My students often ask for a tool that helps them organize all of the new social media tools they are experimenting with. They want to be able to go to ONE place to look at all of their information (blogs, Twitter, FB, etc.). I don't blame them.....I'm looking for the same thing. Now that Google Reader is gone, I've tried Feedly . It does a nice job of "holding" all of my RSS feeds. However, I want something that can serve multiple purposes. Today, I tried Netvibes and I think I like it. I like that I can have separate tabs - one for each class I'm teaching and one private tab for my own use. Here is what my tab for EDUC775 looks like: EDUC775 Netvibes Feed. Next time I teach the course, I will add all of the students' blogs so that they are all in one spot. I'd like to also see if I can integrate this feed into our class wikispace. Monday....I'll let you know if it works.
Tweet
Teachers Leading
Friday, November 8, 2013
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
Some Ideas I'm Throwing Around
When thinking about how I can help my pre-service teachers make better connections to other teachers, leaders, administrators, etc. through social media, I have many thoughts. Maybe I'm thinking "too big". However, one thing that came to my mind is the use of synchronous video. Why can't we set up Skype or iChat for a classroom full of pre-service teachers to observe a lesson that's being taught. I know that permission has to be granted. They could live blog or have a backchannel going on that facilitates a discussion about a topic (student engagement, the use of positive reinforcement, etc.).
Something else that I've been trying to get started is the use of blogs. I'd like for my students to have an ongoing blog that has them reflect on the INTASC standards, PDE-430, and Charlotte Danielson's Framework for Teaching. The blog could be used their entire time in college and eventually serve as an artifact for their portfolio. I envision a rubric that integrates all of these standards and is used to evaluate the students' work throughout their time in college. Student teaching supervisors, seminar instructors, course instructors, advisors, etc. could all have access to the blog and provide feedback. What better way to for the pre-service teachers to become reflective practitioners?
Thoughts? That's it for now - more to come:).
Tweet
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Two great resources this week
This week, 2 very interesting articles came across my Twitter Network. Both articles include strategies that will facilitate higher level thinking in our classrooms.
First came the "Upgrade Your KWL Chart to the 21st Century" article. First posted in 2011 and circling around the Twitter network again thank goodness because I hadn't seen it before. This is definitely something that will take practice/coaching with students to get them to be able to effectively answer the questions within the graphic organizer.
The second article that came through Twitter was: "The Difference Between Doing Projects Versus Learning Through Projects". It's interesting to me because my students are currently doing a "project" (dare I call it that?). I think I'll call it a learning experience. I shared this article with them in hopes that they use it as a guide to develop a learning experience that uses social media as a tool to enhance the teaching/learning process.
Tweet
First came the "Upgrade Your KWL Chart to the 21st Century" article. First posted in 2011 and circling around the Twitter network again thank goodness because I hadn't seen it before. This is definitely something that will take practice/coaching with students to get them to be able to effectively answer the questions within the graphic organizer.
The second article that came through Twitter was: "The Difference Between Doing Projects Versus Learning Through Projects". It's interesting to me because my students are currently doing a "project" (dare I call it that?). I think I'll call it a learning experience. I shared this article with them in hopes that they use it as a guide to develop a learning experience that uses social media as a tool to enhance the teaching/learning process.
Tweet
Monday, November 4, 2013
Using Social Media in Pre-Service Teacher Education Courses
One of my students recently made a very interesting comment. I will not mention him/her by name because I do not know if they wish to be revealed. However, if they read this, I thank you for being honest. This is exactly what I want to know!
This student began by saying that he/she has been a university student for a few years now and is currently student teaching. He/she has used the Internet for school, email, and Facebook. He/she also use the Internet for research and to find resources for student teaching. It was this statement that really made me think, "I have never really seen how the Internet can really be a huge tool that can be used to help improve our teaching methods, techniques, and applications. Social media is for so much more than just talking to friends. It is such a huge way to help make connections and find co-workers from around the world who can help you improve your teaching...".
We need to be engaging our pre-service teachers in the use of social media tools. They need to be taught how to develop a PLN. If they using these tools becomes part of their "system" then the use of these tools will automatically be part of their teaching strategies.
It's like teaching pre-service teachers how to teach students how to write (or how to engage students in writing). Troy Hicks discusses engaging his pre-service teachers in writing so that they can more effectively teach their students how to write.
