I am Blogging Now Because My Teacher Told Me To...
What did you think of the blogging experience? Answer any or all of these questions (or give us some other insightful comments that related back to our readings, etc). Did you have a hard or easy time finding a blog you were interested in following? Have you ever blogged before? Do you see yourself continuing to use blogs as a professional resource? Would you consider using blogging as an instructional tool to get your students reflecting and writing?
28 comments:
The blog I chose to go with was: http://teachertomsblog.blogspot.com/
Tom is a preschool teacher of 8 years from Seattle, Washington. Although I eventually found several blogs, I chose Tom's because he seemed to have interesting posts about currents events and activities/suggestions I am interested in trying.
Initially I had some trouble finding a blog I was interested in following because I was concerned with finding something that I would be interested in and continue to use after this class is over.
For a while I said I would learn more about blogging but never got around to it. So this activity forced me to do what I'd been putting off. I see myself continuing to use blogging as a professional resource because I found very valuable teaching resources and information on the blogs I found.
However, I probably wouldn't be able to use to get students to use it independently. It would have to be a group effort because of the age of the students I work with.Overall, it was a great learning experience.
Posts responded to:
http://teachertomsblog.blogspot.com/2010/06/summer-experiments.html#links
http://teachertomsblog.blogspot.com/2010/06/its-summer.html#links
I entered the key workds "talent development for early childhood students" and found the blog, "Didn't you used to be gifted?" url: http://talentdevelop.com/2950/didnt-you-used-to-be-gifted/ The name intrigued me, so I chose this blog. The blog begins with a quote from Dr. Linda Silverman she states, "the natural trajectory of giftedness in childhood is not a six figure salary, perfect happiness, and a guaranteed place in Who's Who. The fact is that achievement is very much a fundtion of opportunity and greater opportunities for success are available to those who have greater financial resources. Sorry, I am rambling, I just found this quote very interesting. Blogging is something that has always been an enigma. In reality, just more technology to learn about when I already know so very little. I would definitely use blogging as a research method. Many of the blogs I saw offered great information. I made a comment on "Didn't you used to be gifted?" I think that was the only comment. This is not a blog that is visited regularly, or at least people don't post comments. Blogging doesn't seem as daunting as I suspected. That's the case with many things it is the fear that cripples us. I was so comfortable I started my own blog on blogspot.com. Check me out!! on http://www.Pre-k24/7.blogspot.com
This is my classroom blog, I just posted the promotion ceremony poem and I will post pictures of our international day. My class will get a kick out of it!!
I typed in the keywords "Talent Developement for the Gifted Early Childhood Students" and I saw various links, but the one that caught my eye is entitled "Didn't you used to be gifted?" url: http://talentdevelop.com/2950/didntyouusedtobegifted/ blog begins with a quote from Dr. Linda Silverman, The natural trajectory of giftedness in childhood is not a six-figure salary, perfect happiness, and a guaranteed place in Who's Who. Achivement is a function of opportunity and greater opportunities for success are available to those who have greater financial resources. I enjoyed blogging. I thought blogging was another form of technology that I needed to learn, when I feel I am already technically inept. But, I finally blogged and I came across some great information I can use for class research. I made a blog, for my class. Check me out on http://www.pre-k24/7.blogspot.com
I've included our class poem and the pictures will be posted soon. Why blog? Why not blog, it's fun, informative and painless.
The blog I chose was on www.proteacher.net. I looked at several different blogs before choosing this one. I did blog for a while on an article about combining pre-k and headstart children into one program in D.C. but, no one responded (and I really wanted to elicit a response and create dialog with SOMEONE). So, I searched around and found proteacher.net which sorts the blogs by specific grade levels or subjects. I was interested in my own grade level, kindergarten. I found myself responding to the people that need help. My blog comments are:
www.proteacher.net/discussions/showthread.php?p=1786607
and
www.proteacher.net/discussions/showthread.php?p=1786623
I also posted my own blog at:
http://www.proteacher.net/discussions/showthread.php?p=1786767#post1786767
I really enjoy learning about blogs. I have found the kindergarten blog to be a useful resource and I will continue to use it!
