Blog post 14 was one of the more interesting topics for a blog post. I really enjoyed receiving this topic. The only problem was I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I knew I wanted to do something that was actually exciting and got us learning, and I had many ideas to pick from. But most of them were a tad tricky, and would have required ample amounts of time in the planning of them and then several hours in actually completing them. And the more I stalled in picking one, the more I realized I didn’t have time to do any of them.
By this time it was Saturday, and I was slightly distraught. I knew that 2 of my blog posts were going to be late as it was, and now this one wasn’t going to be imaginative. I wasn’t going to be able to show how this class could be run, and show the capabilities that our other projects and posts had been lacking. I considered copping out and just picking a simple topic and assigning videos to watch so that it would be done on time. But I hated that. It is simply the worst way to teach a large group of students. It’s boring, unimaginative, and ridiculous. If anything, the head-fake for this class should be, “We were teaching you How NOT to Teach.”
We have discussed project based learning so many times, and we have seen technologies that better help our students. But we have never done a real project in this class that centered on learning. And our blog posts are meaningless because they are far too structured, have too many limitations, are too restrictive to the imagination, and are simply regurgitated repeated summaries.
So the due date came, and I just couldn’t do it. I didn’t know what to write about, and I just couldn’t be a shill. I needed more time to do something great. Of course, then it was Thanksgiving week, and I got distracted. I was just glad that I finished blog post 15 in a timely manner, and had finished the final project. But I kept this post in mind. And after going over and over in my head what I wanted to do my post about I realized, there isn’t a critique for this class. Not a real one. I mean we get a small area on our final questionnaire, but that definitely isn’t enough. I have so many things I want to say, and I want others to see it, critique it, and let me know how they feel too.
So my suggestion is very simple. You need a post that critiques the class. Discusses the good and the bad, and gives suggestions on how to keep the good and get rid of the bad. And that is what this post will be about.
First I’m going to list posts that I liked, followed by posts that need improvement but were okay, followed by those I disliked. This is just to give you a direct layout, so you can scroll down to whatever you wish to read at any moment. The paragraphs on each subject will discuss why I felt that way about the project, as well as offer suggestions on how to fix them if necessary. So I will be discussing all 16 blog posts as well as all 16 of the projects in this post. So keep in mind, it may be a little long.
The good:
Project 1, Project 3, Project 8, Blog Post 6, Blog Post 14, Blog Post 16
The “I need a slight tweak”:
Project 12, Project 13/14/15, Blog Post 1, Blog Post 2, Blog Post 3, Blog post 8, Blog Post 10, Blog Post 15
The Bad/Major Fixers:
Project 2, Project 4/5/6, Project 7, Project 9, Project 10, Project 16, Blog Post 4, Blog post 5, Blog Post 7, Blog Post 9, Blog post 11, Blog Post 12, Blog Post 13,
The Good:
First, I want to define what I meant by good. Anything listed in this grouping not only had interesting or necessary topics, but also fit perfectly in line with where they needed to be, and also had the correct instruction to go along with them.
Project 1 was an essential aspect to us getting any of this together. I believe blog posting can be an effective way of showing our knowledge to the world when done correctly. Although many students may not agree with this, it is definitely useful for this class. However, that doesn’t mean I would implement it in every class. But for this class, it does prove to be useful.
Project 3 had very detailed instruction and allowed us to see the many uses of Google. I didn’t realize how useful these tools were, and had no idea they existed before now. I appreciated this information, and I liked that we used Google drive as often as we did. I amazed by how much more Google is than just a normal search engine.
Project 8 was my favorite project. A little difficult at first, but it was a lot of fun. I loved making the book trailer, and it was the most useful in introducing us to iMovie.
Blog Post 6 was a great blog post assignment. It is important to understand how to ask questions, and it was limiting to my creativity like others were. I have a fantastic story that goes along with my post, and found an amazing piece of art to go along side with it.
Blog Post 14 is probably the best blog post assignment. Its placement is perfect. However, it may not be the best if you change things in the manner that I hope you do. Other things might become more fun, and if the class doesn’t need too many changes, it may be difficult to do.
Blog Post 16 is perfectly placed. It sums up everything we have done in class, and it makes since to have a post like this. It may not be the most fun, but I would advice keeping it regardless of any changes you make to the class in the future.
The “I need a slight tweak”:
Anything in this section was close to good, but just needed a few tweaks. This may include placement of the assignment, specific parts of the assignment that should be adjusted, or a way to conjoin assignments.
