Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Week 6: Mid-term--How's it going?

Well, we're at the halfway point. How is it going?

For this week's assignment, I'm asking you to do three things:

1. Provide a little bit of information about your experience so far by answering these questions:
2. Revisit the previous two blog posts (find access to the archived posts in the lower right corner hand of this page), and read through folks' comments. Find at least one thing to comment on and "reply" to that comment by clicking "reply" and leaving an insight, answer, or suggestion to that comment. One of the benefits of blogging is the conversation it allows for. Imagine if we had done this class via email. I could have sent you each week's post in an email and you could have responded to me with a reply to that email. However, notice how much richer it is to see and respond to each other's thinking using the blog instead.

3. Leave a comment to this post with your "mid-term" reflection. Anything you want to share is fine, but here a few questions you might want to consider: How is this set up working for you? How does learning this way stack up next to more traditional ways of learning? Have you learned anything about the way you learn that might impact how you teach? Any suggestions for the second half of the class? Remember--commenting on someone else's post counts. And, of course, thank you for your feedback!

Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bybri/2604493952/
Posted by Kimberly Allison at 8:30 AM

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Marie Page's avatar

Marie Page · 787 weeks ago

I hope I did this right. I did post a reply on last weeks session about google maps. I like that tool. As for things to learn about this coming session... how about the use of skype ( I think that is the spelling) in the classroom. I used it once and it was pretty cool. I was interested in others if they have used it. I had to go to jury duty and also had a wedding to do for my floral class and no sub was able to teach my advance students that lesson. So I took my laptop from home, downloaded skype and bought it with me to jury duty and
my Voc Para bought her laptop in with skype downloaded on it and I was able to assist my students with the wedding arrangements because I was able to see and communicate with them. It was pretty cool. ~ Marie Page
5 replies · active 786 weeks ago
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Lora Gillingham's avatar

Lora Gillingham · 787 weeks ago

I really enjoy the "conversational" nature of this learning experience. I also like being able to work on it in my own time and at my own pace. I like that it isn't taking up gobs of time outside of the day. I do miss, however, getting to know people face-to-face, as in a traditional in-service setting. Suggestions for the second half of the class: continuing to explore new online tools (as we have been doing) and how to apply them to lessons. I enjoy being exposed to new ideas and ways of doing things. The class provides the structure I need to learn and grow.
1 reply · active less than 1 minute ago
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Abby Smith's avatar

Abby Smith · 787 weeks ago

Like Lora, I like the conversational nature of the class but I do miss the 1:1 though being able to work at my pace is something I love about this class! I like being able to work on the assignments at my speed and when I want. The likelihood of me signing up for another class like this is much higher than if it met weekly in a physical location. I’ve learned new tools to use with students and what I ponder over what I’ve read from others and try to think about how I can apply their suggestions to my lessons. I did reply to Rich’s post about google maps. For the second half of the class learning about possible lesson ideas using twitter or skype would be interesting. I’ve enjoyed what I have learned so far and am interested in seeing what the upcoming posts cover.
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Kathleen's avatar

Kathleen · 787 weeks ago

I LOVE the on line learning. I can research the topic (ex., Google maps) and then figure out how to meaningfully apply the method to my current lesson, if truly applicable. I learn best by immediately manipulating the information I have just learned. It helps me to imprint the information! Learning this way allows me to view the information, play with it, then apply it in a safe environment. It feels empowering. Whereas, the traditional way of learning, is memorize it and forget it.

I would love more on line resources. Resources that allow allow students to retrieve meaningful content pictures. Visual Dictionary is too limited. I understand Discovery offeres interesting tools. I would like to learn more about the Discovery site.

One final thought, it has been exciting using what I have learned, thus far. I am at the time of year when receiving a learning spark is most appreciated!! The students are eager to work on a mapping project from Google Maps.
1 reply · active 786 weeks ago
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Nathalie's avatar

Nathalie · 787 weeks ago

Well, I have nothing new to add. Lora, Tom, Abby and Kathleen have said it all for me. I enjoy being able to work on my own time, look at it then leave it and come back to it if I am not inspired at a given moment... I love the hands-on approach as it is what we do when we plan lessons or units. The format is great because this is one aspect I miss about always working with my department: I don't get to think outside of World Language and learn how other subjects can use the same tooIs I use. The only thing missing is the face-to-face interaction. As far as the content is concerned, practical tools that we are encouraged to think about using in our own classes is as practical as it gets.