Lori--I am glad you found it to be a positive experience, even if you did not (yet) get a response to your blog comment.
Wonderful, too, that you were motivated to start your own blog. You can use this for your final project (instead of a lesson plan), if you keep working on it over the next couple of weeks.
Heather--what you looked on and responded to on ProTeacher was actually a discussion board, which is a little bit different than a blog. A blog is generally "owned" by an individual and is a seperate web page, with all of the attributes of a webpage (graphics, images, links, etc) that exists independently, and typically the blogger/authors personality is shown through their blogging or writing. I am glad that you are finding the discussion board of use and of interest, though, so keep it up!
I chose two blog sites based on how the titles intrigued me. Fortunately, they did not disappoint me. 2c Worth appealed to me instantly because of its comment on the new iPad and its possible effect on the industry. Dangerously Irrelevant definitely has many relevant, up-to-date issues that affect teachers and schools. Its book reviews are not just a rich resource for readers of different fields but also serve as a caution for those who don’t want to make a mistake in purchasing books. The blogging experience is enriching. While it widens one’s views, the only reluctance I have is making my voice heard to faceless readers with either the same thought or a hundred different opinions. At this point, I am not yet sure if I am secure enough to allow myself to be openly vulnerable. Now, do I consider blogging too personal?
What should have been my "clue" that it was a discussion board and not a blog? I was really excited that I was blogging : (
Jo-ann--guess what? You are blogging!! Yes, I agree you are putting yourself out there when you blog on a public site, and that can be intimidating to many folks.
Luckily, if you are interested in creating a class blog to use with students or parents, you can make it private and only open it up to those invited.
Heather--discussion boards are a great interactive, social web based tool, as are blogs, but they do differ in a few ways. One clue is that a blog generally has one author (sometimes there are more) and there is usually a theme or guiding voice to the blog. There are also generally links, dates for each post, a title for each post, and often other information in a side bar fashion that the blogger wants to communicate about. You were very close with the discussion board, and I will give you credit for the assignment--but keep looking for a blog that interests you!
My friend helped me to create a personal website for some time already to post my personal opinion about education and teaching. http://pinoyteachers.net/chielorena/. This website was also a venue for me to update my family and friends in the Philippines about our life here in the US. I never really knew that what I was doing was already a form of blogging (what a shame….) However, I was not able to update this website lately due to lack of time and technical know-how. But after reading the discussions about blogging, my interest is renewed. And now I know that what I was doing was actually a form of blogging. I think I will be updating my site often now. Wow! I will be able to apply my learning from this course…I am excited!
Indeed, blogging is very empowering. Both for the blogger and the reader are able to learn and express their opinions and ideas. In the world of television and mass media, or even in book publishing, it was hard for our voice to be heard. The cost is prohibitive and the opportunity is limited. However, with blogging, all we need is a computer, internet connection, some internet skills and fresh and sound ideas, and we can be a part of the blogging community. Blogging shifts powers from the giant media corporations to the masses. Blogging is a force that impacts and shapes what information are shared, and how they are shared.
Finding blogs related to my professional interest is not difficult, however, choosing the one that is credible, and exactly what I want is a bit of a challenge. Information overload is always a problem in information age. Also, identifying the right keyword to use for my search takes some trial and error. Some quality blogs, especially those that are relatively new are hard to find compared to those that have been on the web for longer period.
As I have mentioned earlier, I had a personal website where I published some of my thoughts about education as well as those of my children. But I never knew I was already logging….. Here is the link to my website http://pinoyteachers.net/chielorena/ I plan to continue to practice my newly learned skill this time.
I plan to continue using blogs as my professional resource. In fact, I always consult Wikipedia, ask.com and ehow.com whenever I have a question. As BBC commented, Wikipedia is a good as Encyclopedia Britannica. With the tools that enable users to correct and spot errors for wiki articles, and the level of awareness and participation of bloggers, the possibility errors not corrected immediately is minimized.
