PLN 15

I responded to Jeff Utecht's blog called, "Back from Digital Darkness 2008". He was writing about his experience from going "Screen Free" for a week, and how this made him reflect on how much he uses technology.

Reading things like this just makes me realize how obsessed the world has become with technology. Maybe we have to be constantly involved in technology because it is the future. To keep up with society you have to always be involved in the new trends and technology is the biggest trend of all. Sometimes I don’t think it is really our decision to be so attached, sometimes a cell phone or email is the only way to communicate. Or a lot of my assignments in school require me to use a computer, so what am I going to do, say “No, I can’t finish this project because I’m trying to distance myself from technology.” Yeah I don’t think my teachers would be too happy with that response.
Then again some of this attachment is all free will, (even though no one can really make you use technology) choosing to check your web page, like MySpace or a FaceBook is completely optional. Or texting your family member that dinner is ready instead of walking those few steps to tell them yourself. I also liked how you pointed out that technology isn’t going anywhere, because I think that many people feel that if they don’t constantly check the internet for the latest news and updates in technology then they will miss it. As you put it,

“There is nothing that happened last week that is not there for me this week to
learn. There is nothing that happened last week that I can not search and
find out about. What I have come to understand is the web waits for you.”

That is such a brilliant and true statement, obviously technology is here to stay, that is until we discover the next big thing, but we have all the time to learn and do what we will with it. We all need to learn to not let technology control out life, and know that it is possible to live with out it, even for a week.

PLN 14

I decided to respond to Mr. Fisch’s post called, “The Need for Texbooks” which discussed the importance…or in this case un-importance of textbooks these days.

Mr. Fisch,

When I read this post I have to admit it made me laugh a little that textbooks’ only purpose is to protect our heads incase of a tornado. In a way I hope text books stick around because I don’t think my teacher would be too happy about me using a laptop to protect my head… in fact my body would probably be instructed to protect the laptop. This obviously saying that technology will soon completely replace all textbooks and maybe paper used in school altogether! If you think about what would be the harm in having online tests, or worksheets that you can just email the assignments to your teacher. It could save a whole lot of trees. I honestly can’t remember the last time I even brought home a textbook; I have always just accessed the online version from my computer at home. Then again what about the schools that are barely keeping up with having enough textbooks for each student, how could they afford to use laptops, or put the homework on a CD? I guess only time will tell what advancements will be made and how they will all work out.

PLN Presentation Reaction

My presentation went pretty well and very smoothly. I needed to make a little more eye contact with my audience and not rely on my notes so much. I got great comments back about how I did a good job on going into good detail on my posts and relating them to myself. For next time I will just try to be a little more confident in that I know what I’m saying so I don’t have to read off my notes so much.

PLN-13

As a student I see the effects of poor teaching from the receiving end. I have had many teachers who use the same exact curriculum year after year with the same projects and same work ethics. The point of school to me is to learn, practice, and then succeed, now learning being the first thing means opening your mind to new ideas and criticism to better your skills in Math, Language Arts, Science or any other class. Obviously over the years I have gathered more knowledge and improved my thinking skills drastically. If I just kept my thinking in the same spot for my entire school career then, well, I would still be in first grade not going anywhere. The same applies to teachers; they must be constantly changing their ways in teaching every day. Learning from what teaching skills work and which ones don’t, every student learns in different ways so a teacher must conform to fit the needs of those children. Also keeping in mind in how our world and society, in technology especially, has been changing and developing into new things that no one has ever seen before. Not learning from the changes around you and just sticking with the same old teaching styles will only hurt the students in the long run because they will not be prepared for the future. There is always room for improvement.

PLN-12

In an article I read titled, "The State of American Education: Not so great" by Will Richardson which was talking about how millions of kids are dropping out of high school or failing out and this problem needs to be addressed everywhere. He pointed out that many cities might be oblivious to the huge amount of kids dropping out of school in even the biggest cities. Mr. Richardson was saying how he worked in a district that graduated over 90% of their students and how many of them went off to college, but that is not the case in many of the inner cities of America. In those schools it is about a fifty-two percentage of students graduating from school.
This relates to me because luckily I go a school where the teachers and staff work very hard to have the students make the best possible future for themselves. Meaning this we are always updating in technology and getting supplies that will better our education. The thing is that in less fortunate schools that are unable to get this kind of supplies, so should that really effect the learning? Do you really need the latest technology to get the same education as somebody from a very wealthy private school? Unfortunately I think that is true, which upsets me thinking that just because someone is born into a less wealthy home that they will not be able to receive the education that they deserve. All around the world I think that students may be denied a proper education because of the income their family makes, or the city they live in. I do not think that is fair at all because it seems that all that potential is going to waste, but then again if someone truly is trying to succeed as much as they can in life they will find a way. At the end he said, "We’re failing millions of kids." So to me that seems that all schools and districts or governments need to work together to make sure that every child has that opportunity to succeed. This means that something needs to change whether that is giving more money to schools to purchase the supplies needed, or hiring more teachers that are equipped with the skills to teach these kids even with out all of that fancy technology it can be done.

