One Last Thing :)

• What were your favorite discoveries or exercises on this learning journey?

• How has this program affected your lifelong learning goals?
  I have thoroughly enjoyed completing the 23 Things! Keeping a blog about anything was a new experience for me, let alone keeping one in which everything I blogged about was new to me. Having finished learning about all the new tools and resources in 23 Things, my goals for learning now include always being up-to-date on technology and its uses! One tool that I will definitely take away from this project is the online To-Do list; when you get right down to it, could ANYTHING be more convenient?? :) This feature took me by surprise simply because I didn't realize that there was such a thing. Looking back, I don't know why I was surprised because it's such a simple idea that's so practical! The primary way that I will keep up with developments in technology is to follow and read some blogs on the subject. My RSS reader will undoubtedly come in handy for this endeavor! I can think of no improvements to be made to this program's format; the only changes that will probably need to be made are, of course, the addition of new technological innovations as they come along. I believe that the content I have learned from keeping this blog will impact my teaching career in a major way because it has changed the very core of how I think about technology. My attitude about it has changed greatly; now, rather than being the slightest bit intimidated by it, I'm prepared to manipulate it and make it work to my advantage.

Furthermore, I resolve to keep the account I created for maintaining this blog so that one day I may morph it into a blog for use in my own classroom! Looking forward to Learning 2.1!

Thing 23

 As a teacher, I will be very grateful to Creative Commons for providing me with a whole host of materials that can be used, free of penalty, in my classroom! I like the concept of educators everywhere being able to share useful resources with one another, with the understanding that credit is given where it is due, and all uses are lawful and fair. Our APSU 23 Things project is a spinoff of a similar program, 43 Things I (orYou) Might Want to do This Year. This paragraph in the "About" section at the top of the 23 Things page sums up the project's origins nicely:

Learning 2.0 - 23 Things for Teachers is based on Learning 2.0 - 23 Things. That program is based on the Learning 2.0 program that was designed by Helene Blowers, Technology Director at the Charlotte Mecklenburg County Public Library system, with the support and assitance of several staff. Helene's program was loosely based upon Stephen Abram's article, 43 Things I (or You) might want to do this year (Information Outlook - Feb 2006) and the website 43Things.

Thing 22

The podcast that I listened to was titled "Extreme Makeover-The Classroom Edition". http://www.podcastdirectory.com/podshows/8830611 I found it using Podcastdirectory.com, which I found to be much more easily navigated than "Educational Podcast Directory". Once I was through listening to the cast, I subscribed to "The Tech Teacher Network" using my Google reader account; as always, this process took only seconds! {I'm beginning to feel nothing can top the simplicity and convenience of Google. :)} In this cast, the narrator discusses giving your classroom a "technology makeover" on a budget. Aside from this particular podcast, one feed that I am planning to subscribe to and listen to regularly is "Fitness Motivation Podcasts", because this is a topic of personal interest to me.

Thing 21

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

This activity was so much fun! Creating an account took less than a minute, Animoto was easy to experiment with, and the step-by-step instructions for making the video were no problem at all to follow (the photo-uploading process was similar to putting pictures on Facebook). For my next Animoto video I'm going to incorporate some video highlights and play around with different styles. I'm already making plans for a video using pictures from the Christmas get-together my friends and I are planning! I don't know why someone didn't think of a site like this sooner. :)

Thing 20

I am a huge fan of YouTube! I frequently employ the site to watch television show episodes, news clips, etc. I like that the site allows you to search its content in a way that is similar to a "Google" search; a user simply types in keywords or phrases to search by, or full titles of videos if known. The only thing I don't particularly enjoy about YouTube is that it can be difficult to locate the exact video you seek. Search results are often skewed and slightly disorganized. Also, of course, as the site is free and open to any user some of the content can be quite unsavory. Typically, though, such videos are easily recognizable and therefore easily avoided. If a YouTube feature were applied to the APSU library website, students could access historical film clips or significant documentaries. I personally would find this addition highly useful for research purposes, as many research paper assignments now require one of the writer's sources to be of the video media variety.

