While completing a website design course online I reflect on how this type of learning affects me as a learner and teacher. This type of distant learning has benefited me in many ways. First I would say that it forced me to troubleshoot more than usual. When I am in a course and I get stuck, I always ask the instructor for help. When I was working on projects for my online course from the comfort of my own home, there was no one to help me. Because there was no instant response from an instructor, I was forced to just keep trying and trying until I succeeded. This was a great experience for me because I realized that I can figure things out on my own. Although it took longer than if someone told me how to do it, I feel the benefit was greater because I really owned it when I had to figure it out myself. I know I won't forget what I just learned, because I didn't just get the answer from someone else.
This style of learning also affected my teaching. Usually when a student is stuck, I feel the need to quickly intervene and help them out. After completing this course and learning for myself, I realized that I need to back off and give my students an opportunity for this same experience. Sometimes I just tell them, "Hmmmm, I wonder how you do that? What do you think?" Then I wait for them to come up with ideas. Then I say, "Good idea! Try it..." This gives them the space they need to find the answer themselves. I am very grateful for this type of learning experience.
Monday, July 10, 2017
Wednesday, February 1, 2017
Global Collaborator
Sometimes we get so caught up in our own space that we lose sight of the bigger picture. Being a Connected Educator and Global Collaborator helps us to put into perspective the small unimportant details that sometimes derail us.
I went on EduMatch and checked out the inspiring video! I immediately signed up and headed to Twitter to follow @EduMatch! I read through many of the posts.
I found a "Past EduMatcher": Genie Lovino @genielovino and I started to follow her. Turns out Genie works in a middle school in New Jersey. The reason I selected her is because she posted: "Technology!" and that caught my eye, as another tech enthusiast.
I sent her a message to let her know that I was following her b/c I had seen her on EduMatch. Upon browsing her feed, I found several great resources that I am now exploring. One in particular is Seesaw which is for creating "Student Driven Portfolios." It reminded me of Google Classroom, but for younger students.(Use collaborative technologies to work with others, including peers, experts or community members, to examine issues and problems from multiple viewpoints?)
The platform offers student privacy for securing their work online. You can set up your classroom and allow for parents to view only their own child's work. The interface is extremely user friendly with lots of options. I am excited to try this resource out with a class I am teaching. (Contribute constructively to project teams, assuming various roles and responsibilities to work effectively toward a common goal.)
I don't think I would have come across this new resource without having connected with my new EduMatch friend online. Because I work with older students, a tool like this would not typically be in my wheelhouse. But since I have been creating an online PD opportunity for Teachers Pre-12, I found this was a great resource to use!
There is a lot of potential for classroom projects and to help students (Explore local and global issues and use collaborative technologies to work with others to investigate solutions). I am looking forward to other projects I will learn about by the new connections I have made via EduMatch!
Once I joined the Google Community "Connected Classrooms" I immediately began getting emails from other educators around the globe, who are looking to do Read Alouds for "Read Across America" Day. Also many teachers from who teach other languages are eager to connect. Finally lots of requests for "Mystery Skype" Hangouts came my way. The Mystery Skype activity is where you have your students come up with potential clues for students from other places around the globe. Each class gives the other class hints and answers their questions, mostly relating to climate, economy, natural resources etc. The classes then try and figure out, where you are in the world, or country. These resources can be invaluable when trying to connect around the world and to make learning about other cultures and places engaging for students. For older students, it is interesting to connect with students from other countries and to learn their perspectives on issues in the world.
I went on EduMatch and checked out the inspiring video! I immediately signed up and headed to Twitter to follow @EduMatch! I read through many of the posts.
I found a "Past EduMatcher": Genie Lovino @genielovino and I started to follow her. Turns out Genie works in a middle school in New Jersey. The reason I selected her is because she posted: "Technology!" and that caught my eye, as another tech enthusiast.
I sent her a message to let her know that I was following her b/c I had seen her on EduMatch. Upon browsing her feed, I found several great resources that I am now exploring. One in particular is Seesaw which is for creating "Student Driven Portfolios." It reminded me of Google Classroom, but for younger students.(Use collaborative technologies to work with others, including peers, experts or community members, to examine issues and problems from multiple viewpoints?)
The platform offers student privacy for securing their work online. You can set up your classroom and allow for parents to view only their own child's work. The interface is extremely user friendly with lots of options. I am excited to try this resource out with a class I am teaching. (Contribute constructively to project teams, assuming various roles and responsibilities to work effectively toward a common goal.)
I don't think I would have come across this new resource without having connected with my new EduMatch friend online. Because I work with older students, a tool like this would not typically be in my wheelhouse. But since I have been creating an online PD opportunity for Teachers Pre-12, I found this was a great resource to use!
There is a lot of potential for classroom projects and to help students (Explore local and global issues and use collaborative technologies to work with others to investigate solutions). I am looking forward to other projects I will learn about by the new connections I have made via EduMatch!
Thursday, December 1, 2016
Google Yourself Challenge
Wow! I was very surprised after completing the "Google Yourself Challenge"!
After Googling just my name, I added my middle name, because there were many people with the same name. Once I added my middle name, I could not believe what I saw! Many of the photos I had snapped on my cell phone appeared! This is due to the fact that my google account is linked on Google+ and I had my account set to automatically sync! I promptly changed that setting on my phone!
I did an image search and was shocked to see many people who I follow on twitter as well as many of the photos I posted on Twitter.
This was a very eye opening experience for me.
I will be very careful what pictures I post especially on Twitter as they seem to come up most often when I Googled Myself.
After Googling just my name, I added my middle name, because there were many people with the same name. Once I added my middle name, I could not believe what I saw! Many of the photos I had snapped on my cell phone appeared! This is due to the fact that my google account is linked on Google+ and I had my account set to automatically sync! I promptly changed that setting on my phone!
I did an image search and was shocked to see many people who I follow on twitter as well as many of the photos I posted on Twitter.
This was a very eye opening experience for me.
I will be very careful what pictures I post especially on Twitter as they seem to come up most often when I Googled Myself.
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