A link sent to me by the wonderful Jaclyn C.
"The above activity (webpage) is in English, but I think it could be useful to label in German.
Ich habe Fluegel und Pfoten. Mein Fluegel sind schwarz und orange.
Ich habe Horner. Ich bin schoen aber gefahrlich.
Ich habe kein……
Viel Spass
Jaclyn"
Professor MacFarlane discusses many issues which ring true to me. In particular:
- lack of vision for what education could be like with new technology (around 4 min mark)
- the web2.0 and technology revolution is great for the 15% of people who have a good life anyway because of their suituation and culture (5:30)
- others don't benefit from the access to the technology - they need help (6:00)
- no change in classroom over last 20 years with computers and in danger of no change in next 20 years (7:30)
- instruction vs. construction (8:30)
- expect learning to change with introduction of technology (10:30) - but hasn't really done so
- student self-directed learning is separate from school work i.e. at home and not related to school (14:30)
- much of what kids do on computers at home is trivial (16:00)
- the ones that do have good experiences are the same 15% (16:30)
- kids that are missing out have a computer at home probably but no access to the community that enables them to have these experiences (17:10)
- doing something by themselves does not really benefit them - it is being part of a community that had benefit for learning
- what are we dong for these people? (19:10)
- talking about missing pedagogical model for how to teach (22:00)
- teachers are expected to use technology to provide innovative learning but no model against which to do so, some don't use it at all, some use it inappropriately - there maybe some individual examples but not overall (23:00)
- schools bad at connecting with their communities in a learning sense (26:00)
- talks about chinese online writing community and how they comment, collaborate (34:00)
- community (47:30)
- communitites aren't formed when people are brought together in schools etc.
- need to have a common problem or interest (48:30) - Plant's definition?
- in education the problem is because assessment is done individually (49:00)
- so forming groups and sharing ideas is not attractive for students - worried about not getti
The class finished an hour or so ago, but I've found myself thinking more about these two questions and their significance to the students. I don't know whether my responses to the two questions enlightened them at all. I do know, though, that the fact that they wanted to ask these two questions, and the stillness in the room as I tried to answer them, told me quite a lot about what was on their minds as we began our work together.
Fantastic free software that creates books out of your photos, and most usefully for me, your BLOGS! Download, arrange and order hard or softcover books made by you.
Here is a great use of a Wiki for students and teachers: a compilation of videos about grammar. The concept is really simple : contributors to the wiki add embeds of videos from YouTube about grammar concepts. Videos currently included on the wiki include the passive voice, negative forms of "must" and "have to", prepositions of place (at, on, in), who vs. whom, I vs. me, which vs. that, personal pronouns and many more.
Facebook has recently updated their privacy settings. If like me you have been prompted to adjust your settings you may also have experienced a deal of confusion as to what these changes mean in practice. All Facebook, http://www.allfacebook.com/the Unofficial Facebook Resource has realised this and have developed a 10 point guide on resetting your privacy including comparisons with previous settings. In addition to the online version they also offer the opportunity to download a copy of the guide.
"Review of 2009: 100 great resources
At the end of 2008 I produced my review of the year by listing 100 resources I enjoyed during the year. This proved quite popular, so I have done it again this year. I have selected 100 resources - articles postings, PDFs, presentations, videos etc - about (workplace and academic) learning, tools or technologies that I found of interest or practical use or made me think! The 100 resources are listed below, chronologically by the month in which they appeared. "
"Dropbox has been one of those extremely useful online tools for me over the past couple years and keeps getting better as time goes on. For those of you who aren't familiar with the program, it basically is a file sharing app. Once installed onto a couple computers, it then creates a folder on each user's system and syncs any files that are added into the folder. "
Excellent example of how different computing files can be synchronised between computers and shared. Free for PC's & Macs (2 GB). There is a version for the iPhone as well but seems pricey.
Better we make the wise decision than the expedient one.
Read the older educators... Read Ted Sizer and Deborah Meier and Herb Kohl... and feel the wisdom in their words. They write without hubris, but instead with an acknowledgment of their own flawed humanity. They write with an understand that they cannot be all things to all children, but with the knowledge that they must come as close as they can.
I am far from religious, but I am reminded a lot these days of the serenity prayer:
God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.
Let’s stop talking about the future and start doing something now! Generations of children have missed-out on rewarding educational experiences while we worry about how corporate meetings will be conducted in 2019.
Suggestions for school improvement:
smaller classes
a curriculum related to real life
better teacher education
teachers make room in the curriculum for the folk-tales of children’s ancestors
parents encouraged to visit the school
more intimate contact with people outside of school and cooperating with the entire neighborhood
"Even if the technological progress gap between 2000 and 2010 was enormous, there is almost zero evidence that it has made an impact on education. Yeah, I know. "Blogging changed your life. Your PLN saved you from social isolation…" Social media just doesn't feel that new to me and I challenge you to argue that it has had more than an infinitesimal impact on classroom practice."
"I was skiing in Brooklyn's Prospect Park and I found a roll of film. I had the film developed and this is what I found. Please contact me if you recognize the people in the photos. brooklynfoundfilm@gmail.com
"One of the essentials in Reading this year is one-on-one conferencing with students. When I saw that The CAFE suggested using three-ring binders with tons of copies for each student, I went mentally-fetal. It wouldn't just be one three-ring binder I'd need to organize. I have three classes!
Knowing that much paperwork would overwhelm me, I set about devising a system. I settled on Evernote with an iPad I've borrowed from my district's IT department. I want to lay out a few screenshots of how it works and why I like it."
"Companies who want to know more about prospective employees can learn a lot by checking their Facebook profiles, according to a new study.
Jennifer Golbeck and colleagues at the University of Maryland surveyed the public profiles of nearly 300 Facebook users for information about their favourite activities, TV shows, movies, music, books, quotes, and membership in political or other organisations.
They also looked at the "About Me" and "blurb" sections. The work did not include status updates or other data that is only available to users' online friends."