Project 12 had a few issues, but it wasn’t a bad project. When teaching a hands-on technology, you need to have hands-on instruction. And for everyone to get the instruction they need, we really needed to meet in class for this assignment. I would have preferred to have done the entire project in class, and have videotaped it in class. I suggest that instead of presenting our project 13/14/15, that on the Monday we began presentations we do Part A of Project 12. And on the next day (or second half of class) we do part B.
Projects 13/14/15 were great ideas. But the instruction was a bit off, and the projects as a whole need some tweaking. I think they should all be collaborative and perhaps they should be divided into parts. They could be pretty intense to finish in a week, but if only part of it was due for the week, it lessens the burden. And maybe meet in class for project 13 just to explain it a little better. It was kind of confusing the first time around.
Blog Post 1 was a good blog post. I almost put it in the good section, but remembered a tweak that I had for it. The instructions for the blog post were a little restrictive. I suggest you make it less restrictive and let the imagination flow. Of course, I made up my own rules for the assignment anyways. But it was a little scary to do that. And I think it only makes since for the post to be how we would create a school. You can keep the realistic part in it. Just make sure to have the imagination part as well.
Blog Post 2 and 3 were not bad posts. But I think they need to be combined. I think Mr. Dancealot could be added to blog post 1 for contrast, and that the collaborative assignment for post 2 should be the assignment in post 3. That way there is actually discussion in post 3, and the group members get to know one another. I also suggest you play a game in week 2 that allows us to get to know our class mates, and then allow us to pick our group. I think the groups as a whole will be more productive that way.
Blog Post 8 should be kept, but it shouldn’t be collaborative. It also should encourage a little more creativity. It may need a different placement as well.
Blog Post 10 had an amazing video. I’m glad that you have this video. But I think that it needs to be in the beginning somewhere. I couldn’t write a summary because it was such a good video. I’m usually not stumped on writing summaries, but there were too many small parts in the video that just stuck out and a summary would have left them out. I suggest you play it in class in the third week, and discuss it in class. Or have the class write about how it affected their views on teaching as a blog post if there isn’t enough time to discuss it. Leave the summary part out.
Blog Post 15 was a great idea that wasn’t implemented well. I think this would be a good way to incorporate an off campus school tour, or an in-class meet up. The videos should just have been a way to prepare us for the assignment and get us in the right mindset. This post really got me thinking, but I would love to actually touch and feel some of the technology they describe and see what it is like. And the blog assignment could be how it felt, and what we learned from the experience. If you do it off campus at a school for disabilities create a questions list for the students and have them write about that experience. If you make it an in-class meet up, purchase some of the technologies in the videos you listed and have the students use them, but restrict them to using it the way it is meant to be used. For example, the technology that helps blind students use math, blind fold the students so that cannot see it and have them use it that way. The blog post should be about what they experienced, and what they learned from it.
The Bad/Major Fixers:
There were many assignments that needed to be removed or fixed heavily. And this part discusses those assignments and what I would do with them. But before I do that, I want to express what needs to happen to Edm310 for it to be fixed as a whole.
In Edm310 we discuss, but do not practice Project Based Learning. I understand that Dr. Strange wishes for us to learn it through the projects he has assigned. However, the projects and blog posts, as a whole, are not good enough. To be blunt, they are lame failed attempts. As I stated in my intro, we are just being taught to regurgitate information, and I know that is not what Dr. Strange wishes. Unless the class is suppose to be a head fake and teach us what not to do, this needs to change.
The previously discussed assignments listed above are pretty much the only things I would keep in the class. Not quite everything, but almost everything below needs to be completely revamped. I will be taking a break next semester, but will still be taking one class. I would love to help you work out a way to fix it in my off time. The reason I am so adamant for this change is because this class seriously made me reconsider my education major. And I don’t think that it should have.
Project 2 was a great idea, but a failed attempt. I understand the point of a PLN, but I was never implored to really create one. My senior year of high school I took an independent study class that required me to have contacted 50 educators (including college professors, business people, and masters on the subject) on what I was studying. I still didn’t have a great PLN because many of the people I contacted didn’t have enough information on the topic. Of course, Twitter wasn’t being used quite as thoroughly at that point in time as it is now, but there was a big push for me to try and create one. This class never gave that push. It is another thing I suggest begin in class, but the PLN truly needs a major push insuring people are reaching out to others. I’m not sure the best way to do this, but I’m sure there is a better way. This is one of the things in this section I would keep.
