Final PLN Summary

My Final PLN consists of people's blogs that I follow, such as my Instructor Dr. strange, a few of the lab assistants that have been helpful throughout this whole semester, and teachers from my C4T assignments. I certainly do enjoy reading the blogs of others, because their posts are very helpful and informative. Also, I have on my PLN certain websites that I visit everyday, such as Facebook, Twitter, BLogger, YouTube and my Google account. I have some of my favorite people on their such as the Kardashians, Oprah, and my favorite basketball player Kobe Baryant. Having a PLN has really been helpful, because it's like you have every website/page that you visit regularly in the same spot.

Blog Post #13

I must honestly say that I failed the attempt to not use any type of battery or electronically powered technology for a full twenty-four hours. My first attempt, I thought to myself "Oh this would be easy, I could turn my phone off at 10 p.m., wake up and go to work from 6 a.m.- 2 p.m., after work, get some studying done, since I always neglect my phone whenever I'm doing school work, and get some rest." I figured by the time I had done all of this, it would be 10 p.m. again. It was a slap in the face! I am the type of person who has to have music when I study or do any kind of assignment, so I have to get my iPod. The second attempt, was very difficult also, because my group members and I had to complete our Smartboard assignment, and we could not meet face-to-face to interact, so using technology were the only resources. We collaborated through text, Google Hangout, tried Skype, and also through e-mails. That only lasted for a good thirty minutes. The last time I tried so hard to not use any type of technology, I was visiting my family members at my mom house, and everyone was saying how they had been texting and calling me and that I was not responding. I told them what I was doing, except for my youngest brother, because he was not in the family room. Therefore, when he came into the room he had his phone in his hand and he showed me a funny YouTube video, and I watched it, forgetting that I was putting myself to the test! I do not think that in this society today, that anyone is able to get through a full twenty-four hours of not using any technology at all. If so, it would be astonishing! I mean there is technology all around us, music from radios, TV, iPod, in the grocery stores, gyms, and in the areas of employment. This furthermore lets me know that my future students will be raised in a technology-based environment. I, personally do not think that there will be any effects of them growing up in this type of environment. They are technology to be honest, because we need the younger generation to show us the ropes of using computers, high tech cellular devices, and games. With the outpouring numbers of new devices being assembled and sold on the market, I think that it would be the hardest for children to go on an "e-media fast". At least, I was raised before there were cell phones, and although i played video games in my younger days, I also enjoyed playing outdoors, until the street lights came on. Many children nowadays do not do that, which is now one of the main factors of obesity. I can say that this would be a great project that others can share with their family and friends. I tried to share it with my family, but no one wanted to participate.

C4T #4

For my last C4T I was assigned to read recent posts for Dorothy Burt's Blog "Manaiakalani". She is a teacher in Auckland, New Zealand.  In the first post Dorothy Burt talked about how students enjoyed the fact of using a Netbook to take an exam, more so over the use of pen/pencil and paper. It was stated that the students scored higher when using a Netbook, because they were able to type faster. My response "My name is Derkesha Dale and I am a student in EDM310 at the University of South Alabama. I can honestly admit that from my own experience, I am not good with taking notes, especially if I have to write them down. I think I was blessed with a mental ability to listen and remember what was said in a lecture, in general. I think that doing tests using technology is better than the old paper and pencil technique, because technology is being used widely throughout the world now, and more people are becoming familiar with it. It will save a lot of trees also."