I consider using blogging as an instructional tool for my TAG kids (also for regular kids, if possible) I was inspired by the Julie Osteen’s website (http://classblogmeister.com/blog.php?blogger_id=17192) I believe that this web activity can yield the following benefits; First, it will raise the level of interest of my students trying new and powerful media to communicate with teachers and have their reflections published for their parents and friends to read. Second, blogging will help students gain real life skills they need in information society. Some of our students are familiar with social networking sites like facebook, myspace, Friendster, etc. They share photos, information, video, etc. Blog is just the same as the activities they were doing in those social networking sites, except that in our case, the content will be more focused on our lessons.
Of all the blogs that I have visited, I found, followed and commented on http://theinnovativeeducator.blogspot.com/.It is very interesting and very helpful on my part being an educator who seeks information and ways in embedding technology in the classroom and updating myself for educational trend. I discovered a lot of cool stuff to use in incorporating technology into teaching and healthy discussions as well. The innovative educator is a blog where bloggers share information, ideas, and resources with other educators as well as having a community interested in educating innovatively. One of the contributors was Jacob Gutnicki, an educator in Brooklyn, NY who has worked in the field of Instructional Technology for the past twelve years. He developed Instructional Manuals that integrate technology into the curriculum. I am very much encouraged to create and start my own blog.:)I must admit I am nervous and yet had that adrenalin rush to post my comments. It is interesting to know that blogging is fun way of interacting with people and can open doors for your own professional growth and development.
Links to my comments:
http://theinnovativeeducator.blogspot.com/2010/05/online-universties-home-online.html#comment-form
http://theinnovativeeducator.blogspot.com/2010/06/should-smart-phones-be-banned-in.html#comments
I have been following this blog that really sparked my interest because it dealt with teacher inner city youth. I was excited about the blogging at first but excitement soon turned into despair because only have three responses to the post so far in two week span. Hopefully, this weekend more will respond and I will have more of an insight.
I visited five blogspots which caught my attention. I enjoyed browsing through the Gifted Exchange, Unwrapping the Gifted, Hatch Early Childhood, LiteracyConnections and Community NYTimes.
On Gifted Exchange, there were two blog posts that I responded to - Evidence on Teachers and Time Mag:Is Cash the Answer? (http://giftedexchange.blogspot.comthe third commenton Evidence on Teachers and Time Mag, I believe the 8th comment). I shared my conviction on requiring teachers to be highly competent on the first blog post and my not being in favor of rewarding cash to children when they get high grades to the second blog post.
On the second blogspot which is Unwrapping the Gifted, I expressed my gratitude for being able to download a special issue on GT/Response to Intervention, which is a powerful resource for us teachers in this field of G/T education.
On the third blogspot which is on http://www.hatchearlychildhood.com/blog/, the site is really new and I guess I was the first one to write a comment. The site appealed to how I really feel about teaching to the very young learners so blogging to the post was done instinctively.
The last blogspot which is on http://community.nytimes.com/comments/bayarea.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/05/10/schools-to-parents-volunteer-or-else, I did post a comment but have not seen it up yet. I guess the moderator has not read it yet. I shared my experience of being able to encourage parent volunteering in my 15+ years of teaching in early childhood.
So with these various exposure to different blogspots, I feel that posting comments makes me be part of a larger audience out there. Somehow when I do express my ideas and opinions as well as share my experiences, I feel good about having to write about them and being 'heard' in this big wide web.
Blogging seems a seamless way of becoming an active participant to voice out something about issues.
I spent a lot of time searching for a blog that had current comment. many of the sites would post monthly. I searched over and over for math sites. I finally found a current blog that I have been following. http://teacherbootcamp.edublogs.org/2010/06/09/do-we-see-the-beauty-in-every-student/
I am finding the readings inspiring. with a week left of school it is probably the best time to be reminded of the students strengths, as these 12 yr olds turn into little hormone enraged middle schoolers. lat week i found the list of sites for students helpful. some i already use and some were new to me. the ds lite ideas i new about. i have been asking for one for years, however i have not got it yet, but my father-in-law did. the what did they tweet sections are interesting. i learned a bit about computer animation.
