I chose Google Calendar as my Web 2.0 site. I chose this because I am very big on staying organized and I thought this was a great way to keep my thoughts in order--virtually. It has many great features such as color-coding, multiple viewing options, and the ability to view it on your phone or gmail account. You can also receive notifications via e-mail to remind you of upcoming events. You can use different colors to associate with different genres, or even create two separate calendars altogether. As for any dislikes, I do not have any at this present moment. I feel like the website was very thought-out and well designed. It is simple to use, and a great way to stay organized. I definitely feel that this can be used in a school setting. Maybe not necessarily for a student, but for a teacher. This is a great way to keep all of your things in one place, instead of having sticky notes everywhere or flipping through a paper calendar that sits under all of the papers you have to grade at your desk.
http://calendar.google.com/
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Thing # 5
I thought that the article Web 2.0: A Guide for Educators did a great job of expressing their belief in using Web 2.0 tools in the classroom. They are correct in saying that if we as professional educators do not use the tools that are at our fingertips, our children of the future can fall behind.
"And for education not to step up and maximize these resources for teaching, learning, and driving innovation is to risk becoming marginalized as a viable influence in helping to shape the 21st century." This sentence says it all. Our world is rapidly changing and it is in part because of the use of Web 2.0 tools. We are 'shaping the 21st century' everytime we get on Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, and many other Web 2.0 tools, and who's to say we can't use these resources educationally?
I also enjoyed the video at the bottom the Thing #5's page. It did a great job in showing how different using pencil and paper is as to using technology. Being digital is faster, easier, and it is much more versatile than pencil and paper. It is so much easier to share your ideas with other people (in our case teachers) and get really help you in your future career.
In my opinion, School 2.0 means using the same basic concepts as Web 2.0 (blogs, chats, Twitter, etc) and applying them in the classroom setting. Whether you are trying to communicate more effectively with parents or trying to get higher participation in your classroom, using School 2.0 resources can be extremely effective. I believe that in the future, schools everywhere will be using these resources. Some things are already being used in the classroom, but I think that they will take over completely before long, making a highly technologically-based and interactive classroom.
"And for education not to step up and maximize these resources for teaching, learning, and driving innovation is to risk becoming marginalized as a viable influence in helping to shape the 21st century." This sentence says it all. Our world is rapidly changing and it is in part because of the use of Web 2.0 tools. We are 'shaping the 21st century' everytime we get on Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, and many other Web 2.0 tools, and who's to say we can't use these resources educationally?
I also enjoyed the video at the bottom the Thing #5's page. It did a great job in showing how different using pencil and paper is as to using technology. Being digital is faster, easier, and it is much more versatile than pencil and paper. It is so much easier to share your ideas with other people (in our case teachers) and get really help you in your future career.
In my opinion, School 2.0 means using the same basic concepts as Web 2.0 (blogs, chats, Twitter, etc) and applying them in the classroom setting. Whether you are trying to communicate more effectively with parents or trying to get higher participation in your classroom, using School 2.0 resources can be extremely effective. I believe that in the future, schools everywhere will be using these resources. Some things are already being used in the classroom, but I think that they will take over completely before long, making a highly technologically-based and interactive classroom.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Thing # 4
Commenting is an important tool when you are blogging because it helps show other that you agree (or sometimes disagree) with the point they are trying to make. It makes you, as the blogger, feel good about what you are writing and encourages you to write more because you know that there are people out there reading your blog. You feel a sense of community because you are creating a type of network full of people that share interest in what you are writing about, even if you have opposing viewpoints.
I enjoyed reading the blog about how to get more comments on your own posts because not only do you need to comment on other people's post to create a community of commenters, but your posts need to be comment-friendly. Also, when you get other people to comment on your posts, you may even respond back to them, making it a more conversational experience. This is referring to tip #4- Interact with contents left.
Another point I found to be important was from the Cool Cat Teacher blog: create a hyperlink to what you are talking about. I found this to be very interesting because if you are writing about something you are passionate about, posting a hyperlink supporting your idea really helps create validity in your viewpoint.
From the class, I am following Brandy Cardwell, Bretlea Appleton Education 3040, Chris Earheart, J Patterson Education 3040, and RKeithblog. My two blogs I decided to follow outside of the 23 things community are Braves & Birds, a blog about the Atlanta Braves, and NFL Nation Blog, a blog that is about the National Football league. I chose to follow these blogs because they are both things that I am very much interested in.
Most of the time when I commented on a blog, I was in agreement with the author of the blog. It is nice to know when someone has the same viewpoint as you and I decided to let them know that I was in agreement.
When I commented on the NFL blog, I posted something about the Pittsburgh Steelers, my favorite team. More specifically, I made a comment on their quarterback because everyone seemed to be talking about him because he is injured.
For my other blog I decided to follow, Braves & Birds, I made a comment about the Atlanta Braves. I talked about how they lost and are out of the post season, something that recently happened and people are upset about.