PLN 11

I found a very interesting article called, “Making Kids “Googlable” written by Will Richardson which talked about getting kids prepared for a good “resume” for the future. First it talks about how Will had gone around and asked some Principles and Administrators if they have ever “Googled” a potential teacher that they may hire. Many to his surprise said that yes they have searched their name on Google and even on MySpace. They said that the reasoning for this was just to make sure that no negative background would come up, and if they happen to come by a very positive thing about them that that information could also come useful in the hiring decision. It then went on to talk about how adults especially teachers and principles need to get the students “online portfolio” looking good. I predict that more and more employers will be using Google and other online tools to find out more about people so why not make your online pages look good.

To me it makes sense because in the article it did say,

“Almost all of them admit, however, that finding positive things about their
applicants, as in portfolios or collaborations or even social sites, does or
could make a positive difference in the process.”

So if you have some impressive “stats” online than that could be a plus. Even though I do not quite understand what these portfolios would include, it is important for students all over the world to at least start thinking about the future and how getting important but obviously safe information online could be useful in the future.

PLN 10

I read an article called, “Bridging the Difference” was talking about how to make kids in school actually want to learn. It was saying how so many kids do not feel the need to even go to school anymore. They think, why go somewhere that I hate, get yelled at, picked on, and always stressed? This relates to me because I feel like that sometimes too. When I get home to do my homework (that is just piling up) and I look at my history homework that I have to name the officers in a war I wonder how this will actually help my life. Or, do I really know how to find the circumference of a circle in my life? Honestly the only reason I go to school is because I have to, and I want to succeed in life and go to college (even though that is just more school).

More and more kids are dropping out of school each year. This needs to be cut down but how? Teachers and schools need to start taking a different approach in teaching. First of all, we have had the same curriculum for the past 40 years it seems. I am doing projects that my mom did over thirty years ago. If our world is changing so much and we are advancing so much then why isn’t our learning changing too? School needs to be more interesting and reach out to everyone and their learning needs. If those changes happen our schools will be a better more interesting place.

PLN 9

In an interesting article I read called, “Shifting Again” by Karl Fisch was about how our world can take that shift into bettering our earth. Some ways he talked about were having electric cars on the road instead of cars that emit harmful gasses into our atmosphere. Or a way to gain more energy by using windmills. These windmills can pick up a lot of energy at night when the wind picks up.

This relates to me and the world because well obviously I am apart of this world that I think could be in danger. We need to start making these changes to help our world, even I can make a difference, maybe by just recycling more. In my science class at school the topic these past weeks has actually been out global change. We have talked about global warming, greenhouse effect, energy, and a lot more that has made me more informed on the subject.

PLN 8

I read an article called, "Revealing Your Inner Superhero" written by David B. Bohl which was talking about how people fear failure too much so that it keeps them from trying. I found this article very facinating and creative in the way that almost everyone at one point or another has maybe not wanted to be a super hero but at least wanted to be someone better than they are now. Instead of being a plumber, wanting to be a lawyer, or instead of making JV football, wanting to be the quarterback on Varsity, everyone wants to be at least a little better or more successful at something in their life. So what is holding them back from fulfilling these goals? Fear. The fear of losing, the fear of that embarassment and dissapointment. This is the fear that we need to get over to succeed at life.
For me I am constantly doubting myself thinking I am just not good enough to do something. I was afraid I would not be smart enough to be in an honors class this year which kept me from even trying out. I was afraid my times just were not fast enough in swimming which also prevented me from trying out. Both of those I regret not doing now because I never even gave myself a chance to at least try. People all over are always making the same mistake I made out doubting themselves and not having enough faith in themselves. Maybe in sports someone did not think that they could make that final shot at the buzzer and lost the game. Or, a doctor not trusting that they could have much success in a dangerous procedure and never knowing if that life could have been saved. Not saying to take careless choices, but just believe in yourself a little bit more in life, and you will see how much of a difference it will make.

PLN 7

I read an article called, “Teenagers as “Teamagers”…What do You Think?” by Will Richardson which was discussing how working in groups can be more productive than alone. The idea that I was getting from this was two brains are better that one, or three, or five, or ten. Working in a group is a way that tasks can get done more efficiently.
This relates to me because well honestly I am not a huge fan of the group work anymore. The reason is because I find myself doing all of the work, and not because I want to, but because I am the only one that will. Recently I have been in numerous group projects where I have done majority if not all of the work, and my partner(s) receive credit for my hard work. Though there have had times where a group project has worked wonderfully. Everyone had a job got it done, and we all were able to discuss our ideas and collaborate them. So I suppose it really just depends on who you are working with. Obviously that is how it relates to me at school, because most of my group work is based around school. In all of my classes we have had an assignment at one time or another where we had to partner up or get into groups. Like I said before I have had great results, and not so great results, but it has definitely helped me learn to work with others and learn from those situations.
Working in groups has really prepared me for the world, and my future. I plan to get a job and unless I am running my very private own business I am going to be working with people. That means working people that I may not get along with and people that will not pull their own weight. So working with these types of groups now good and bad is good “practice”. People all over the world are constantly working together trying to get a task completed. Whether that task being a group of constructions workers building a tall skyscraper, or a band playing in harmony to please a crowd, everyday people are working together as one. That is what community is all about, helping each other and living as one no matter how independent out country may be. That is how working together not just on school projects as a teenager, but completing tasks as a hole is a magnificent idea.