The video I chose is of Franklin Delano Roosevelt addressing the nation following the attacks on Pearl Harbor; I selected this clip because of its historical relevance, especially at this particular time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VqQAf74fsE

Thing 19

As I mentioned in my previous Thing, I'm an avid member of Facebook, and have now acquired a MySpace as well! The social networks that I found appealing were Fuzzster (because I love animals) and 43 Things. 43 Things was especially interesting; I liked looking at the random list of people's new year's resolutions for 2011. Some of them, like "think more, react less" and "lend unconditional peace to circumstances that would otherwise drive me crazy" really made me stop and think! I'm going to brainstorm for awhile about a creative resolution of my own, then join 43 Things and post it. :) Teacher Pop also looks like a really great online community; my profile info is still pending approval from an administrator, and once it goes through I plan to become an active member! Networking for professional purposes is something I aspire to do more of as I move closer to beginning my career as an educator, and tools such as these will undoubtedly prove useful.

Thing 18

 Why is it important that educators know how social networking works? What new insights did you gain about these popular sites? What did you like or dislike about each of the sites you explored? Which site had the most useful features? Can you see a classroom or school application for any of these sites?
As a member of Facebook for nearly five years, I cannot imagine my life without the network! Keeping in touch with friends and family would be much less involved, and I would not feel as "up-to-date" with what my friends are doing throughout the day. I like that Facebook allows users to "like" fellow members' posts, pictures, comments, etc. The "like" feature is simple, and provides an easy, fun way to connect on a really casual level with any of your friends' Facebook actions that you agree with. Another fun feature of the network is its personal reminders of events and birthdays. The only aspect of Facebook that I do not appreciate is that at times spam messages from psuedo-accounts get sent to my inbox; if I were to mistakenly open one of these, my computer could be exposed to a virus or my account could be hacked.

For this assignment, I created a MySpace account in addition to my Facebook. The sites are similar in setup, with both providing fields for basic personal information as well as a blog-like "About Me" section free for editing by the user at any time. I am not yet as fond of MySpace as I am of Facebook; perhaps given time to become more familiar with its orientation, I will begin to enjoy it more. Out of the two networks, I personally feel that Facebook's features are more useful.

As a teacher, I would implement Facebook's "Groups" feature as a means of creating a sense of community in my classroom, with my students and their parents getting involved as they choose. This would be a similar concept to creating a blog such as this one for use by parents in order to keep up with classroom happenings.  

http://www.myspace.com/557313337
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=593066306

Thing 17

As I looked through APSU 23 Things's bookmarks on Delicious, I noted that many of the top tags used for the sites involved the tools we've been using in this class-- Web 2.0, wikis, technology, blogs, etc. While I could see the tags associated with each site, user comments were not visible to me from the 23 Things page at Delicious or the "Networks", "Tags", or "Subscriptions" sections..however, on some of the sites (for example, "21 Classes", comments from readers were listed. I think this tool has potential for usefulness in the classroom because teachers can access social bookmarking sites to see what online tools and sites their colleagues are implementing as teaching tools, and possibly begin using them as well.

Thing 16

• Which start page did you choose? Why did that one appeal to you? Will you make it your permanent home page?

For my start page, I chose iGoogle. (I must confess, the main reason it initially appealed to me was the pink background shown in the example picture; pink is my favorite color!) I was astounded by how quickly my own, personal start page generated---it literally took seconds for me to select a theme and page features and click the "create" button, and voila! There it was. :) I settled on the "European Beaches" background because I like to have a calming, serene picture to glance at every now and then. I will probably make this my homepage, it's complete with celebrity news, online games, NPR updates, and even a joke of the day!

• How can the online calendars be useful to you?

Online calendars could be useful in helping me keep track of school assignment deadlines, special occasions like family birthdays and anniversaries, or my personal fitness regime of running & various weight training and yoga classes.