It's powerful....to teach this way....so why aren't we doing this with social media? My 1.5 credit course does expose students to social media. Some students run with it and continue to use it. However, many don't have time to really get a good feel for how powerful these tools can be in their teaching (even as a professional development tool alone). I want students to have the opportunity to use these tools throughout all of their teacher education courses. Imagine how connected we could be if all courses where sharing to Diigo. Imagine the resources our students would have. Imagine how connected they would be by the time they graduate and get their own teaching job.
I'm sure other classes do use some of these tools. However, I'd like to see blogging become the "norm". Students should have a blog that they begin as Freshman. They can use the PDE430 descriptors to "tag" their blog posts. To see that learning transfer from course to course would be so powerful. I do believe it would be powerful. (more to come in a future post)
Immerse the pre-service teachers in the use of social media and these tools will become a natural part of their lives, teaching, etc.
Tweet
This student began by saying that he/she has been a university student for a few years now and is currently student teaching. He/she has used the Internet for school, email, and Facebook. He/she also use the Internet for research and to find resources for student teaching. It was this statement that really made me think, "I have never really seen how the Internet can really be a huge tool that can be used to help improve our teaching methods, techniques, and applications. Social media is for so much more than just talking to friends. It is such a huge way to help make connections and find co-workers from around the world who can help you improve your teaching...".
We need to be engaging our pre-service teachers in the use of social media tools. They need to be taught how to develop a PLN. If they using these tools becomes part of their "system" then the use of these tools will automatically be part of their teaching strategies.
It's like teaching pre-service teachers how to teach students how to write (or how to engage students in writing). Troy Hicks discusses engaging his pre-service teachers in writing so that they can more effectively teach their students how to write.
It's powerful....to teach this way....so why aren't we doing this with social media? My 1.5 credit course does expose students to social media. Some students run with it and continue to use it. However, many don't have time to really get a good feel for how powerful these tools can be in their teaching (even as a professional development tool alone). I want students to have the opportunity to use these tools throughout all of their teacher education courses. Imagine how connected we could be if all courses where sharing to Diigo. Imagine the resources our students would have. Imagine how connected they would be by the time they graduate and get their own teaching job.
I'm sure other classes do use some of these tools. However, I'd like to see blogging become the "norm". Students should have a blog that they begin as Freshman. They can use the PDE430 descriptors to "tag" their blog posts. To see that learning transfer from course to course would be so powerful. I do believe it would be powerful. (more to come in a future post)
Immerse the pre-service teachers in the use of social media and these tools will become a natural part of their lives, teaching, etc.
Tweet
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
Connections
I've decided to take a few courses to reactivate my teaching certificate. The first class that I'm taking is a "Wikis, Blogs, and Web Publishing" course offered by Rich Kiker. Even though I teach a similar course at Drexel University, I figured I'd learn new technologies and strategies to enhance my courses. I'm getting way more than I thought I would. I have been inspired to seek new challenges and work towards goals that have always been in the back of my mind. Those goals are now at the forefront and I will publish them here once I have refined them in my head. I know what I want to do....I want to work at the university level to get teacher educators using social media to enhance the learning experience for pre-service and graduate level teachers. First, I need to re-establish my social presence. This blog is my first step.
A reflection as I work to refine my network:
For the past 10 years, I have read blogs as a way to learn. It was my main method of professional development since I am an adjunct. It was a great way for me to seek out new strategies, research, etc on my own....for free! I now believe that a way to communicate that to my students is to model the process for them. This is a CHANGE for education and professional development. Tom Whitby discusses in a post dated 10/16/13 that how blogs are connecting educators, thought leaders, and administrative leaders. He states, "To be part of the change, educators need to be part of the process. They need to connect, comment and contribute wherever possible in our connected community of educators. That is where our voice as educators is the strongest. Connectedness is our best chance for positive change that is not mandated, or legislated, but rather collaboratively established." The blogs have been present for several years; however, it's time for teacher educators to become part of that connected community of educators.
Tweet
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
New Ventures
Many educational leaders are talking about the use of technology in schools, specifically the use of social media. It's been a "hot" topic for years. I began teaching at the college level 10 years ago and have been using it in each of my classes. I figured that if I expected my students to use it in their classrooms, I should model the effective use of social media in "my" classroom. It wasn't until recently when I began teaching a "Social Media in the Classroom" course that I realized that most of the teachers and/or pre-service teachers in my classes haven't been exposed to the effective use of these technologies in their other college level education classes. Why?