Merci!
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Kelly Kim's avatar

Kelly Kim · 787 weeks ago

I love the small time commitment for this class and the fact that I can work on it in my own time and in my own space. iLike everyone else said, I too miss meeting new people and interacting in person. What I seem to get hung up on every week is making the post by the deadline (sometimes I make the Monday deadline, other times I use the 24 hr. time extension.) With the flexibility of the class comes a horrible memory and a busy life that when combined all together is hard to handle at times. :)
1 reply · active 786 weeks ago
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Dan Nelson's avatar

Dan Nelson · 787 weeks ago

I was excited about doing this course online mostly because it would be a "trial run" for other possible online courses but I have found it is actually fun. While working with Kevin Hurt (before baseball coaching took him away - DOH!), I would bounce ideas off him and then we would together come up with something viable. Since he has been otherwise occupied, I still get to be creative but I find it is more "onine" and in keeping with the spirit of global education. As for using the things learned, I will know better next year as I tend to plan things out how I want them to go, incorporate things on an "as needed" basis (i.e., "Hey, this is a cool way to show them this!"), and then add other peoples' ideas and chuck what sucks! I most definitely enjoy the freedom to try a variety of ideas/applications without being mandated which ones are the "Next big Thing!".
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Melissa C.'s avatar

Melissa C. · 787 weeks ago

I have loved this format because I can get the work done on my own time. The lesson I've learned (since it's been a while since I've been in "school") is that I need to respond to the prompt the day it's sent out, otherwise it gets lost in my scary Outlook box!

I particularly have appreciated all the new ideas for resources that I have come across from reading others' posts. Kimberly has posted some great resources and I've also come up with some great ideas from reading the comments of others. For example, the Google book tours that Gavin suggested - I would love to incorporate something like that into my L.A. classes.

I would definitely consider taking another class that was presented in this format!
2 replies · active 786 weeks ago
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Vasili's avatar

Vasili · 787 weeks ago

How is this set up working for you? The set up is great! Very convenient, not too daunting.

How does learning this way stack up next to more traditional ways of learning? This type of learning is more user-friendly; not as dry as traditional ways of learning; more self-directed.

Have you learned anything about the way you learn that might impact how you teach? I think that I like to learn through discussion, listening, reading, and participating -- this forum facilitates that. I definitely want to apply this type of a learning format to more of the work that I do in my classes, especially with peer-revision of student writing, literature circles, and outside reading.

Any suggestions for the second half of the class? More cowbells! Also, when can we get administrator privileges to be able to install these many wonderful applications onto our laptops? For instance, that add-on for commenting would be great to install!
1 reply · active 787 weeks ago
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Hilary Hall's avatar

Hilary Hall · 787 weeks ago

I also love the set-up of this class. I've been surprised by the amount of interesting technology that I could apply to a world language class, since I guess I tend to think a little more restrictively about technology being used appropriately in a WL class. I also like hearing from other specialties/departments and how they can use the technology, or their questions: it often brings up good ideas for me.
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Laura Bennett's avatar

Laura Bennett · 786 weeks ago

I have learned a lot so far in this class. The most valuable part so far has been reading about how others would use the technology in their own classes, others thoughts often get me thinking about ideas I likely would not have come up with on my own.

Second semester, I'm interested in learned about other tools that students can use to present information. I think the fallback tool is always Powerpoint, but there has to be other thigs avaliable that students can access both from school and from home.
1 reply · active 786 weeks ago
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suzanne's avatar

suzanne · 786 weeks ago

Marie--that is such a good idea--very proactive of you and i am sure the students loved it. nice that you had someone at the tahoma end to assist in the process.
about the mid way point--i always feel rushed and never seem to have enough time to read all the comments, research the things you would like us to and then post a comment. sometimes i wish there were other people (i like seeing and discussing eye to eye) but i have learned alot and some of the ideas stick more than others, because i find them more interesting. i don't know where Kimberly finds all this cool stuff but i do like it that we have a week to try it out before we are off on a new one, rather than back to back mini lessons during an inservice.
i ditto Laura's request about other tools that students can use to present information to the class with the technology i have in my room.
COOLIO
Suzanne
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Rhonda Ham's avatar

Rhonda Ham · 786 weeks ago

Since I haven't used blogs before, I have enjoyed using it for this class and would be interested in participating in another on-line class in the future. I especially like the ability to relook at some of the great ideas for using the tools we have viewed. I do miss the personal contact with people in a traditional class setting and as much as the reply capabilities allow for comments to be made, I prefer face-to-face discussions. I have enjoyed looking through and using the sites that Kimberly has had us view because I probably would not have found them on my own or thought of using them in a school setting. I would like to see some ideas for the 2nd half of the class focused around presentation techniques that students could access if they miss school and also tools for presentation that are different than powerpoint.
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thehurt 17p · 786 weeks ago

At the midway point of the Learn and Earn experiment, I'm pretty content with it. What I most appreciate about the online discussion format is simply that everyone involved has a voice. My experiences as a student in other PD classes is that some people talk and ask questions while others mostly listen. I enjoy the balance of participation that the online discussions allows us.

For this reason, interactive online discussions are definitely something I'd like to do more with my classes. My biggest worry with that is that students I teach (8th and 9th graders) tend to be less invested and less motivated to engage in the discussion. My limited experience with online learning has been that students go through the motions and do the minimum they feel is required.

