EDM 310 Class Blog

Missing - 30 Students Have Not Accepted Group Invitations

2012-02-02T08:29:00.002-06:00

If you do not accept your invitation to join your EDM310 Class group you will not have access to the Docs you need to do your assignments. There are 30 students still to accept their invites: 9 in TT11; 14 in TT2; 7 in W6. MW4 is 100% complete! Congratulations MW4!

Challenge to schools: Embracing digital textbooks

2012-02-01T17:28:00.000-06:00

A must read: Challenge to schools: Embracing digital textbooks

Two New Docs Should Now Be in Your Google Docs

2012-01-31T15:32:00.004-06:00

I have just shared these Docs with the 4 Google Groups that I was forced to create:
Groups Spring 2012
Podcast Assignments: Some Suggestions and Instructions

I have also made significant changes to the Podcast Instructions in the Projects Instructions Manual. We are now at Version 4.

I changed Jacey Blair's Twitter name to @jaceyblurrr in the Syllabus. We are now at Version 4 of the Syllabus as well.

It will be interesting to see whether everyone gets the two documents listed above. You must have accepted the invitation to join one of the 4 groups before you will get any Docs under the new system.

If you do not get the Docs, find your invite and accept it. If you encounter problems, please send an email to edm310help@gmail.com

Have You Accepted Your Google Group Invite?

2012-01-30T09:38:00.007-06:00

On Friday I set up 4 Google groups - one for each class. You were sent an invitation in a Gmail (from Dr. John) inviting you to join the group. It is essential that you do so in order to get additional Docs related to EDM310. This is a new procedure that results from Google's blocking mass sharing of Docs.

So far, here is how the classes have responded:

Class.....% accepted.....#accepted.....#awaiting response
W6...........76%...........25...............8
MW4........70%...........21...............9
TT11.........67%...........28..............14
TT2..........51%...........20..............19

As of 1/31/12 3:35pm
Class.....% accepted.....#accepted.....#awaiting response
W6...........76%...........25...............8
MW4........93%...........28...............2
TT11.........74%...........31..............11
TT2..........60%...........24..............16

Questions? Send a Gmail to edm310help@gmail.com

CC Has Started But...

2012-01-29T17:18:00.008-06:00

Project #4 Comments 4 Classmates (C4C) has begun. Your assignment for this week (Comment is due by midnight 2/5) will be distributed in a Google Doc on Wednesday 2/1. I have to wait until the MW4 class meets today and finishes their blog posts due midnight 1/31. MW4 missed the first Monday (Martin Luther King Day) and our schedule is messed up as a result.

Be sure to accept the invitation for Google Groups (see the post just above this one) so that you will receive the C4C Doc when I share it on Wednesday.

Send a Gmail to edm310help@ gmail.com if you encounter problems.

Your Pictures Are Now Available

2012-01-27T11:42:00.003-06:00

There are several steps you must take to get your pictures:
1. Join the Google Group for which you received an invitation from me today (in your Gmail).
2. Wait a bit, then go to your Google Docs and open the relevant Doc.
3. Click on the link provided and follow the instructions.

If there are problems, email edm310help@gmail.com

Urgent! Free Kindle Book That Is Important - Free Only Until Monday

2012-01-27T11:37:00.002-06:00

From Bailey Hammond:

Here's a link to a book about maintaining a clean digital trail in this age of technology. I reviewed it earlier this semester in The Vanguard, but now the author has let me know that it is available for download from today until Monday for FREE in honor of Data Privacy Day. Here's the link: www.lolomgfree.com I really think you'll like it. I've already provided the link on the Facebook page, but I highly recommend that all the students get this book while they can. It's an eye-opener.

NOTE: You can read this book on any device including your computer.

C4T#1 Assignments Should Now Be In Your Google Docs

2012-01-27T08:19:00.003-06:00

Report any problems to EDM310 Help.
Be sure to copy link at same time you comment. Add to your post as a working link. See Activities #6 (p.12 Activities Manual) for instructions OR click Link in Creating Post Area (with Edit HTML Tab selected). Paste URL. Add text you want to be "clickable". Test when you View Blog. If you are doing Part 1 of the assignment, test. Then edit post and save post. You will edit and publish post after your second comment is left for your teacher. But test your link before you save the post so it cannot be seen on your blog.

Confused By Dates and Deadlines?

2012-01-21T18:15:00.003-06:00

Never fear. Next week you will have a copy of the Checklist in your Google Docs which will provide you with a guide to all dates and deadlines. We cannot use the checklists until we get all of the Gmail accounts working so that we can use Google Docs. Now that we have accomplished that, we will do Checklists in Week 2!

And hopefully you will no longer be confused!

Revised Blogpost Instructions

2012-01-21T18:06:00.001-06:00

Version 2 of Blogpost Assignments has been published.

Welcome Spring 2012 Classes

2012-01-07T02:39:00.016-06:00

Syllabus Now Available

The Syllabus and other class materials are now available. Click on the link Instruction Manual in the column on the right under Essential Materials for Students and Visitors. The Instruction Manual contains links to take you to all the other materials.

Reminders

1. Bring your computer to class the first day. If you do not have a portable computer, I strongly recommend a Macintosh. Contact me by email for more information if you wish.

2. If you have not secured a Gmail account and sent me your address, you MUST do so before the start of the first class. The sooner you do so, the better.

University of South Alabama Web Site

Questionnaire

2011-12-07T19:02:00.001-06:00

The final questionnaire has been sent to your Gmail address. Send me an email if have not gotten it.

Your video reflection (personal evaluation) is due by midnight Sunday.

Wrapping Up the Semester

2011-12-01T09:47:00.002-06:00

Some Final Things You Must Do

1. The BlogAssignments document has been changed again. The change today was to emphasize that the Final Reflection (due Sunday December 11) is to be focused on how you have grown (or not grown), how you have succeeded (or fallen short), what you have learned) or failed to understand), how you are different as a result of EDM310. This is YOUR REFLECTION about yourself. It is not an evaluation of EDM310. You will do that in a questionnaire the final week.

2. Next week is Mandatory Attendance Week. If you are not here next week your final grade will be reduced by 1/2 a letter grade.

3. Pay for Foliotek BEFORE you come to class next week. We will do Foliotek in class. If you have not paid for it, you cannot do it. NOTE: If you are taking EDM310 for recertification, or if you are a major in another college and not in the College of Education, you are exempt from Foliotek.

The Science of Sarcasm? Yeah, Right

2011-11-20T16:30:00.005-06:00

If I had another week, this would be a Blog assignment.

The Science of Sarcasm? Yeah, Right

Read it. And if your response is "Yeah, right" here are some of the key quotes from the article:

Studies have shown that exposure to sarcasm enhances creative problem solving...

An inability to understand sarcasm [by kindergarten] may be a sign of brain disease.

...23% if the time the phrase "yeah, right" was used [on the telephone], it was uttered sarcastically

Sarcasm seems to exercise the brain more than sincere statements do.

...brains have to work harder to understand sarcasm.

Richard Chin, Smithsonian.com, November 14, 2011

And more. Read the article. You can say "yeah, right." But read the article! And leave a comment here.

Ramsey Willis Stars in E Brooks' Green Screen Demo

2011-11-19T08:32:00.003-06:00

Did you miss the Green Screen demonstration by Elizabeth Brooks? Watch it HERE.

Video By Elizabeth Brooks
Demonstration by Elizabeth Brooks
Software: Premiere on the PC
Screen Recording Software: Debut Video Capture
Starring: Ramsey Willis

You really should watch this to understand how chroma key works!

Blog Post #13 Now Complete in Revised Blogpost Assignments (Version5)

2011-11-15T11:53:00.001-06:00

In the first four versions of Blogpost Assignments, Blog Assignment #13 had two options which were "to be announced." They are now included in the latest version of Blog Post Assignments (Version5).

C4K # 10 Due 11/13/11 - SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS

2011-11-07T11:46:00.008-06:00

SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS

C4K Assignment #10 Due 11/13/2011 is a different kind of assignment than usual. It has two distinct parts. Part 1 is different than what you normally are assigned to do. Read these instructions CAREFULLY.

Part 1.
A.You will be visiting Ms. Yollis' 3rd Grade Class in California. Do you know who Ms. Yollis is? She is the teacher who rejected 3 comments from EDM310 students because they did not meet her spelling, punctuation and grammar rules for 3rd graders. I hope you have read the post How's Your A? Some of You Wont't Make It Through the 3rd Grade. PROOFREAD your comment. I do not want an email from Ms. Yollis about your spelling, punctuation or grammar!
B: Thoroughly examine Ms. Yollis' Class Blog. That means clicking on all links and tabs; reviewing the material in the blog; exploring and understanding how she uses her blog; how she involves the students; how she involves parents; how she involves classes from around the world. Think about the instructional purposes of her blog. Be sure you watch the video on how to comment. You should also see the Cluster Map of visitors to her blog. Her count started just 2 days before EDM310's did. How do the number of visits compare? I ask you this to demonstrate that you must keep your eyes open AND think when you review her class blog. Ask yourself similar questions. Click on ALL links.
C: When you have finished this part of your assignment, write a thorough description and analysis of Mrs. Yollis' Class Blog, and all of its parts and links. Publish your post. This concludes Part 1 of your C4K#10 assignment.
Part 2 consists of a standard comment on some portion of Mrs. Yollis' Class Blog. Specific instructions are found in the C4K Assignment in your Google Docs. REMEMBER: PROOFREAD your comment before you click the OK button!

Metaphors - A Time to Learn

2011-11-02T14:39:00.022-05:00

"For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:..." Despite the many opposites contained in the time for list found in Ecclesiastes, there is no mention of a time to learn. So I'll add that. I like to think that the reason to learn is not included is that there is no time we should not be learning. We do find "a time to seek and a time to lose." But we do not find a time to learn and a time not to learn. So we will take that as an encouragement to always learn.

This week we have the opportunity to learn about metaphors. Actually, most of you already know about metaphors. You certainly encounter them regularly. And you use them. If you are a Christian and you go to church, or if you read your Bible, you cannot escape metaphors. If you read children's books, metaphors are all around you. If you are a parent, you know about storks that deliver babies and a big jolly old man as large as I am who delivers presents to "good little boys and girls." If you watched the very first assignment in EDM310 you encountered Mr. Winkle.

I had expected you to substitute computers for pencils in the Tom Johnson assignment due last Sunday. Well, maybe I didn't expect that since many EDM310 students miss the metaphor (or allegory). It happens every semester. I guess that the correct statement is that I hoped that you would understand the metaphor, or that you would at least be suspicious that the post was not literally true. I was wrong. And I once again blame the situation on the type of schooling you have experienced in which you are taught that the teacher delivers truth; that you should memorize that truth; that you should burp it back on command; and then forget it after all the tests are complete.

So we now have a wonderful opportunity for learning.

Here are the results of the metaphor assignment:

119 still enrolled (started with 154)
109 active (10 never do anything but have not dropped course.)
20 clearly identified the metaphor. Five of these 20 wrote excellent commentaries.
9 identified metaphor after self described research or reading comments on the post
7 missed the metaphor but had suspicions it was not literal
50 missed the metaphor
23 active students did not do the assignment. My guess: they did not know what was happening in the post. If you did not do the post on time you should consider yourself as having missed the metaphor. You are hereby assigned the Missed the Metaphor Special Assignment.
10 inactive students did not do the assignment
119 Total

What is the Missed the Metaphor Special Assignment? This is it:

Read these three posts:

1. Metaphors: What They Are and Why We Use Them

In that post there is a Special Assignment. Do that assignment in a new post which is Additional Post #1. It does NOT substitute for Blog Post #14 as it did in the Spring semester.

Due midnight Sunday November 20, 2011.

2. Metaphor Discussion Update

3. Jennifer Asked: Why Use Metaphors? Here is My Answer

4. For more information also see:
You Missed the Point! It's Not A Pencil…"

Great Metaphor Posts This Semester

I am awarding a special prize to the 5 students whose posts on last week's assignment were especially outstanding. They will each receive a Kindle copy of the four educational books written by John T Spencer @johntspencer. Mr. Spencer uses the pen name Tom Johnson for some of his writings.

