Randy Pausch's Last Lecture was definitely worth watching. While I was taking notes for myself and my life, I found myself getting frustrated because I thought I was missing out on the next thing he was saying. I have never seen someone face death the same way he seemed too. Even though he knew that he had at the most, four months to live, he planned to make them productive and worth living. He did not sit and pity himself, nor did he handle it with anger. He realized that there was nothing that could be done and if he did pass away from the tumors in his liver, then it was his time to go.
The main focus of Mr. Pausch's speech is challenging people to go after their childhood dreams. Mr. Pausch walks through his life explaining his different childhood dreams, and his experience with trying to achieve all of them. I was encouraged to see the way that he handled success and defeat in each of the areas. You cannot even really say that he considered any of them defeats, but rather lessons to be learned. He says, "Experience is what you get when you don't get what you want." To express this thought, he uses his experience with football. Even though he dreamed of playing in the NFL and never made it, he learned the most through that process.
One thing that stood out to me the most was his attitude towards his football experience. He talked about one practice in particular where the coach had been extremely hard on him and corrected everything he did. After practice was over, another person came over and questioned him about the practiced and how hard the coach was on him. This particular outsider encouraged Randy in this way, he told him that the way the coach was handling him was a good sign. He went on to say that when the coach is not staying on your back and correcting you, it is because he has given up on you. I knew the statement was true immediately, but I had never thought about it that way.
Not only does Randy Pausch encourage people to pursue the deepest desire of their hearts, but he encourages people to enable others to pursue their dreams. There is much to be said about people that are able to inspire and encourage people to be all that they can be. Randy quoted one of his co-workers saying, "wait long enough and people will surprise and impress you." This is a good mindset to have when you are investing in people and encouraging them to pursue their dreams. People do not normally respond the exact way we expect them too. Therefore, it takes time and patience on the investors part to walk through the challenges with them. I was encouraged and challenged by Randy's last lecture and enjoyed listening to it.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Wikipedia Discovered
Wikipedia is a common database that many people use for research. The main problem with this is the simple fact that anyone and everyone can change the information documented on Wikipedia. For instance, I could create an account and write an informational article on the topic of my choice. If someone found problems with it, or simply did not agree, they could go in and change the information. Virgil Griffith was the first person to search the process of changing Wikipedia articles from their original content. He found ways to trace the IP address and see who exactly was changing which articles and when. I personally do not think that Wikipedia can ever be fully trusted; however, if you research the information you find on Wikipedia and can back it up with other reliable sources, then you can probably trust it. It is a great research tool to have, but unless it is read with caution and seriously looked into, I do not think it is worth fully trusting and I would not use it a source in research papers.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Fischbowl April 2007: 180 Days
In this blog, the main thing he covers is the 180 school days compared to actual educational days. Throughout his power point presentation, he gives the legitimate reason for the days students miss in school. There are many different activities that can interrupt the flow of an educational school day. Most of these activities are unavoidable. School would be a little bit of a drag without the school assemblies, pep-rallies, and holiday parties. Then, of course, you have the days taken for reviewing and test taking.
The situation at hand is what to do with the actual education days we have. Do we have time to incorporate blogging into the limited classroom time we have? Is it important enough to take time for? I personally think it is a matter of having good classroom management skills and knowing exactly what your goals are during a school day. I think with the growing rate of technology in our world, teaching the students computer skills should be a top priority. There is also a way to probably make blogs work for you and become time savers rather than time "fillers" or "wasters". I think once we begin to see the importance and effectiveness of blogs, we will be able to use it properly in the classroom.
The situation at hand is what to do with the actual education days we have. Do we have time to incorporate blogging into the limited classroom time we have? Is it important enough to take time for? I personally think it is a matter of having good classroom management skills and knowing exactly what your goals are during a school day. I think with the growing rate of technology in our world, teaching the students computer skills should be a top priority. There is also a way to probably make blogs work for you and become time savers rather than time "fillers" or "wasters". I think once we begin to see the importance and effectiveness of blogs, we will be able to use it properly in the classroom.
Podcast Review from Previous Semester
The first podcast I listened to from the previous semester was Sarah Large and Tina Dillen's. They discussed how technology was used in their College of Education classes. I thought they did a great job of covering the topic. It was very formative in thorough. I think the main reason I enjoyed their podcast so much was because of the content they were covering. It was interesting to hear their perspective on Folitek. I honestly could not find anything that I would change about this blog. Everything was presented in a clear manner and seemed to flow nicely.
