Spring Break: Cribs, Teacher Edition

I saw this video at the Computer Using Educators Conference last week.  I thought all my future teachers would appreciate this. . . Hope you're all having a great break!

CLICK HERE if the video isn't playing.  . .you may have to watch a commercial, but it is worth the wait!!

Week 8: Catching up on your Work?

My Dog Frances

What a great week.  SDSU gets a #2 seed in the NCCA Tournament, I am going to the Computer Using Educator's Conference in Palm Springs, and . . .my students get to catch up on all of their work, right?  Based on the amount of stress that permeated University and Academic Halls last week, I'll take this as a sign that you all need some time to catch up.  What I can tell you all is that the longer you wait to complete your work, the further you distance yourself from the explanation of how to complete it.  Experience tells me that most people do not like to read the written instructions, so your stress level get to the point of frustration, then your fun meter for technology plummets and somewhere in the universe a person weeps uncontrollable for no apparent reason. . . .Okay, maybe it's not that drastic, but it could happen.  Keep the positive energy flowing by keeping up with your work.

I will be in UH 271 today from around 4pm until 8pm to help anyone with any assignment that they need help with.  If you are in the Thursday class and need to make up for an absence, come to either today's class or Monday, March 28 to make up for it.  If you are in Thursday's class and are behind, come to class.  If you are in Monday's class and need to make up for an absence, you can attend both today and the 28th. 

I have Re-edited the Monday class's TaskStream narratives. . .I will work individually with those who hadn't edited in class.  I will try to get to the Thursday class re-edits this week.

This Week's Question: What is one of your most memorable teacher movies?

Week 7: Making Learning Personal!

Wordle from this Blog!

We have almost reached the halfway point of the semester and my fingers' are crossed in hopes that you are all starting to become one with your technology.  I think it's important to have the ability to fail because it teaches you that it is not the end of the world.  If you aren't making mistakes, you aren't learning.  Sometimes, the best thing to do is to take a breath, separate yourself from whatever is frustrating you, then approach it later with a clearer mindset.  Call it the Zen approach to technology integration.  . . Or we could go with the Stuart Smalley approach, "You're good enough, you're smart enough, and doggone it, people like you." 

Moday Class:  I gave feedback to all of you on GoogleDocs on Sunday.  I must say that I am a bit disappointed by a few groups who either had incomplete paragraphs or both partners wrote to the SAME artifact.  I thought it was clear in class that these were to be complete so they could be edited on the weekend.  
Thursday Class: I will have your narratives with comments by Wednesday evening.  Please ensure you have given peer comments and that you have two different artifacts.

Click Here to see some past student samples for NETS-1


This week I am going to introduce a number of assignments, many of which won't be due for awhile, but I want to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to work on the assignments throughout the time off and through Spring Break.  I will show you how to create a GoogleForm that you will use for the assessment of your presentation, we will discuss how to embed files in your blog & get the checklist for Emerging Technology, and lastly, how to get started creating your PLN.  For Journal's 6-10, I am giving you the first article, Journal 6, that discusses PLNs and Journal 7 will actually be the PLN assignment.
Don't forget that we have a modified schedule for the next few weeks.
Week 8: Monday, March 14, I will be in UH 271 from 4pm until around 8 pm.  There is no class on Thursday as I will be at the Computer Using Educator's Conference.
Week of March 21: Spring Break
Week 9: Monday, March 28, I will be in UH 271 from 4pm until around 8 pm.  There is no class on Thursday as the campus will be closed due to Cesar Chavez Day.
My Monday class must attend either week 8 or 9.  The Thursday class is highly encouraged to attend either or both sessions to receive assistance on any of the multitude of projects.  Please use Twitter and the #ed422 hashtag to ask any question you might have or to share any cool resource you find.
I'll discuss this in class this week, but I thought you might like to see this in writing.


Remind me to discuss the use of Skype & Box.net with the class.


Journal 6: "Grow Your Personal Learning Network," by David Warlick.  This is from the March/April 2009 issue of L&L.

Journal 7: This will be your PLN assignment.  See Instructions on the Creating Your PLN page on the class blog.

This Week's Question: What is your current favorite timesucker?  This is the thing/activity/game/website/whatever that prevents you from doing other things you know you should be doing (like, say, completing work for this class).
Currently, it is a tie between Words with Friends and Angry Birds on my iPad. . .either of which can steal an hour our two from me without my knowledge ;-)

Week 6: Don't Swim Without NETS!

memegenerator.net

Assuming you can swim, stepping into TaskStream wasn't so bad, was it?  Writing your narratives should be a smoother process with all of the support you are going to receive from your peers and me.  I expect that you have started writing your narrative for your artifact and in class this week, we can discuss how to focus your writing to meet the standard.  If you do not come to class with your paragraph in rough draft form, you will be behind, as we have a lot to cover this week.