Here are the five prize winning posts:

Gretchen McPherson
Gina Phillips
Angela Pitts
Jenna Reynolds
Ramsey Willis

Prize For Others Who Got the Metaphor

I am awarding a Kindle copy of Mr. Spencer's book Pencil Me In: A Journey in the Fight for Graphite to the 24 other students who got the metaphor.

We all have an opportunity to learn. Even those who got the metaphor. Here is their assignment:

Special Assignment #1 for those who Got the Metaphor

Write a post about why we use metaphors. Give examples in history and literature and even EDM310. Due Sunday November 20, 2011.

And I have an opportunity to learn as well. My question is: Why do metaphors fail to work so often with college students? Or a better question: When do metaphors work with college students? And still another question: "Does the way people are taught affect their perceptions of what schools are about so much that metaphors (and sarcasm0 get lost in the process? If you have any thoughts on these three questions I would greatly appreciate your sharing them with me.

So off we go to learn. A never ending process!

Tweeting Tom Johnson

2011-11-01T12:33:00.000-05:00

Look at tweets in #EDM310 for instructions on how to Tweet Tom Johnson.

50,000 Visits to EDM310

2011-11-01T11:32:00.005-05:00

At approximately 11:57:24 PM CDT October 31, 2011 we welcomed our 50,000th visitor since January 9, 2010 to the EDM310 Class Blog. That is 661 days or an average of 75.6 visits a day. Our current traffic count is approximately 125 visits a day. The 50,000th visitor is from Quakers Hill, New South Wales, Australia, surfing with Safari and using an Apple product. They came directly to our web site at 15:57 (3:57pm) on November 1, 2011 (Australia time). If you are our 50,000th visitor, leave us a comment so that we can personally thank you!

We thank all of our visitors. We hope you have seen how we are trying to prepare students to use technology in teaching.

Come back soon!

Additional Skype Instructions - Deadline Now 11/13

2011-10-26T14:37:00.013-05:00

We had hoped to have a list of local artists, teachers and government officials for you to interview. That did not work out. So we will follow Plan B.

You may interview anyone you wish as long as the subject matter is education and technology.

Some ideas:

Preferred Option:Contact the author of the book for which you did a trailer. See if the author will consent to an interview. If so, this should be your number 1 priority.

Special Opportunity #1. We will soon be announcing a contest which will involve making a video as part of the USA 50th anniversary fund raising drive. Details of this contest will be posted on the Class Blog no later than Monday October 31. Chris Smith, a member of the USA Development Team, will soon provide me a list of 5 - 10 names of graduates of USA with an interesting story to tell about what South has meant to them. A very limited number of you could use those contacts. If you are interested, send me an email. Better yet, find your own USA alumnus - maybe one who stated USA in the early years. Or any graduate with an interesting story about how USA has shaped their life. Interview them.

Special Opportunity #2.Interview Jarrod,the 2nd grader in Australia who is a prolific blogger. His mother has said that would be possible if we can make the time work. A Saturday in Australia would be best so that would be a Friday in Mobile. Jarrod attends the Leopold Primary School in Victoria, Australia. Victoria is 16 hours ahead of us. To interview leopold the best time to do it would be on a Friday between 3 and 6 pm (7 am and 10 am in Victoria). Let me know if you are interested. I have Jarrod's mother's email address. We can set it up. It should be a lot of fun and very informative!

Special Opportunity #3.
Kevin McLaughlin, one of the teachers on our C4T list, emailed me and suggested someone Skype him. An excellent idea!

Contact a teacher whom you have followed for C4T. I think most will say yes to a Skype interview.

Contact a Twitter friend and member of your PLN. Most would be delighted to be interviewed. You can tell them that they will be posted to the EDM310 podcast feed.

Contact a person whose work you have read/watched/listened to as part of a blog assignment. Most will be delighted to talk with you.

Contact a local teacher or school administrator.

Contact a USA faculty member (any department) or any USA administrator. Many will be willing to be interviewed.

Specific Instructions for the Interview:

1. Think about the questions that you want to ask IN ADVANCE. Share them (by email) with the person interviewed but warn them that you may rephrase the question or ask other questions.

2. Make this conversational. Avoid a scripted format. Interact with the interviewee.

3. Try to not go over 15 minutes so it can be one YouTube video without editing.

4. Start with a brief introduction of your guest and then ask them to tell you something interesting about their connection with your topic. Warn them about this IN ADVANCE.

You MUST read the full instructions on page 30 of the Projects Instruction Manual.

If you have trouble with the video and it threatens the integrity of your interview with an important subject (unlikely to be able to do over, etc.), then only do audio. Do not use this as a route to avoid trying your best to do video, however.

You may find it easier to record from the lab.

DUE DATE is now Sunday November 13.

C4K for This Week Now Posted

2011-10-23T15:29:00.005-05:00

NOW POSTED

Delayed until late Monday or early Tuesday morning.

I am returning from deep in Texas where I have been for my granddaughter's wedding.

In Memoriam

2011-10-06T10:11:00.003-05:00

ScreenJelly Replaced by Debut Video Capture Software

2011-10-06T10:09:00.001-05:00

If you are trying to get a copy of ScreenJelly it has been converted to Debut Video Capture Software by MCH Software. You can get a free copy for home use from the MCH Site.

Understand Sarcasm and Satire or You Might be Dangerously Irrelevant as an Educator

2011-10-04T10:09:00.106-05:00

As I said in the previous post, we now have 128 students in EDM310. Seventeen did not do Blog Post #5 leaving 111 who did. Of those, 24 students clearly did not understand the satiric/sarcastic nature of Dr. McLeod's post Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please? found on his blog Dangerously Irrelevant. Another six probably missed the sarcastic and satiric nature of the post. The posts of eight students were so poorly written that I could not tell anything about how they interpreted the post - or if they had even read it. Add all these up and we have 73 (65%) who understood Dr. McLeod's post.

Dr. McLeod Tweeted me on Tuesday September 20 concerned about this: "There's a certain percentage of your students that completely misses the irony in 'Don't teach your kids this stuff' :)"

I responded: "Ah yes! And they want to be teachers... About a third [last semester] and probably this."

My guess was correct. 35% missed it this semester.

The failure to understand the post even drew the attention of m.williams-mitchell. Dr. Mcleod drew my attention to this comment in the middle of the EDM310 comments this semester:

um…could someone please reassure me that the requirement for the class was to respond to this post as though one DIDN’T UNDERSTAND THAT IT WAS SATIRE??? I’m beginning to fear for our future.

Posted as a comment on Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please? by m.williams-mitchell, September 20, 2011 at 5:34 pm

And Now a Lesson

Let's look at the definitions of sarcasm and satire.

Definition of Sarcasm

sar·casm /ˈsɑɚˌkæzəm/ noun
1: the use of words that mean the opposite of what you really want to say especially in order to insult someone, to show irritation, or to be funny
Merriam Webster Learner's Dictionary

Definition of Satire

sat·ire noun \ˈsa-ˌtī(-ə)r\
1: a literary work holding up human vices and follies to ridicule or scorn
2: trenchant wit, irony, or sarcasm used to expose and discredit vice or folly
Merriam Webster Dictionary

1: a way of using humor to show that someone or something is foolish, weak, bad, etc. : humor that shows the weaknesses or bad qualities of a person, government, society, etc.
Merriam Webster Learner's Dictionary

As juniors in college I would expect you to recognize sarcasm and satire when you encounter these literary devices. Obviously that is not the case. So it is time for learning!

Dr. McLoed's meaning should be clear to you, if your are able to recognize sarcasm and satire, when you read the very last portion of his Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please? post:

don't do any of it, please

really

'cause I'm doing all of it with my kids

can't wait to see who has a leg up in a decade or two

can you?

Remember the Class Motto: I don't know. Let's find out.

That is what we are undertaking to do.

Plagiarism

2011-10-04T08:27:00.046-05:00

Plagiarism

There are now 128 students in EDM310. Seventeen of those did not do the Blog Post #5 assignment. Nine of those who did the assignment did not attempt to answer the question Who is Dr. Scott McLeod? That leaves 102 students who answered the question. Of those, 17 copied considerable portions of Dr. Mcleod's About Me material without attribution and without identifying the material copied and committed plagiarism as it is generally understood in academic communities. Another 17 used significant portions of that same material without attribution and without identifying the material copied and a very strong case could be made that they also committed plagiarism. Consequently, I am absolutely convinced that at least a third of this EDM310 class does not know about plagiarism (or doesn't care, or both). And you hope to be educators.

We must talk. About plagiarism. We will do so during Part 1 of the Mandatory Attendance Week.

Here are two things you must do to avoid plagiarism:
1. Always provide the source of the material (or ideas, conclusions, approaches or concepts). We do this with pictures using the TITLE modifier tag. In blogs, a very easy way is to provide a link to the source material. In papers, and you use footnotes following one of many possible style manuals.
2. Always put quoted material in quotation marks. If the passage quoted is long, indent it in a paper or put it un a blockquote in a blog (the quotation mark icon in the post area of a blog).

Yes, there are some exceptions to these two rules. We will discuss them next week. However, you can never be wrong if you follow these two rules.

Why is it important to know about plagiarism and how to avoid it?
1. You can get an F in a course or be dismissed from the University.
2. You can lose your job in the education community.
3. You can fail to teach your students and they may suffer the serious consequences cited above.

Why am I not bringing charges against at least 34 of you? Because I think you do not understand plagiarism and how to avoid it. I will not have that option if it happens again.

Mandatory Classes

2011-10-04T08:18:00.002-05:00

Mandatory Classes are in Week 8 which is next week. You must attend or your grade will be reduced by up to one letter grade. With permission you can make some substitutions.

Part 1 classes will be held as follows:
Monday 10/10 4:00-5:15pm
Tuesday 10/11 11:00am-12:15pm
Tuesday 10/11 2:00-3:15pm
Wednesday 6:00-7:15pm
In Part 1 we will cover Plagiarism, Google Docs, writing techniques, and other material.

Part 2 classes will be held as follows:
Wednesday 10/12 4:00-5:15pm
Wednesday 10/12 7:15-8:30pm
Thursday 10/13 11:00am-12:15pm
Thursday 10/13 2:00-3:15pm
In Part 2 we will cover movie making, Google Forms, special search engines and other material

You can come to any Part 1 AND Part 2 combination you wish. If you come at a time other than your enrollment time you must get permission.

If you do not attend BOTH parts you must have an acceptable WRITTEN excuse from a medical doctor, a University official or some other source acceptable to me. Otherwise your grade WILL be reduced.

IN ADDITION you must complete a midterm self-evaluation questionnaire no later than Sunday October 16, 2011. The link to this questionnaire will be sent to you no later than midnight Wednesday October 12.

C4K Assignment This Week and A Tale of Twitter

2011-10-03T12:23:00.000-05:00

Last Monday, as I was working on C4K, I found a request for participation in a poll on which New Zealand flag you liked best. That became part of everyone's assignment last week. Then last Friday we got this comment on the EDM310 Class Blog:

Hi from New Zealand

I'm not sure if I am on the right blog but I wanted to say WOW!! Thanks so much for all the comments on our class blog. We have over the last week had so much interest in our New Zealand Flag Debate. We feel very special that your class have picked us and are interested enough to participate.

I just wanted to let you know that the children will be writing about their point of view and why they chose their flag next week. I will also be putting up the results of the poll.

I am also really interested to know what your study is at the moment and how it ties in with a junior blog?
You can contact me direct if you wish
l.laburn@pointview.school.nz

Keep those comments coming... The kids love comments!

Thanks again
Lynne Laburn @llaburn and the Room 3 children

So I responded that I found out about the survey on Twitter. Soon we will know how you responded to the survey as part of your assignment last week. Because of Twitter we are establishing new friends a long way away from us in two directions!

This week many of you will be connecting with Room 3 at Point View School in Dannemore, Auckland, New Zealand. The rest of you will establish a connection with Room 3 either next week or the next. All because of Twitter.

We begin now to visit class blogs as opposed to individual student blogs. Please follow the instructions contained on your C4K assignments this week.

Lab Will Be Open 9:00 - 5:00 Monday 10/3 and Tuesday 10/4

2011-10-02T17:28:00.001-05:00

Lab Will Be Open 9:00 - 5:00 Monday 10/3 and Tuesday 10/4

Even though it is "Fall Break" Stephen will be in the Lab 9:00-12:00 Monday and Tuesday
Jacey-Blair will be in the Lab 12:00-5:00 Monday
Carly will be in the Lab 12:00-5:00 Tuesday

There may be other Lab Assistants there as well.