I have been following first time teachers. To me it is funny and insightful, and it also peeks my curiosity as to why others become teachers...and the thoughts of "is it just me or has teaching gotten harder!". It is quit interesting. I have said a few things to the first timers..I feel old giving my insight, but hey its all good cus I have been teaching longer than them. LOL. But it has been very insightful: http://www.ibabuzz.com/myfirstyear/
After reading their stories I have a curiosity as to why the statics say 6 years is the life span of most teachers. What happens in those 6 years that makes most run for the hills? Does this happen all over the world? How is teaching different in other countries? I read that teachers in Spain are now getting a pay cut...they are only getting payed 1,300 dollars a month. WOW why would anyone go into teaching when they couldn't support themselves. ALL--and All it was interesting Blog to follow! :)
Some common components were videos and illustrations. The tone of the bloggers was different from one blog to another. Some tones were stringent and others were more relaxed. Reading some blogs I felt like I could not comment on this page because the other readers might chew my head off. On other sites readers disagreed respectfully. As far as all blogs being equal, it depends on what you are looking for. I prefer an idea generating blog versus a venting blog. Educational blogs seem to be more purpose driven then sports blogs. Sports blogs seem to be more pop culture versus being truly dedicated to the actual sport. Political blogs seem to be a bunch of party talking points, so it seems as though everyone is talking and no one is listening.
I followed the blog Moving at the Speed of Creativity. This blog interested me because my seminar paper was on creativity. When posting my first comment I felt some pressure. I wanted to make sure that I was clear in what I had to say and making sure that I didn’t sound redundant. I wanted to make sure that I responded to the original blog and not only the comments posted by other readers.
http://www.speedofcreativity.org/2010/06/10/public-education-is-not-failing-but-political-spin-doctors-want-you-to-think-so/comment-page-1/#comment-135429
I liked this blog because it was very divers in its presentation, and it was about science which is the subject that I teach.
Steve Spangler
http://www.stevespangler.com/teaching-moments/great-american-backyard-campout/#comment-36206
After looking at different blogs, I chose to follow two blogs that interests me. One is about gifted education http://giftedexchange.blogspot.com/2010/05/segregation-in-gifted-programs.html and the other one is about early childhood education http://eceducation.blogspot.com/2010/06/welcoming-everyone-to-table.html . I posted comments on some of the articles in both websites, but still, I don’t feel comfortable expressing myself in public. For one, I don’t think I am a good writer which I thought all bloggers should be; and also, I am not confident enough to voice out my opinions as I am not sure if readers would accept it positively. At this point, I will still have to convince myself to start making my own blog spot, though, I believe that a it will be an effective way to communicate with my parents regarding what is going on in their child’s classroom.
I forgot to mention that I used the name "purple" to comment on the two blog spots I chose. As I have said I am still uncomfortable in exposing myself in blogs. =)
I enjoyed blogging once I found a blog that was current and offered valuable information. I found that many people abandon their blogs which made my search a tad bit difficult. It took a couple of days to find a blog that I was willing to comment on. I have blogged before, however never often and usually on something in the newspaper. Hence I have never actually followed a blog, I would just leave my comment and that would be that. I would consider using blogging as an instructional tool because it will allow students to piggy back off of other ideas. The use of a blog will cut down on students being disappointed because their thoughts were not shared usually because of time constraints. This way all opinions, ideas, or suggestions could be shared and viewed by all. I followed the folliwng blog http://emdffi.blogspot.com/ Which stands for Elementary my dear or far from it.
...forgot the links to the comments
http://emdffi.blogspot.com/2010/06/tables-tables-and-more-tables.html
http://emdffi.blogspot.com/2010/05/measuring-teacher-effectiveness.html
The blog I had was
This was my first time blogging and know that I was actually doing it. The process of finding a blog i was interested in was time consuming. Like I said earlier the blog that I chose had many topics about teaching inner city youth. I chose to respond to one that talked about music and how music is reflected in the actions of students and whether todays music had an influence on students.
I was very intrigued with the idea of blogging but there were really not responses to the intial post. That's one negative aspect for me because it made me get kind of bored with blogging. However, I do think that this will be good for students because it can allow them speak freely and display work. Also, I can see using this for parents as well so parents can be apart of the educational process as well.
Overall, I think that I will use it in the classroom as an instructional tool.
