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Syllabi and Instruction Manual Now Available for Fall 2012 Term

You can find the links to these documents in the column on the right under the heading Essential Materials for Students and Visitors. We look forward to learning with you this semester!

Welcome Fall 2012 Classes

Classes start next week. Be sure to do the following

1. BEFORE CLASSES START sign up for a Google account and send me your Google mail address. It is essential to do this BEFORE classes start. See my email I sent to all of you.

2. ALL Classes during the first two weeks are MANDATORY. Be there!

3. Bring your personal computer or your iPad. This is VERY IMPORTANT.

4. I will take your picture either on Day 1 or Day 2 of the first week. Be prepared to look your best.

We welcome you to EDM310 and are excited to begin learning with you.

John Strange and the EDM310 Staff

Final Exam/Questionnaire

You should have received a Gmail with a link to the Questionnaire at about 1:00 pm yesterday. It is to be completed by Friday midnight 7/20. That is tonight!

If did not get the link to the Questionnaire, check your Gmail again and then send me an email (strange.john@gmail.com).

Have a productive and fun break.

iBook Author, iBook and iPads

Overall, I was quite pleased with our experiment this semester in creating iBooks and previewing them on the iPads. I believe iBooks have an enormous potential for learning and training - in schools and elsewhere. I hope you will keep experimenting and keep us posted on your progress. As soon as possible I will find a way for others to view your work. When I do, I will also provide you with how to add a link to your Blog.

Thanks for participating in our experiment.

Blog Post #10

Many of you failed to understand all or most of the messages contained in the assignments for Blog Post #10. Here is a general comment for all of you:

The first part of the assignment was to explain the cartoon. Papermate is a metaphor for a PC. Ticonderoga is a metaphor for a Mac. The cartoon characters resemble the stars of the long series of Apple ads (66 over 4 years) starring John Hodgman as PC and Justin Long as Mac.

2. The second part of the assignment was to read the post Why Were Your Kids Playing Games? , read at least one other post, create a link to in on your post, write a quality post about the two posts you read. Mr. Spencer uses satire and metaphors to deliver this message: the principal wants Mr. Spencer to use "drill and memorize" activities instead of projects or other learning approaches. All to pass the tests.

You were to select another post and comment on it.

3. The third part of the assignment was to read the post Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please? and some comments by previous students and then to discuss your position on the arguments made by Dr. McLeod.

The satiric message of Mr. McLeod which is that you can try to keep your kids away from technology which is fine with me. Mine will use it and speed past your kids in skills, abilities and rewards.

In addition you were to send Tweets to Mr. Spencer and Dr. McLeod.

Evaluate your performance on this assignment yourself.

Lab Closed Saturday 7/7. Open Saturday 7/14 and Sunday 7/15 1-6

The title says it all:
Lab Closed Saturday 7/7. Open Saturday 7/14 and Sunday 7/15 1pm - 6pm

The Kathy Cassidy Movie Has Moved

Kathy Cassidy's video interview in now located at a new URL. You may click HERE to get it. I have also changed all of the Instruction Manual references.

Thanks Christina Mason for calling this to my attention!

The Authors Like Your Trailers

From: Shane DeRolf
Subject: Nice job on The Crayon Box That Talked!
Date: June 27, 2012 5:28:16 PM CDT
To: makenziekendrick@gmail.com

Hey, Makenzie---Google forwarded me your YouTube video based on my book.
Nice job!
Thanks for the press!---Shane

P.S. Great piano track you laid down.

All the best,

Shane DeRolf
CEO & Chief Creative Officer
Yesterday's Zoo
http://www.YesterdaysZoo.com/

Change Your C4T "Clock"

I have modified the schedule for C4T #3. The due date for part 1 of C4T#3 remains the same: 6/27. That is faster than normal by one unit.

The due date for completing part 2 of C4T#3 has been changed to 7/3 (or 7/4 if you wish).

I have changed the Master Checklist but you will have to change your Checklist.

