blog post 10

I would use Excel as a teacher to map out lesson plans, budget costs for classroom supplies, or rosters, and really anytime I need to make a well-ordered, easily manipulable list.  I would be utilizing it in a middle-school setting, so if i were to incorporate excel into the curriculum for the students, I would have them start on basic skills like inserting columns, creating tables and charts, and prioritize the basic excel functions. From there I would move on to creating and utilizing functions like AVERAGE, MEDIAN, SUM, etc. It would be useful in a computer fluency course, but at the middle school level I can't imagine needing anything beyond some basic competency when using the software.

I found it interesting learning all of the different thoughts my classmates have on how to utilize educational technologies both inside and outside the classroom. It was neat seeing everyone's different opinions on the educational potential for platforms like Twitter, Blogger, Youtube, Diigo, etc. I enjoyed the insight into the different interpretations and ideas for how technology can and will be used in my classmates future lives.

I would like to learn how to code. I have never attempted coding, but with the rapid technological progression in our society and more and more people becoming fluent in coding languages, I think it would be a useful skill to learn moving through the twenty-first century. I know several elementary school children with coding knowledge, and seeing young minds so melded with technology excites me, and I want to be a part of the new generation of minds who can understand and manipulate computer code. I have many more things I would like to learn before coding, but luckily educational technologies are so plentiful that I can easily find tutorials for any coding language by pulling up Youtube. I'm not in a rush, but that's what I would like to do.


It's been a pleasure blogging with you, I wish you the best of luck, love and happiness in every facet of your life. Auf Wiedersehen!

numba 8

Diigo is amazing as far as research capability. Especially when working on group projects, the capability for cooperative research is extended to an enormous capacity, since you don't need to be in the same physical location to exchange notes, ideas, good points, etc. In addition to being useful in a commutative way, it's also useful personally to be able to highlight certain portions of text in an article or what have you, and make notes about what I'm researching for my own personal purposes. I'm often saving websites for bits and chunks of information, and being able to quickly sift through and highlight important points is beyond useful.

For Knowledge I would have them recall any previously learned information about powerpoint, and demonstrate how to add simple information to a slide. Comprehension would require a more complex layout of an idea, ergo a more complex powerpoint. I would have them enlarge the main point, argument, or thesis, and have several supporting ideas bulleted below that; demonstrated here is how the font size can be used to show importance or attention. Application would require multiple slides comprised of varying structures of ideas pointing to a certain goal or end. So, I would explain how to flesh out something over multiple slides, utilizing things like transitions, button attachments, sound bytes, video clips, etc. Analysis contains everything I just mentioned, but applied to the focal points of the argument. Synthesis breaks down the ideas component parts and brings up new viewpoints, so there would be another set of slides breaking down new information. Evaluation would entail making a stand and ending the presentation.

I use reddit to keep up to date on almost everything. I think it is arguably the best platform for a large body of information, and it is updated by millions of people every minute. The sites are regulated by moderators and citizens, and I find most subreddits are very honest and sim to seek the truth in information. If you want to stay up to date on anything technologically related, go to the platform used by  a large body of people well-rented and well-informed with current technology.

Seeeeeeeeeeeeeee y'all later!

blog post 7

I don't use twitter very much, and only use it for assignments. I feel like I pay too much attention to social media when I have it and try to use it seriously, and find my life improved overall when I am not spending my time absorb in my phone or mindlessly scrolling on the computer. I see the benefits of increased communication, especially in states of crisis or when disaster strikes the amount of time it takes to reach people becomes more valuable than ever. But that is not enough for me to give up part of my day to it. I typically use reddit if I want to see what is happening in the world, and I don't want more than one platform to keep track of.

My website isn't finished yet, so I will include a link and analysis of a website I've created in the past for another class. I learned how to set up an interface in a manner that is pleasing to the visitor, and how easy it is to create a free website via wix. I learned how to set up multiple pages that have multiple kinds of media. Websites are very functional as they can provide a multimodal experience on a single topic, and have the opportunity to utilize text, pictures, video, etc.
Here's a screenshot; feel free to visit, although it doesn't work properly when I try it.

coahnarlin.wixsite.com/finalmgp

I've worked for the special olympics for a number roof years and have sen first hand assistive technologies used to assist and maintain the capability of persons with disabilities. I'm not sure how we are defining adaptive and assistive technologies, but I have witnessed multiple examples of adaptive technologies assist athletes with disabilities. It can be challenging to bring outdated classrooms up to speed with emerging adaptive technologies because it requires funding and somebody willing to learn how to use, teach, and implement new technologies. 

See y'all l8r, and god bless my friend. 

ILP (DESIGN)

I created this short graphic for a club while we were voting for new staff leaders. Encouraging people to vote is educating them of their right to democracy.

Number 6!