I apologize for a last minute posting. I was really in a deep trouble the past days. I was pretty tight with promotional activities in school that I was caught up with a lot of technology-driven actions. Ending: My internet explorer browser crashed that I did not know what to do. Worse, I had all my favorite tags and bookmarks in it. I do not know anymore how to recover it. I had my blog comment posted as early as June 8, but was not able to post. Anyway, what is best is that I still manage to be here now and that luckily I retrieved my lost internet explorer from wherever it went.
Blogging is such wonderful experience. One, you get to think of right words to say so that it could really capture the right emotions you wanted to say. Two, there are overwhelming tabs and icons to see and be familiar with so that you would not end up loosing anything (just like what happened to my internet explorer). Three, it motivates you to write and express personal thoughts, but then again knowing the kind of job and the responsibilities we are to accomplish, blogging on a regular basis could be a problem.
As instructed, I tried to browse for several blog accounts which I could use for this project. It was again a struggle because there were a number of them that I found to be interesting. The topics were ranging from strategies in teaching, content updates, trends in research, preparation and evaluation of materials, assessment and curriculum matters, and so on and so forth. I was caught torn between and among several topics aforementioned. Finally, I ended up commenting and concentrating on Jim Burkes blog on being an English teacher of teens at present. You can view my comment via http://jimburke.typepad.com/my_weblog/2010/06/our-stars-are-the-children.html#comments. I had my full name identified in my comments.
The blog spoke about considering students to be guiding stars that lead the teachers to where they want to go. Odd it may seem, as in reality we, teachers are supposed to be the one leading our students towards the future. However, in this blog, Jim explained that through the differences and complexities of the interests of each of our students, this brings the teacher at a threshold where he or she starts to navigate his or her teaching. Indeed, we can very well be guided by the stars of our students.
The first blog I explored was okay, however there was no conversation between the author and the people commenting. According to the video on YouTube there is supposed to be a dialogue between the author and people who reply.
The next obstacle I ran into was many of the blogs were out of date. It was difficult to find a blog to follow and respond to 2-3 times a week. Then I found one that was very interesting about the end of books. I wanted to comment on it quite badly because books are very close to my heart. I could not post a comment because the author posted the blog about 2 months ago. Anyway, the blog was about electronic books. Could this be the end of the printed word? I surely hope not, though having 20 books in one notepad is convenient.
The audience for many of the blogs I explored was educators. We feel our own pain.
Personally, I do not blog, I have never blogged. Therefore, I have no prior experience with this form of media. I am however an avid watcher of Fox News so once I heard O’Reilly tell the audience that they can catch him on his blog or tweet him to comment on his commentary, I became interested.
David Warwick posted the following questions on his blog http://davidwarlick.com/2cents :
Will we benefit more from fitting video games and social network into our curriculum-our methods and pedagogies? Or Might we benefit more by expanding curriculum, methods, and pedagogies to encompass and harness the truly unique qualities of the millennial information experience?
I think that it would be more advantageous to input 21st century technologies into the methods and pedagogy of teaching. At this point, we are all well aware that technology and the internet are things that are becoming as commonplace as sliced bread. And if you are old enough, you remember that bread did not always come pre-sliced. Therefore, incoming teachers will know the type of educational system they are stepping into. Adding technology tools to the methodology of teaching would also help teachers to understand that social networking is ever expanding and gaining momentum. This is something to be taken seriously in our profession if we are to truly say we are training and uplifting the future of our nation.
I love David Warlick--he is always very insightful. As it happens there is a great website (a wiki, actually!) on pedagogy and the use of technology in education http://www.tpack.org/ If there were more time in this course we would actually be discussing this in depth. Sigh...remind me that this is a hard course to teach in only 4 weeks!
I have continued to read the blog http://teacherbootcamp.edublogs.org/ and since the school year has ended it has been concentrating on a 30 goal challenge. I may not have found this very elightening but some of the links within have been new and useful. The latest I found is http://bubbl.us/ which is a sight to help make flowcharts. I think this will be useful in class also to teach the students to use.
I'm blogging now b/c my teacher told me to and am going to read others comments before posting my own.
I haven't been blogging except answering some of students' questions on wiki from work. This will be fun.
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