Project 4/5/6 was another great idea that doesn’t work as well as it could. On that note C4C is fine. C4T and C4K need the revisions. C4T is boring and doesn’t connect us with teachers. Not enough anyways. The C4T should become a heavy proponent to the PLN, but it should be done completely differently. You can give a listing of blogs so that we can get an email list and contact different individuals. But the commenting and summary of comments is ridiculous. C4K needs major revisions in a different way. I know you have considered it before, so I’m sure you are familiar with the idea. We need to have a set amount of students that we are commenting on and then continue commenting on those students’ posts. If I was a kid, and I got one comment from a student, I’d get excited. But if I never got another one I would be saddened and disheartened. Kids are smart. They know when people do things that have no heart. I actually have been trying to keep up with just one student who blogs a little bit. I saved the link in a Word Doc, and read his things occasionally and comment. It just seems better that way. Also, we need to make sure the set actually blogs enough for us to comment. I would keep C4C, revise C4K, and scrap C4T and make it something else.
Project 7 was stupid. I thought it was ridiculous, it didn’t help us get to know iMovie enough, and it was a bit morbid to a degree. I think people were a tad confused about how to do it and what to say. It is easy to replace, and it needs to be to make room for better projects.
Project 9 needs major revision if you wish to keep it. It isn’t a bad concept, but since my thoughts conjoin it with Blog post 4, I will discuss why this is in that paragraph. If you keep it, it needs to be more interactive and fun.
Project 10 at this moment is impractical. Once the PLN is corrected it would make more since. But there should be an option where it doesn’t have to be a movie, and can be done through an exchange of emails, or something. An idea to keep, but it needs to be implemented with a stronger PLN plan.
Project 16 was tedious. I get that it makes for an interesting final project, but I dislike that we can’t share it on our blog. Or more specifically, you don’t know how we can share it on our blog. There is a way, just like there is a way to share it via the internet, even though you can’t email it. It can be shared through drop box, which would have been nice to know. The first 2gb are free, and when you add someone you get another 500mb. I suggest you look into it. Also, to make it viewable on our blog, you can set it as a website. Though, I’m not sure exactly how this works. I sent mine to a friend of ours using Drop Box, and she sent me a link to a web address where I could down load it from after she edited it. I never showed the edited version in class. But I could show it now. If you keep this for the final, these revisions need to be done. I also suggest having a week in class where we begin preparing the books. It was a bit more hands on.
Blog Post 4 had a lot of issues. If you wish to keep podcasting you need to understand it. And I suggest you just make it a long lasting project. But first and foremost, you need to know the definition of a podcast. A podcast is a media file that is downloadable from the internet. Though the word can be ambiguous to include video podcast, it shouldn’t be. So if the media has video in it, you must call it a video podcast. Discussing podcast will not include video podcasts unless you specify it to. Also, there is a difference in streaming video and a podcasted video. Meaning, the “podcasts” that we created and uploaded to Youtube were not actual podcasts. They were streamed videos, but since they were not downloadable they were not podcasts. For it to be downloadable, you must be able to download it from the internet to a device, and then be able to play it on that device without it connecting to the original source. When you download a podcast from ITunes, you will notice that you can play the music without having to connect to the internet. That is a download, and hence a podcast. If it has video, it is a video podcast. So, there are many ways to make videos available to our students on the internet without making it a podcast. And none of the “podcasts” created in this class were podcasts. So I suggest you fix this. And delete the post about it. Make a project.
Blog Post 5 was informative, but the information should be connected to Projects 13/14/15. Also, the material should be discussed and shown in class. Delete the post about it.
Blog Post 7’s information is useless by the time we get to it. It would be interesting if we got to talk to Mr. Capps in person (or via skype) in class one day. Or, if you would like to connect the information with the other information on PBL, that wouldn’t be a bad idea. It’s just a little excessive. I would delete the post about it.
Blog Post 9 was annoying and useless. Whatever creativity blog post 8 inspired, this one demolished. It restrained us to much, and pushed us to write summaries. The videos can be used somewhere else, but the post itself needs to be deleted. It also wasn’t cooperative at all. Many coop assignments weren’t.