Rescheduled: Many Things REVISED

2011-09-28T10:05:00.004-05:00

REVISED 3:58 PM September 28, 2011. No, it's not a baseball game. It is Many Things.

Too many people are planning to record their podcast in the lab tonight. And we need a Mac connected to an overhead projector to do the iMovie presentation. We will postpone the iMovie presentation until sometime in October. Sorry about that.

This change requires several other changes:

1. Short Movie (Project #11) originally due Sunday October 9 will now be due Sunday October 16.
2. SMART Board Instruction Part 1 (Project #13) originally due Sunday October 16 will now be due Sunday October 23.

New Schedule for Wednesday Workshops (and a Saturday)

Introduction to SMARTboard basics Wednesday October 5 6-8pm Anthony Capps (no change)

Introduction to SMARTboard basics Saturday October 8 10am -12 noon (no change)

Introduction to iMovie and Movie Making Wednesday October 12 4-5:15 pm and 6-7:15 pm and Thursday October 13 11am - 12:15pm Allie Howell Since this week (Week beginning October 9) is MANDATORY ATTENDANCE WEEK, we will incorporate the iMovie workshop into the mandatory class. You must attend ALL sessions of your class that week, not just the ones where we will cover iMovie.

Green Screens and Chroma Keys in Movie Making October 19 6-8 pm Elizabeth Brooks (moved from 9/12)

In Defense of the Luddite Professor Who Lectures

2011-09-23T14:34:00.002-05:00

Hear the other side:

In Defense of the Luddite Professor (Doug Marshall)
Teaching Seminar
Library 312
2:30-3:30
Monday September 26, 2011

Dr. Marshall will make the case that traditional in-class lecture is an indispensable part of college education, and must remain an integral part of the curriculum. Click to register, call 461-1888 or just show up. I intend to attend!

Wednesday Workshops (and a Saturday) Corrected Schedule

2011-09-22T10:30:00.004-05:00

We have started a series of special opportunities to learn even more!

This schedule is the Corrected Schedule. Also see Rescheduled: Many Things

Introduction to SMARTboard basics Wednesday October 5 6-8pm Anthony Capps
Introduction to SMARTboard basics Saturday October 8 10am -12 noon
Introduction to iMovie and Movie Making Wednesday October 12 6-8pm Allie Howell
Green Screens and Chroma Keys in Movie Making October 19 6-8pm Elizabeth Brooks

25% Complete

2011-09-19T16:47:00.001-05:00

We have completed Week 4 which puts us 25% of the way through the Fall Semester. Is your work up to date?

I Keep Hoping!

2011-09-19T07:41:00.003-05:00

But I am disappointed once again. Twenty-nine students (22%) did not post Blog Post #4 on time. That's about the usual percentage, but it is certainly not what I would like to see! What would you think if you were the principal of a school and 22% of your teachers did not show up for work?

Uploading Movies to YouTube

2011-09-14T12:05:00.004-05:00

This week you are to create "Your Sentence" on a Mac in the lab. Here are some important things you should know.

1. Several students have asked "May I do this on my PC at home?" The answer is No for three reasons: a. We want you to come to the lab at least once; b. We want you to become familiar with making movies on the Mac. It is much easier than on a PC and will enable you to think about what computer you want to use for later movies. c. Allie creates a compilation of all movies and if they are already on the Macs it saves a lot of time.

2. Several students have found that YouTube will not accept their movie.

YouTube now requires that you create a channel before allowing you to upload videos. So...
Make your movie on the Mac. Using the Share menu item in iMovie, Export Movie. Select the This Is My Sentence folder on the Mac, Press Save. Open a browser, sign in to YouTube. Click Upload movie. YouTube will the ask you to create a channel which appears to be the same as signing in all over again. Click Upload again. Select your movie in the This Is My sentence folder. BE SURE YOU UNCHECK THE Make this movie personal BOX. Click the button to complete this and your movie will appear on YouTube soon. The next time you do this you can upload directly to YouTube from the Share menu in iMovie.

A 9/11/Veterans Day Tribute by the Third Graders of Tussing Elementary

2011-09-13T07:14:00.001-05:00

A 9/11 Tribute by the Third Graders of Tussing Elementary, Colonial Heights, Virginia

Be sure you learn how to do something like this in your class.

Thanks to Tommy Carpenter for sending this video.

How Are We Doing?

2011-09-12T09:04:00.000-05:00

It's Monday Morning Quarterbacking Time. How did EDM310 do? About the same as last week. Here are the figures:
Blog Post #3 On Time - 98 (73%) up from 71% last week
No or Partial Blog Post # 3 - 36 (27%) down from 29% last week

Do we have the correct information?

If you did not get a comment from me or a member of the lab staff this past week, send me an email. Include the URL for your blog. Maybe we have the wrong URL. This is especially likely if you are not getting comments from anyone!

Thank You EDM310

2011-09-09T17:27:00.000-05:00

This comment was just left on the previous post. It is so special that I wanted to be sure everyone saw it!

1/4 Prep, 3/4 Theater has left a new comment on your post "C4K Assignments Now in Your Google Docs":

Just want you to know that you are all making a lot of fifth graders' days with all of your comments on our class blogs! I hear excited voices calling out, "I got a comment all the way from Alabama" in my classroom! Keep them coming! My students are loving it!
Marla Huebner
Sioux Rapids, IA
http://kidblog.org/2011-12Class/

That's what makes C4K so wonderful! Thanks EDM310 Students!

Add More Names To Those You Follow

2011-09-09T16:13:00.003-05:00

Now that you are becoming more familiar with Twitter, it is time to add some more names to those you follow. A good list is found on the C4T site. Now add 15, 20, 25 or more of those names. Here is my suggestion of how to make it fairly easy:

1. Go to Twitter and sign in. (Yes, the web site. This is easier to do there.)
2. Click on Who To Follow (Really should be Whom to follow but we won't go there).
3. Search for a person's name or Twitter name (found on C4T)
4. You will find a brief description of who that person is. If you want more information before deciding whether or not to follow them, chick on their name that starts the paragraph about them. This will take you to their Profile Page. More information will be available including recent Tweets, # of followers, # following, etc.. You can even see whom they follow to get more ideas for names.
5. If you want to Follow this person, click Follow.
6. That's it!

Group List Now in Your Google Docs

2011-09-07T15:18:00.004-05:00

I did not get an email indicating group membership for 24 students (18%). If you were among those, I created groups and assigned you to a group. Think about this: You are going to be a teacher. My students (your classmates) have trouble doing things on time and following directions. You students will have the same problems. It takes time to get everyone on board, but you have to keep trying. Here is an overview so far
Week 1: 17% did not do, or did only part of the assignment on time
Week 2: 31% did not do, or did only part of the assignment on time
Forming A Group: 18% did not join a group or did not have a person who followed directions about emailing me the members of the group (or were absent from a required class without an acceptable excuse).

Come on class! Let's all try harder!

Off On The Wrong Foot

2011-09-05T14:42:00.005-05:00

When kids first start to put on their own shoes they often try to put the wrong shoe on the wrong foot. I guess we can call that "off on the wrong foot." Or when we fail to "put our best foot forward" it would be getting "off on the wrong foot." That is what happened to 31% of EDM310 students for Blog Post #2. Thirty-six students (or 26% of the class) did not have a post on their blog by 2 pm today (14 hours after they were due). Seven other students (5% of the class) did not submit all portions of the 5 part assignment. That is certainly "getting off on the wrong foot." So what should you do?

1. Resolve NOT to be late again.
2. Do all parts of the assignment.
3. If you get behind, do not be late on future assignments trying to catch up. Catch up when you will not make another post late.
4. You will not get a comment. That is unfortunate because we try and help you get better through comments.
5. You get a red block

on your record. That will change to a pink block when you catch up. That helps - a little.

One thing is clear from previous classes: You cannot afford to get behind in EDM310.

Be on time with your work.

A Time To Learn

2011-09-05T09:08:00.000-05:00

When you start to learn how to ride a bicycle, you will fall off. When you start to ride a horse you may also fall off but it is hoped that you will be old enough to follow instructions and not fall off.

Experience teaches us that the first two weeks of EDM310 is like learning to ride a bicycle. Students fall off. Some even skin themselves up pretty badly.

For other students they stay on the horse, but have much to learn.

For a few (4 - 3%), we could enter them as jockeys in a quality race have have a good chance of winning (if the horse is good enough).

Two weeks are over. Did you fall off the bicycle? Did you stay on the horse but have more to learn? Can we enter you in the fifth race at the Fairgrounds?

Here are the major problems encountered in the first round of Blog Post Assignments:

Fell off bicycle with major scratches and bruises:

1. A student with a blog for which the URL does not work. Even worse a student who does not have a blog. (2 - 1%) The problem is we can't tell the difference. We think we have located all of these students and we have notified them by email. If we notified you by email that we can't find your blog, respond immediately with your Blog URL. We may have messed up the link or you may have messed up the naming or there may be another explanation. The cause of the problem is irrelevant (except to try and avoid making the same mistake again). The objective is to get a working blog with a working URL as soon as possible.

2. A student with a working URL (we get to a blog) but there is no post for Blog Assignment #1. (14 - 10%) This is a VERY BAD WAY to start the semester unless there is a good explanation. This includes students who have been in EDM310 before. ALL POSTS must be done THIS SEMESTER. Do NOT use your work from before. Leave it on your blog, but do all posts from scratch for this semester!

3. A student who did only part of the Blog Post #1 Assignment. (8 - 6%) Typically the part about Time Management was skipped by these students.

4. A student who did both parts of the assignment for Blog Post #1 but who separated the assignment into separate posts. (14 - 10%) Here were the instructions to be followed (from page 6 of The Blog Post Assignments Instruction Manual. I also discussed this in class.):

3. Each Blog Assignments must be in a single post unless you are instructed otherwise. You must make ONE post which covers ALL of the assignments for every week. Where it makes sense, combine into one set of paragraphs. When the topics differ, separate them with headings in bold within the post. See the instructional movie if you have questions. Or contact any member of the teaching staff.

5. A student who did not meet Mrs. Yollis' 3rd grade writing standards. (7 - 5%)

There were also a lot of students who fell off the bicycle but had no scratches and bruises.

1. These students did not answer the question "Do you know anything else about Dr. Pausch?" (70 - 51%) which was part of the assignment. Now I realize that I should have said "Answer this question (and if you don't know anything about Dr. Pausch, do a Google search". But I still expected an answer. Why? Because it helps our understanding a lot when listening, reading or watching if we know something about the person involved. I would hope that your curiosity would spur you to investigate on your own. After 47 years of teaching I now know that curiosity (about school work) has largely been killed by the 5th or 6th grade. I keep hoping, but I am usually disappointed. I sure hope I discover sometime how to get curiosity started again. It is obvious that my question did not work and I failed again.

So for those of us (including me) who fell off, what do we do?

We get up, dust ourselves off, get some iodine (shows my age) and bandages, and get back on to ride again. In other words, we examine our mistakes, correct those that can be corrected, and make every effort not to make the same mistakes again. If we do that, we will be OK. If we continue to fall off, we need more help.

For the successful riders: Carry On!

C4K Assignments Now in Your Google Docs

2011-09-05T09:07:00.002-05:00

Be sure to review Instructions (p. 17 of Projects Manual) BEFORE leaving comments! Look carefully at the Class Blog. What can you find out about the teacher, the school, the class you are visiting? PROOFREAD your comments!

C4C Updated
In addition, assignments for C4C due 9/11/11 have been updated.

Lab Closed at 2:00

2011-09-03T14:21:00.000-05:00

Due to Tropical Storm Lee the EDM310 and all COE Labs closed at 2:00 pm Saturday 9/3. We intend for the labs to be open Sunday 9/4 but this this subject to shange. Check the EDM310 Class Blog for the latest nformation.

C4K Will Start Next Week

2011-08-30T15:42:00.001-05:00

The Checklist indicates that you have a C4K comment due by Sunday 9/4. I am moving all C4K assignments back one week. The first C4K comment should be done during the week starting Sept 4 and before midnight Sept 11. Just move all C4K assignments back one week.

I was thinking too fast when I made the schedule.

C4K assignments will be posted sometime Monday September 5.

