Reading Reflection #8

Technology has opened up a whole new world of communication, what started with Email and instant messengers such as AIM and MSN messenger has grown into Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat... the list goes on and on! People able to communicate anything from life changing epiphanies and social commentary to the mundane details of every day life. Our ability to communicate has opened a whole new world of being able to share with others without being face to face. For some people, such as special needs children that lack the ability to make eye contact or speak clearly (or for some, at all), it allows them to have an outlet in which they can express to themselves to others without having to worry about the usual issues that may impede their social integration with others. 

I, myself, have gotten to know a few of my students through their youtube channels. I've been involved with students have trouble speaking to others due to shyness or even autism. This lack of verbal communication sometimes gives others the impression that they are not interested or engaged when in reality, seeing their youtube channel reveals that there is way more then we see. I saw that not only are their practicing their skills at home, but they are using social meeting to contact with others in sharing new skills and admiring the work of others. 

However, like with all children, social media can be a double edged sword. Social media is like inviting people into your home, accept there can be a level of anonymity. This anonymity can make these children susceptible to cyber bullying, inappropriate content, and online predators. For this reason, I wanted to share the article I found on NPR, which gives a good guideline for special needs parents and teachers for social media. 

http://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2016/04/07/473085222/what-special-ed-teachers-and-parents-need-to-know-about-social-media?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=education

As many of you may notice, the guidelines here are not only good for special needs children, but all children. All children should be well versed in online safe and responsibility to ensure that online interactions are safe, productive, and enriching. Setting rules and boundaries teaches children about responsible internet use as well as time management.  And finally, all parents and teachers should be alert and monitoring a child's social media use to make sure it is being used responsibly and safely. 

Reading Reflection #7

I found this article through NPR's education section whist checking my feedly and I found it not only relevant as an educator, but as a current student as well.

http://www.npr.org/2016/04/17/474525392/attention-students-put-your-laptops-away

In a world where technology is becoming more and more common in the classroom it makes since that students would evolve to take it upon themselves to incorporate laptops and tablets as tools for note taking. Note taking on a laptop is something I see very often in my own classes with my peers and I can understand its appeal as many of us now type faster then we can write by hand, especially since cursive is no longer taught to children. Many students feel that by being able to tape faster, they get more information onto their notes, which may be true, but as this article brings up, it may not be the amount of information you take in, but the way that you take it in.

According to this article, studies have found that by forcing limited note taking (i.e. hand written notes) students must use short hand and are forced to be more selective in writing their notes rather then writing them down verbatim. Reflecting on when I was in school, many times we were forced to answer home work questions form our books and movies "in you own words". I remember talking to my teacher and asking them why I couldn't just copy the words from the book and they responded in saying "when you put it in your own words, you remember it better". Essentially, that's what note taking forces  you to do.

In addition, while having to think about short hand and information selecting, a student becomes more immersed in the lecture versus having time to do other things, such as being tempted by distractions on their tablet or laptop. Although helpful sometimes, tablets and laptops offer distractions such as games, texting, and social media which are tempting to students during a dull lecture.

This is good food for thought as we get students that one day will ask "why do I have to write it in my own words" or even "why can I just use my laptop. Perhaps some of you tablet/laptop note takers disagree, I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Reflection of PLNs

I actually found the RSS feeds were very helpful in not only locating articles for discussion in our class but for discussion with my colleagues at San Marcos High School as well the other education class that I am in. I subscribed to Education NPR, Discovery News, and Smarter Everyday Youtube just to name a few of my new favorite resources. I learned the most from the education section of NPR, which offers a board insight to the current issues in our education system today such as common core, funding, and privacy. One of my favorite discussions was from an article that talked about California standards for the education provided by the state based on the constitution. We had a long discussion among my peers about whether we should give our kids an education or a “quality” education. It was very insightful.

I actually started my own twitter to help me communicate with my students. I subscribed to everything related to the arts and music programs within our district. Once the entire team (45+) began to follow I was able to communicate with them without having to people up a group text. It was really great to be able to communicate with them in a public forum so that we can always be connected without overstepping the student/educator boundaries.

Classroom 2.0 with Ning was very unfamiliar to me at first. I grow very frustrated with pay for use services since I find that there are too many annoying advertisements coming about. However, I can see this becoming a great source of information for educators that may not mind the clutter or paying for services.

Pinterest was okay but I think it works best as a novelty for the board rather than a resource for a classroom.

My overall PLN experience was positive, it brought me in touch with my students as well articles that keep my on my toes with where education is turning. I feel that society is fluid and it our responsibility as educators to be fluid as well to keep up with the parents and students of today and of the future.