool interesting because it's different from any other tool I've seen before.  I think that it could be a cool new way to have students do a project.



8) Pinterest from Dunlap's Blog

             At first I didn't see how a site for picture posting could be useful in the classroom.  After reading the description I think that this would be an awesome tool to use for an icebreaker.

7) Animoto from Carly's Education Blog

            This tool I also saw as an interesting tool.  I can see it be used for presentations but  really think that it could be used as an icebreaker rather thatn a presentaton

6) Wikispaces from Alicia Pierce  

             I see this tool as a good way to transfer information.  Whether it be to get info to students or  info to the parents, it seems easy to use and efficient.

 

5) Prezi from Uniquely Nina

I like the idea of prezi because it's not powerpoint.  Powerpoint can become dull and overused for everything.  Prezi gives a new twist to the powerpoint idea and keeps people more interested.

4)Smartboard by Rien Wetmore

       Smartboards are something that was used a lot in my middle and high school.  I found that it made kids want to participate more and it is a way to make every subject hands on.

3) Teacher Tube by Education for You

        This I see as more of a resource, but a great resource at that.  Youtube is nice but, it's hard to search    through hundreds of videos to find exactly what you want and hope that it's also reliable.  This is a good way to help teachers find exactly what they need.

2) Wordle by Excerpts from an Educator

       Coming from someone that never understood how to tell what the heck an author was rambling on about,  this tool seems amazing.  I hated when my english teacher would tell me, well this is what they mean, because I said so.  I think an author can write just to  write but this tool helps to point out the things that are actually relevant in the poem or book.  I see it being super helpful.

1) Super Teacher Tools by JLee's Blog

       This tool just seems to have it all.  A lot of different games and ways to review and its all in one spot, easy to maneuver.  This makes it a lot easier for a teacher to keep it interesting and not just play the same old jeopardy game every Thursday before your test Friday.  I really like this site with all the different tools in one.

Cool Tool For School!!!

My resource, Wicked, is all about helping the student learn in a hands on approach, but also incorporate technology.  When thinking about trying to teach science through technology I was at a loss for ideas on how to keep it interesting for the students.  This tool does it for me!! It is very easy to navigate and can be used inside or outside the classroom.  It has games and lessons all in one. This tool can be used to have an interactive approach on teaching while students learn to teach themselves by exploring the site. It not only uses games, but also has fact sheets and a place for parents to learn how to help engage their children into enjoying learning and keeping them safe.  In my classroom I would use this tool as an introduction to topics or to have students explore certain topics, on their own, at home to bring back to class for the next day.  I particularly like the Pest and Predators activity for use in my own science classes that I hope to teach in the future.  There really isn't much more to explain about this tool because it is simple, which is good.  It's easy for a 5-8 grader to navigate on their own which is what really caught my attention.  So click on that picture of Wicked and take a look around for your self!!!!

The Old Issue of Cellphones in School

When my generation was starting first grade this wasnt even an idea to have children with mobile devices.  As we got older cellphones were easier to access and people starting getting them in their later teens.  This brought to schools the issue of controling cellphone use in class.  Many teachers had strict rules on using your cellphone in class or if they even saw it they would take it.  With technology becoming more advanced and actually being able to helpout in the classroom, schools are faced with another question.  Will cellphones be allowed in class for educational purposes. A few people have done and polls and this is one of the results.  Some videos show positives and negatives of students having a cell phone in school. These are the opinions of the three news casters, but they are all very legitimate arguements. 

 Being a student and a future educator I can take both sides of this arguement.  Not only can students be distracted but it has promoted cyber bullying also.  An example of this is someone taping a fight and sending it around school or inappropriate pictures being sent throughout the school. Though these are negatives we have seen positives in our SEDU class. For example, using it to anonymously have students answer a poll and have instant results at the front of the classroom.  This is an issue that started when my generation started middle school and has grown to an even larger issue with the capabilties a phone has now-a-days. I believe this issue will continue on as technology continues to grow. 
 
My side on this issue is that I think it would be useful for me when I become a teacher.  Being that I am going to be  a Middle school teacher, kids will all have cells phones as they do now.  This means that I can use them in quick quizzes or polls.  I like this idea because I know how shy children can be.  Especially when it comes to science.  Most students aren't very knowledgeable when it comes to science.  This means that they would be shy to raise their hand because they don't want other kids to think they are stupid.  With the cell phone polls it can all be annonymous and I can figure out what I need to take more time on and what they are actually comprehending.  I think this could definitly be a positive in my classroom.