Mastering Twitter

2011-08-29T15:03:00.007-05:00

Approach Twitter in Stages
Week 1 - Getting Started with Twitter
1. Get Twitter Account
a. Shorter name is better
b. Send your Twitter name to edm310twitter@gmail.com Be sure to include your real name in the Gmail
c. AND SOMETHING VERY IMPORTANT that I forgot to put here originally but added by @wmchamberlain in an extremely important comment which I have copied and pasted here:

Wm Chamberlain said...
Please fill out your bio on Twitter and add you are a pre-service teacher. There are a lot of people on Twitter that will not follow someone with no bio info. It would also be a good idea to "introduce" yourself to those you are following. The ed community is very helpful, especially to pre-service teachers.

d. Add to your bio that you are currently enrolled in EDM310. Many of my followers, and the followers of @wmchamberlain, know about EDM310.
2. Install TweetDeck
3. Get Delicious account and install link in browser
4. Follow all staff AND @wmchamberlain, @mcleod, @jshe, @pvbaggett, @classroom20, @TweetSmarter, @alwright1, @allonsdanser,@edm310_usa, @hadleyjf, @deananunn, @johntspencer, @ShellTerrell and any others you want
5. Create a column for #edm310 and if in Dr. Bagget's class #edu301
6. Spend 10 minutes in morning and 10 minutes later in day reviewing Twitter feeds and messages
7. Click on interesting links. If want to save link, add to Social Bookmarks using Delicious
8. Answer questions with @ responses if you have something to say (but don't worry if you don't)
9. RT interesting Tweets

Week 2 - Increase The Number of Those Whom You Follow
1. Follow the 57 people in @JohnMikulski Tweet (57 Must Follow Educators)
2. Follow my list of "Must Follows" which will appear in your Google Docs
3. Find 10 additional people to follow from those who are followed by any of the people who are listed in any of the lists (including those whom you started with)
4. Repeat steps 4-9 in the Week 1 instructions

Week 3 - Moved Toward Twitter Comfort
1. Provide at least one Tweet in which you have a link to an interesting site you have encountered. Be sure #edm310 is in that link. If about art, also add #edu301
2. 4. Repeat steps 4-9 in the Week 1 instructions EXCEPT spend at least 15 minutes per Twitter session instead of 10 minutes
3. Tweet people whom you encounter in readings, blog posts, etc.
4. Respond (even if it is just Thank You) to people who send Tweets to you @...

Weeks 4 and Beyond
Further instructions will follow

C4TAdded to Google Docs - 17 Students May Not Get C4T

2011-08-28T19:15:00.003-05:00

Google reports that I have shared C4T1 Assignment with 126 students. I think I have shared it with 143. So 17 of you may not have gotten the document. Send me an email if you did not get it. Send email to edm310help@gmail.com

C4C will be posted no later than noon tomorrow.

Your Pictures Are Now Available

2011-08-27T10:57:00.004-05:00

MW4
TT11
TT2
W6

1. Find your picture in the class section for which you are enrolled (not the one you are attending). The links to the class pictures are immediately above.
2. Click on your picture.
3. Download your picture by clicking on the down arrow at the bottom of your picture.
4. Add your picture to your blog by following the instructions on p. 12 of The Activities Manual

C4T #1 Due Date Changed

2011-08-24T07:35:00.003-05:00

The first comment and post deadlines for C4T have been changed to September 4, 2011. We will discuss C4T more in class this week.

The teachers are eager to read your comments. Here is a Tweet I received from @jennyluca this morning (8/24/11):

Welcome Fall 2011 Class - Fall Materials Now Available

2011-08-21T13:38:00.000-05:00

Welcome!

Want to find out more about EDM310? Want to get a head start on the class? (An excellent idea as you will find out soon!)

Links to the Syllabus and related materials are found in the column to the right.

Links to the Fall Student Blogs will be available August 22-25. Visit some of the Summer 2011 student blogs. The last post on all the blogs is a 5-10 minute Final Reflection which should interest you.

Read the post Eleven Key Attributes of EDM310 which is the second post below. Anthony Capps, Allie Howell (both Lab Associates in EDM310) and I used for the #rscon3 conference in late July 2011.

Read EDM310 Is Different. This is an assignment for the first week. Get ahead! You will be glad you did. In this document you will find references to The Chipper Series (17:51) and EDM310 for Dummies (3:54). These are movies done by former EDM310 students and also also part of the assignments for the first two week of class.

Watch these two movie to get a sense of what EDM310 is about and how it is different:

9 Differences in EDM310 (9:48)
Aspects of EDM310 (5:16)

Bring your computer to class. Be on time. We have a lot to do!

We look forward to meeting you!

EDM310 Students and Graduates: You Are Now More Valuable!

2011-08-01T12:00:00.001-05:00

Baldwin County Public Schools Superintendent Alan Lee has announced that all students in the Bay Minette High School will have a MacBook starting this September. This is the start of an effort to do this countywide by the 2012-13 school year. "I would like to have 20,000 [MacBooks] in the hands of students by 2012-2013. That would be my goal" said Lee.

Baldwin Register, special insert Back to School... Back to the Future, Sunday, July 24, 2011, p.2.

Eleven Key Attributes of EDM310

2011-07-29T17:46:00.000-05:00

1. Green - No paper in or out
2. Free - No Costs for Books or other materials
3. Blended 25% in class; 75% independent learning using internet materials
4. Lab Oriented - labs run by former EDM310 students - have created a true learning community EXTREMELY IMPORTANT
5. Project Based 16 projects in 15 weeks
6. Multimedia Projects and Writing - text, audio, podcasts, video, videocasts
7. Self-reflection instead of grades
8. Public - All student work is on their individual blogs Blog and all class materials and student work accessible through http://edm310.blogspot.com
9. Global Comments on Blogs to and from all over the world
10.Emphasize Creativity
11. Emphasize Impact on Community

William Chamberlain Awards Announced

2011-07-27T07:56:00.005-05:00

The William Chamberlain Award of the University of South Alabama was established in 2010 to recognize students in EDM310 who demonstrate "an outstanding interest in and ability to use technology in learning."

The 2011 recipients of the William Chamberlain Award are

Stephen Akins (EDM310Summer 2010)
Allie Howell (EDM310 Fall 2010)
Josh King (EDM310 Fall 2011)

Congratulations Stephen, Allie and Josh!

Hadley Harrington Strange Awards Annonced

2011-07-27T07:44:00.003-05:00

Two EDM310 students are the recipients of the 2011 Hadley Harrington Strange Award. This award is to be given annually in memory of my father, Hadley Harrington Strange, to someone who always asks questions and considers all alternatives.

The recipients of the 2011 Award are

Richard Howell EDM310 Spring 2011
and
Elizabeth Brooks EDM310 Summer 2011

Congratulations Richard and Elizabeth!

Ruth Hart Jessee Strange Awards Announced

2011-07-27T07:38:00.003-05:00

Two former EDM310 students are the recipients of the 2011 Ruth Hart Jessee Strange Award. This award is to be given annually in memory of my mother, Ruth Hart Jessee Strange, to someone who has positively affected the lives of others.

The recipients of the 2011 Award are

Martha Yim
and
Amanda Bosarge

Congratulations Martha and Amanda!

Congratulations Elizabeth!

2011-07-27T06:52:00.004-05:00

Chae Strathie, author of The Tickle Tree, found Elizabeth's Brooks book trailer on You Tube. He liked it. Here is his comment to Elizabeth:

Tickle Tree
To:efbrooks90

Hi Elizabeth

My name is Chae Strathie - the Tickle Tree guy!

I just came across your trailer and wanted you to know I really liked it. It was a lovely piece of imaginative production. My family and I were tickled pink!

I wish you all the best in your future career as a teacher (is that right?) and I hope you read your students some of my books!

With very best wishes

Chae

Congratulations Elizabeth!

Lab Hours July 25-29

2011-07-24T16:13:00.001-05:00

The lab will be open 10-4 July 25-29.

Have a great break!

Final Questionnaire Has Been Gmailed

2011-07-22T11:13:00.001-05:00

I have just sent the Final Questionnaire to all students at their Gmail addresses.

If you did not get the email or have questions, CALL ME or the EDM310 Help line.

Questionnaires must be completed by Midnight Sunday July 24, 2011. The questionnaire (and your video reflection) constitute your final examination in EDM310. You must complete both.

The E Fast Experiment

2011-07-18T15:09:00.006-05:00

Soon I will write a longer post commenting on the E Fast Experiment and the results of its use in Summer 2011 EDM310. Right now I'll give you a quick summary.

Students had four options for Blog Assignment #14 which can be found on pp. 14-16 of EDM310 Blog Post Assignments Summer 2011:
1. A typical blog post on Pseudoteaching
2. A typical blogpost discussing a critique of the Khan Academy
3. Read one of some 15 books suggested and write a book report
4. Try to do an E-Fast (no electronics use) for 24 hours repeated up to three times if unsuccessful in maintaining the fast.

There are 30 students still enrolled in EDM310 this summer (2011) although only 28 are still active. We will use 28 as the base line for this report. Of the 28, four did not submit their Blog Post #14 on time. Three students read a book (Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman, 1984 by George Orwell and Teach Like Your Hair's On Fire by Rafe Esquith). Thirteen did one of the typical blog post assignments. Eight tried the E Fast experiment.

Of those eight, five were successful in going 24 hours without using any electronic entertainment or communications device such as a cell phone, computer, tablet, radio, TV, DVD player, etc. All but one of those participating in the fast found it more difficult than expected. Those who succeeded in fasting tried various strategies:
going to a farm with horses and goats (Amy Wilborn); spending a day with a boyfriend (Alana Escobio); spending a weekend with their family at the beach (Cinda Prescott who found it easier to do than expected); fishing, tennis and golfing (Heath Morris); being prepared by unplugging TVs, hiding phones and informing friends and family of the fast (Bobbi Jo Nelson). The three that failed all succumbed to the phone/smart phone. (Ouida McDaniel) called her mother. One of the students who failed the fast (Deana Nunn) even had her daughter answer SMS messages and telephone calls for her, sending dictated replies by SMS. Yet she still gave in and used her iPhone. Heather Rigby on her 3rd try turned off her iPhone but watched a funny You Tube video with friends on a friend's iPhone.

This assignment turned out to be a delightful experiment that demonstrated how ingrained the use of technology is in our current students and how it will be even more vital to the daily activities of their students in two years when they begin teaching. the posts of the students participating in the E Fast are a lot of fun to read. I hope you will do just that!

Project 15 Now In Projects; Blog Post 14 Now in Blog Post Assignments

2011-07-08T15:51:00.001-05:00

Project #15 is now in the Projects Manual. It has been there for some time but your Checklist cannot be changed by me so it still says To Be Determined. We are now at Version 7 of the Project Instructions Manual.

Blog Post #14 is now described in Version 7 of the Blog Post Assignments Manual.

Lab Will Not Be Staffed Saturday July 9

2011-07-07T08:53:00.005-05:00

The EDM310 Lab Staff and I will be attending the EdCamp Louisiana in New Orleans tomorrow Saturday July 9. As shown in the original schedule for this class, the lab will not have a staff person present tomorrow.

Amnesty Declared

2011-07-04T07:03:00.011-05:00

Special Assignment #2 Due 7/3 was due last night at midnight. Forty percent (12 out of 30) of you missed the deadline. Because it is a very special holiday today, I am declaring Amnesty for those of you who did not submit Special Assignment #2 Due 7/3 on time as long as it is posted no later than midnight Sunday July 10.

And what about those of you who did Special Assignment #2 Due 7/3 on time? Well, I will apply your Amnesty award to any other assignment that was late. And since most of you always do your work on time (so do some of the "twelve"), I say Thank You Very Much!" I will try to find some special way to reward you later in the course.

Mid Term Reflection

2011-07-03T17:02:00.002-05:00

One of the questions I asked on the Mid term Reflection had to do with grades. Twenty-seven out of 30 active students replied to the questionnaire (90%). I agreed with the self-assigned grades in 78% (21) of the cases. In 3 cases I would have given an A in instances where the student gave themselves a B. In 3 cases I would have given a lower grade (1 B instead of an A; 1 C instead of a B; 1 D instead of a C). Poor writing explains every one of these cases. I have urged all three of these students to consider consulting the Writing Lab.