This is the beginning of a new adventure for me. I'm refining my social presence with the vision of modeling effective use of social media in graduate and undergraduate level teacher education courses.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
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Friday, November 8, 2013
Organizing all of the Tools We're Using
My students often ask for a tool that helps them organize all of the new social media tools they are experimenting with. They want to be able to go to ONE place to look at all of their information (blogs, Twitter, FB, etc.). I don't blame them.....I'm looking for the same thing. Now that Google Reader is gone, I've tried Feedly . It does a nice job of "holding" all of my RSS feeds. However, I want something that can serve multiple purposes. Today, I tried Netvibes and I think I like it. I like that I can have separate tabs - one for each class I'm teaching and one private tab for my own use. Here is what my tab for EDUC775 looks like: EDUC775 Netvibes Feed. Next time I teach the course, I will add all of the students' blogs so that they are all in one spot. I'd like to also see if I can integrate this feed into our class wikispace. Monday....I'll let you know if it works.
Tweet
Tweet
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
Some Ideas I'm Throwing Around
When thinking about how I can help my pre-service teachers make better connections to other teachers, leaders, administrators, etc. through social media, I have many thoughts. Maybe I'm thinking "too big". However, one thing that came to my mind is the use of synchronous video. Why can't we set up Skype or iChat for a classroom full of pre-service teachers to observe a lesson that's being taught. I know that permission has to be granted. They could live blog or have a backchannel going on that facilitates a discussion about a topic (student engagement, the use of positive reinforcement, etc.).
Something else that I've been trying to get started is the use of blogs. I'd like for my students to have an ongoing blog that has them reflect on the INTASC standards, PDE-430, and Charlotte Danielson's Framework for Teaching. The blog could be used their entire time in college and eventually serve as an artifact for their portfolio. I envision a rubric that integrates all of these standards and is used to evaluate the students' work throughout their time in college. Student teaching supervisors, seminar instructors, course instructors, advisors, etc. could all have access to the blog and provide feedback. What better way to for the pre-service teachers to become reflective practitioners?
Thoughts? That's it for now - more to come:).
Tweet
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Two great resources this week
This week, 2 very interesting articles came across my Twitter Network. Both articles include strategies that will facilitate higher level thinking in our classrooms.
First came the "Upgrade Your KWL Chart to the 21st Century" article. First posted in 2011 and circling around the Twitter network again thank goodness because I hadn't seen it before. This is definitely something that will take practice/coaching with students to get them to be able to effectively answer the questions within the graphic organizer.
The second article that came through Twitter was: "The Difference Between Doing Projects Versus Learning Through Projects". It's interesting to me because my students are currently doing a "project" (dare I call it that?). I think I'll call it a learning experience. I shared this article with them in hopes that they use it as a guide to develop a learning experience that uses social media as a tool to enhance the teaching/learning process.
Tweet
First came the "Upgrade Your KWL Chart to the 21st Century" article. First posted in 2011 and circling around the Twitter network again thank goodness because I hadn't seen it before. This is definitely something that will take practice/coaching with students to get them to be able to effectively answer the questions within the graphic organizer.
The second article that came through Twitter was: "The Difference Between Doing Projects Versus Learning Through Projects". It's interesting to me because my students are currently doing a "project" (dare I call it that?). I think I'll call it a learning experience. I shared this article with them in hopes that they use it as a guide to develop a learning experience that uses social media as a tool to enhance the teaching/learning process.
Tweet
Monday, November 4, 2013
Using Social Media in Pre-Service Teacher Education Courses
One of my students recently made a very interesting comment. I will not mention him/her by name because I do not know if they wish to be revealed. However, if they read this, I thank you for being honest. This is exactly what I want to know!
This student began by saying that he/she has been a university student for a few years now and is currently student teaching. He/she has used the Internet for school, email, and Facebook. He/she also use the Internet for research and to find resources for student teaching. It was this statement that really made me think, "I have never really seen how the Internet can really be a huge tool that can be used to help improve our teaching methods, techniques, and applications. Social media is for so much more than just talking to friends. It is such a huge way to help make connections and find co-workers from around the world who can help you improve your teaching...".
We need to be engaging our pre-service teachers in the use of social media tools. They need to be taught how to develop a PLN. If they using these tools becomes part of their "system" then the use of these tools will automatically be part of their teaching strategies.
It's like teaching pre-service teachers how to teach students how to write (or how to engage students in writing). Troy Hicks discusses engaging his pre-service teachers in writing so that they can more effectively teach their students how to write.