In the second post, Dorothy Burt talked about the students reflections after their first year of using of Netbooks. There were both positive and negatives reflections of using the Netbooks. The Positives were that the students were able to type and comment faster, even if they typed slow, they were able to edit their work, without it looking all messy, the use of Netbooks focused more on self-directed learning, where the students were able to access the class blog site, YouTube, Google, and specific sites like Maths Wizz, by the students having their own Netbook, it enabled them to write on their blogs more frequently, and they were shared with others, whereas writing in a book, no one could read them, and also games were fourth on the list, they were not mentioned much. The negatives of having a Netbook were, the speed of the internet frustrated the students, the battery life was poor, and the paint app on the Netbook was a dissatisfaction. My response to this blog was ''Hello once again, my name is Derkesha Dale and I would like to say that this post was very informative. I have not had any experience with the use of a Netbook, but I see that it has its ups and downs. I think that the students being able to see their mistakes and letting others see them is a good idea. When I was in grade school, I can remember writing papers and no one, but the teacher would read them. I think it is very important as a future educator to incorporate technology in my classroom. I t is expanding worldwide and I want to keep up with it. Thanks for the informative post again."

Project #15- Smartboard Part 2

Final Report

My group members and I have pretty much been communicating through email and texts. We are gathering our information and hopefully, we can get our filming done at the beginning of this week.

Blog Post #12

Watch this Video:Children and Technology 3:34
Do you feel that there is a conflict with children being more technology literate nowadays? If so, explain? What do you feel are some of the downfalls of using technology? With the use of Wii game console and its sports and/or fitness games now being played, Do you think they are equal to outside activities (such as playing tag, hide-and-seek, hopscotch, dodge ball, and etc...)? Follow the requirements when writing a quality Blog Post  Writing a Quality Blog Post

Creativity and Curiosity: My Thoughts-Special Post #12A

I feel that schools in the United States are destroying the development of creativity in students. I feel that budget cuts in the school systems are relatively an important role in students learning and having an open mind. Without extra money or support, so many teachers are being laid off and by doing this, there is no "free time" for the students or teachers. I think that being creative coincides with physical activities, such as exercising and recess. Students get bored easily just by sitting at a desk all day with their heads in the books. A change can be made if the teachers incorporate certain drawing activities throughout their regular subject lessons to keep creativity alive. A teacher actions play a primary role in students creativity. I learned a long time ago that you should listen to children and not put them on mute whenever they are talking or asking a question. All teachers should give children their undivided attention and most importantly not judge them. As a future educator, I would like to have an open-minded and non-judgmental

classroom. If incorporating drawing into Math, Science, Reading, History, and English lessons will keep my students attentive, then I am all for it! Communication is the key that leads to all roads of success. Everyone stemming from students, teachers, parents, and all school administrators should be in agreement with such.

C4K April

For the Month of April I was assigned two students, both from different areas of the world. The first student that was assigned to me was a boy named Jadein H. He lived in Canada. Jadein's interests were collecting comic books and video games.Jadein's first blog post was actually a Book Trailer, which I had recently been introduced to. It was about a book called Silverwing. Silverwing was about a bat named Shade, who was lost and had to battle his way back to his family. Jadein did a great job with the book trailer. Jadein did not update his Blog, so I had to go back to the most recent post left before the book trailer post. This post was about Jadein's 2012 New Year Resolutions. Jadein talked about how New Year's began. It was in Mesopotamia 4000 years ago, in Sumer. He stated that Mesopotamia was one of the first civilizations and Sumer was a kingdom in it; currently Iraq. In his post, he said that back then New Year resolutions were not about quitting smoking and losing weight, merely about growing healthy crops. Jadein had categories of New Year Resolutions and they consisted of Personal Goals, Global Goals, Local Goals, and School Goals. He wanted to go outside more, blog more, recycle to keep the community clean, work and study more, and complete any school-related work on time. The next student that I had was a seven year old girl named Vinolia, she was a student in Ms. Priscilla Lavakula class in New Zealand. Vinolia had a short video, where she mentioned some of her favorite things. Vinolia's favorite color was Red. Her favorite place to eat was at Burger King. Vinolia talked about her family members and some of her friends.I commented on her blog and I told her that my favorite color was Green, and that I often eat at Burger King.

Project Report

My Group and I have collaborated through e-mails, texts, phone calls, and Google Hangout. We searched the Mobile Pacing Guide website and found a certain lesson that we would like to teach. Each one of us have our own sections. My group plans to meet up sometime this week to finish our project.

