Raven's Blog

Blocking useful Websites

ravenskidmore — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:06:39 +0000

As teachers, it is important for us to constantly challenge and engage our students. One way of doing this, is by getting them interested in things that they like to do. The internet is a great way to get students involved in learning. Students will be more apt to take an interest in an assignment if they enjoy doing it. However, teachers face the problem of the school systems blocking a lot of useful resources and websites. Yes, there are websites out there that should be blocked. However, I do not think that websites like voicethread or wikispaces should be some of them. I particularly love the voicethread website. I believe it is a creative way to hear student feedback, and also allow them to create their own projects. Some content on voicethread may be inappropriate, but this should not cause it to be blocked. I remember when I was in high school the library had computers that were inside there own cubicles. This made it easy to view restricted material, if one wished to do so. With this being said, isn’t it our responsibility as teachers to monitor our students? If computer labs and libraries were set-up to where the monitors could easily be seen by everyone, then this would deter students form looking up inappropriate websites. I mean lets be realistic, the students have access to internet other than just at school, if they want to view restricted websites badly enough; then they will find a way to do so. Why should we limit our students to certain websites, when these sites are beneficial to them? In a world where technology advances everyday, it is our responsibility to see to it that our students advance right along.

Tim Tyson’s: Closing Key Note

ravenskidmore — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 22:10:04 +0000

I love the idea that Tim Tyson has come up with. By telling students that he will globally distributed the most exemplary work, he gets the students involved and engaged in learning. I think its amazing that the average number of files exported a month is 1.5 million! Tim Tyson is also incorporating technology into the classroom, by teaching students how to subscribe to itunes ans podcasts. As teachers, we need to continually challenge and engage our students, but we also want them to want to learn. By “globally distributing” students work, teachers are challenging students to think outside the box, to develop ideas worthy of sharing, to create work that others want to subscribe to. Individually, teachers could use this same type of system in their classrooms. It would be a great way to promote learning and healthy competition, and get students to want to do exemplary work.

Expiermenting with voicethread!!!

ravenskidmore — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 18:29:27 +0000

Please visit my voicethread, explore and add comments!!!

Exploration of 2.0 websites

ravenskidmore — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 18:43:49 +0000

Today I viewed three 2.0 websites: PicLits, Scratch, and Voki. Out of these websites, I found PicLits and Voki to be the most interesting and useful for use in the classroom. PicLits, is a fun and interactive way to get students to express their emotions and feelings about a picture by dragging words into the frame. Instead of showing a picture to students and asking them to write a paragraph or sentence using vocabulary words, you can simply have them visit this website and pick a picture they want to write about. This website offers a creative outlet for students to express their emotions in a non-traditional way. I liked Voki, because it can be used in a variety of ways. Voki is a program that allows you to create avatars, from what they look like to what they will say. A great assignment would be to have students pick a character from a literary work they read, and create an avatar based on how the book describes this character. Instead of having them write a book report, you can have the create a dialogue in which they answer questions that you have given them. This is just one example of how Voki could be beneficial in the classroom, I am sure there are a hundred more creative ways avatars can be used. I did not particularly like the Scratch website, because I found it confusing and hard to navigate. I am sure it could also be useful in a class setting, but if I cannot navigate it then I cannot teach my students how to.

Using Websites in the Classroom

ravenskidmore — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 19:05:13 +0000

One website that I found interesting, was timerime.com. It enables you to create interactive time lines, that are fun and exciting. Anyone can use this website, but you have a membership. However, it does have a website that is dedicated to teachers only. Education.timerime.com, is their new website that is closed to everyone except teachers and students. This is a creative way to get students and teachers involved in technology, and creating their own time lines. Museum Box is also another interactive website, that has a section for teachers and students. This website allows you to tell a story throw dragging pictures and texts into a “box”. As a teacher, you can create student accounts, and instead of asking them to write a boring research paper, they can use this website to tell their story and display the research they have done. Wordle.net is a website where you can create a “word cloud”. As an English teacher, I can think of various ways to use this website in my classroom. I could students to create a word cloud and include words that best describe them and their interests, or have them pick a word and research synonyms and antonyms and create a word cloud. All these websites can be used in the classroom, and they are fun, creative, and interactive.