On the other hand, I listened to the podcast on Carmen O'Conner, Nikita Reed, and Angela Heyer's experience with blogs and how they can be used effectively in the classroom. This particular blog did not seem to flow as well, now did I feel like it covered the content sufficiently. The conversation did not seem organized and they seemed to repeat themselves throughout the whole podcast. This podcast encouraged me to make sure my group had a clear understanding of the information we were going to cover and how we were going to do it. It also seemed like they accidentally put each other on the spot by asking them questions they were not prepared to answer. I do not mean to bash their podcast, these are just a few of the things I would have changed.
On the other hand, I listened to the podcast on Carmen O'Conner, Nikita Reed, and Angela Heyer's experience with blogs and how they can be used effectively in the classroom. This particular blog did not seem to flow as well, now did I feel like it covered the content sufficiently. The conversation did not seem organized and they seemed to repeat themselves throughout the whole podcast. This podcast encouraged me to make sure my group had a clear understanding of the information we were going to cover and how we were going to do it. It also seemed like they accidentally put each other on the spot by asking them questions they were not prepared to answer. I do not mean to bash their podcast, these are just a few of the things I would have changed.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Sunday, February 8, 2009
The Fischbowl: Is it Okay To Be A Technologically Illiterate Teacher?
What a great question... The author of this blog went into great detail in explaining the importance of technology in the classroom. He compared the importance of teacher's technology knowledge to being able to read and write. This is a very bold statement; however, it is a very true statement. It is obvious that our times are changing. The things that have worked in the past will not work in the future. From the previous Fischbowl video we blogged about, they mentioned that we are teaching and preparing children for jobs that do not yet exist. There is a rapid change in the information, knowledge, and technology daily. My generation is already saying, "Do you remember when no one had cell phones?" The possibilities of where we are heading in the 21st century are endless.
It is imperative that we, as teachers, be knowledgeable about the latest technology and findings. It is important that we also stay ahead of our students. Children are becoming more educated at earlier and earlier ages. Even now, many teachers turn to their students to fix computers or solve computer problems. This blog did a great job of informing teachers the importance of staying on top of the technology world. I always knew it was important, but never this important. I am challenged in a new way to be technology savvy, if you will.
It is imperative that we, as teachers, be knowledgeable about the latest technology and findings. It is important that we also stay ahead of our students. Children are becoming more educated at earlier and earlier ages. Even now, many teachers turn to their students to fix computers or solve computer problems. This blog did a great job of informing teachers the importance of staying on top of the technology world. I always knew it was important, but never this important. I am challenged in a new way to be technology savvy, if you will.
Podcast Review
This research on exploring podcast was very informative. I had no clue there were so many different podcast available. Podcast are somewhat harder for me to pay attention too because I am a very visual learner. However, I was able to make myself focus and learn some interesting things from the podcast.
The SmartBoard Lessons podcast was interesting. There was a wealth of information to be explored. Two main speakers run this podcast in a conversation like style. It is interesting to hear them speak on different subjects and really draw a connection between SmartBoards and the classroom.
On the other hand, we have the KidCast. This was informative as well, I just had a much harder time paying attention to everything he was covering. It seemed more like a lecture format. I listened the the "60 Second Lecture". He was teaching on how to be direct and concise with the things you are teaching your children. He then goes on the discuss the different problems teachers have with this approach. It was interesting to hear his perspective on this topic.
The MacBreak Weekly was the most enjoyable podcast for me. I appreciated their approach to discussion. They did a great job of keeping their topic interesting. This would probably by the style of podcast I would use when given the opportunity.
Overall, the podcast were neat to explore. It is a great way to research different topics of your choice and find more in-depth research. I can see where they will become more frequently used for research and teaching in the near future if they are not already.
The SmartBoard Lessons podcast was interesting. There was a wealth of information to be explored. Two main speakers run this podcast in a conversation like style. It is interesting to hear them speak on different subjects and really draw a connection between SmartBoards and the classroom.
On the other hand, we have the KidCast. This was informative as well, I just had a much harder time paying attention to everything he was covering. It seemed more like a lecture format. I listened the the "60 Second Lecture". He was teaching on how to be direct and concise with the things you are teaching your children. He then goes on the discuss the different problems teachers have with this approach. It was interesting to hear his perspective on this topic.
The MacBreak Weekly was the most enjoyable podcast for me. I appreciated their approach to discussion. They did a great job of keeping their topic interesting. This would probably by the style of podcast I would use when given the opportunity.
Overall, the podcast were neat to explore. It is a great way to research different topics of your choice and find more in-depth research. I can see where they will become more frequently used for research and teaching in the near future if they are not already.
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