Dr. Lowell http://durandus.com/phaedrus/2008/03/30/letting-go/  posts an article linking to Alec’s Letting Go blog, and the links to Bob Cringely’s  post-http://www.pbs.org/cringely/pulpit/2008/pulpit_20080321_004574.html—where Dr. Lowell points out that these articles are interesting follow related to the “why teach” questions posed in our class.

 Based on my readings and after watching the Mr. Winkle video on Alec’s site, it seems that technology, the education of students today and students of the future can and will change everything.  To me, today it seems that technology is changing the culture of the students, and that that will change education, and not that education will change the culture. 

In order to focus on keeping the students interested, institutions need to adapt to the changes of the kids and their tech savvy ways.  Do you think it is possible that these kids will define the curriculum eventually?

My thoughts wonder to the Huxley book I read once about the future where babies are made in test tubes and conditioned…a stretch, but what I drift to when I think far into the future.

 I honestly cannot imagine no schools, like Dr. Lowell mentioned one time.  I expect it could happen one day, but perhaps not, if schools provide the technology to keep up with what students have access to outside of school.   

In my morning issue of the Opening Bell, it has an article about cheating with button cameras and pens that scan, both being used by tech savvy students to cheat on tests. 

http://us.f655.mail.yahoo.com/ym/ShowLetter?MsgId=3157_99346625_1999228_2339_11731_0_24847_33676_1104076452&Idx=15&YY=78756&y5beta=yes&y5beta=yes&inc=25&order=down&sort=date&pos=0&view=a&head=b&box=Inbox

Technology increasingly used to cheat.

The Los Angeles Times (3/31, Rivera) reports, “A 2006 national survey found that more than 60 percent of high school students said they had cheated on a test, and the number of self-admitted cheaters has steadily risen over the years,” with students utilizing “an array of high-tech gadgetry” and sharing cheating methods via Internet sources like YouTube. “More recent innovations are button cameras, which have a wireless connection to a laptop computer that can then capture stolen test items, and pens capable of scanning a test and sending a video signal to a remote laptop to save the images.” While some schools have begun adopting policies such as the employment of “test-security firms that use computer software” to “identif[y] plagiarized material,” others seek to help students “with character-building curricula and ethics workshops.” Michael Josephson, of the Josephson Institute of Ethics, added, “It’s a mistake to talk about school cheating without referring to society at large. … We need to…ask what is our attitude toward cheating, because kids are going to absorb that attitude.”

 It seems to me that some students of today’s society are up with technology enough to try to cheat.  Whatever happed to writing on one’s hand…. 

Well, I have 6 friends now, but have’t really tried very hard to get more of them. I am going to do more with the site, since I am going to use it for the final activity for this class.  I will have to tag my sns posts, etc., etc., and much more.

While perusing the net, I ran across this page

http://www.literacy.uconn.edu/prodev.htm, and thought I would post it.  It may have some valuable info.

This chapter focuses on professional development for educators, and I think that this is a must in-order for technology to be integrated into classrooms.  I know that I would love the opportunity, but I am not employed by a school district yet.  I wonder if I could have professional develpment before being employed?

I looked up some of the model programs described in the book, and some links to this info is below:

Regional Educational Technology AssistanceCollege of Extended Learning

http://reta.nmsu.edu/

Union City Online Project

http://www.union-city-nj.org/

the Texas model.

https://uteach.utexas.edu/go/uteachweb/Outreach-Initiatives/Outreach-in-Elem.-Classrooms/AISD-Teacher-Info

Last night I read this chapter, and I thought it was due time I looked up the word epistemology, and from Wikipedia, it gave the following:

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epistemology

 Epistemology or theory of knowledge is a branch of philosophy concerned with the nature and scope of knowledge.^[1] The term was introduced into English by the Scottish philosopher James Frederick Ferrier (1808-1864).^[2]

The entire Chapter is devoted to his “…central theme of my message is that a prevailing tendency to overvalue abstract reasoning is a major obstacle to progress in education.”