However, without the actual experience, I can't say this for sure. I'm wondering if there's anyone else out there that has used more interactive online discussions such as the one we're using, and more importantly how the students have reacted to them.
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Brooke's avatar

Brooke · 786 weeks ago

I did this class partly for the hours (bad confession), but one of my favorite things about it is learning new things in little snippets of time. Not only is time a short commodity, as we all know, but I also get overwhelmed with too much brand-new technology thrown at me quickly. I love little glimpses of new ideas in 15 minutes of time that I can gradually incorporate into my mind and skill set. Thank you, Kimberly, for this novel approach to learning!
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Rich Young's avatar

Rich Young · 786 weeks ago

My taking this class has been like the students who come to the drama productions and write a review for extra credit. They're surprised at how fun it was to see the play, and I've gotten more out of it than just the hours. While I basically like the format, I also find that I usually have to do it immediately, or I forget about it until the last minute. Like Nathalie, I sometimes find that I have to come back to it and get inspired by someone else's application. One thing I particularly like is that it's a sharing of ideas rather than just responses to questions. I think a major problem with many of the on-line classes is that the questions are far too limiting for "discussion"; therefore, the first people to respond get to say a lot, and the later ones are "stuck" trying to come up with something new.
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Joelle's avatar

Joelle · 786 weeks ago

I have enjoyed this class and it makes me try new things that I normally would not due to time constraints. I do enjoy reading others ideas when I can but that is not often. I would like to see for the second half of the class ways for students to present their information.
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Tracy de Leon's avatar

Tracy de Leon · 786 weeks ago

I have thoroughly enjoyed the format of this class. We are all soooooo busy and the flexibility of "attending" the class when it is convenient for you rather than a set time after school on a weekly basis has been great. I like checking back to see what people have said and discovering new ways to apply the website/skills learned from our assignment.
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Patty Stillmaker's avatar

Patty Stillmaker · 786 weeks ago

I am looking at things that I have done with new eyes. It has made me think of using technology in different ways by looking at what other people have done or are thinking about doing. I also am looking at using technology that I have been using in a different way as well. I appreciated all the ideas others have shared.
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Anne Hobson's avatar

Anne Hobson · 786 weeks ago

I have been reading all of the posts and am discovering that my ambition far outweighs my ability to pursue the new ideas. I read one post about maps and think "Oh, I could do that for this novel." Then I see another idea from edubologs and think "Oh that's perfect!" The list goes on and on. Converting the ideas into lesson plans and actual activities is where I fail to find the time right now. Well, I fail to make the time. I wonder if an exploratory class like this could end on a collaborative note where people team up and pursue one of the tech wizard websites, locations, applications, etc. and make the idea an actual lesson. Hmmm
2 replies · active 786 weeks ago
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bgholston's avatar

bgholston · 786 weeks ago

I enjoy the format for this class. I wish I had more time to try the many new ideas that have been provided. I hope that I can find time to use some of these ideas in my classroom.
1 reply · active less than 1 minute ago
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Penny Blair's avatar

Penny Blair · 786 weeks ago

This has been exciting and time-consuming. I am a little overwhelmed by possibilities and stressed by the time it takes me to try new things with any confidence. Sometimes I would just like to throw out ideas and have kids make something of it, but I am usually shot down by the "what should it look like?", "Is this good enough?" - usually no, "how do you do this?", "where do I find_______?". I would love to pose the question and have students take off on their own to find the answer. I guess I have difficulty tapping into the kids' curiousity sometimes. Lab time is an issue also.
However, the things I am learning are impressive and will be put to use eventually. I need to take the time to be more comfortable so that I can see more possibilities. Now I will read other's comments.
1 reply · active 786 weeks ago
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Jennifer Roesch's avatar

Jennifer Roesch · 786 weeks ago

I really enjoy on the on-line class because you can do it at your own pace- as you can see I am always a little behind on the due date:) I have a hard time incorporating some of these technologies in my classroom because my students abilities are a lot lower than other kids but it helps me learn new things and makes me think about different ways I can try to incorporate technology in my classroom.
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lgranger's avatar

lgranger · 786 weeks ago

There is definitly a positive to working this way in that you can do it on your own time. I can also see how my students could like this since the are so used to doing work on the computer and are online often. My challenge with it is that it is on my own time and time tends to fly by and leaves me scrambling to get this done. I see that I am very used to traditional classes and having to be in class at a certain time makes me do it and I won't let time get away from me like I do if left on my own. The class has been good for me in that I have learned new things and also I know if I would take a full class like this, I would have to set aside an exact time for me to work on it or I would be doing it at the last minute.
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Renee's avatar

Renee · 786 weeks ago

This has been a great way to communicate and be introduced to some great ideas (both Kimberly's and the rest of you). My biggest challenge is making sure I don't get too busy and forget to do it. I have come up with some great ideas to start the year with and am hoping that Kimberly leaves this up long enough so I can review our ideas before starting the school year in August. Thanks for having us go back and look at past posts- it helped me to think about the topic again and review the comments!
1 reply · active 786 weeks ago

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