Blog Post 11 would have been better placed in the beginning. Again the topic restrained creativity, and the information was repetitive. It reminded me of the Anthony Capps video in the essence that it was useless by the time we got to it. I would love to have chatted with her in person/via skype, or to have the videos combined with PBL. Or her videos could have been used in the beginning to explain why we blog post. But the post about the videos needs a lot of reformation, or to simply be deleted.
DELETE BLOG POST 12. I personally disliked Ken Robinson’s videos. He is an idiot, and I can’t believe he does TED talks. His information is misleading, repetitive, and annoying. I know others liked him, and may even wish for you to keep them. However, I know he is using pseudo science, and can disprove some of his beliefs with real science. And that shouldn’t be expressed to our students.
Blog Post 13 was useless. TED talks usually are inspiring, but they are not meant to necessarily teach us new techniques. They are meant to show what can be and is being done. And if they are used in the future, use them for inspiration. But don’t require a summary.
Final Remarks
Since this class revolves around PBL it needs to utilize PBL. This would require our in-class meet ups to be more substantial, and may require us to attend class 50% of the time. I think it is worth it. The projects that are posted on the blog should illustrate what we did and what we learned. They should incorporate all of the topics you wish to cover, but must be done more effectively as suggested. You may need more of them, or more time for those that need expansions. The weekly blog posts themselves should be creative expressions. Give simple guidelines, but make most of them creative writing bits. On occasion have them discuss the projects, or place a few more restrictions (like what I suggested be done in blog post 1). The PLN should be a separate on-going project with monthly posts on progress. I suggest it be revised as I suggested.
Finally, I am labeling this as Blog post 11, 13, and 14 for two reasons. First, this is an incredibly long bit that I wish to have has my next post on my blog. And second, because I give a thorough explanation on why I didn’t do posts 11 and 13. I did watch the videos, and could discuss them. But I found it useless to summarize them. You should be able to tell I watched the videos in blog post 11 based on my explanation on what to do with them. But to prove I did 13, I watched Shukula Bose’s video Teaching One Student at a Time. It was very informative in the reform she has helped create in India with such a simple idea. I’m glad to see children in the slums receiving a caring and vigorous education. And it is amazing what one person can do. But as I explained, TED talks are usually for inspiration and not meant to teach us new techniques.
Also in a word document this post is over 6 pages long. That would almost be enough for a term paper, so I expect it covers enough to be posted as such. If you have any questions, please let me know. I hope this will help change this class.
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An explanatory note by John Strange: For other readers of this comment: The assignments themselves can be accessed through the EDM310 Instructional Manual. I have added the titles of the Projects and Blog Post assignments. To fully understand Leythem's comments and my responses it would probably be useful to familiarize yourself with the EDM310 Class Blog.
My Response to Thomas Leytham
Ah. You believe in (or at least practice) the old adage The best defense is a good offense.
"I considered copping out and just picking a simple topic and assigning videos to watch so that it would be done on time. But I hated that. It is simply the worst way to teach a large group of students. It’s boring, unimaginative, and ridiculous." Is your argument that no assignments should be to read or watch something and then to discuss what you learned from that activity (including "nothing")? You undermine this argument by suggesting that some assignments following that form are "good" using your own criteria for "good." If the way I teach is "the worst way to teach a large group of students" what is the best way to do it?
"[W]e have never done a real project in this class that centered on learning." We do no projects in class after setting up blogs. That is, whether for bad or good, the result of the way the University structures "blended courses." Blended courses are the result of changes in policy that result in increasing the number of credit hours produced by faculty. Increasing faculty credit hour production decreases instructional costs. Whether you or I think that is a good thing, it is a reality in the way college education is financed these days.
"[O]ur blog posts are meaningless because they are far too structured, have too many limitations, are too restrictive to the imagination, and are simply regurgitated repeated summaries." Examples would provide us a context for understanding what you mean by "too structured," "have too many limitations," "are too restrictive to the imagination," "and are simply regurgitated repeated summaries." Without evidence we only have your opinions which are not convincing. Examples might change my mind. Whether or not that happens, it could convince others if you make a good evidence based case for your conclusions.
"I’m going to list posts that I liked ... followed by those I disliked." What you like and dislike are not the criteria I use to determine the assignments in EDM310. Like and dislike are also not included in the criteria you suggest for evaluating assignments: "First, I want to define what I meant by good. Anything listed in this grouping not only had interesting or necessary topics, but also fit perfectly in line with where they needed to be, and also had the correct instruction to go along with them."
