Meme: Passion Quilt- Could not link the post title, so click here!!
My passion for teaching: Students who view learning as limitless, changing, playful, communal and risk taking…. Creating a whole new world of experience and wonderment.
Here is my list: hard to choose, 10 would have been easier…
Rob Wall
Kim Brown
Dr. Richard Schwier
Cindy Seibel
Ryan Flood
Dean is everywhere! Here I am after Dean’s great session and I find an article he wrote about cell phone use in the classroom in the STF newspaper. I never usually read the articles, just peruse, and there he is. I also find another article in the same newspaper on cell phone use in the classroom. Dean is obviously modelling the term “change agency”, a Rick Schwierism (although I may be wrong as to if he coined the phrase)…. Excellent presentation in EC&I 831 Dean. I hope to pick your brain soon when I begin my project next year.
I have had many influences in my educational career, some more than others, that have and continue to challenge my development as an educational practitioner. My Master’s program has widened my “sphere’s of influence” as stated by Sharon Peters. However, in regards to the echo chamber effect, I will state the following without hesitation;… I do not choose to engage with others that have similar views than I do on a regular basis. Let me clarify. I choose, by nurture or nature, to be the devil’s advocate. I enjoy reading and engaging those persons who are outside of my conventional wisdom (whatever that is). I am not a rebel, I desire instead to wade through epistemology! You have heard the saying…”You cannot find the answer because you haven’t asked the right question.” I just believe that there are too many variables, contexts, etc. to be able to answer that concise question… Just examine the end of any project or thesis paper…”further study needed….” 
I would make either a rather excellent or terrible Math teacher. I suspect the latter!
By the way, if you know of a person, book or paper in the area of education that has changed your professional life profoundly, leave a comment.
Yet aren’t we as educators that advocate teacher’s utilizing these educational technologies also outside of the echo chamber? Devil’s advocates against traditional pedagogy? Many of you have often heard the following (paraphrased) words from many of those eldest of educators “Have you noticed that kids today seem different?”, and you want to scream, “Why haven’t you!”
I have heard the above comment from elder educators throughout my career. Now more than ever. Educational technologies we have studied in class are just one set of tools I believe we need in our belt to develop our best practice. I believe we always will need to grow and encourage others to do the same to engage our students. “Further study needed….”
It was a rough week, and I really appreciate the comments and support from all of you.
A friend sent me this via e-mail for a “cheer up”. Thought I would share it with the rest of you. Takes around 30 seconds or more to load. Quicktime..
Thanks again everyone.4filmespremiados.wmv
Its the hardest thing, in my opinion, educators have to deal with when they develop relationships. My students are my children. They know that. I remember each and every face. The names blur. Homeroom teacher for most of my career. Blessing and a curse.
One of my former students committed suicide. He was one of the “challenging” students according to many of his teachers. I never laughed so hard that year when he and his classmates were in my homeroom. I taught all of his brothers and sisters. Many memories.
He was on Facebook. Just discovered 366 people wrote about this young man to date. Stories and memories. Pages and pages.
We grieve in many ways. I am not going to ramble on about the implications for Facebook and other social network tools in this case. Not now.
I guess I will post.
My community school has 200 plus students with a a few classes that have grade alike groupings. Our division utilizes Sun system thin clients with no sound. This limits a lot of projects that I am interested in as a educator who has taken a number of classes in video production and value such as an effective learning tool to engage students! I also teach a multigrade behavioural class which presents it’s own challenges; not behaviourally mind you ( I have a certain way with kids but in the fact they are often integrating into other classes at various and random times during the day…
So I have decided to look to a project directed more towards our staff. I enjoyed Alec’s presentation Wednesday night on a number of internet apps. So here is my plan.
1.) Select a small number of teachers, possibly grade alike, that have a common challenge or need that maybe addressed within a digital/ social learning context (yes, this is huge, but hey, I am rambling)
2.) Get my head around some tools (sound excluded tools) that teachers would be interested in using in relation to that challenge and develop objectives to meet the challenge or need.
3.) Play with the tool(s) and find time to collaborate to show these tools. (I think I can pull this off..or after school if I bribe the staff with donuts..)
4.) If we can find some digital tools to meet objectives, possibly develop screencasts to use the tools so I don’t have to repeat training.
5.) Yes, there is no sound! But, if they have computers at home to help them use audio for the screencasts…
6. Develop a blog/ wiki/ webpage to showcase the project.
To much, not enough?
O.K my fellow group of scholars (within or outside the class)….comments PLEASE!
Some people on the Wednesday night session wanted a glimpse of the mindmap I have been playing with in relation to our EC&I 831 course. I guess it makes sense to publish the map to date to give people a chance to see one application of the this tool. As I said in the session, a teacher used this tool to have students collaborate and develop multimedia reports on topics in a class (not sure which). Click “ECI831“>here ! By the way the invitation still stands; if you would like to be involved with adding or whatever to the map, leave a comment and I will add you to the list of collaborators..
I need to apply this recent “tool” (trackback) as soon as possible or I will lose it immediately. So I am going to comment on Twitter. I have looked at it. Recoiled. I wonder why I have encountered comments from many educational technologists that they really had to make a concerted effort to “get” Twitter (Rick’s comment in a recent session) or in some cases not at all. Obviously all these available tools are not embraced by all persons, but I am curious why this particular tool seems to cause a “hate it” or “love it” relationship… For example I read Rob’s blog and I feel like I have entered the church of twitter…
I have found the same experience with those that associate with basketball….you love it, or hate it….rarely in between.
