Blog 6

This is How We Dream

Richard Miller's presentation about using technology to write with multimedia was very interesting. One thing he said stuck out to me, "The limits and restrictions are largely ones we place on ourselves." To be fair, he did follow this up with the fact that he acknowledges some school do not have the resouces to get computers for their students to use. However, hopefully someday, every school will have the ability to teach their students how to use technology to collaborate and be creative.

There are a couple things that I think are so great about writing with multimedia. First of all, the way you can publish something instantly is really gratifying. Not only can you see what you wrote right away, but also, people can respond so much more quickly because they receive your thoughts instantaneously. This speeds up the whole process of collaborating. That is the second part I think is amazing. When you use the internet to collaborate, you get so many different ideas and your creativity can really be limitless.

Richard Miller used some great examples of how to write with multimedia in the classroom. As much as I love libraries, they are becoming less and less used as a place for books and more so a place for computers. If teachers can find a way to encourage their students to use technology to help them write reports or create projects and presentations, the generations in the future will be unstoppable.

The Networked Student

I can see how someone's first reaction may be that the teacher of a networked student has an easy time teaching because all the work is being done for him or her. However, once you finish this video by Wendy Drexler, you can see that the teacher of a networked student has a lot of work to do.

I think that as a teacher, you can tell your students that they need to have connections with people around the world, but to be an effective teacher, you have to show your students why this is beneficial to them. If your students can find something they want to learn more about, then this is a great way to do it. Guiding students in making their own personal learning networks is something that probably takes practive and patience on both the teacher's and the student's parts.

Wendy Drexler's blog is really interesting and she made me excited about starting a personal learning network so that I can teach my students how to network too. This video is the first thing that has gotten me excited about my PLN. It also made me rethink my opinion on the usefulness of Delicious. Now I can work on my PLN and feel like there is more of a purpose than an assignment for class.


Michael Welsch Video

I thought that Michael Welsch's video was so relevant to today and to where the future is leading. Everytime Mr. Welsch used an example from today, like American Idol or South Park, I thought, "Yeah! I know exactly what he is talking about!" I think knowing these things will help us as teachers. If we can look at ourselves and figure out why we have the attitudes we do, then maybe when we have students we can become better teachers.

As a side note, I want to add that I am constantly surprised by the numbers of how many videos are on YouTube or how much time we spend on the internet. You'd think after a while it wouldn't surprise me anymore.