• What about the to-do lists—helpful, too much work…?

I chose to create a to-do list at "Ta-Da"; the name made it sound really fun, but I actually found it quite plain. This is not a bad thing, though, because the site's simplicity definitely caters to the convenience of having a to-do list on your computer.

• Did you find a tool that has some uses for you at the school or at home? Which tool(s) would you recommend to others?

I think my "Ta-Da" account will certainly be put to much use from now on! I'm constantly making these little "lists", and not having to keep up with hard copies of them will make life just a little bit easier. :) I would reccomend this site and iGoogle to others. I also looked at the About.com article on the Top 10 online productivity sites. Some of the sites featured that I found interesting were Google desktop and Google Docs & Spreadsheets. The latter would probably be useful in Instructional Technology!

Thing 15

For Thing 15, I got to finally understand what Wikis are all about! A big fan of Wikipedia for light "research" purposes, I had never fully understood the way these tools work until completing this assignment. As I looked over a few of the options provided for exploration (Princeton's summer book club, Wikinomics--which would have been helpful to me in high school economics class!--and the Teacherlibriarianwiki) the main theme I noticed with all of these sites is collaboration. This purpose was also apparent in the video, Wikis in Plain English, in which we are given the example of friends planning a camping trip and using a Wiki to get organized and all be involved on the same level in planning. The concept reminds me of using a Facebook group to plan an event; once a person joins, he or she can contribute for all group members to see,and everyone stays connected because everyone can log on and see or edit the same page.
As I edited the APSU 23 Things Wiki "Sandbox", I found it slightly tedious to navigate. Luckily, one of the first posts from a classmate I saw on the frontpage advised anyone looking to edit the wiki to create an account first. After doing this, I clicked around until I found a "Create Page" button. My page doesn't show up on the front section, but can be found pretty easily under the "Pages" section. It was a fun experience, a little like participating in an online discussion board but with more options for editing your contribution.

Thing 14

For this Discovery Exercise, I chose to explore Gliffy.com and Bubbl.us. Both sites were interesting and easy to navigate; I set up an account for each in less than a minute. The main difference that I observed in Flow Charts and Mindmaps was that flow charts are typically created with the intention of getting factual concepts across to the reader, while mindmaps are for use by the individual creating them as a tangible, concrete representation of his or her ideas. Indeed, the button I clicked to get started on my mindmap at Bubbl.us was marked, "Start Brainstorming". :)

At Gliffy.com, I created a Venn Diagram that gave a summary of similarities and differences between myself and my two roommates. This was easy to do, and the site was basically self-explanatory. At Bubbl.us, however, I found creating a brainstorming chart of Holiday 2010 plans slightly more difficult. Getting the format of the chart to do what I wanted it to (position, organization, etc.) was tedious and much more time-consuming than making the Venn Diagram had been. I chose these two sites because they looked interesting; I would most likely use Gliffy for producing a flowchart for future academic endeavors, but will probably not attempt to use Bubbl.us again.

Thing 13

I absolutely LOVE Zoho Writer! After creating my free account, I used Zoho to write two journal entries for my online Intro to Special Education class. Sometime in the near future I will need to email them to my professor, and knowing that I can now access them from any computer on campus (i.e., whenever it is most convenient!) really puts my mind at ease. Throughout every semester at school, it seems, I constantly email myself documents in order to print them out or pull them up in class. Using Zoho will make this process obsolete; having my documents readily accessible from the internet is much simpler than having to send them to myself. Using Zoho Writer could almost make any computer seem like your own PC. Talk about convenience!

Thing 8

     

Flickr and Flickr Mashups would be great tools to use in the classroom! Flickr is an excellent source for visual aids of all kinds, and a mashup such as Spell With Flickr could be used in creating fun & innovative classroom decor (see above). The use of these sites should not, in my opinion, be extended to posting photographs of students online. Doing so would present multiple opportunities for a child to become endangered, and as educators, we cannot put ourselves in a position to be held liable for such endangerment, or (more importantly) allow our students to be put in harm's way. However, posting of personal photos outside of one's profession should be done with one's own discretion.