He discusses instructionism and constructionism, and to be quite honest, it was hard for me to follow.  He believes that the scientific method is an abstract way of thinking and tries to advocate concrete thinking as being as important, if not more.  I did understand his notation of Piaget’s principles related to the concrete thinking stage, and also to his references to Debbie and his way of learning plants.  A person can not skip chapters in reading this book, and I am thinking that fro me, I don’t need to wait very long in-between reading chapters because I think it takes me a chapter to get into his thinking.

I have thought about this question this week, and at first was going to post about why I have chosen to become a teacher.  I am not one yet, but trying to get a job currently, and for the past three years have studied about teaching, substitute taught, and taught a grant-funded math resource position last year.  Last year it was not like a traditional classroom, and I have deliberated as to if I should go into special education or not because of the types of setting that are offered in special ed, but don’t know if I’m going that route or not.  I will finish my MAT in middle grades math and science this summer along with the second Masters in Ed. Tech, and then see what kind of a position that I get, and that will help me make a decision.

Anyway, to me, even though the students may not learn what they are supposed to in class, or when the instruction is offered doesn’t not mean that they will not associate the content presented to them in school with something outside of school.  It could be, and I presume that many of the times, that students may run into the things that they were taught in school outside of school.  I know that things will click for me—after the fact.

I think that motivation and many other character traits can come from school, both intrinsic and extrinsic.  I mean, the students are at school about 8 hours a day, like working adults are at work, so withing these 8 hours, some learning has got to be occurring, whether it be the intent or not.  The guidance of school teachers that is offered seems to me to be a must for the the sake of the students, no matter how frustrating achieving the goals are.  And with the curriculum guidelines being stringent on teachers, I still think that it is possible to offer ones personality and character in the binding lesson planning of the core content.  I also think that teachers can fit into to there lessons the offerings of technology to support the education of the students, or to let the students support the education of the teacher in some cases.

Regardless of how, to me there has got to be the reason in my head when I lay down at night, as to why I want to do it.  I think it is hard to answer this question without getting personal because it all boils down to individuals forming a larger group of teachers.  For now, I want to teach to because I have worked so hard to do it.  Because nobody else in my family has–so no, I didn’t come from a long line of teachers.  Because I am 43, and working on a second life, and it all started when I had a job a couldn’t stand and found out about the MAT program at Morehead.  Because I like earth sciences mainly, and because I like kids.  Because I had a college teacher hold my paper up in class once and say I did the best on that project….that is the main reason.

…so this leads me to think that my reasoning is somewhat self-indulgent…because I am out to do it as a sense of purpose.  I want to just change one kids mind in thinking that they can do something…..like my mind was changed about ten years ago.

So, what about classroom management and keeping the kids in order–so one could do this.  This is a concern of mine no doubt, but with why I want to teach, and with why I think teaching is important outweighs these concerns.

to teach is to change is my best answer

Snapshots again.

On this guide, there is the step number 5 that I am having trouble with.  If anyone has any advice, I would greatly appreciate it.

The guide to do snapshots

Before I go on about snapshot–Last night I was watching CSI New York, and to my amazement I could understand somewhat of what they meant when they said a person’s Internet signal was “WiFi fishing”…or maybe it is phishing. 

As far as snapshot.com, and adding this to my blog, I am having a time figuring this out.  I spent the longest amount of time today trying to put this feature on this blog.  I finally figured out how to find where the tags are by going to my view and then source screen on my computer—but the ftp and editor that I am supposed to put the url that I want the snapshot feature to be utilized on is driving me nuts.  This is too much for me to figure out on my own, so I am asking for feedback?  I am using the https://account.snap.com/ one, and I tried going through wordpress and through the dashboard “add-in’s” on this site.  I think I am just missing something simple.

After reading Candra’s weblog http://cjharper.wordpress.com/2008/03/16/interview-with-papert/ I thought it was interesting that she took the time to find this speech, and then I decided to go out and find some more info on Mr. Papert.  I found that he has his own website, which is below if anyone is interested.http://www.papert.org/