Research Strategies

When I begin researching, I always check the search engines on Google and AOL. I often see what kind of result I get, and then hit Wikipedia if applicable. If I am going for educationally related research, I hit the KDE website and JCPS online, then go to NCTE for more ideas. Last, but certainly not least, I look for online articles and hard copies of books on Minerva, which is U of L's library, and also the Louisville Free Public Library. By the time I do all of this, I have a VERY wide range of research materials to pull from for whatever project or assignment I am working on.

Technology Autobiography

My experiences with technology have been great in number, and have increased as time has gone by. I began using a computer in elementary school for typing, and I remember also playing games like “Number Crunchers” and “Oregon Trail”. These were the old Apple computers and I was never too inspired by them, but the gaming aspect held my interest as a young child. It wasn’t until the summer before my freshman year in High School that I began using the World Wide Web to surf the internet, to access an email account, and to have social interaction with others via instant messaging and chat rooms.
This use of the internet opened up a whole new realm for me. I was exposed to it through my uncle in California; he is a film editor and had been using it for years. I signed on to AOL through his account and computer, and had my own hooked up with a few months at home, using dial-up. I loved being able to research online, communicating with family and friends with e-mail, and chatting with people I didn’t really know for fun. I felt connected because of it, and I learned to type faster as well. I used the computer to create projects, got into using clip art and altering photographs, and also for writing in a journal, to which no one else had access. So, there is no wonder I like using weblogs so much; I had created my own offline without even knowing it.
Currently, I use technology in as many ways as I can comfortably, in order to make my life easier, and in some cases even to earn extra money. I take online surveys for extra cash, sell things on Amazon.com, and even publish my writing for a few cents per view. I am connected with the world, and I think that bringing this into the classroom is essential if I hope to reach my students in a way that gets them ready for the real world. I think it is essential that teachers are trained to use new technologies, and given the resources to implement the use of them in the classroom. I know that it changes the way education is brought to children in schools, but it is a positive change overall that should be embraced…it isn’t going anywhere!
My only issue with the use of technology is that it presents many dangers to students and can be detrimental to the overall academic success of children if it isn’t used professionally and effectively. What I mean to say is that students can become so dependent upon using the computer for writing and for researching that they no longer have the skills to head to the old-fashioned library when they need a concrete source for a project. Or, if the computer isn’t functioning correctly, the excuses for late work pour in by the bucket loads. I see that teachers must convey to students the rules and regulations for using technology, and make clear their expectations for projects/assignments, but that they must also give students the tools they need to use other avenues in the event that the computer and internet are not available.

Chapter 2

There are several quotes in this chapter that gave me a reason to stop and think:
1. “Blogs engage readers with ideas and questions and links. They ask readers to think and respond. They demand interaction” (18)
This made me think of the correlation between blogging and the teaching of reading. The blog requires students to read, to think about what they have read, to respond to that reading, and all the while they are interacting with another human being in some way, even if it is not face to face. These are the things that we try to encourage our students to do when they read offline as well. Why not combine the two activities to help reinforce the strategy? This can only help make the use of reading strategy easier. And, students respond so much better, in most cases, when you use technology as the medium. This is exciting!
2. “…blogs are a collaborative space, as readers become a part of the writing and learning process” (19).
Again, I thought of the push toward a constructivist methodology in our training as new teachers, and how the blog will help us to bring students together in a safe, interactive manner. This truly is a tool for learning, specifically for the teaching of reading and writing. I think students will feel much less pressure and initial resistance to writing if they are in this interactive space online. Further, it can be used as a springboard for other activities.
3. “Even at this still-early stage of development, blogs are being used as class portals, online filing cabinets for student work, e-portfolios, collaborative space, knowledge management, and even school websites” (21).
I couldn’t help thinking about one of the #1 problems for every teacher when I read this part of the chapter: PAPER. On the most basic level of thinking, blogs create a space for students to file work, for teachers to grade work without a pen and paper, and for administrators, parents and other members of the community to view their progress. What a novel idea! This could help cut down on the waste of paper for daily assignments, and the stacks upon stacks of paper that teachers inevitably carry home to grade.
4. “Tom, who teaches at my school, has his students use their blogs to become experts in an area of their choice” (29).
This struck me for two reasons: it encourages student choice, and it meets about 10 NCTE, NTS, and IRA Standards. By allowing students to have a choice in the subject matter about which they write, you effectively draw them in and allow their passion to shine through their writing. This will most likely come through in the product, thus increasing the quality of their writing, boosting portfolio scores, test scores, grades overall, etc.

Chapter One

In reading the first chapter of the text for this class, I honestly found some very interesting information and commentary on the subjects of both technology in the world at large, and how it affects us as educators. I enjoyed the use of "computer speak", and the terminology that I wouldn't otherwise be familiar with or use myself. For example: "RSS may be the new 'killer app' (extremely useful application) for education" (Richardson 8). In fact, this idea of RSS was completely foreign to me, and I consider myself pretty technologically savvy. Having content come to me is interesting, and the implications this carries for educators are extraordinary to say the least. I makes me a bit nervous, though, after reading the novel Feed by M.T. Anderson; it paints quite a frightening picture of the extreme dangers that technology can bring. The students in the novel, which is set in the future, also had information coming to them, whenever they needed it, at all times, just as the RSS operates. The problem became that the students were never satisfied with anything, because there was always something new popping into their heads, and technology was ultimately their downfall. Again, this was extreme, but it still scared me appropriately into taking a second, and third, look at the possibility of disaster when it comes to using technology for teaching. The text does a great job of covering this briefly, and I look forward to discussing it in class.
Some things that also interested me about this chapter, and about which I would like to learn much more:

• flickr
• xanga
• how to cover the appropriateness of content being published and other dangers with students
• web portfolios
• online photo galleries that are educational and appropriate for everyday use