Thing 12

For this learning activity, I chose to use Google Translator and set up several Google Alerts, as these were the two Google tools that captured my attention the most. I am very interested in the workings of different languages, and am enthralled with the concept of  RSS feeds and other methods of bringing the content of the Internet straight to my computer, so naturally these seemed like the tools for me.

For my Google Alerts, I have signed up to receive news postings regarding the Tennessee Volunteers (my favorite SEC football team), New York City's mayor, Michael Bloomberg, and funding for education, once a day via email. I have also signed up for alerts on blog posts about high-stakes testing; as a future educator it will be helpful for me to stay familiar with the latest pros and cons of controversial topics in education, and I plan to sign up for alerts on more topics of a similar nature soon.
http://www.google.com/alerts/manage?hl=en&gl=us&eh=KnAJvRgIaJZK9pXp6D6joFMBfa8

Using the Google Translate tool, I translated the song that was stuck in my head (Kenney Chesney's "Seven Days a Thousand Times") into my favorite language to hear, write in, and speak (other than English), French! When I pressed the "translate" button the results were instant; impressive!
http://translate.google.com/#

Thing 11

The method that I found best for finding feeds was to type a topic into Google Blogs and peruse the results that came up, much as one would do when conducting a normal Google search of web content. Indeed, Google Blogs was the search tool I found the easiest to use; more confusing were the Technorati and Syndic8 sites. During completion of this learning activity I subscribed to two feeds, School Library Learning 2.0 and 2CoolTools, a feed about useful electronic resources for teachers. For other ways of locating news feeds, I access Google Reader and type a keyword or website name into the search bar and choose from the results (similar to Google Blogs). I also find the Topix website to be of interest because its feeds are local to the Clarksville area.

Thing 10

Thing 10 is my favorite technological innovation covered in class thus far! The thing I like most about Really Simple Syndication sites is the basic concept behind their use; the short video on the 23 Things Site summed this up perfectly! Simply “switching the arrows” to bring all the information to you so that you don’t have to seek out each site’s updates individually is pure genius. It’s also much simpler than I imagined even as I was reading the brief description of Thing 10 on 23 Things’ main page.

This tool is ideal for use in one’s personal life or teaching career because it brings all the online tools that you frequent to one site that is easily and quickly accessible. Time-saving tools like this are crucial to anyone who finds themselves the victim of a hectic schedule from time to time.

Teachers can use RSS readers to keep track of educational websites and blogs that they follow for use in their classrooms; being able to quickly and efficiently access new class materials on a daily basis will help them to better serve their students.

Thing 9

Using the online generators was fun! One of the sites given was a tad more difficult to use than the others, but after some general "playing around" with the tools it was fairly easy to figure out. All the images I made involved nothing more complex than typing a few words of my choice, followed by a single click of a button; the picture on the site changed to include my words, right before my eyes!
These generators would be great tools for making instructional signs to be displayed throughout an elementary school building, (modeled after road signs, which appeared to be a popular theme on all the sites) indicating that students should keep their volume to a minimum, walk rather than run, focus/concentrate, etc. They could also be used to create name signs for each student, to be placed on his or her cubby, desk, chair, and so forth.

The sites I used were
http://www.customsigngenerator.com/ and
http://www.imagechef.com/

Thing 7

When thinking of  keywords to search on Flickr, for reasons unbeknownst to me I arrived at the word "Disaster"; surely this would yield some interesting results! When I typed the word into the search box and hit enter, a multitude of pictures came up within seconds. Among them were images that I would not have associated with the word "Disaster"; for instance, a chocolate cake, a beautiful red rose, and a stained glass window depicting Jesus! After perusing through some of the pictures I chose the one of a "Disaster" drill by the Phillipine Coast Guard. In the photo, two members of the PCG prepare to jump from the sides of a moving helicopter into the Pacific Ocean. The purpose of the drill was to see how well the Guard would perform in the event of a "supertyphoon".

