CEDO 535 Entry Six

Smart Goal:
I will create an interactive e-textbook for a unit in one of my classes that incorporates multiple web 2.0 technologies. This will be done using a web 2.0 application for information collection, content presentation, interaction, and feedback. After getting some more information regarding data collection I plan on creating a form for students to fill out regarding the effectiveness of the e-textbook. This will be done at some point during the current semester.

Other:
Regarding my post from last week about not going far enough using technology I heard about the crab theory at my inservice meeting on Monday of this week. While I have a lot of faith in fellow educators and truly believe most of them have their students best interests in mind there are times in which innovation and progression are slow to occur in the field and I think a large part of that is the crab theory.

CEDO 535 Entry Five

Reading the epilogue really got me into some deep thinkingj about the read/write web. I have tried in class many times to use these strategies. This year I have used Edmodo in my classes, had my students blog, and had them work collaboratively using Google Docs just to name a few. The results have been mixed. While some students seem to get into and enjoy these things, it has not been effective for some. I've spent a great deal of time reflecting on why it has not worked as well as I had hoped with all students. While there is no doubt that I will revise some activities that have not worked as expected, I truly believe that I have not went far enough.

Most of my closest colleagues are very hesitant to use and critical of technology and view teachers having students on computers a lot as " lazy". I will admit that this has caused me to hesitate to go as far as I would like to using web 2.0 applications. By no means have I not incorporated technology but on a far more limited scale than I would like. I start a new semester on Monday and one of my goals for the rest of the year is to move forward using web 2.0 tools more frequently and setting a culture that my students and colleagues will follow.

CEDO 535 Entry Four

First off, I am an absolute podcast addict. As I write this  I am listening to one of my favorite sports podcasters Bill Simmons. Since purchasing an Ipod touch a couple years ago I have been listening to podcasts almost every time I go somewhere and even when I mow my lawn, clean my house, and work out. Naturally I am interested in the possibility of creating my own podcasts.

Finding a free and easy to use tool to create them is the first step. I will be trying the options posted in the course work page and seeing if any of them fit my needs. I have long thought about trying to podcast material for my classes but have chosen to give my students links to other podcasts about the material. Creating my own may encourage more students to listen to it on a more regular basis. I am a little worried about how much time this will take as my schedule is absolutely crazy right now and will not slow down until late March so finding an easy and efficient way to do this is essential. Having students create podcasts is also an intriguing concept as well as a potential assessment. If creating my own goes well this is something I may try.

Vodcasting is also an interesting concept. Although I personally like listening to podcasts due to the fact I like to multitask creating a vodcast has many of the same benefits. This may be something for me to try and once again if it goes well and the school eventually gets the right technology having my students complete them may be an interesting option as well.

CEDO 535 Entry Three

Finally we are looking at RSS Readers. This has been a topic I have been looking forward to for one simple reason, efficiency. Technology tools and resources can become overwhelming very quickly and getting new information about it can be difficult to do. There are so many blogs with so many great ideas that it is very hard to constantly read and stay updated on them and when people get overwhelmed they tend to shut down. Having a central location for all of the information and blogs that I like to read and have access to can potentially solve a lot of mine and other people's time issues.
To make it more complicated I like reading websites and blogs about a variety of topics from sports, to history, to current events, to technology, to education, and more. Like most I have favorite pages that I check often and also there are others that I like but lose track of. And in some cases I lose the valuable material I could use.
So off I go to create an RSS Reader. Although I do not necessarily expect it to solve all my time management issues it is my hope it can help make me more efficient as I will make an effort to read it as part of my morning routine every day.