Of the three who did not complete the questionnaire and attend the two required classes on time, one has a medical excuse. The other two will have any grade I gave them (and will give them) reduced by one letter grade for not completing the questionnaire and attending the required class.

Here are the totals:
Student self-grades: A-17; B-6;C-4;D-0 Total 27
Dr. Strange: A-20; B-2; C-4; D-3; I (Medical)-1 Total 30

It would be better if we just determined when you had the skills, abilities and interest to move forward. Unfortunately, we have to give grades. And you will also (most likely).

Corrected Link For Carly Pugh's Blog Post #12

2011-06-24T11:50:00.004-05:00

The link to Carly's page that is in the Blog Post Assignments Version 5 now works. Here is the Corrected Link For Carly Pugh's Blog Post #12 in case you are using Version 4 or earlier. Be sure you use the latest version of all materials! The latest versions are listed in the Essential Materials for Students and Visitors section in the sidebar to the right.

If you do not get Version 5 of the .pdf, clear the cache of your browser (in one to the menus).

Reminders from Class 6/23

2011-06-24T08:13:00.001-05:00

1. The class on 6/23 was mandatory. If you did not attend you must provide me with a written medical excuse. The penalty for not attending entire class: one letter grade loss.
2. SMARTboard presentations were deferred until 7/7 (Thursday at midnight).
a. Must be a collaborative effort in which all use the SMARTboard at some time.
b. If you formed a new group, let me know the membership.
c. If you were absent or late you must join a group IMMEDIATELY and inform me of that.
3. I have postponed further work on Forms. I will notify you if we resume work on Forms.

Special Assignment #2 Due 7/3

2011-06-20T07:55:00.004-05:00

You Should...
The very first thing many of you should do is to add the SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT #2 TO YOUR CHECKLIST. As of Monday 6/20 (5 days after it was due) eight out of 30 of you (27%) have not yet done Special Assignment #1.

Special Assignment #2 Due 7/3
This assignment should take approximately three hours to complete.

Some teachers find lectures a good way to summarize material, introduce new perspectives, raise alternative interpretations and convey information.

Some teachers (especially in math and the sciences) do not wish to repeat the same instructions to every student whom them encounter.

Students who miss class sometimes find lectures and other recorded instructions sets very helpful.

Here are 3 enormous sets of materials that very few teachers or preservice teachers know about:
Kahn Academy
iTunesU
TED

For each of these three collections,which are similar but also quite distinct,:
1. Find out as much as you can about them and in Part A of your post summarize what you have found for each of them in turn. Readers of your post should get a good understanding of what these collections are from this part of your post
2. Explore the collection to see what types of materials are there and how extensive they are. In Part 2 of your post a) summarize the extent and nature of each of the collections and indicate what teachers (and how teachers) might take advantage of materials in these collections. Each collection should be addressed separately
3. Watch at least one lecture/presentation/lesson from each of the three collections. In Part 3 of your Post identify the lectures, materials, or lessons you watched. Each identification label should be a link (button) that takes you to the material you used. Summarize what was covered in each of the three and evaluate each.
4. In Part 4 of your post indicate what the collections could do for you and your students when you begin teaching. Treat each collection separately in completing this portion of your assignment
5. Indicate in Part 5 of your post whether or not this assignment has surprised you and why or why not. Be specific.

Forms

2011-06-14T17:01:00.004-05:00

A number of you sent out the Form before getting it approved. So I guess I will reverse my intended procedure and critique the forms after they have been sent out. That may be a better way to do it since I can show you common mistakes. We will send a second round to a different FORM Group later in the semester.

In the meanwhile....
a) If you have already sent your form, wait for the replies
b) If you get a form to fill out, please do so
c) If you have not sent out your form do the following

1) Review the new and improved Form Instructions I have added to the Projects Manual
2) Read my instructions and those of Google
3) Avoid these mistakes that have been made:
Too many text response items - they are difficult to analyze.
Bad grammar and misspelling. PROOFREAD.
Unfilled questions. Remove them. There is a trash can just to the right of the pencil that selects a question to edit.
Questions are not required to be answered. Only on VERY RARE occasions should a question be not required. Unfortunately Google has this item set to an incorrect default (in my opinion).
Sets are incomplete. There are answers that do not fit the choices.
The questionnaire does not practice using all of the types of responses. Try at lease 5 kinds!
4) Now send your form TO YOUR GROUP ONLY (London, Paris or Venice).

If you need help come to the lab. Or call the Help Line.

Twenty-Five Percent!

2011-06-12T12:36:00.005-05:00

That's Right. 1/4 of EDM310 has been completed!

More on Podcasts and Forms

2011-06-10T09:30:00.010-05:00

Podcasts
A Google Doc has been put in your Docs that provides additional information about your podcast assignments. All podcasts will focus on Rafe Esquith's book Teach Like Your Hair's On Fire.

I have a limited number of books which will be available in the Lab on Monday 6/13. Check your local libraries. Share. Buy a copy. Amazon has it for $8.64.

Forms
Additional Forms Instructions and a Forms signup sheet have also been added to your Google Docs. You will fnd the name of the Form Group of which you are a member in the How to Contact Students ... Doc. There are 3 groups, each named for a great city.

Some Help From Allie on Using Twitter

2011-06-10T08:23:00.004-05:00

Getting Used to Twitter

Update on Podcasts, Forms and Groups

2011-06-09T16:52:00.003-05:00

Podcast Groups
Because 4 students have dropped EDM310 I have altered the Podcast Group for some of you. You can find the revised Podcast Group in your Google Docs (Students - How to Contact ...). You will find more information about Podcasts in a post on the Class Blog tomorrow (Friday). I will indicate the chapter(s) of Teach Like Your Hair's On Fire for which each Podcast Group will be responsible. I will also provide some additional Podcast instructions, changes in the Podcast due date and how to get a copy of the book for your group if needed.

Forms Groups
You also need to be in a larger group to do the Forms Project. The Forms Group to which you have been assigned can also be found in the Doc Students - How to Contact... . You will find more about the Forms Project in the Instruction Manual and in a post to the Class Blog either late tomorrow (Friday) or early Saturday and an accompanying Doc.

Special Assignment #1 Due On or Before 6/15: If You Have A Question Try and Answer It!

2011-06-08T15:02:00.004-05:00

In her blog post about Did You Know? Kelsey Hatward wrote: " I am curious to find out how much China has actually grown in three years."

I suggested she look it up.

I want you to do it also. You will learn about some very powerful search tools that you are not familiar with. Try this. Go to WolframAlpha. Search for Population China. You can answer your question. Better yet, search for Population China India United States.

After you have done that try something different. Go to Google Squared. Search for Countries. On the far right add Population. This is a search engine still being developed in Google labs so their are some anomalies. Add United Sates at the bottom of Column 1.

Your Special Assignment #1 - Due On or before 6/15

Do the two searches above. Comment in a separate blog post titled Special Assignment #1 as follows:
1. Did you know about WolframAlpha?
2. Did you know about Google Squared?
3. What percentage of China's population is the population of the United States?
4. What percentage of India's population is the population of the United States?
5. Now what do you think of the facts reported in Do You Know?
6. Do you think WolframAlpha and Google Squared will be useful for you? for your students? Why or why not?

The Next Stage in Using Twitter

2011-06-07T14:48:00.001-05:00

You should now add additional to those you are following. I have added a document to your Google Docs listing 80 people whom I suggest you follow. Find them. Follow them.

You should also be following me (@drjohnhadley) and all the staff (see the syllabus).

You should also watch/follow #edm310.

If you spot a Tweet you want everyone in EDM310 to see, retweet it and add #edm310 on the end.

Next week we will expand your use of Twitter even more.

Several Important Updates

2011-06-04T17:29:00.014-05:00

Lab to be Staffed Saturdays 1-6 pm Starting June 11
Starting next week the Lab will be staffed every Saturday from 1-6 pm EXCEPT Saturday July 9, 2011

Blogger is Insisting That Some Posts Are Spam
Blogger and Google have declared a war on spam which, in my opinion, is much too aggressive. Several EDM310 students have reported that comments they have left on other students' blogs are not appearing. EVERYONE must check for spam. The instructions are in the Instruction Manual but I will summarize what you must do - NOW - and at least every other week.
1. Go to your Dashboard in Blogger
2. Click in the bottom row on Comments

3. You will go to a page that looks like this. Click on the Spam tab

4. If you see any posts in this SPAM area that are not spam and which need to be posted, click on the small box on the left of all that are Not Spam. Then click (at the top or bottom) Not Spam. The posts will then appear on your blog.

If you are leaving a comment that is NOT appearing on a student's blog: contact them, by telephone or Gmail, and ask them to follow the instructions in this post. I am certain they will find that your posts have been mislabeled as Spam by Blogger.

Twitter
A number of you have begun to Tweet! Great! Be sure to follow @drjohnhadley (me), all of the lab assistants (see the syllabus for their Twitter names), and the people on the list linked to through the Instruction Manual. Following the right people is the most important part of Twitter.

In addition, follow #edm310. The # sign is essential. It is like a folder in which I place all tweets I want all EDM310 students to see, read, and act on. Follow other members of the class as well, especially the students in your group. You now have a Doc that lists all students, their phone numbers, Gmail addresses, group number, and Twitter names. If I do not have your Twitter name, send it to me by Gmail. The ones I have I got from tweets of those following me.

Correction

2011-06-01T13:24:00.001-05:00

In your Checklist you will find that Wordle is listed as Project #2 and Blog Post #2. The correct listing should have been
Blog Post #2 (4 items as shown on Blog Assignments)
Project #2 - Wordle (which must be posted to your blog).

Please make this correction to your checklist.

Thanks!

Summer Syllabus and Instruction Manual Now Available

2011-05-29T06:31:00.002-05:00

Just click on the desired document on the right under Essential Materials for Students and Visitors.

Welcome Summer 2011 Class

2011-05-24T09:50:00.003-05:00

A week from today we will start our EDM310 adventure together. We are excited to have you as part of our effort to change the way we teach by incorporating technology into the teaching and learning process and by emphasizing project based learning instead of burp-back, sage on the stage teaching.

The Syllabus and Instruction Manual links will be available for the Summer 2011 course on May 30 or before. The links on the right under Essential Materials for Students and Visitors are for the Syllabus and the Instruction Manual for the Spring term. They will give you an idea about what happens in EDM310. In the summer we go twice as fast since we must cram 16 weeks into 8! It keeps us all very busy. You should count on spending 16 hours a week working on EDM310 activities.

I will take your picture during the first class meeting.

Bring your portable computer or iPad with you if you have one.

If you have not created a Google account, do so. See the instructions I mailed to your University email account. Send me your Gmail address. This should be done BEFORE classes start!

I am looking forward to meeting all of you.

Congratulations Miles and MaryAshley

2011-05-10T14:25:00.006-05:00

Congratulations Miles Bubbett and MaryAshley York!

Your First Gift Video has been selected as the winning entry. You will each receive an iPad 2.

Thanks to all of the entrants, to Cris Smith and the Development Office, to the panel of judges that Cris assembled, and to Best Buy for supporting this effort.

We will have another contest this fall. Watch the Alumni Blog for details!

Here is Cris Smith's email with a link to the winning video. You can find all of the entries there as well.

Dr. Strange,

I have the judging complete for the contest. I put them all on a youtube playlist for the judges -

The winning entry is First Gift USA

2nd - Entry D

3rd - Entry B

Everyone enjoyed seeing the videos. I am meeting with someone on Friday that may be a good fit to be our "guest" technical director for the fall.

Cris

Final Questionnaire Sent to Your Gmail

2011-05-05T06:58:00.004-05:00

I have just sent the Final Questionnaire to all students at their Gmail addresses.

If you did not get the email or have questions, CALL ME or the EDM310 Help line.

Questionnaires must be completed by Midnight Sunday May 8, 2011. The questionnaire (and your video reflection) constitute your final examination in EDM310. You must complete both.