"Project 8 [Book Trailer] was my favorite project. A little difficult at first, but it was a lot of fun." Difficultand fun are not among the criteria you have established to evaluate the worthiness of assignments. Perhaps you should include them if they are important to learning.
"Blog Post 6 [How and What Questions Do We Ask?] was a great blog post assignment. It is important to understand how to ask questions, and it was limiting to my creativity like others were." What do you mean by this phrase: and it was limiting to my creativity like others were?
"Blog Post 16 [Final Video reflection] ... may not be the most fun, but I would advice keeping it..." See my comment about fun two paragraphs above. advise, not advice
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"When teaching a hands-on technology, you need to have hands-on instruction." For some things supervised hands-on activities with critiques may be very useful for instruction. Some examples include driving a car, flying a plane. In other cases the critiques may be separated from the hands-on activity: writing, solving math problems, wine tasting. Still other cases may result in mastery without any external instruction: putting, carving, cooking, poetry writing, theorizing.
"Projects 13/14/15 were great ideas. But the instruction was a bit off..." An example or examples is necessary to be convincing.
"... I made up my own rules for the assignment anyways...And I think it only makes since for the post..." anyway, not anyways; sense not since
"I also suggest you play a game in week 2 that allows us to get to know our class mates, and then allow us to pick our group." I will follow this suggestion in the Spring term. I think you may be correct in the need for more interaction and maybe even self-selection of groups even though the literature disagrees and my past experience in forming groups that way has not been better in my opinion. But I will try it again. Perhaps the game will make the difference.
"Blog Post 8 [What Are 21st Century Learning and Communicating Tools?] should be kept, but it shouldn’t be collaborative." I am seriously thinking about eliminating several of the collaborative assignments. They were included this semester upon the urging of the chair of my department. She thought that would decrease the number of people who dropped or failed the course. We will have a new chair next semester who may not share the current chair's ideas or who may not involve himself in my instructional activities.
"Blog Post 10 [What Can We Learn About Teaching From Randy Pausch?] had an amazing video. ... I couldn’t write a summary because it was such a good video." Speechless? I am surprised by that!
"So my suggestion is very simple. You need a post that critiques the class. Discusses the good and the bad, and gives suggestions on how to keep the good and get rid of the bad. And that is what this post will be about." A good idea, especially if done in the context of what we know about effective instruction. I will work on this and may include some form of it next semester.
"Blog Post 15 [What Assistive Technologies Are Available?] was a great idea that wasn’t implemented well. " You suggest a field tour or some chance to see adaptive technologies being used in a real classroom. The first opportunity for this will come when you start your student teaching. Other solutions may be better but they are impossible at the present given issues such as transportation, scheduling, visitation rules, privacy rules, money, etc. Videos are the best we can do.
"In Edm310 we discuss, but do not practice Project Based Learning. I understand that Dr. Strange wishes for us to learn it through the projects he has assigned. However, the projects and blog posts, as a whole, are not good enough. To be blunt, they are lame failed attempts. As I stated in my intro, we are just being taught to regurgitate information, and I know that is not what Dr. Strange wishes. Unless the class is suppose to be a head fake and teach us what not to do, this needs to change." supposed, not suppose Really? Your argument is that there are projects (16, many with several activities, to be exact) but that no learning occurs because the projects and blog posts are "are not good enough ... they are lame failed attempts?"
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"The reason I am so adamant for this change is because this class seriously made me reconsider my education major." I think you, and all students, should consider whether they want to or can be excellent teachers in this changing world. This may involve considering whether you should major in education. I think that is a good thing. I am not sure whether you think it appropriate to review your career choice but I interpret what you have said as a statement that EDM310 should be changed so that would not happen. Am I correct? If so, we are in disagreement. Every career choice should be considered as temporary, not permanent. "The top 10 in-demand jobs in 2010 did not exist in 2004." Did You Know (at 0:44). In addition, the US Department of Labor predicts that today's students will have had 10-14 jobs by the time they are 38 years old. (Ibid. at 1:03. Career experts such as "Mason Bishop, director of the National Industry Strategy Group at University of Phoenix" predict that "the average young person will have at least eight different careers during their lifetime. 'Eight different careers, not eight different jobs,' " Bishop emphasizes. (Blog post: Tempe Chamber forum: Schools must prepare students for multiple career changes.