I enjoyed reading the blog about how to get more comments on your own posts because not only do you need to comment on other people's post to create a community of commenters, but your posts need to be comment-friendly. Also, when you get other people to comment on your posts, you may even respond back to them, making it a more conversational experience. This is referring to tip #4- Interact with contents left.
Another point I found to be important was from the Cool Cat Teacher blog: create a hyperlink to what you are talking about. I found this to be very interesting because if you are writing about something you are passionate about, posting a hyperlink supporting your idea really helps create validity in your viewpoint.
From the class, I am following Brandy Cardwell, Bretlea Appleton Education 3040, Chris Earheart, J Patterson Education 3040, and RKeithblog. My two blogs I decided to follow outside of the 23 things community are Braves & Birds, a blog about the Atlanta Braves, and NFL Nation Blog, a blog that is about the National Football league. I chose to follow these blogs because they are both things that I am very much interested in.
Most of the time when I commented on a blog, I was in agreement with the author of the blog. It is nice to know when someone has the same viewpoint as you and I decided to let them know that I was in agreement.
When I commented on the NFL blog, I posted something about the Pittsburgh Steelers, my favorite team. More specifically, I made a comment on their quarterback because everyone seemed to be talking about him because he is injured.
For my other blog I decided to follow, Braves & Birds, I made a comment about the Atlanta Braves. I talked about how they lost and are out of the post season, something that recently happened and people are upset about.
Monday, September 19, 2011
Thing # 3
Blogs in my opinion could be extremely useful as an educator. I feel like it could be used in a couple of different aspects. Whether it is used for your students, parents, or even fellow educators, I think it could be very useful.
I think that if you are teaching in middle school or high school blogs could be a great way for you to reach out to your students. Children of the younger generation are great at accessing this type of source and it would be an easy way for you to keep your students up-to-date on new/important information, or to simply keep them involved.
It might also be an easy way for teachers to keep in touch easier with their parents. Having a blog that states all of the different activities and perhaps standards that you will be covering in class could help the parents feel like they are more aware of what their children are learning about and not having to rely simply on their child giving them a sheet of paper at the beginning of the month.
Lastly, fellow teachers can keep each other informed on different strategies they are trying, projects they are doing, and other things that teachers would like to share with fellow instructors. Not only would teachers be able to share with local teachers, but teachers throughout the whole nation as well and I think that this could be very beneficial to all teachers.
I think that if you are teaching in middle school or high school blogs could be a great way for you to reach out to your students. Children of the younger generation are great at accessing this type of source and it would be an easy way for you to keep your students up-to-date on new/important information, or to simply keep them involved.
It might also be an easy way for teachers to keep in touch easier with their parents. Having a blog that states all of the different activities and perhaps standards that you will be covering in class could help the parents feel like they are more aware of what their children are learning about and not having to rely simply on their child giving them a sheet of paper at the beginning of the month.
Lastly, fellow teachers can keep each other informed on different strategies they are trying, projects they are doing, and other things that teachers would like to share with fellow instructors. Not only would teachers be able to share with local teachers, but teachers throughout the whole nation as well and I think that this could be very beneficial to all teachers.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Thing # 2
Creating this blog was an interesting experience for me because I have never had a blog before. Creating was, for the most part, easy. I hit a few speed bumps, but for the most part a sailed through the creation of my blog. As I was creating this page, I decided to simply use ccasaday (the first letter of my first name and my last name) as my posting name. I did this to keep my blog professional as well as making it easier for people to know who I am. The name of my blog is Candice Casaday. I did this for a similar reason as my posting name, to give people an easy way of knowing who's post they are reading.
I was a little disappointed when I created my avatar. Unfortunately, I could not find any hairstyles that looked like mine, nor could I find clothes that looked like something I would wear. Therefore, I just created someone that looked as much like me as I could get it to be.
Overall I would say that creating this blog excited me. I am looking forward to being able to express the way I feel about the different assignments and I am looking forward to making my future posts.
I was a little disappointed when I created my avatar. Unfortunately, I could not find any hairstyles that looked like mine, nor could I find clothes that looked like something I would wear. Therefore, I just created someone that looked as much like me as I could get it to be.
Overall I would say that creating this blog excited me. I am looking forward to being able to express the way I feel about the different assignments and I am looking forward to making my future posts.
Monday, September 5, 2011
Thing # 1
I found The tutorial to be very interesting. I thought there were good points made about being lifelong learners. You never really know how much you actually learn until you think about. I'm sure the old saying that "you learn something new everday" stands true, and this tutorial helped me to see that. The habit that I found to be the easiest was to begin with the end in mind. It is easy for me to have a goal and see myself doing it. For example, I would love to learn to play the guitar. I can see myself in the future playing my favorite songs, but then we get to the hard part: getting myself to that point. The habit of accepting responsibility for my own learning seems to be the hardest thing for me. Pushing myself to go out, get the guitar, and get lessons is something that I have yet to do, but wish I would.
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