I thought it was neat and thoughtful for Ms. Cassidy to take the time to Skype with EDM 310. The first topic I want to address is how to make this experience safe for the kids. I like that they give out waivers for the parents to sign at the beginning of the year. She took all the necessary safety precautions, and I appreciated that. I like that she doesn’t match a face with a name or provide the last names of any of her students. As far as how the parents feel about it, they enjoy seeing their children working and the fact their kids are having fun while doing it. She is spot on when she says technology isn’t going anywhere. We can’t teach children the same way we used to. We have all the tools and we just need to use them.
I have really enjoyed my blogging in this course. Ms. Cassidy mentions that she likes the audience that comes along with blogging. Children enjoy seeing their work being read. I would like to also use a blog site that shows their page reads. I think that it will be encouraging for my students. Also, I like the interaction between the two schools. Even though they are required to comment on each other’s blog, they are getting to know each other and helping each other at the same time.
I agree with Ms. Cassidy when she says that teachers need to be technology literate. Technology will be forever changing and we need to be acclimated with all the new types of technology that are coming out. It’s a learning experience for everyone. There are some things the children may know more about, and they can teach us. We don’t always have to be the ones educating. She makes a good point about where to start with technology. It’s always good to start with what you’re interested in.
Ms. Cassidy had such great answers to all of the questions. I wish I could have been around to be able to interact with her and take part in this process. A question I would have liked to ask would be is there a bigger involvement with students wanting to learn since she started implementing technology in her teaching? I really enjoyed this assignment and hearing her thoughts on technology in schools and how we need to get more involved with it.
Hello April,
ReplyDeleteWe seem to almost have the same question for Ms. Cassidy: How has the learning process changed since the introduction of the new forms of technology? The video of the students with their various technologies was encouraging. It seems to have made a positive impact with parents, students, and her school administration. She had a long way to go when those five computers were put in her classroom. We are far better off, don't you believe?
It was a good idea for Ms. Cassidy to involve other schools to blog with her students. An audience is quite rewarding. And they have blogged and used Skype quite successfully. I like the idea of audio only podcasts as a way of getting involved with collaborative projects. Fr the camera shy child it is a way of getting their feet wet slowly.
The web page is a positive communication tool between the teacher and parent, and student and parent. I believe it is important to involve the parents in their child's daily and weekly progress. And when the parents leave comments it has to be exciting. If the student chooses to access the blog or class web page from home then the parents can see first hand how it is done and possibly even learn a new trick.
Congrats on your working links and title tag. Your paragraphs had a concise flow to them and were easy to read. The one concept I did not see is what you believed to be an impediment that could be encountered with technology in the classroom and how you might address it.
Best of luck with the rest of the semester. I am glad that you have had a positive, enjoyable blogging experience so far.
Laura Holifield
Thorough, thoughtful, well done!
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