"Project 2 [Personal Learning Network] was a great idea, but a failed attempt. ... I was never implored to really create one. ... the PLN truly needs a major push insuring people are reaching out to others. I’m not sure the best way to do this, but I’m sure there is a better way. This is one of the things in this section I would keep." Yes, I agree. I did not "push" the PLN this semester. I have in the past, but not this semester. The PLN has never been as successful as I wanted it to be. I think I assume students will know how important PLNs are with few examples or instruction. In addition, students confuse the method of communicating the PLN (a Symbaloo) with the real PLN. I have found an excellent presentation on PLNs since the start of class: The World Needs Your Contribution! How My PLN Changed My Life by Denise Krebs. Maybe this will be the push students need to do a PLN (which is a very personal activity by definition).
"Project (sic.) 4/5/6 [Commenting on Kids, Classmates and Teachers] was another great idea that doesn’t work as well as it could. On that note C4C is fine. C4T and C4K need the revisions. C4T is boring and doesn’t connect us with teachers...." Being "boring" to you I will ignore. Not connecting with teachers is a legitimate concern. I never intended for students to "connect" with teachers in the way I think you mean, but that is an interesting suggestion. I wonder whether I can find good teachers who are willing to put much time into "connecting" with my students. A few do that already. But are there enough if I were to reach the 140 enrollment that the University of South Alabama wants for EDM310? I have settled on merely exposing my students to teachers who regularly blog about interesting educational topics. I can't force students to like to do that. Perhaps a modification that would require students to find their own teachers to follow (that has happened infrequently) would improve the results of the assignment. I have added teachers to my C4T list as a result of student suggestions.
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You go on to say "...the commenting and summary of comments is ridiculous." The problem is not whether the process is "ridiculous" to you or not. I need some way to determine whether the activity I want to have happen (reading interesting blogs by teachers and exposing EDM310 students to current issues affecting teachers, learning and students) has occurred. If I require nothing, nothing will be done and I should just eliminate the entire assignment. How would you determine what impact these activities have (or are having) on students? You do not say.
"C4K needs major revisions in a different way. I know you have considered it before, so I’m sure you are familiar with the idea. We need to have a set amount of students that we are commenting on and then continue commenting on those students’ posts." You go on to say you solved this problem for yourself. That is wonderful. Why don't other students do as you did? I am still thinking about a contract with other teachers. It is a difficult process, but I will continue the exploration.
Your summary: "I would keep C4C, revise C4K, and scrap C4T and make it something else." What is the "something else." Your points on all three are well taken. Keep me posted on solutions other than abandonment. I am familiar with that one.
Project 7 [“This is My Sentence” Video and "This Is My Passion Video"] was stupid. I thought it was ridiculous, it didn’t help us get to know iMovie enough, and it was a bit morbid to a degree." Morbid? Stupid? Ridiculous? Condemnatory words having no meaning to me in this context without some explanation. The goal was to introduce iMovie in a way that everyone could accomplish something with little or no instruction. You state "... it didn’t help us get to know iMovie enough ." I will interpret this as a personal evaluation - not a universal one. My experience over ten semester says that this project is generally successful in achieving my goals. The topics (and examples) from Daniel Pink (sentence) and Marc Prensky (passion) have been used widely with great success. You are the first I know of to determine them to be morbid, stupid, ridiculous.
Project 9 [Podcast] needs major revision if you wish to keep it. It isn’t a bad concept, but since my thoughts conjoin it with Blog post 4 [Why Podcasts? How?], I will discuss why this is in that paragraph. If you keep it, it needs to be more interactive and fun." We used to do audio podcasts and they were published on iTunes. The procedures were cumbersome. Students could not upload material directly to iTunes. I had to do it for them because of security and privacy issues. YouTube made it possible to upload directly to the net. This required a move to video podcasts (or videos). YouTube accepts audio with only a single frame of information. the frames gave us a good way to attribute information and provide links. That is the evolution in EDM310. I think, however, that the podcast will be eliminated either next semester or next fall. I am left with the issue of how do I insure that the textbook is read.
"Project 16 [iBook or Prezi Final project] was tedious. I get that it makes for an interesting final project, but I dislike that we can’t share it on our blog." Prezi can be embedded in a blog. The iBook was not made for that purpose. You go on to suggest that the iBook file can be shared through Dropbox. Yes, but the end product (the iBook preview on an iPad) cannot be shared that way. You suggest I do not know about Dropbox and that I should encourage its use. I do. See page 10 of the Activities Manual where I require all students to install Dropbox:
"Activity # 5 Additional Preparation For Your Intellectual Journey Part 2
Install:
...
