MAC Users and Podcasts

I have recently converted from PC to a Mac. I know, I sound like one of the commercials! I do need a little help from any seasoned Mac users. I know there is photo booth that can record videos, however, I was wondering if there were any programs that would be just for audio that would upload as an MP3. Anyone know? Please let me know!

21st Century Learners

My first reaction to the website (http://www.p21.org/) was that it looked extremely user friendly and welcoming. I expected this because the site is promoting technology in the classroom; I figured that they would really display some of their skills up front. One of the first areas I browsed through was the state initiatives. I was extremely surprised that New York was not listed. Also, at first glance, I was not sure how this site could help me as an educator individually. If I was browsing through quickly, I may have assumed that this was for administrators and other officials only. From the opening, it is not described as helping one educator and class at a time, but working to help everyone. After looking through tools and resources, I found a few aspects that may be useful, however, I was not seeing any information that specifically jumped out at me. I did find it interesting that it connected to Pearson21 page. I actually found this pages interesting. I looked at some of the several classroom technology projects through this site. I also found it rather interesting because I work for the Pearson Education company while I search for a full time teaching position. I obviously do not work with this section of the company, but I found it fascinating that there was this section of the corporation I had no idea existed. Overall, I did not find the site as useful as the article had been. I may not be using it to its fullest capabilities, if anyone saw something that I might have missed, please let me know.

Creative Blog Pages

I was playing around with my blog and trying to make it creative. As you can see I found a few interesting pieces on the side of my blog. I also found that to add links you can use html codes. I briefly took an undergraduate course on webpage design (forgot a lot of it) but I just googled the codes and it helped me out. I posted my professional website -- just to give potential interviewers and idea about me. I would like to welcome anyone to take a look at it.

Blogging in the Classroom

After only one week of this course, I am thinking about technology in the classroom from a new angle. My first thoughts always jump to what Dr. Thornburg describes as doing things differently. Technology can provide both educators and students with new materials to change the way we currently learn. It is important to appreciate these changes, however, it is also necessary that educators go beyond doing things differently. I have my certification in English for grades 7 through 12, but unfortunately I do not have my own classroom and have not had the experience using blogs in the classroom yet. Blogging seems to have endless opportunities in the English classroom especially because of the writing aspect. In literature, it is important to discuss different interpretations and key elements of the piece within the class. I think blogging to each other to peers within the course would be doing something differently. Rather than writing journals or verbally expressing their opinion, they could write it, and through this everyone would have a voice. I think that could be beneficial, and a great starting off point, but I think it would wasting the tool if an educator did not take it further than that. Students within the class may have similar opinions, based on culture of the school, neighborhood, state, and even country. It would be an interesting blog experience to have students connect with readers from an entirely different setting. Students might be shocked to see the opinions of their peers that reside in a different location. This type of technique could bring new ideas about the text into the classroom that I might not have even thought of. Students could then share personal connections with the text and learn about peers outside of their community and their own comfort area. This would enhance the classroom discussion and bring in alternative views that students in my classroom may never have thought of. As mentioned, it can be a place for students to showcase their work as well. It will be a great tool to allow students to share with their classmates, but a way to share it with the world. Not only students, but parents, other educators, or anyone that students would feel comfortable sharing their work with. The only issue that might be a problem with this lesson, is the difficulty in finding and contacting an educator working on the same novel. It would be necessary to plan it this activity well in advance for it to work smoothly. Because I am still learning about blogging as well as being a new teacher, I would greatly appreciate any suggestions or strategies!

First Time Blog For Walden Class

Just a test!