Media Lietracy in the 21st century

ravenskidmore — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 22:11:50 +0000

I found this article to be very interesting and true. I liked how they referred to the 20th century teaching method as “banking.” I have never heard it called that before, but it is a great name for it. I remember just simply memorizing facts, just for the sake of passing the test. It is important that students learn to engage in the learning process, and learn how to form their own opinions and ideas. The internet has become a huge resource for researching and finding facts out about history. With the touch of a button, we have access to unlimited amounts of information. Like the article mentioned, why make students learn things that they can access in two seconds? The world is changing, technology is advancing, and teaching methods are not adapting to incorporate the media world around us. I think that the concept of teaching Media Literacy is brilliant. Teachers need to encourage students to think for themselves. When I first started college, I had a hard time adapting to the teaching style of my professors. Instead of having me memorize and repeat, I was asked to analyze and interpret. If we can get students to start analyzing and interpreting at a young age, then they will be more successful later on in life.

Dr. Crovitz’s Scrutinizing the Cybershell

ravenskidmore — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 21:28:40 +0000

I am in Dr. Crovitz’s class right now, and I found it very interesting that he writes and publishes articles. I guess my other English professors do to, but I have never personally read one. I loved reading this article, and gaining insight into his view about websites and learning. In class we discuss how to use a variety of technology in the classroom, and this article gave me further insight into his teaching views and style. As a future English teacher, I believe it is very important that my students know how to use and understand the web and its content. As we all know, the web has grown exponentially in the past few years. I personally do not know what I would do, or where I would be without the internet. The internet opens up a whole new cyber world, with a vast variety of knowledge and information. As teachers we need to be able to understand the internet, and we need to teach our students how to effectively use and examine websites and there content. Soon, I think that everything will be web and computer based. I mean lets face it, paper books and texts will soon be obsolete. There is already a hand held computer device out that allows you to download and read full texts, books, and articles. How much easier and cost efficient would it be to have a computer for every student in the classroom, and have them read books and texts from the internet. No more book storage rooms, no more waiting for shipments of books to come in, no more student fines for losing books, no more heavy book bags and back problems, and no more books being left at home! I mean this theory may be far fetched, and probably no where close to happening. But, it would make life a lot easier! With that being said, the point is that in a world that is swiftly becoming an online cybershell; students need to be able to understand texts other than black and white. Having students examine websites and there content, allows them to think outside the box and broaden their horizons. Personally, when I was in grade school, I would have loved to learn all the hard work and dedication that goes into creating a website. The marketing that is used in websites today, is mostly geared toward a younger audience. I was appalled to realize that the Slim Jim website could potentially be influencing young males to do “heroic” acts in order to prove their manly hood. In order for students to actually understand that these websites and marketing slogans are simply designed to sell a product; they need to become educated about how to understand the imagery and symbolism that is being used in the website. The web can be a dangerous thing, but it is also an amazing one. I am all for incorporating the web into my curriculum, and think that other teachers and future teachers should educate themselves on how to use the web to benefit their teaching style.

Websites targeting kids

ravenskidmore — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 18:49:54 +0000

While looking for companies that target children, I ran across the Capri Sun website. I found this website very interesting. I have also seen their commercials, and they use the same marketing technique in those as well. When the page pops up, it displays the word disrespectoids in huge letters. It also has interesting looking characters. This immediately grabbed my attention. The site redirects you to a game, and it is definitely geared towards children. The message they are sending, is to “respect the pouch.” It is a very fun and interactive site! The starburst site also attracts a younger audience. Their website is very colorful and interactive. When you scroll over the different options, they move and do cool things. I really enjoyed looking at this site, because it is not boring at all. They use great marketing techniques, in order to keep their audience entertained. The frosted flakes website has a great message, it encourages children to stay active. I can see where this website would attract both a younger and older audience. It is not outrageously childish, or too serious.

Quebracho

ravenskidmore — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 18:40:18 +0000

The encyclopedia referred to this tree as an “axe breaker,” because apparently it is a very hard barked tree. However, wikipedia and brittancia.com did not mention the nickname “axe breaker.” All of the sources confirmed that these trees grow in the Gran Chaco area of South America. I find that looking up stuff on the Internet is way more beneficial, and less time consuming. Wikipedia is a more useful cite, the content is more accessible and easier to read. Britannica was annoying, because a pop-up kept blocking what I was trying to read. They actually want you to buy a membership. Encyclopedias are also expensive, and I much rather prefer free.

For everyone who doubts Greek life……and for those of you who LOVE it!!!

ravenskidmore — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 18:47:43 +0000

I recently stumbled across an amazing video on youtube. I already cherish and love my sorority, but this video made me love Greek life that much more. Whoever came up with this video is genius, and squashes all rebuttals about Greeks.