Dropbox Dropbox allows you free storage in the "cloud." It is extremely useful.
Google sites is another alternative.
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You will find that much of what you will do as a teacher (if you pursue that career) will be "tedious." Ask practicing teachers about their "tedious" activities. Prepare for long answers.
"Project 10 [A Video Interview with a Teacher, former EDM310 Lab Pro, or a C4T] at this moment is impractical. Once the PLN is corrected it would make more since. But there should be an option where it doesn’t have to be a movie, and can be done through an exchange of emails, or something. An idea to keep, but it needs to be implemented with a stronger PLN plan." sense, not since The objective is to do a more complex iMovie or a screen capture using FaceTime or Skype. The subject matter has been different over the course of the last 10 semesters. I am still playing with it. I will think about it in the context of the PLN. Maybe I will come up with something.
"Blog Post 5 [How Can iCurio and Discover Ed Be Used Effectively? ] was informative, but the information should be connected to Projects 13/14/15. Also, the material should be discussed and shown in class. Delete the post about it." Maybe you mean the assignment and PBL projects (projects 13/14/15) should be connected in a better way. I will take a look at that suggestion. I did not get final approval for access to iCurio until a week before the project was to start. I never got the Discover Ed access that I had been promised. I was taking a big risk when I developed the plan for the fall term. I hope to have an agreement in place with iCurio before the semester starts in the spring.
"Blog Post 7’s [What Can We Learn From Anthony Capps?] information is useless by the time we get to it. It would be interesting if we got to talk to Mr. Capps in person (or via skype) in class one day." Timing is always difficult. I have no other comment.
"Blog Post 9 [What Can We Learn from These Teachers? ] was annoying and useless. Whatever creativity blog post 8 inspired, this one demolished. It restrained us to much, and pushed us to write summaries. The videos can be used somewhere else, but the post itself needs to be deleted. It also wasn’t cooperative at all. Many coop assignments weren’t." too, not to What were the restraints imposed? That you watch and summarize? I think summaries are extremely useful. You apparently dislike them. I do not think I have anything more to say that will convince you that it is important for you to be able to clearly state the positions and ideas of others even if you disagree with them. The comment about cooperative posts is well taken and will be addressed (and hopefully corrected) next term.
"Blog Post 11 [What Can We Learn From Mrs. Cassidy?] would have been better placed in the beginning. Again the topic restrained creativity, and the information was repetitive. It reminded me of the Anthony Capps video in the essence that it was useless by the time we got to it. I would love to have chatted with her in person/via skype, or to have the videos combined with PBL. Or her videos could have been used in the beginning to explain why we blog post. But the post about the videos needs a lot of reformation, or to simply be deleted." Skype should be capitalized. Sometimes the video is early in the course, sometimes later. How do I decide? Other than that musing I have no comment to make.
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"DELETE BLOG POST 12. I personally disliked Ken Robinson’s videos. He is an idiot, and I can’t believe he does TED talks. His information is misleading, repetitive, and annoying. I know others liked him, and may even wish for you to keep them. However, I know he is using pseudo science, and can disprove some of his beliefs with real science. And that shouldn’t be expressed to our students." You should be very careful when calling someone else an "idiot." In fact, I would recommend that you never use that term. If you do, be prepared to prove it. You certainly have not done that here! What have you said? (Note this is a summary which you apparently despise).
1. You personally dislike Ken Robinson's videos.
2. You think he is an "idiot" but have provided no clues as to how you reach that judgement.
3. His "information is misleading, repetitive, and annoying." You must provide evidence, examples, arguments if you wish to convince your readers that there is any merit in your conclusions. I am not convinced by your single sentence comment. I am often annoyed by what I read. Many people repeat themselves. And misleading information surrounds us all the time. ALL the time. Just wait until you start reading the papers written by students. And others!
4. "I know he is using pseudo science, and can disprove some of his beliefs with real science." Do so then. You have provided absolutely no evidence to support either of these two claims.
