Accessibility For All Presentation

I found Mr. Sullivan's presentation fascinating. He was well versed, knowledgeable, and brought props relating to the subject so that we could better understand the topic at hand. Growing up in and around the deaf community, I learned that these disabilities are not disabilities at all, unless we make them so. Deaf and blind people can do all the things that seeing and hearing people can, just with a little modification.

I will take this knowledge from the presentation to my classrooms by helping my students to see how their classmates with disabilities can contribute to the class and even teach them a thing or two. I also learned that I need to make my websites and pages that I produce accessible to all. I learned how to do that so I will continue to set a good example for my classroom students and teach them how to as well.

Podcasts

The first podcast that I listened to was KidCast. The host of this podcast believes that questions should be at the center of student pocasts. He says that they build an extended conversation and help develop a student's sense of inquiry. He suggests playing the Question Game where you have to hold a conversation that is all questions. Its like brainstorming with questions.

The second podcast that I listened to was SmartBoard Lessons Podcast. I found the music at the introduction and the conclusion to be catchy. The two hosts seemed to relate well to one another and talk in conversational tones. I could tell that they had been doing podcasts together for a long time. I did find the fact that they talked about personal stuff a bit annoying because they veered off of the topic of their podcast a lot. Other than that, I enjoyed the program.

The third podcast that I listened to was ConnectLearning. I like the music in this one as well. I think music adds to the podcast because it grabs my attention and lets me know that they are about to start the program. In this episode, the host was talking to Ann Krembs who is a librarian from India who wants to make an actual library like in the schools on the world wide web by making it virtual. I like this idea since we are moving more and more into a web based society.

The fourth podcast that I listened to was MacBreak Weekly. This seemed to me more like talk radio. I do not enjoy talk radio. The hosts discussed news and information pertaining to Macintosh computers and all Apple in general. The hosts were all well educated on their topics because they are all Apple users and they give constant feedback on the newest products and services that they try. In this podcast, they discussed Apple stocks, news about the iPhone developer, and software news, to name a couple.

I found these podcasts to be helpful in learning how to do a successful podcast. I gained some insight and tips on what to do during my podcast and what to look out for as well.

Fischbowl Best of 2007

I found this article to be enlightening. I agree to an extent. I find that yes, teachers should be technology literate. At the same time, I also believe that teachers have a lot on their plates and should not be afraid to ask questions if they don't pick up on the new technology as quickly as the technology professional would like them to. I don't believe that teachers try to cop out of learning new technology on purpose, they just also have to worry about their curriculum, as well as how to implement technology in their classrooms.

I believe that as we progress further into this 21st century, we will see technology become a more integral part of the classroom than it is now. I have learned how blogs can be helpful to children as young as six. I never would have thought to use this blogging technology with children that young. I hope to continue to learn more about how technology can be implemented in my classroom of Kindergartners so that they will be adept for the challenges they will face in their lives.

Fischbowl Did You Know 2.0

I found this video amazing. I have never thought about how much technology has in the past and continues to affect our lives on a daily basis. I thought it was really interesting to find out that 100% of college graduates from India spoke English and that China will be the number one English speaking country in the next few years. The presentation also said that most four year olds had used a computer and the Internet. That just amazes me! I liked how the video said that they were trying to place laptops in the hands of needy children around the world. I think this is a great idea so that all children will have the ability to succeed. Technology is moving and progressing so fast! I cant believe that soon a laptop will have more information than even we do as humans. I would love to share this video with others so that we can talk and learn even more about technology and how it can help us in the classroom.