Using Flickr was very simple and self-explanatory. I had never accessed the site before, but had no trouble at all learning to use it.  will probably use it  frequently in the future, if nothing else for entertainment purposes!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/currentnews/3502036304/   
The photographer is Aaron Favila (Associated Press)
(I apologize, but I was unable to obtain a correct "image URL" for adding the picture to this post; I have opted, instead, for a link)

Thing # 6

For my exploration of a Web 2.0 Award-winning site, I chose Digsby. I had never heard of this site before seeing it on this list, and the name and brief description intrigued me. While use of the actual site would have required a free download, I was able to read about the site's features and see screenshots without committing to the download.
Digsby is an application that allows users to manage multiple email, social networking, and instant messaging accounts from one "place" on the internet. Organization of your contacts from all email and IM accounts can be customized according to a list of "favorites", alphabetical order, frequency of conversation, or a whole host of other options. Also, contacts from multiple lists may be saved under one name through the site, preventing "duplicate buddies" on your contacts list. Digsby can even be personalized with "skins", themes, and layouts of your choice.
I like the concept of a site like this because I have many accounts such as these and it can be time-consuming to operate from all of them on a daily basis. (This strikes me as somewhat similar to the new Onestop feature on APSU's website that allows students to access their D2L and APMail accounts through one username and password, rather than having to enter login information multiple times on one site.) I think that Digsby could be useful in a school for the faculty, staff, and administration to keep in communication with one another in a convenient manner throughout the school year. One login operation that connects a user to any and all methods of online communication is certain to be a time-saver for anyone.

http://www.digsby.com/

Thing #5

The term "Web 2.0" refers to a new age of internet usage in which virtually anyone may contribute to the content of the World Wide Web. While "2.0" is not technically correct according to one of the written perspectives on the term, this number refers to a concept more so than an actual technology. The concept is that we can all participate in the shaping of the Web, and that it can even be used for "instant, global publication" of our thoughts and opinions and/or any factual information that we might be privy to on a particular subject (think Wikipedia).
Social networking has also become a popular aspect of the internet; most school-aged children consider the operation of sites such as Facebook and Myspace to be second nature, and educators would likely benefit from embracing these as tools for the classroom. However, in doing so, extreme precautions must be taken to keep students safe, as it is possible they will come into contact with persons they are unfamiliar with when using the Web.
To me, "Web 2.0" means that the internet is a usable, readily available tool that will make classroom instruction more interesting and interactive for the students that I will one day have. Proper internet use opens up a world of possibilities for educators, and I feel fortunate to be entering the profession in a time of technological advancement such as this.

Thing #4

Commenting is of utmost importance to the blogging community in general because it fuels the main concept of blogging at its core: self-expression. Through our comments we offer our perspectives on the issues at hand in the blogs that we choose to read. The interaction between writers through commenting is also valuable in that they may help and learn from one another. Two of the points on commenting that I found to be of particular interest were found in the post by Cool Cat Teacher. They were "Interact with comments left" and "Be controversial". The advice to interact with your commenting readers via comments of your own reminds me of the usage of my personal facebook page; whenever I log on and see that a friend of mine has written on my "wall", I always respond in a timely fashion. I feel that this is only polite, and know that I would not want my own posts to go unanswered after I took time out of my day to write them. The tips on this page also advised bloggers to be controversial; I had not thought of this previously but it makes sense that readers will be more likley to read and respond with interest to a blog written by a person looking to make a point, especially one that is outside "the norm".