Blog Post #11

This week's Blog Post assignment was to watch the following two videos, which were Skype interview with Ms. Cassidy and  First Graders in Ms. Cassidy's Class. I was amazed at the fact that the kids in Ms. Cassidy's class knew how to use technology so well. I must admit that before enrolling in Dr. Strange's EDM310 class, I was not used  to blogging, connecting with classmates on a weekly basis, or using PLN's, just to name a few. The students used blogs to improve their handwriting skills, as an online portfolio for their work, and for feedback purposes. They know that you have to say nice things and be safe on the internet. They also used web pages to find valuable information on the internet, choose pages to help them learn, and also the web pages can be accessed at home. I admired the fact that they used Wikis to know what traditions or rituals were, and also as a learning tool for ABC's. I can relate to the students use of video to plan their assignments. because a few of my classmates and I have done that. Nintendo DS was used in the classroom for the purpose of being better problem solvers and knowing when to share. I am glad to have watched Ms. Cassidy's skype interview. It almost seemed as if I was there. Ms. Cassidy has been using technology for ten years. She only started off with five computers, which were Sunray, and they had no programs, just monitors and a keyboard. She was able to use the computers as a reading center, and was federally funded by the government. She has only incorporated using blogs in her classroom or five years, and video for two. Even though she's been through several principals throughout her career, she's had a supportive technology coordinator, who has helped her along the way.  There were questions about the protection of her students, and in order to protect them and make sure they were safe, Ms. Cassidy  sent forms home on the first day of school. I agree with the fact that Ms. Cassidy mentioned that "Technology is not going away, it's here to stay". As a future educator, I plan to use a wide range of technology in my classroom such as blogging, Skype, and Wikis. It is very important to stay up-to-date with technology, because you want to be able to assist the students with their learning and not bore them with regular book, pen, and pencil work. The use of technology will make learning fun and it has the ability to increase the interest of the students and their learning.

Blog Post 10

Do You Teach or Do You Educate?

After watching this video, I have came to the conclusion that to teach and to educate are two different things. To teach is a verb, in which you show or explain how to do something, encourage someone to accept as a fact or principle, give information about or instruction in, cause someone to learn or understand something, induce by examples of punishment to do or not to do something. To educate, means that you will illuminate, enlighten, inspire, and empower the students. An educator is one who gives intellectual, moral, and social instruction. Also, a mentor, an experienced and trusted advisor. One who guides a person, who advises, and shows the way. I never really thought that there was a difference in teaching and educating, until I watched this video. I would like to be an educator, because I am willing to go that extra mile to make sure that I make a difference in my students lives and learning. I will not be categorized as a  "paycheck teacher". I understand that as an educator, you have to be willing to work overtime in order to have a successful classroom. An educator is one who students would want to look up to or ask for advice on any given subject or matter that they may have. At the end of the video, there was a very important phrase,  "Intelligence plus character, that is the goal of true education" -MLK.   I totally agree with this phrase,  because you have to be motivated to learn and you have to maintain who you are at all times around your peers and the students.

Don't Let Them Take Pencils Home

Although I had to read the post a few times, I must say that I enjoyed reading it. I agree with everything that was posted.  Focusing on the solution more so as to the problem was a great approach. Sometimes, you have to prove people wrong and Tom Tom did this to Gertrude. The fact that Tom meets with parents to give them an insight on what students are learning is great. At home students can use the "pencils" as a way of learning, even if they play a game of 'Hangman", which Gertrude thinks to be sick and twisted. Tom explains that he does not hold the students accountable, because as long as they are learning, everything is ok. I agree with Tom in this post, because we as adults have to be mindful that children have a different way of learning and that technology is being used widely throughout the world. Things are not the same and the use of technology will only expand, that is why I feel that Tom brought the parents in. It was to make them familiar with the use of the computers.