International Blogs in Classrooms

The first blog that I located was of Amanda Marrinan's year 2 class (6 and 7 year olds) in QLD, Austrailia. She had named her class blog 2M Gems. She has implemented the blog using the blogger program. Her blog is filled to the brim with useful tools and helpful ideas for the students. She includes a routines to remember section that reminds students of homework, important dates to remember, the local weather and the weather of cities around the world, links to helpful websites, her blogs to the class, and a live walkie talkie like device that allows you to chat with her and her class called Yack Pack. Her students have a wonderful resource at their fingertips that will allow them to succeed in their studies. The link to her blog is: http://2mgems.blogspot.com/

The blog that I found was from New Zealand. It was Room 9 Nelson Central's Blog . Rachel Nelson was the teacher and her class was comprised of year 2/3 children (6 and 7 year olds). It had posts called "The Lorax Speaks For". These posts were drawn and narrated by students in the class and they we about a subject that interested them. They were fun to watch and showed how much knowledge the children had on these subjects. A child named Sam did his post on different animals and how we should take care of them and protect them. The blog also included helpful items such as a writing spot where children can post their works, links to the childrens blogs, helpful and educational links, and a photo album of the children in the class. I thought this blog was creative and insightful. I like the fact that she implemeted the children in an integral way. The link to this blog is: room9nelsoncentral.blogspot.com/

Blogs in U.S. Schools

In Santee, CA, at West HillsHigh School, Mr. McDowell is implementing a blog as a resource in his World History class. He has set up various sections that you can click on to access different aspects of his blog. They include: a calendar of events, power point presentations, unit overviews, a syllabus, recent posts that pertain to the subject matter, a list of upcoming assignments with links, and a section where students can view their grades. This is a wonderful tool that he has implemented and I think that it will benefit his students greatly. It will make it easier for his students to keep up with their assignments, explore other areas of history with the available links, and also help them keep on top of their grades. The picture is of students at West Hills High School. This is the link to his blog. http://coe.sdsu.edu/eet/articles/bloggingtech/index.htm

In Tennessee, Elizabeth Fullerton is implementing a blog for her students at Central High School. This blog is for her English IV classes. She lists each day a summary of what was covered in class, allows her students to comment on any assignments or class topics, has a class notes section, and links to websites that she finds useful for her students. Her blog is well laid out and is easy to navigate. I feel that I would be able to use this blog to its full potential if I were in her class. I would find it helpful if I missed a day of class to look at the blog and catch up with the notes and with the class summary of events. I also like the fact of the comment section. I think that students will like being able to ask questions to their peers and comment on an assignment. The picture is of a book that the students were assigned to read on August 27, 2008. This is the link to her blog.

ACCESS

ACCESS stands for Alabama Connecting Classroom, Educators and Students Statewide. It is an online learning tool implemented in schools across Alabama. Its function is to provide high school students with resources that will allow them to succeed in today's technological education environment. It provides both web based and interactive video conference learning styles to students as well as a blended approach. Funding for the 2008 year was $20.8 million and new courses were added to the curriculum as well as 100 new labs across the state. There are 188 ACCESS classrooms in effect now.

In the 21st century classroom, you must have items such as headphones for each computer, tablet PCs, Microsoft word, carts for the PCs,wireless routers, and projectors, just to name a few. Some of the Alabama code changes to make ACCESS better was to make teachers become highly qualified in order to teach online courses, add wording for night and summer classes, and add language to let high schools to include honor and weighted points. There is a variety of subjects available in math, science, the arts, English, foreign language, elective courses, social studies, and health as well as remedial courses.

The goal is by 2010 to have ACCESS in all schools statewide and to have had 45,000 students to have taken at least one online course. Right now, ACCESS can help students with AP courses, basic courses, advanced diploma courses, and technology to enhance instruction. There are 10 AP courses available with 369 students enrolled in 2007. It can help improve the graduation rate by letting students take remedial courses, retake courses they failed, repeating only one semester of a course, and allowing flexible course times. In the future, ACCESS wants to offer more virtual field trips, special education classes, teacher mentoring programs, and more course offerings.

I believe that this is a wonderful tool that teachers can implement into their curriculum that will allow for expansive learning opportunities. This program allows teachers to take students on field trips...without ever leaving the classroom! The remedial courses will help teachers by allowing students who need just a little more help in certain subjects get that help and to stay on track. Teachers across Alabama have an exciting new tool at their finger tips.

To learn more information about ACCESS, click on the link below and view the

ACCESS-Helping Students Succeed (ppt).

http://accessdl.state.al.us/showaccess.php?lnk=aeta2007