It's powerful....to teach this way....so why aren't we doing this with social media? My 1.5 credit course does expose students to social media. Some students run with it and continue to use it. However, many don't have time to really get a good feel for how powerful these tools can be in their teaching (even as a professional development tool alone). I want students to have the opportunity to use these tools throughout all of their teacher education courses. Imagine how connected we could be if all courses where sharing to Diigo. Imagine the resources our students would have. Imagine how connected they would be by the time they graduate and get their own teaching job.
I'm sure other classes do use some of these tools. However, I'd like to see blogging become the "norm". Students should have a blog that they begin as Freshman. They can use the PDE430 descriptors to "tag" their blog posts. To see that learning transfer from course to course would be so powerful. I do believe it would be powerful. (more to come in a future post)
Immerse the pre-service teachers in the use of social media and these tools will become a natural part of their lives, teaching, etc.
Tweet
This student began by saying that he/she has been a university student for a few years now and is currently student teaching. He/she has used the Internet for school, email, and Facebook. He/she also use the Internet for research and to find resources for student teaching. It was this statement that really made me think, "I have never really seen how the Internet can really be a huge tool that can be used to help improve our teaching methods, techniques, and applications. Social media is for so much more than just talking to friends. It is such a huge way to help make connections and find co-workers from around the world who can help you improve your teaching...".
We need to be engaging our pre-service teachers in the use of social media tools. They need to be taught how to develop a PLN. If they using these tools becomes part of their "system" then the use of these tools will automatically be part of their teaching strategies.
It's like teaching pre-service teachers how to teach students how to write (or how to engage students in writing). Troy Hicks discusses engaging his pre-service teachers in writing so that they can more effectively teach their students how to write.
It's powerful....to teach this way....so why aren't we doing this with social media? My 1.5 credit course does expose students to social media. Some students run with it and continue to use it. However, many don't have time to really get a good feel for how powerful these tools can be in their teaching (even as a professional development tool alone). I want students to have the opportunity to use these tools throughout all of their teacher education courses. Imagine how connected we could be if all courses where sharing to Diigo. Imagine the resources our students would have. Imagine how connected they would be by the time they graduate and get their own teaching job.
I'm sure other classes do use some of these tools. However, I'd like to see blogging become the "norm". Students should have a blog that they begin as Freshman. They can use the PDE430 descriptors to "tag" their blog posts. To see that learning transfer from course to course would be so powerful. I do believe it would be powerful. (more to come in a future post)
Immerse the pre-service teachers in the use of social media and these tools will become a natural part of their lives, teaching, etc.
Tweet
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
Connections
I've decided to take a few courses to reactivate my teaching certificate. The first class that I'm taking is a "Wikis, Blogs, and Web Publishing" course offered by Rich Kiker. Even though I teach a similar course at Drexel University, I figured I'd learn new technologies and strategies to enhance my courses. I'm getting way more than I thought I would. I have been inspired to seek new challenges and work towards goals that have always been in the back of my mind. Those goals are now at the forefront and I will publish them here once I have refined them in my head. I know what I want to do....I want to work at the university level to get teacher educators using social media to enhance the learning experience for pre-service and graduate level teachers. First, I need to re-establish my social presence. This blog is my first step.
A reflection as I work to refine my network:
For the past 10 years, I have read blogs as a way to learn. It was my main method of professional development since I am an adjunct. It was a great way for me to seek out new strategies, research, etc on my own....for free! I now believe that a way to communicate that to my students is to model the process for them. This is a CHANGE for education and professional development. Tom Whitby discusses in a post dated 10/16/13 that how blogs are connecting educators, thought leaders, and administrative leaders. He states, "To be part of the change, educators need to be part of the process. They need to connect, comment and contribute wherever possible in our connected community of educators. That is where our voice as educators is the strongest. Connectedness is our best chance for positive change that is not mandated, or legislated, but rather collaboratively established." The blogs have been present for several years; however, it's time for teacher educators to become part of that connected community of educators.
Tweet
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
New Ventures
Many educational leaders are talking about the use of technology in schools, specifically the use of social media. It's been a "hot" topic for years. I began teaching at the college level 10 years ago and have been using it in each of my classes. I figured that if I expected my students to use it in their classrooms, I should model the effective use of social media in "my" classroom. It wasn't until recently when I began teaching a "Social Media in the Classroom" course that I realized that most of the teachers and/or pre-service teachers in my classes haven't been exposed to the effective use of these technologies in their other college level education classes. Why?
This is the beginning of a new adventure for me. I'm refining my social presence with the vision of modeling effective use of social media in graduate and undergraduate level teacher education courses.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)