Assignments: the Technology Self-Assessment was due Sunday, Diigo is due Wed, and the Journals 1-5 are due Friday. . .Do not forget that journal 5 is extra credit.  If you decide to complete it, it MUST be submitted on time or you will not receive credit.  If you need help with anything, come to class early for the Monday section; make arrangements to meet me in another lab for the Thursday section (there are open labs in the same ACD hallway).

This Week:  We will go over the TaskStream collaborative narratives and ensure you are comfortable using GoogleDocs.  Then, we will discuss the presentation assignment!  I expect that all my PowerPoint users will be excited to learn some new web 2.0 tools.  If time permits, I will also show you how to embed your newsletters in your blog!!

Journal 6-10:  You have a week off from journals. . .I will give you journal 6 next week. . .Yeah!

This Week's Question: What is something you have learned well without formal teaching?  How did you learn it?  This could be a sport, hobby, musical instrument, etc. .

Week 5: Entering the TaskStream of Consciousness

Nourished by Arie Stavchansky http://stavchansky.net

Wherever we go, here we are.  We have completed 1/3 = .333 = 33% of the course,  so everyone is officially 33% technology nerd, right?  I hope so.  I will be handing out tape for those of you with glasses, but only enough for one side. . .the rest will be distributed week 10.  Also, you can now officially wear white socks and hike up your pants one inch. . .of course, you are not ready for your pocket protectors. . .yet ;-)




This week:  We will look at TaskStream this evening and discuss how to request feedback and write your narratives.  We will also begin writing the NETS-T narratives for standard 1 using Google Docs.  If you have not already enrolled  in the CSUSM Local TPE in TaskStream (as was mentioned in week 1), here is the code:  

Local TPE: 6SG3BA

I will also revisit the assignments from last week to ensure you understand what to do and discuss Dropbox with the Monday class.  If you haven't joined dropbox, click here, and register.  You cannot download Dropbox at school, but you can use the web-based aspect.  You can download the program at home.



Journal 4: "It's Time to Trust Teachers with the Internet," by Dian Schaffhause from The Journal website.  It's actually an interview from an online newsletter, but it was an interesting topic that is important for today's schools.  Using Citation Machine site as a webpage, not an Internet publication.

Journal 5:  As this is extra credit, and a new L&L should come out early next week, you can choose any article from the March 2011 L&L.  I assume you should have access to the digital edition early next week.  All journals are due March 4.


This Week's Question:  What should every teacher know about you?

Week 4: Oh, That's Going to Leave a bookMark!

Okay, the Grammy's are over and now we can all go back to our regularly scheduled lives ;-)  If you missed the show, you can of course re-live all the poignant moments over and over again on the Internet. This week we are going to continue to work on ways to network our digital selves while getting our tech on.  By now, you should have a number of assignments that are in progress, and I will add a few more to your queue.

This Week: I'll answer any individual questions about the newsletter as class begins. Then we are going to look at School 2.0, a site where you will tech a technology self-assessment that relates your tech schools to the NETS-T.  Although most of you aren't in the classroom, you will get a feel for what skills you should possess when you get your own.  The fun part is when we take a look at Diigo, a social bookmarking site on steroids. . .I used to use another social bookmarking site called Delicious.com, but I am now a Diigo convert.  I will show you how easy it is to collect and save cool sites and information form the Internet.  Also, I want to discuss the power of Dropbox and how you can use it to save all of your files.

Please complete the following TaskStream Survey:  Click Here

Journal 3:  In honor of Valentine's Day (or week for my Thursday class), I want you to compose a list of 100 things that make you happy.  I want them numbered and of course there is no APA citation needed.  When you feel stressed out around Spring Break, you can refer back to your list to re-ground yourself ;-)

This Week's Question: What is the last good book your read. . .it could have been for please or something assigned to you for a class?   
Disrupting Class was the last good professional book I read and I'l say DropCity by T.C. Boyle was the last good book I read for pleasure.

Week 3: Would You Be My Tweet-Heart?

photo © 2009 Rosaura Ochoa | more info (via: Wylio)
As we embark on week three, you should begin to get a better feel for the flow of the course.  My expectation is that you will not only become a proficient tech user, but you will have fun in the process as well.  If you are not having fun, I am not doing my job--or you have a terminal case of the Mondays ;-)

This Week:  You should have either already scanned your self-portrait or you will do so before class.  We will begin the classroom newsletter assignment, which will include your digitally scanned self-portrait.   As you may or may not get from the title, I will also be introducing you to the amazing uses of Twitter as an educational tool. Don't laugh. . .hold your judgment until after class.  If time permits, I will have you enroll yourself into TaskStream and show you the interface  

Journal 2: Is from the June/July 2010 Issue of L&L.  There are actually 2 short articles relating to Twitter.  "Join the Flock!" by Hadley Ferguson and "Enhance Your Twitter Experience," by Shannon McClintock Miller.  Hopefully, after our Twitter discussion this week, these should serve as some background and depth on the topic of Twitter in education.

This Week's Question:  Who has been your favorite (or A favorite for those overly stressed out by the perceived commitment required to answer the question) teacher at any level of education and why?