Foliotek Instructions Spring 2011

2011-05-02T14:25:00.007-05:00

You need:
1. The URL for your EDM310 blog
2. The URL for the the EDM310 Class Blog. You should know that by now. And you are probably reading this while on the Class Blog so I do not have to repeat the URL here.
3. You will have to know the six standards for EDM310. They are in the Syllabus on p. 2. I have also listed them here with the categories under which they fall:

Literacy: Oral and Written Communications (iii)
(3)(c) 1.(iii) Knowledge of media communication technologies that enrich learning opportunities.
Literacy: Technology (i, ii and iv)
(3)(c) 4.(i) Knowledge of available and emerging technologies that support the learning of all students.
(3)(c) 4.(ii) Knowledge of the wide range of technologies that support and enhance instruction, including
classroom and school resources as well as distant learning and online learning opportunities
(3)(c) 4.(iv) Ability to facilitate students’ individual and collaborative use of technology, including
classroom resources as well as distance and online learning opportunities when available and appropriate.
(3)(c) 4.(vi)
Professionalism: Ethics (ii and iv)
(5)(c) 5.(ii) Knowledge of safe, responsible, legal and ethical uses of technologies including fair-use and
copyright guidelines and internet-user protection policies.
(5)(c) 5.(iv) Ability to practice safe, responsible, legal, and ethical use of technology and comply with school and district acceptable-use policies including fair-use and copyright guidelines and Internet-user
protection policies.

4. You will have to know how to access and how Foliotek works. Watch the Video
You can also watch the movie Foliotek Instructions Fall 2010 on YouTube.
If YouTube gives you problems, you can watch, or download to your computer the Foliotek Instructions from My Gallery.
5. REMEMBER that for your first standard you Add a File and then click Add External File or URL and then CORRECTLY paste the URL (be sure there is only ONE http://). You do this for BOTH URLs
6. REMEMBER that after your first standard is complete you ALWAYS Add File - Add Existing File and check both URLs.
7. REMEMBER you must check to see that you have added both the Class Blog (Friendly Name EDM310 Class Blog) and Your EDM310 Class Blog (Friendly name My EDM310 Class Blog or Your Name’s EDM310 Class Blog). Go to Files in the tabs in the middle at the top of Foliotek. Look for the Friendly Names EDM310Class Blog and My EDM310 Class Blog or Your Name’s EDM310 Class Blog. There should BE ONLY ONE OF EACH. If there is more than one you did not follow the instructions (see #6 above). You will have to remove the offending files. You will need help from one of the lab assistants.
8. You must check to make sure that the link works and goes to the correct place.
9. You must make sure that all 6 of the standards are assigned to each of the “files” (really URLs)
10. You must then ask for one of the teaching staff to check your Foliotek. This must be done IN PERSON and IN THE LAB before 5pm Thursday May 5, 2011.

 

Thank You!

2011-04-30T11:59:00.014-05:00

Thank You!

Remarks by John H. Strange upon receiving the Dean’s Award for Distinguished Contributions to Lifelong Learning, College of Education, University of South Alabama
April 29, 2011

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Dean Hayes for the Dean’s Award for Distinguished Contributions to Lifelong Learning. My daughter Katharine said to me “Oh Dad, you are the only one there old enough to get a Lifelong Learning Award.” Of course she is also the daughter who asked me about a painting I had bought “Dad, how drunk were you when you bought that?” Now I find the award especially meaningful since I am a firm believer in the proposition that Learning Never Ends and I am constantly saying “I don’t know. Let’s find out.” And I might note that “Let’s” is plural! Learning is a joint venture.

As I thought back on all that I have learned since I began reshaping EDM310, it is clear that my continued learning has been a joint venture, that it has benefitted from many people. Jamie Lynn Miller and Poppy Bednorz taught me how important is is to say thank you as they did with their great movie EDM310 for Dummies. Now I get a chance to publicly thank them! So I again thank you Dean Hayes, Jamie Lynn and Poppy. Tonight I would like to give thanks to everyone who has helped me learn what EDM310 could and should be. The list is too long and the time is too short to do that, however. I will have to do the best I can. In so doing I will identify some of the central ideas I have tried to incorporate into EDM310. My thanks to each individual will be cryptic and lacking in details. I promise will write an extended blog expanding on what I have learned from each. Those of you here tonight who teach undergraduates will recognize many of the names.

I start with

William Chamberlain who teaches 5th grade in Noel. Missouri. He taught me how important commenting on blogs is, and he insisted, along with Angela Rand, that I use Twitter.
Room 10 at Pt. England School in Auckland New Zealand taught me how important Skype could be in learning.
Kaia, a three year old in Dubai, along with her father Jabiz, taught me the power of blogs in connecting diverse groups around the world.
Dillon Rogers, a USA student, thanked me for the freedom I gave her in class and now I thank her for demonstrating how important freedom can be in furthering creativity.
James Fawcett convinced me of the importance of movie making as an educational tool.
Paula Casallo would enter EDM310 for almost the entire semester saying “I hate technology.” Yet she taught me that people can change their minds about technology. Paula is creatively using much of what she learned in EDM310 at her school where is now a librarian
Jackie Gorski demonstrated that the alumni of EDM310 really do want to continue to be involved.
Stephen Akins helped me understand the power of being quiet, or even silent. I bet you are questioning whether ever happens with me.
Allie Howell encouraged me to understand the power of enthusiasm.
Joe McClung and Jarrod Lamshed demonstrated that sharing with others is an important learning objective, whether you are in Arkansas, Australia or Alabama.
G Tashbin insisted that we could create a true learning community, and with the help of the EDM310 Lab Assistants, we have!
Dorothy Burt revealed to me what an entire school can do when it fully embraces technology as is the case in New Zealand at Pt. England School.
Paige Baggett continues in her efforts to teach me that change can and does happen without messy revolutions.
And Anthony Capps has taught me how important it is to leave an academic trail worth Googling, how powerful reflection is, and what great teaching can be like in the 21st century.

There are many more people I should thank, but my EDM310 students as a whole have taught me the importance of being brief. I quote them: “One hour, six minutes and 42 seconds in a video we are supposed to watch? And then write a blog post about it? Get real Dr. Strange. Seven minutes at the most.” OK, they all took back those words after listening to Randy Pauch’s last lecture. But this is not my last lecture. So my 7 minutes is almost up.

My thanks to everyone, whether I mentioned you or not.

And now my talk.

OK. Don’t worry. It is included it in the 7 minute limit.

I want to thank 3 people for helping me with my talk: Bailey Hammond, Steve Jobs and Stuart Brand, originator and editor of the Whole Earth Catalog:

Bailey Hammond answered the question I posed last week to my students in EDM310: What assignment did I leave out of EDM310 this semester that I should have included? Then complete that assignment. with an assignment and a question:

Her assignment - Watch Steve Jobs’ 2005 graduation talk at Stanford which he ended with an admonition he read in the final issue of Stuart Brand’s Whole Earth Catalog: "Stay hungry. Stay foolish."

Bailey’s question: “What does ‘Stay hungry. Stay foolish.’ mean to you and how can you apply that to your future as an educator?”

The short version of Bailey’s answer to her own question was to keep learning, don’t be satisfied with the status quo, take risks, don’t be afraid to make mistakes, be open to inspiration coming from the oddest of places (no, she didn’t say the Strangest of places), leave your inhibitions in the dust, don’t take any day for granted.

She ends her post with the lines from the song I Hope You Dance by Lee Ann Womack,

I hope you never lose your sense of wonder./
You get your fill to eat/
but always keep that hunger...
I hope you dance.

And so I ask you “Stay hungry. Stay foolish” What does that mean to you as an educator?

Thank you Bailey (and Steve and Stuart) for my talk tonight.

Thank you again, Dean Hayes for your support!
Thanks to all my current and former EDM310 students.
And thanks to you, my audience - for not timing me!

C4C #13 Cancelled

2011-04-26T08:46:00.002-05:00

The C4C assignments are now complete. We hope you will keep on commenting, however.

Mandatory Attendance Week of May 2

2011-04-25T09:24:00.002-05:00

Remember - you are required to attend your assigned classes next week May 2 - 5.

Kelly Evans' Book Trailer Gets Noticed - By The Author

2011-04-22T09:03:00.006-05:00

Ned Young, author of the book Zoomer, spotted Kelly's trailer that she made for EDM310 on her blog. He asked Kelly whether he could use the trailer on his blog and Kelly, not surprisingly, agreed. Take a look at Ned Young Studio: Zoomer book trailer.

Congratulations Kelly!

And how did Mr. Young know about the trailer so quickly? Probably because of Google Alerts. Google provides a service (free) which continually searches for text which you specify. I use it to search for "Dr. John Strange", "John Strange", "Dr. John Hadley Strange", "John Hadley Strange", "EDM310" and "EDM 310". I do not have Google search for "Dr. Strange" (too many comic books) or just "Strange". (You can imagine why.) Try it and see if anyone is writing about you!

Our Visiting Lecturer Jacob Demonstrates Garage Band on the iPad

2011-04-21T11:56:00.005-05:00

Jacob, a kindergarten student at Cottage Hill Christian School, joinedEDM310 as a Guest Lecturer and demonstrated what he had learned about Garage Band in three hours or so on the iPad.

Watch Allie Howell's video of Jacob's demonstration How To Use Garage Band on iPad.

Can You Help?

2011-04-20T09:28:00.004-05:00

Mrs. Yollis just sent me another name and URL: Ryan

Can you leave a comment for Ryan as well as the student you are assigned this week? If so, many thanks!

Impact of Spring Break

Mrs. Yollis' class is on Spring Break this week. Parents moderate your comments so expect a delay!

Mrs. Yollis and Her Class Thank You - C4K Available After 5pm Today

2011-04-18T10:58:00.012-05:00

Mrs. Yollis' 3rd grade picture

I have received these emails from Mrs. Yollis' students. The students included links to their personal blogs. The links are now in the C4K #10 Doc. They can also be found in the comments for the post How To Make A Book Trailer.

Each of you has been assigned to one of the five students who left comments for EDM310. I have used two different posts for each student. Be sure you PROOFREAD your comment. As Jaden said, we "want quality comments." Note that the italics are his!

Read all of the comments below BEFORE you leave your C4K #10 comment!

From Hannah, Grace, and Adia

Dear EDM310 class,

We are Hannah, Grace, and Adia from Mrs. Yollis' third grade class.

Thank you for leaving us so many quality comments on our class blog. Mrs. Yollis viewed all of your comments, and since you have 100+ students in your class, our teacher admitted that she could not possibly get back to every single one. Some of us stayed inside during lunch for charting since it's Family Blogging Month, and most of the comments that we saw were from you!

The reason we have a class blog is...

•It's a great way to "meet" people around the world. An advantage is that we make new friends, and we also get to learn about their country, state, province, or territory.

•We get to also learn about different subjects such as quality commenting. Here is an example: If Mrs. Yollis posted about different quality comments, we would learn about how to write them.

•What we also learn from blogging is that it improves our reading and writing skills. For example, writing a comment on fads helps us with writing skills, and reading comments that other people write helps our reading skills.

All three of us have earned student blogs. Here is how we earned them...

•Good behavior in class.

•Responsibility.

•Respect.

•Good attitude in class.

•Sometimes, if you are one of the top three winners in Family Blogging Month, you earn a blog by your accomplishment, but this only happened with Hannah, Miriam, and Adia.

•Last but not least, amazing quality comments. (Not one, but a lot.)

We do encourage you to get a class blog if you become a teacher. It is super fun! Here are the reasons why...

•You can get a cute and adorable Voki. Grace's is Isabella, a dog, Hannah's is a girl, and Adia's is a girl also.

•You get a bunch of visitors.

•You get many comments.

•There can be fun and exciting activities on your blog. Here is an example: Adia has an activity called Babble of The Month.

Warmly,

Hannah, Grace, and Adia ♔

From Miriam (Victoria)
Dear EDM310 class,

My name is Miriam and I am a third grade student in Mrs. Yollis' class. Mrs. Yollis shared with us your comments and told us about your class blog.

We use a class blog to share with parents and friends about what we learn in school. Some kids who are good commenters were able to have their own blog.

I am lucky to have my own blog called Miriams Magical Moments.

I hope you visit.

Enjoy blogging,
Miriam

From Jaden

Dear EDM310,

My name is Jaden, and I am in Mrs. Yollis' third grade class in California. I'm happy that I am able to comment with college-level students! When I look through your posts, I think I am going to learn a few new words.

As Miriam said, some students earned their own blogs. I earned my blog by writing quality comments on blogs and having good behavior in class. My blog is called Jaden's Awesome Blog.

I hope some of your students write quality comments on my blog. :-)

I have some advice for all of you. You should always check your comments before you press publish. Sometimes it might not say what you think it says. Your thoughts should be clear.