I visited my alma matter's website, which I hadn't actually done until nearly four years after I graduated. There was lots of general information like a calendar of current events, pages of staff information, student services, and activities and clubs offered to students. There's also information regarding the current weather conditions at the school, which I found really neat since there may be hurricanes that suddenly whip through (I'm looking' at you, Michael!) or other circumstances in which parents, guardians, or fellow students might like to check on the conditions surrounding the school. The website's chocked full of just about everything you might want to know about Pace High School. Here's a screen snag of the front page, check it out:
Here's a link: https://www.pacehighschool.net

I envision myself having to rely largely on technology in the foreseeable future. Whether or not I go into education, more and more fields are switching over to a digital format of operation for a variety of reasons. Personally, I want to go into a field that relies on either writing, photography, or a combination of the two, which today are almost entirely digital practices if you want to keep up with the modern world. Film photography is more of a niche hobby, and writing in pen and paper is best for taking notes or for editing/personal purposes. Efficiency, accuracy, and expediency are key guidelines in the modern world 's exchanging of ideas and information; generally speaking, those with access to the highest amount of bandwidth for the exchange/cross-examinaton/assessment of ideas and information will be the most well-equipped for their jobs. Or so seems to be the attitude in the rapid technological realignment of society, and therefore I think it's probably best to adapt to change. Otherwise, if one doesn't try and be pliable with technological advances, they'll be left in the dust. I don't know about anyone else, but I don't like breathing in dust!

The technology sandbox is awesome. I am really happy I know what it is, where it is, and all I can access within it. I particularly enjoyed the oculus rift Virtual Reality tech. I found a google maps feature within it, and it was mind-blowing how the difference in perception (or lack thereof)  made it feel all the more real. What I found useful was the 3-D printers, as I had never considered the vast amount of uses for them. All sorts of small-scale models of things like bones, brains, faces, flowers, etc. can be incredibly useful in a classroom setting where getting an actual full-scale model of a brain or various bones could be vary expensive and several days or weeks to arrive. The 3-D printer is as useful as you choose to make it and can save teacher and students a lot of money on various new classroom materials.

Well, that's all for today. Until next time—take care, friends.
 

A little late, but still accomplished

I explored Diigo on my own, and found it very useful for somebody who wants to pay for it. I completely understand the financial backing it requires to operate site like this and don't necessarily think it should be free.  I would pay for this if I had some kind of disposable income and enough time to explore and take advantage of all the storage and collaboration. But I do not have either of those things, so I will keep utilizing other ways of obtaining and sharing information.

I have really enjoyed blogging so far. It keeps me actively engaged with the material, which is very helpful in a class that only meet once weekly. It is fun to answer questions in a more nonchalant format because it doesn't feel like I'm going to give a wrong answer. It's more akin to having a conversation than taking a test or a quiz. It's often fun to see where you end up in your answer. I've learned that I rather enjoy blogging, and will probably start doing it full-time. I enjoy it more than other forms of socila media like twitter or Facebook. It feels more personal, despite being almost strictly text-based.

I'm not sure if we discussed this one or not, but Skype is a wonderful web tool for a classroom setting. I've been in several classes where we have "skyped" with other professors working at other universities, where they gave talks and had open dialogue with us students afterwards. For people without classroom access, Skype is wonderful for long-distance online students and professors. With more and more of the world gaining internet access daily, the amount of people able to learn through online courses is also rising. So now more than ever, communication tools like Skype will become more and more ubiquitous within an educational setting.

Link: Skype | Communication tool for free calls and chathttps://www.skype.com/en/

Well now, let me tell you—twitter is quite a doozy. I used to use twitter when it first started really booming around 2010, but things have really changed since then. I remember hearing about Ashton Kutcher beating out CNN to have the first twitter account to reach one million followers. That was back in 2009, and now, just 9 years later, it isn't uncommon for people to have tens of millions, in some cases even a hundred million followers. It goes to show you the immense power and velocity at which the internet is being integrated into our societies. For the first time in history, almost anybody with a cellphone has the capacity to reach an audience of hundreds of millions of people via twitter. The rapidity and immediacy with which we're able to access information and communicate with one another is changing the social landscape on a global scale, and I think it's slowly rewiring how we have communicated for hundreds and thousands of years. Unfortunately, human computing power is peanuts compared to the speed of technological innovation, and I don't think it's necessarily healthy to radically alter human communication from face-to-face, long form discussions to 140 character, rapid-fire back-and-forths. So, I stay off twitter for the most part. Aside from a few educational and comedic accounts I just don't get much enjoyment out of the darn thing.  If I want information about what's happening in the world, I'll go to reddit.

Digital divide mainly affects poorer communities where schools can't garner or gather enough funding to keep up with the continually evolving technology being integrated into the modern day education system. I would even stretch the definition to include a lack of funding for updated textbooks, especially in the arts and sciences where there is constantly new research and discovery. It can directly affect how the student thinks about learning in a developing world. Children need to be comfortable using technology in a classroom setting so they can develop the necessary technological fluency that's becoming inherent in the modern world. However I would conquer digital divide would depend on the school and subject matter I was teaching, but let's say I was in an underfunded school teaching English to a fifth grade class. I would stress the importance of taking advantage of technological opportunities outside the classroom and try to always have the most up-to-date information to exchange, if the tools themselves were lacking.

I would like to implement Word and some kind of educational video game software catered to the subject matter I was teaching. Word would be useful because students are likely going to be writing papers their entire academic career, and word has a plethora of practical functions. Educational video games can teach children almost anything from basic addition and multiplication to demonstrating what a dissection might be like on a cadaver. With video games you can bring experiences and situations to life that you would have a hard time recreating in a real-world setting. This opens up all sorts of doors when thinking about how to educate students on different career paths and so on. So, yeah, something like SecondLife maybe? I would have to look into it a little more.

Bon voyage, compatriots.

—MC