Podcasting

Podcasting was another one of those terms that I had yet to hear about before entering this class. I saw the word “Podcasts” in my ITunes, but I never knew what it meant, never cared to explore it. Then I realized the educational benefits to it. For example, when students write a research paper knowing that the only person who will read it is their teacher, they will not put as much effort into the paper as they would if they knew it would be broadcasted online. All people, children included, take pride in their work (or at least, they should). Knowing that something could be seen (or heard in this case) by millions of people, including family, friends, peers, other teachers, and complete strangers makes you want to work your hardest on whatever the task is. Another way that podcasting could be beneficial is that it could help cut down on plagerism. How likely is a student to buy a paper, copy/paste without citing, or steal someone else’s thoughts/words when they know that it will be podcasted? I have a feeling that knowing it will be podcasted online will make students think twice before cheating.

**Using Garage Band was probably the highlight of my week. Not having a Mac computer, I have never experienced Garage Band. I know that if I did have a Mac, I would probably have made my own mix tape using Garage Band by now though….

Can you hear me now?

I’ve noticed lately that a lot of people complain about the amount of time spent using technology. Some people think that we have become reliant on it and that we spend much more time than necessary using it. My problem isn’t how much time we spend using it, but simply howwe use that time. For informative and educational purposes, I think that technology is a great tool to use. I’ll be the first to admit that I run to the computer anytime I need to look something up, whether it be a recipe, a news story, or a historical fact. That type of use of technology isn’t taking away from our social or educational lives, as some may offer as an excuse for having a negative view towards technology. However, using the computer to sit in front of for hours to play on-line games, or “surf the web” isn’t healthy. That’s when we need to be outside, socializing, or educating ourselves.  Today, I went to have a consultation to get my wisdom teeth out. I met with the dentist for approximately 3 minutes. The other 35 minutes of my appointment were spent in front of a television watching a DVD with all the facts on wisdom teeth. Even the dentists are too busy these days to actually sit down one-on-one and do what they get paid to do: talk teeth. Also, have you ever found yourself in a situation where everyone (minus yourself) in a group is using their cellphone and it seems completely normal?  Since when is that normal? How is completely ignoring the people you are with to talk to someone else ‘more important’ an acceptable thing to do? Before cell phones, people would have to excuse themselves from a group or situation to make a phone call. Now, people just whip it out and text away, or talk without thinking its rude. Well, it is. Someone should teach a cell phone etiquette class.

back in the day

Times were simpler in the days before technology expanded to the extent it is now: computers, cell phones, ipods, etc. Now, I didn’t say easier, or more fun (because that certainly isn’t true). But times were definitely simpler. Aspiring teachers took classes based upon the basic skills of teaching; behavior and strategy wise. Nowadays, it is a requirement for teachers to take some sort of technology class…and for good reason too. Since students’ lives are so technology based, we need to keep up in order not to lose them. Unfortunately, that means learning complicated computer based programs that our students could probably do in their sleep. The funny thing is, this will never change. Even the students in school now, that know so much about technology (and probably make fun of us teachers who seem so computer illiterate to them), will have to start at square one when they begin to learn “how to become teachers.” Technology is growing at such a rapid rate, that the programs they use now and the strategies that we spend so much time learning, will be out of use before you know it. As I was saying, times were definitely simpler. No learning about computers, wikis, blogs, podcasts, ipods, or smartboards. My only concern is that teaching will become less about learning and more about being able to use cool ‘technology toys.’ We need to make sure that we are still attracting the right group of people to teach our future children of America; those who love to teach not those who love to teach technology.

p.s. Although this blog may seem anti-technology at the moment, I am very much for the intergration of technology into our school system. It was just one of those pondering moments.

PowerPoint us in the right direction

As I have mentioned before, PowerPoint is one of my favorite programs on the computer. The reason for that is probably because I know its potential. I took a class on Microsoft PowerPoint as a sophmore in high school. Each week we created a PowerPoint presentation and then presented it every Friday on the various topics that were assigned to us. It was then that I learned how to: use animation, use little wording and not read off the slides, make slides visually appealing…basically all of the things that we discussed in class that teach you how to present a PowerPoint, not utilize PowerPoint for your teaching. It wasn’t until junior year of college that I learned there were other ways to use PowerPoint rather than just putting info on slides and standing up to discuss your findings/information. That is why, for the past 3 or 4 years, PowerPoint has been my favorite program, because I learned how to use it in a way that was helpful to teachers, not business-folk. It is a great way to show your students that PowerPoint is not just “presenting,” since that is the idea that most students have come to believe. I absolutely love using PowerPoint for Jeopardy, it is such a creative idea. Especially if you have the blank template, that makes things easier. I am excited to see what other fun and useful things I can do with PowerPoint in the years to come.