Sincerely,
Jaden

A Thank You from Tyler Rice

2011-04-18T10:16:00.003-05:00

John,

You really have put together something phenomenal with your EDM310 class. Your students are building a PLN and learning to use such a wide range of technology! More importantly, you are asking them to be reflective and introspective and I think that is the greatest gift a teacher can give!

I've loved reading your students' comments on my blog Wisdom Begins with Wonder. I'm not sure how I made your list of teacher blogs to read but I am honored.

Thank you,
Tyler Rice (@MrTRice_Science)

Thank you, Mr. Rice!

Class:
I will answer Mr. Rice's question as to how he made my list. Last summer Mr. Chamberlain (@wmchamberlain) called to my attention this blog post: Grading Moratorium: Tyler Rice on Joe Bower's blog for the love of learning. Mr. Rice's first sentences were:

I’ve wanted to abolish grading in my classes for a few years now. Grading has always been my least favorite part of teaching. I love teaching but I hate grading.

Now you know! A compatriot on grading!

You are not surprised are you? Well, maybe you thought there was only one teacher as strange as I in not liking grades! And I hope you will teach your students to be good at self reflection/evaluation when you become a teacher.

How to Make A Book Trailer

2011-04-14T14:15:00.005-05:00

Anthony Capps has just completed two videos on How to Make A Book Trailer:

Part 1

Part 2

Everyone is Thinking About Metaphors

2011-04-12T08:24:00.005-05:00

It seems everyone is thinking about metaphors these days. My book writing friend Caroline Seebohm was visiting last week when the metaphor discussion began and made many contributions to my "metaphor posts." Today she sent an article by David Brooks Poetry for Everyday Life. I urge you to read the entire article. It will take from 3 to 5 minutes. But if you don't read the entire article, you should at least read a few of his reasons for believing that metaphors are important:

... being aware of metaphors reminds you of the central role that poetic skills play in our thought. If much of our thinking is shaped and driven by metaphor, then the skilled thinker will be able to recognize patterns, blend patterns, apprehend the relationships and pursue unexpected likenesses.

Even the hardest of the sciences depend on a foundation of metaphors. To be aware of metaphors is to be humbled by the complexity of the world, to realize that deep in the undercurrents of thought there are thousands of lenses popping up between us and the world, and that we’re surrounded at all times by what Steven Pinker of Harvard once called “pedestrian poetry.”

From David Brooks,Poetry for Everyday Life, an op-ed appearing on April 12, 2011, page A25 of the New York Times (New York edition).

Metaphor Discussion Update

2011-04-08T11:10:00.011-05:00

Pencil Me In: A Journey in the Fight for Graphite was published today in a
softcover edition ($10 from Amazon)and in a Kindle edition ($4). This book is based on Mr. Spencer's blog Tom Johnson's Adventures in Pencil Integration.

Here is an excerpt from Special Thanks in Mr. Spencer's book Pencil Me In: A Journey in the Fight for Graphite:

I would like to thank Alan Stange for all the formative feedback he offered from the first day I began this blog. I also want to thank Russ Goerend for encouraging me to continue with the blog when it had no real story arc...

Thank you, also, to Dr. Strange and the EDM 310 class who left regular comments, wrote reflections in blog posts and sent e-mails to me sparking in-depth conversations. Your feedback was immensely helpful through this process.

Blogs, comments on blogs and your EDM310 activities do make a difference. I thank you also!

The conversations continue!

Metaphors: What They Are and Why We Use Them

2011-04-05T17:38:00.020-05:00

A Learning Opportunity

Most of you apparently did not understand that Tom Johnson’s post Don't Let Them Take the Pencils Home was a metaphor (as is the title of his blog Pencil Integration). But that gives all of us an opportunity to learn. In addition, several of you just skipped the comment on the Johnson part of the assignment. I (or one of the staff using my words) have left a comment on your blog if you skipped the Johnson assignment . An eagle eyed lawyer type in the class, however, has brought to my attention that I did not explicitly say, as I usually do, "post your analysis on your blog". Your grade has not been affected by this miscommunication; we have learned to be more explicit in our directions; and you have an opportunity to learn. So take advantage of this learning opportunity.

First - the Metaphor

The post you read is not written by someone named Tom Johnson. That is a pseudonym for John Spencer who also writes a blog which is assigned in C4T under his real name. The blog post in question is in a blog named Pencil Integration. This alerts you that when he speaks about pencils, he is actually talking about computers or technology in general. If you return to the post, copy it and replace pencil or pencils with computer or computers. Your reactions will be very different.

So Why Did So Many of You Miss the Metaphor?

I don’t know.

Let's start with a few examples. I think almost all of you (if not all of you) understood the very first metaphor you encountered in EDM310: Mr. Winkle Wakes. No one, I don’t think, thought that Mr. Needleman’s video about a real person. When you watched Randy Pauch’s video you understood the metaphor of the brick wall and of Tigger and of Eeyore. If I had written “You hit the nail on the head” or just “You nailed it” in response to the six students who clearly understood and identified the metaphor, I am certain that they would have understood my metaphor. And probably all of you would have done so as well.

As part of my attempt to determine why you missed the metaphor, I discussed the question with a visiting friend (who happens to be an author of 14 books), my staff, and other members of the faculty. Here are some possible explanations:

Well, perhaps it was because you take this class and your assignments too seriously. Maybe I have scared you so much that you have lost your sense of humor. I hope not. Just this morning I closed a conversation with a student and before either of us had hung up I heard her say to a companion “He [meaning me] is so funny." Her sense of humor is intact.

Maybe because the metaphor was the basis for a longer post which had a number of messages contained in it. You deciphered those messages (anti-testing; anti-administrative interference in the process of teaching; focus on solutions not problems). But you did not (apparently) understand the larger metaphor despite the many clues that surrounded you. If I described a person as having a glass which is always half-empty you would probably understand I am talking about the person who focuses on problems. That that person is an Eeyore. If, instead, I had described someone as always regarding his glass as half-full you would have understood that the person was a Tigger type; a solution oriented person.

These are guesses We really cannot answer the question of "why not?". Why do you think you missed the metaphor? Even though we do not know why you missed the metaphor (if you did), we can try and develop a set of activities that will increase the likelihood that you will spot a metaphor the next time you encounter one.

Learning How to Spot Metaphors

Dr. Baggett pointed out to me that Daniel Pink addressed this issue in his book A Whole New Mind (pp. 138-140). Pink suggests that you keep a log of the metaphors you encounter for a week (p. 152). They may in things you read, comments made to you, movies you watch, or podcasts you listen to. Jot them down in a notebook, or on your iPhone or iPad. Note the context in which they were used. Here are some examples you may encounter: angel hair pasta; my cup runneth over; will the Easter Bunny leave you anything?; I took a trip with Alice to Wonderland; Puff the Magic Dragon; I could see the thunderstorm building within him; her smile melted my heart; she’s so sweet; I abhor burp back education; I’d kill for two free tickets to see Lady Gaga; I encountered my brick wall when I missed the metaphor but I will get over it; my car is a dream; she is the light of my life; the storks were busy this weekend and the University Hospital reports that Mobile’s population grew by leaps and bounds; he is a chicken. My guess is that all of you understand all of these metaphors and that you do so instantly. So we return to an earlier question of mine: why did you not get the point of the post of Tom Johnson? (Notice the intended pun in “point”?) Think about that.

Why Use Metaphors?

In the Fall semester Jennifer Inscore wrote "What is with the metaphor? Why not say exactly what you are trying to discuss? Why not put it into words that we all understand instead of a metaphor. If we are to be educators we should be able to speak to our students in a way that they all understand." I responded with this post: Jennifer Asked: Why Use Metaphors? Here Is My Answer . My post last semester is my first attempt to answer the question Why Do We Use Metaphors? Daniel Pink says that when you discover metaphors your world will become “richer and more vivid” and that you will be inspired “to create your own metaphors in writing, thought, or other parts of your life.” (p. 152) What do you think?

You might even do a bit of research to see what others say. But more importantly, I want your answers, not mine. I want you to think about why we use metaphors.

Special Assignment

In this post I have asked you to think about several questions:

1. Why did you miss the metaphor in Tom Johnson's post, or, if you "hit the nail on the head", why do you think you understood the metaphor and why do you think that others in the class missed the metaphor?
2. What metaphors have you encountered since I asked you to create a log of them?
3. What other things can we do as educators to help our students to understand and to use metaphors?
4. Why do we use metaphors?

Instead of Blog Post #14, answer these four questions as best you can. I hope to Skype Mr. Spencer and discuss metaphors with him. If that happens I will post a link to the conversation on the Class Blog. You will need to watch it to address the questions listed above.

Blog Post #14, which is replaced by this Special Assignment, is due Sunday May 1.

Comments on This Post

In the comment that you received on your blog post about Tom Johnson’s post I may have asked you to leave a comment here. That would be great, especially if you have anything to offer on why you missed the metaphor. But it is not a requirement. The Special Assignment specified in this post will suffice.

Mr. McClung's World - Special Instructions for C4K Due 4/3 and for SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT Due 4/10

2011-03-28T07:48:00.008-05:00

Last week you read Mr. McClung's post in which he reflects on his teaching. Now we take a look - in depth - at his class blog.

As you do this assignment think about a) how Mr. McClung uses his blog Mr. McClung's World; b) how he has put his blog together; c) what you know how to do with your blog; d) what you do not know how to do with your blog; e) how Mr. McClung's students interact with his blog; g) how others (parents, teachers, administrators, students like you) can interact with and make use of his blog. Also think about how this 8th grade blog differs from other blogs you have visited including other 8th grade blogs. These questions will form the basis for a SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT described in more detail below and due 4/10.
First:
Look at the links that are at the top. Click on Welcome. Read it.
Click on Mr. McClung. Read what he says about himself. This will expand on what you learned about him last week.
Click on Class Rules - read them and reflect about what they say about Mr. McClung, his teaching, and his connection with his students. Think about your reaction to these rules (and guides) as a student and as a teacher.
Click on Syllabus. Note the first thing under Everyone needs. Why do you suppose that is the first requirement? Note the penalties for being late (under Homework). Compare them with my penalties for being late. Read carefully his paragraph about what he hopes to accomplish with his blog.
Click on Useful Links. Review them all. Click on at least two and explore.
Return to Mr. McClung's Home Page and click on Internet Safety. Read carefully the rules he sets forth for safely using the internet.

As I pointed out in the last sentence of the before the set of instructions starting with First, these questions will be used in a SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT due 4/10 which is described in more detail below.

C4K#7 Assignment
Now we turn to your C4K#7 Assignment. Note that most posts have a "read more..." button. To get the entire post you will often have to click on Read more... We are starting with the post for March 28: Prosser's Gabriel. Note that all posts are Filed Under some category. Prosser's Gabriel is filed under Band of the Week. Other posts are filed under topics such as Lessons Learned, Social Studies, Videos, etc.

In the Google Docs you are assigned to a specific post. In some cases the post has many parts and you are assigned to a specific part of a specific post. For example you might be assigned to Lessons Learned: Three 9:23. You find the Lessons Learned Post that has this subsection. You read the subsection assigned to you. You leave a comment on the post BUT you must also say what part you are responding to. Another example would be Talent Show: T-Man. That happens to be the first video under Talent Show. Watch it. Comment on it in the comment area for that post and indicate you are commenting on T-Man's performance.

To summarize:
Find your assigned post or part of a post.
Read/watch it.
Leave a comment on the post and if there are multiple sections indicate which section you are commenting on. Be sure you identify yourself as being in EDM310.
THEN click on one of the categories under which your post is filed. Look at other posts filed here. You will use your observations in the Special Assignment discussed below.

SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT
We are conducting an in depth examination of Mr. McClung's World. After you have completed your C4K#7 assignment, do this Special Assignment.
In a post on your blog due no later than midnight 4/10, answer these questions:
1. What do you know (or have you found out) about Mr. McClung that is reflected in the way he has constructed his class blog?
2. Comment on what you would say about Mr. McClung as an educator.
3. I asked above that you read Mr. McClung's "rules" and think about them. What do they say about Mr. McClung, his teaching, and his connection with his students? What is your reaction to these rules (and guides) as a student and as an aspiring teacher?
4. What was the first thing under Everyone needs? Why do you suppose that is the first requirement?
5. Note the penalties for being late (under Homework). Compare them with my penalties for being late. Comment.
6. Read carefully his paragraph about what he hopes to accomplish with his blog. Comment and apply to your own aspirations as a teacher.
7. I asked you to review at least two Useful Links in depth after reviewing all of them. Which two did you review in depth? Describe each of the two. How might each be used? Why do you think each made Mr. McClung's list.
8. Under Internet Safety I asked you to read carefully the rules Mr. McClung sets forth for safely using the internet. Comment on these rules. Are there any you would add or subtract.
9. In the C4K part of this blog I asked that you look carefully at one of the categories under which you assigned post was filed. What did you find? Select one of the posts in the category and review it for me.
10. Mr. McClung uses Edublog as his blog host. In some ways it may seem more "advanced." But Blogger has many abilities that we have not covered in EDM310. This leads to this question: Is there anything (or things) that Mr. McClung can do with his blog that you would like to do in Blogger?
11. In what ways does Mr. McClung make his blog useful to parents, teachers, administrators, students like you, and others?
12. How does Mr. McClung's 8th grade blog differs from other blogs you have visited including other 8th grade blogs? Why the differences do you think?
13. Add any additional comments you think would be useful in analyzing Mr. McClung's World in depth.

Enter First Gift to USA Video Contest - Win iPad 2

2011-03-23T08:21:00.013-05:00

The First Gift USA Video Contest
EDM310, in cooperation with the University of South Alabama Office of Development, is looking for an original video to let your fellow students know how they can and why they should contribute to the University of South Alabama.
For the last ten years or so the University of South Alabama has conducted a Faculty/Staff Campaign in which USA faculty and staff are asked to give back to the University to create scholarship funds for students and to support other activities of the University. Often these gifts have been matched by the University and/or individual members of the faculty or staff. Last year The William Chamberlain Fund was established to provide annual prizes to EDM310 students who exhibit an unusual ability and interest in using technology effectively in teaching.
We would like to expand this annual effort to students as well as faculty and staff. Can you (or a group of you) create a short (no more than 2 minutes) video to encourage USA students to participate in a student fund raising drive through a “First Gift to USA”? These gifts can be designated to support any of the initiatives currently supported by gifts to the Annual Fund, including the William Chamberlain Fund. Or new initiatives can be started.
This effort is modeled after a very successful effort at LSU which ultimately raised over $750 million dollars for LSU. Our goal is not as grand, at least not yet. We want to experiment with a First Gift campaign and, if successful, expand it beyond EDM310 to the rest of the students at USA. Will you help by creating a short video encouraging USA students to make a “First Gift to USA”?

The Contest
You can help by creating video of no more than 2 minutes in length using an iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, iPod Nano with video, Flip camera, etc. that lets your fellow students know the ways they can contribute to “First Gift to USA”. All submissions that meet requirements (see “Rules”) will be judged by a panel consisting of students, faculty, and staff members. The submissions will also be featured on the EDM310 Class Blog.

Prizes
Grand Prize – A 32 gig Wi/Fi 3g iPad 2 (or iPod Touches for up to 3 people). NOTE: Efforts are underway to increase the prize to an iPad 2 per team member. We will keep you posted about whether we secure these prizes or not.

Rules
Click Rules and read them. Or, if you are currently enrolled in EDM310, the Rules have been shared with you and you will find them in your Google Docs. Then enter the contest. Entries will be accepted through midnight Sunday April 17, 2011.

If you have an entry which you want to submit, contact Dr. John Strange to how to deliver your video to the judges. DO NOT submit your video to YouTube or any other "cloud storage" that can be accessed by the public until all judging has been completed.

You should take a look at the LSU Contest winner and the top two runner-ups.

Mid Term Reflection

2011-03-20T18:22:00.010-05:00

Most of you reflected on your grade the same way I did. there are now 130 students enrolled in EDM310. 83 of you would give yourself the same grade that I would give you.

19 you are more critical of your performance than I was. I would give 18 of you a grade one grade higher than you gave yourself. One person gave themselves a C and I would give them an A.

16 of you were not as critical of your work as I am. 13 gave yourself a grade one level higher than I would have given you and 3 of you gave yourself a grade two levels higher than I would have given you.

10 students did not return the questionnaire. There were no surprises in this list and there should be no surprise when they get their grades (unless they drop the course).

2 of you gave yourself a D and I agreed.

I will be contacting 10 of you who completed the midterm questionnaire and gave yourself a passing grade (C or better) but I would have given you a D or F. Maybe I do not have the correct information about your work. Maybe you have completed work that I show as not being completed. Maybe there is some other explanation. If so, we need to get it straightened out. And then, there may be some of you who are hoping rather than honestly evaluating your work so far. Sort of like the wicked witch looking in the mirror - she thinks she looks better than I think she does. We will talk about it. I will send you an email tomorrow if you are one of the 10 to whom I need to talk.

iPad 2 - Try It out!

2011-03-14T17:34:00.002-05:00

I have a 32 gig Wi-Fi only iPad which I will have in the Lab this Wednesday between 1 and 3. Yes, it is Spring Break but can you wait another week to see it? And you can use it Wednesday.

Cone join me!

Update: Mid Term Questionnaire Has Been Sent By Gmail

2011-03-08T10:13:00.005-06:00

The picture is a screen shot of 1 of 4 pages of our version of your checklist. I thoroughly mixed the names before capturing this photo and I also only reproduced a portion of our records.

You have been keeping your checklist. How does it look? An explanation of the colors. Yellow represents excellent work. Red means an assignment was not done. Pink represents a late assignment or one that was not done satisfactorily. Purple is for sick days or other special reasons. Orange means a special set of instructions was given.

Why am I showing you this? I have sent you a Gmail with a link to the MidTerm Questionnaire/Reflection/Exam. You will be asked to evaluate your work so far in EDM310. Honestly. We know the answers to most of the questions we will ask you about your performance. The picture is a reminder of that.

If you do not get the Gmail with the link to the Questionnaire, send me at email to strange.john@gmail.com

One of the things we will ask about is whether your sidebar on your blog meets the requirements of p. 11 of the Activities Instruction Manual. You might want to take a look at it before you get the questionnaire. If your blog is not in shape you should make the necessary corrections soon. Remember you should have a link that works for your email address.

We will also ask whether you can write the code necessary to put a button in a comment. Mrs. Yollis' class can and they are only 3rd graders. If not, be sure you learn how to do this and make use of your newfound knowledge during the remainder of the class.

I will also ask you about your grade. I hate grades. But I have to give them at the end of the semester. If the semester were over right now, what grade would you give yourself? Honestly.

Summary results will be posted by the time Spring Break is over.

Remember, this Midterm Questionnaire is considered to be equivalent to a midterm exam. It MUST be completed no later than midnight Sunday March 13, 2011.

Sharing - How to Give

2011-03-03T10:13:00.015-06:00

On the Web
William Chamberlain Technology Teaching Award
Colleges Against Cancer ($10 minimum on web). Be sure to note that the contribution is for the USA Chapter and that you are in EDM310.

Checks
Put in envelope. Put your name on the envelope. Put the group or groups you are contributing to on the envelope. Put the envelope in box in Lab

Cash
We prefer that you not give with cash. If that is the only way you will contribute
Contact
Colleges Against Cancer: Leave a Comment for Tiffany Fey on this blog post.
or William Chamberlain Technology Teaching Award: Call the USA Development Office and ask for Cris Smith 251-460-7032.

Participation
USA Development Office Video Contest. Instructions will be in a post on this blog titled Video Contest no later than Sunday 3/6.
Colleges Against Cancer: Respond to the email sent to you by Tiffany Fey.

Your Participation in some manner (Make a Gift, Participare in Relay for Life, Help Colleges Against Cancer in other ways, Participate in the development of a video for the Development Office) makes a difference!

Why does it matter? The more participants we get, the more matching money there will be.
If there are 60 or more participants, I will match the Crusade for Cancer Donations so a $10 gift becomes $20. I will match the William Chamberlain EDM310 Fund so a $10 gift becomes $20. AND the University will match that so a $10 gift becomes $40!

If there are 100 or more participants, I will double match the Crusade for Cancer Donations so a $10 gift becomes $30. I will double match the William Chamberlain EDM310 Fund so a $10 gift becomes $30. AND the University will match that so a $10 gift becomes $60! My total is limited to $2,000.

Let's see what EDM310 can do!

Sharing - What Can EDM310 Students Accomplish?

2011-03-01T13:49:00.009-06:00

Two years ago as this version of EDM310 was nearing completion, I was intrigued by the efforts of @wmchamberlain, @jarrodlamshed and @joemcclung to introduce sharing into their class curricula. Mr. Chamberlain devised a way for his class to contribute to Daraja Academy in Kenya. Mr. Lamshed created an event in which he and others sacrificed their hair for the Australian equivalent of the American Cancer Society. Mr. McClung and his class raised money for the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation.

I have wanted to add a component to EDM310 for Sharing. We will inaugurate it this semester for the first time. Tiffany Fey is one of the USA leaders of Colleges Against Cancer. I read about her efforts in her first blog post and thought CAC might be a good charity to assist.

In addition, the University of South Alabama has an excellent program of giving for faculty and staff, but none for students. In fact, the William Chamberlain Fund which awards $500 each year to a student or students in EDM310 for outstanding commitment to and ability in using technology in teaching is a beneficiary of the faculty/staff campaign. I want to support that effort and also to create the possibility of extending the faculty/staff effort to students and parents in all parts of the University of South Alabama.

So.... here is what we are going to do.

Each of you will be asked to contribute to either the CAC or the William Chamberlain Fund. This is purely voluntary, but we hope you will join us in supporting one or both of these efforts.

In addition, a number of the EDM310 community (alumni, current students, staff and I) have watched three short videos of LSU students which resulted in a campaign for LSU that raised $750 million dollars. Yes, $750 million dollars.

So a third way you can support our EDM 310 Sharing Effort is to participate with a team of 2 or 3 other EDM 310 students in creating a USA fund raising campaign video. The LSU examples will be posted on the Class Blog soon.

Now here are the incentives:

We want to encourage participation in these efforts. So if 60 EDM310 students participate this year, I will match any cash donations. If at least 120 EDM310 students participate, I will double match any cash gifts to the William Chamberlain Fund up to a total of $2,000.

The videos created as a part of this effort will be judged a team appointed by the USA Office of Development and Alumni Relations. The members of the winning team will receive a special prize which we will announce soon.

What do we mean by "participate"?
Any person that gives at least $5 to either the CAC or the William Chamberlain Fund.
Any person that acts as a team captain, or who participates in the CAC Relay, will count as a participant.
Any person that participates on a team that produces a video for the Office of Development will count as a participant.

Our goal is 100 participants so that cash gifts will be doubled by me (twice if to the William Chamberlain Fund). In addition, the University will double any amount that is given to the William Chamberlain Fund.

If we get 60 participants (as defined above) and you contribute $10 to the CAC, that $10 will be matched by me and $20 will go to the CAC. A contribution to the William Chamberlain will result in even more matching. If we have 100 participants I will double match and the University will match that. So $10 would be double matched (up to a total of $2,000 total for CAC and the William Chamberlain Fund) and the total would be $30. The University would then match that and $60 would be added to the William Chamberlain Fund.

Tiffany will be sharing a Google Doc with you later this week detailing how you can volunteer to help the CAC. She will also share with you a gift form for the CAC. I will be posting on the Class Blog a gift form for the William Chamberlain Fund. I will also post links to the LSU student videos and will share with you a signup sheet for a video for our Office of Development.

Contributions will be accepted until April 18 at noon. Videos will be due April 18 at noon.

This project is entirely voluntary. We do want you to participate in some way, however. That explains the incentives we have added to this effort.

Let's see what EDM310 can do.

SignUp Sheet for SMART Presentation

2011-03-01T11:45:00.004-06:00

The SignUp For Smart Presentation Sheet has been added to your Google Docs.
Assign one member of your group to fill in the SignUp Sheet.
Select a time for your group to present. Hopefully there will be two groups (A and B) per time slot so we can rotate present and audience. REMEMBER Tuesday 3/8 is Mardi Gras and the University will be closed.
List the last names of all group members in the same box (time slot).
If you are unable to find a suitable time for your group, send an email to edm310help@gmail.com and propose an alternate time.