Reflecting back...

Not very often have I ever said that I would actually miss a class. This class was probably one of the most fun classes I have ever had. The information we learned will help me for the rest of my life, and overall has helped me to better myself as far as my other classes are concerned. The class introduced new technologies to me, and helped save me much headache this current semester and for future ones. This course was a relief from the tedious brain cramming that college courses generally are. I will miss this class mostly because it was so much fun

I loved learning about making podcasts, using google docs, and learning how to blog.

1)Podcasts: I believe that this had to be the best part of the course, and I thoughly enjoyed making them. I believe that we should have encouraged more group work, and that this gave me some fun during classes.

2)Google docs: These programs helped me to save alot of time and headache over jump drives and harddrive space on my computer. I have been using them for every assignment I have to turn in, since I learned about them. I guarentee you that after the next semesters I will have my project list on it overflowing.

3)Blogging: Until this class, I had never wanted to or knew how to blog about anything. Before this class, I always thought that blogging was well kinda...nerdy and such. Now I have a different perspective upon blogging, and thoughly enjoyed it. I hope to be able to use blog's in my classSPACE when I start my teaching.

Overall, this class has helped me to improve myself, and was quite enjoyable as well. I would recommend this class to everyone, and honestly think that it should be a General Studies for every major, not just education ones, because it teaches about technologies that will help everyone in the professional world, as well as in college. Professor Tashbin helped all of us to better ourselves through his teaching of this class.

Podcast listening

Podcasts can be useful tools for teaching, and I listened to a couple podcasts earlier that I think really helped me to better understand not only them, but the tools they talked about.

Can Teachertube be useful to teachers
The students talking during this podcast discussed the website teachertube.com. This website is a useful tool according to them because it shows videos for use in the classroom, and helps students that are visual learner's. This also helps to cut down on sensual overload during teaching. I believe that this tool will help me in the future because of videos about say... presidents or historical events.


Using Video Games as an Educational Tool
Contrary to what many people think, video games are actually good for children because they help children to work together and to learn better. Students enjoy video games in classroom because they are interactive and more fun than having a teacher sit there and tell you what to read or write about. Personally, I have played many video games and have actually benefited from them because they were competive against my friends or just random people, and because many of them challenge your mind to use skills that are useful in the classroom as well. Microsoft creates low-cost video games that are only sold to the schools themselves, not the public. However; teachers, parents, and school official's are mostly not on board with the idea of using video games as educational tools.

Response to "Txting away ur education"

Wow, it seems to me that some people just have to much time on their hands. I have personally never had any trouble keeping my attention on my studies while texting. Maybe instead of creating such mass hysteria over something so trivial they should focus on the real issue; that is teaching students to manage their lives more effectively and to maintain attention.

Multi-tasking is something I was taught at a young age, and should honestly be something taught in a classroom setting because once an individual is put out in the real world they will be expected to handle many different things at once. It seems to me that these people writing the article have their own personal biases (like us all) to deal with; however, they only look at the issue from one perspective. I happened to notice almost no reference to the good these technologies have brought forward. These devices are only distractions if you allow them to be; no one say's you have to answer immediately or in the middle of class. Have I done this before? Of course I have, although I also sometimes don't answer right away, and if they get annoyed by my lack of response I put my phone on airplane mode or I block their number temporarily. The way I see the "issue" of cell phones in schools is that this is just another ploy by the government to privy into our private lives. This is just another action similiar to what the FCC would do. Teach some self control, not communist control.