I have chosen five of my fellow classmates whose blogs I would like to follow: Courtney Berg, Kortney Knight, Skylar Riley, Leigh Ann Nicholson, and Anna Hall. I chose these ladies' blogs because after sampling them, I've found them to be very well-written and insightful. I also know each of them personally, which I believe will help me to get a good sense of where they are "coming from" in their posts, and therefore lead to a greater understanding of the points they make. In my comments on these posts, I focused mainly on "Thing 3", in which we discussed how we would use education-based web logs as teachers. Kortney Knight's idea to use blogging as a time-filler for advanced students who finish their work early in class stood out to me the most because while I never thought of it myself, I can readily envision myself implementing such an exercise.

I haven't yet chosen two blogs outside of our classes, but plan to do so very soon!

Thing #3

 For your Thing #3 post, write about ways that you might use a blog in your teacher education program or your future classroom.

Having been a member of Austin Peay's teacher education program for two years now, I believe that keeping an online blog on educational topics will prove very useful. As teacher candidates, we can use this web tool to communicate regarding our ideas. The posts are also a good "place" to express frustrations, questions, and challenges we find ourselves facing as we move through the program. Through blogging we can get the assistance that we will inevitably need from time to time, and get the word out when we have come up with something useful for teachers. Keeping educational blogs also provides a way for us all to get to know one another as pre-professionals, fostering a sense of community in the College of Education.

When I become a teacher, I will most likely continue to keep a blog similar to this one. I will endeavor to be a part of as many educational groups as possible, and will use my personal blog to post ideas for lessons on which I desire feedback and constructive criticism. Doing this will give my lesson plans the fortification of multiple perspectives. With the help and suggestions of other education professionals and parents or caretakers of children of the same age group I will teach, my lessons will hopefully be as well-polished as possible, and I will be extemely well-prepared. Another possible use of a blog would be to create a group specifically for the parents of my students, on which I would make daily posts reflecting on the day's happenings in the classroom, as well as quick notes of the next day's plans. This would be a convenient method of keeping parents informed and prepared, and would ensure that their children get the most out of their learning experiences from day to day.

Thing #2

As I mentioned previously, the setup for this blog was quite simple. Although it's easy to become frustrated when setting up accounts & profiles like this online, the steps were clear, concise, and few. When creating my avatar, I found it really entertaining to find options for hair, eye color, etc. that resembled me! I gave her a biker jacket because I think they're really cute, and heels because I wanted her to have a little flair. :) The process reminded me of the time I made a "Mii" on my friend's Wii console; we had more fun creating little e-images of ourselves than we did playing any of the actual games! I like that on our 23 Things blogs we get to use these avatars because they help to make everyone's posts more personal; if you can envision the little person at the top of the screen while you read the words of the writer, you're reminded that we're all unique individuals and not just a bunch of typed words that all look alike in black and white.

Thing #1

Of the 7 & 1/2 habits of lifelong learners, I personally find habits 2 and 5 come to me the most naturally. Habit 2 states that one must take responsibility for one's own learning, and that an education is to be considered an investment in your future. My parents instilled these beliefs in me at an age earlier than I can even recall, and throughout my fifteen years of school thus far I have continued to hold them to be true. Habit 5 encourages learners to create their own "toolbox" of materials useful to learning such as technology, books, classes, and mentors. As a student, it is hardly possible not to implement all of these things in the daily quest to receive and complete an education.

Although most of the 7 & 1/2 habits are easily achieved, the two that I find myself struggling with from time to time are habits 3 and 7 1/2. Habit 3 maintains that obstacles should be viewed as "challenges" rather than "problems". This is difficult for me because I often get frustrated when faced with an obstacle and if I am not careful, I occasionally miss out on the learning opportunity within. Habit 7 1/2 emphasizes the importance of "playing"; that is, taking time off from hard work and studying. While I would dearly love to be more capable of letting go of my various responsibilies and obligations from time to time, it is hard for me to validate doing so regardless of the circumstances.

 Setting up this blog was not a tedious task! I'm familiar with blogging but have never done it before, and am excited to explore this aspect of online technology in an educational setting.