"Blog Post 13 [What Can We Learn From These TED Talks?] was useless. TED talks usually are inspiring, but they are not meant to necessarily teach us new techniques. They are meant to show what can be and is being done. And if they are used in the future, use them for inspiration. But don’t require a summary." Blog posts are assigned to expose students to different attitudes and view points about teaching and learning. Sometimes that includes exposing students (or even teaching students) new techniques. Blog posts are also used as a way to get students to write. Unless you practice writing you will not become a good writer. As you know I have given up on trying to ensure that prospective teachers be able to add, subtract, multiply and divide at at least an 8th or 12th grade level. But I do not intend to give up on writing. So you can forget trying to get me to eliminate writing assignments and the summaries which I include in those assignments for the reasons I have discussed throughout this discourse. If you teach, and if you want your students to write well, I imagine many of your assignments will be much like mine!
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You go on to make several points in your "Final Remarks." I will summarize them. Yes, that dreaded word: summarize. I will follow with a brief remark of mine which I shall italicize.
1. Utilize PBL in EDM310. My response: I think I do.
2. Perhaps the class should meet 50% of the time. My response: Perhaps. Maybe even 100% of the time. The University is trying to extract more credit hours from less direct instruction. That is my concern. Can we do that and sill provide effective education for our students? I have other concerns as well which I will not explore here.
3. The weekly assignments should foster "creative writing." My response: EDM310 requires writing more in tune with the development of a legal case. I will leave the creative writing to other courses. I will, however, suggest a book for you to read: Out of Our Minds: Learning to Be Creative. It does not directly address writing per se, but rather it discusses how to help others become creative in many aspects of their lives. Shall I tell you the author? Yes, I think I shall, even though you think he is an "idiot": Sir Ken Robinson. Read the book. Actually, why don't you also read The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything as well as the recently published (May 2013) guide book How to Discover Your Talents and Passions and Transform Your Life? Both of these are also by Sir Ken Robinson. I need to note that I have not read the latter. After you have read one or more of these books, tell me whether you still consider Robinson to be an "idiot." And provide your evidence in a well organized, convincing document (a brief as it would be called in legal circles) that argues a case rather than demonstrates "creative writing".
4. "The PLN should be a separate on-going project with monthly posts on progress." My response: If I add these assignments I will give you credit for the suggestion.
5. "Finally, I am labeling this as Blog post 11, 13, and 14 for two reasons. First, this is an incredibly long bit that I wish to have has my next post on my blog." My response: What does "have has my next blog post" mean?
6. "And second, because I give a thorough explanation on why I didn’t do posts 11 and 13." My response: Your attempt is noted but not accepted.
7. "Also in a word document this post is over 6 pages long. That would almost be enough for a term paper..." My response: So? My comment is 6 1/2 pages in length. Single spaced! I guess we both have set records. What else? Was my summary thorough and accurate?
Thank you for your efforts to "help change this class [EDM310]."
I, as always, have quite a bit to state. But I will simplify. My critique was meant to establish my feelings about the class. I think that this is important. If I dislike something or find it boring, then others probably do to. I understand that not all education is fun, but I also think it should strive to be.
DeleteMany of my arguments were personal. I do admit I did not provide examples or proofs to back all of my assertions. There are many reasons why this was. The main reason is because it would have been a short book. I limited myself to a paragraph on each project/blogpost (even though some truly went beyond that). If I had added the proofs, and discussed them as thoroughly as I could, it would have been a minimum of 2 pages on each project/blogpost (maybe excluding the ones I labeled as good). I simply don't have time to write 64 pages on EDM310.
When doing the critique I had three options. I could have discussed the whole class ambiguously, not pointing out individual parts. I don't like ambiguity on such subject. I also could have picked only a few of them to discuss. Possibly selecting what I considered to be the best parts about EDM310 and what I felt needed the most improvement. Then I could have given more examples and proof. But I also would have had to leave out quite a bit on the intermediate pieces. I also would have needed to equalize the good and bad, which would have heavily limited me on critiquing the entire class. So I chose the entire critique of the class. This left out the proofs. However, I at least was able to discuss each individual part. Some were more intellectually stimulating than others.
Ken Robinson made me incredibly agitated. If I may borrow the books, I will contend his arguments on ADD/ADHD. I have read many articles that have disproved the theory he discussed on it. But I will compile them for you and hope to have it ready before next semester.
As for everything else, I would love to discuss them in person. I really think EDM310 could be a great class. It just needs a little adjustment. I think it is natural that you disagree with me on many issues, and agree with me on some. It would be strange for you to not back your teaching. But I stand by my beliefs as well. I will email you about a time to meet.
I hope to help the best way I can.