Another Change to the Checklist

I have made the following additional changes to the Master Checklist. You will have to make these changes on your checklist. Please do so.

Be in a group for Project #15 (SMARTboard lesson) and be registered for that group is not applicable this summer since you are in a permanent group. Remove it from your Due June 27 Checklist.

Be in a Final Project #16 Group. Register members on Google Doc that will be provided. Groups can be same or different. is not applicable this summer since you are in a permanent group. Remove it from your Due July 3 Checklist.

Midterm Reflection

You have been sent a gmail with a link to the Midterm Reflection. This is considered to be your Midterm Examination. Answer it honestly and complete it no later than midnight Sunday June 24, 2012.

Travis Allen, the iSchool Initiative and EDM310 Staff

Elizabeth Brooks @lizzzybell, Stephen Akins @akins14, Travis Allen @iSchoolTravis, Bailey Hammond @bookwolfbailey, Dr. John Strange @drjohnhadley, Carly Pugh @carlyedm310, Jacey-Blair Chandler @jaceyblurrr

@iSchoolTravis Allen and the members of the iSchool Initiative (@iSchoolAdvocate) gave a series of presentations Monday June 18 at the College of Education of the University of South Alabama. This was the first stop on a 40 stop tour across the country urging schools, school leaders, school students and the general public to join in the effort to equip our students with the most useful and most powerful learning tools available. The presentation was a powerful message that we hope will be heard by everyone.

Thanks Travis and the iSchool Initiative staff for your excellent presentations and interactions with EDM310. Good luck. And come back to Mobile and Baldwin counties! We need your help in pursuing the Digital Revolution!

Identify Yourself

I notice that a number of you are not including the fact that you are a student in EDM310 at the University of South Alabama in your comments on the teachers blogs for your C4T. You should do so. (See the top of p. 19 in the Projects Instruction Manual. You should also include a link to YOUR blog. To do that follow the instructions for paragraph #3 (Master enough HTML...) on p.12 of the Activities Manual.

Special Assignment Due as Part of Blog Post #7 on 6/24

Watch Thomas Suarez: A 12-year-old app developer (4:33)

Add this to your Blog Post #7 Assignment (Due 6/24).

What did you learn from watching this video (if anything)?
What does this video tell us about how the world of learning is changing?
How does this video fit with the others assigned for Blog Post #7.

Why am I assigning this video in this manner?
Two reasons: 1) I just learned of this video from members of my PLN and I want to emphasize to you how important your PLN can be. 2) I want to make sure you are reading the Class Blog regularly. It is very important that you do so since it is my major way of communicating with you.

iSchool Initiative

Come Monday 10-3 (or any part) if you can. Travis Allen (see Blog Post Assignment #5) will be here with a group of his associates in the iSchool Initiative.

Please Correct Your Checklist

Christie Mason has raised a question about #4 under Unit 5 on the Checklist. This requirement does not apply for the Summer Session. You are in a group that applies to ALL projects for the Summer Session and registration is therefore unnecessary. I have changed #4 of Unit 5 on the Checklist to read like this: Register Group Members for Projects #14 and #15 on Doc that will be provided. You should make that change on YOUR Checklist as well.

Revised Projects Manual Posted on Emergency Site

I have slightly revised the Projects Manual. Since the regular site is not working, use the Emergency Instruction Manual or just click on the link to the Projects Manual in this post. Be sure you read the post Major Improvements to Emergency Access Documents if you have not already done so.

LAB OPEN BUT NOT STAFFED 6/9

The Lab will be open today but there will be no staff in the Lab. Jacey-Blair's great grandmother died and she is in Texas for the funeral.

Major Improvement to Emergency Access Documents

I have modified all Emergency Access documents and moved them to a new server. Now all links within the Emergency Documents should work. If they do not, you can still use the button IF NEITHER OF THE ABOVE WORK, Try Here in the sidebar.

Since you always miss something, if any of the links in the Emergency Documents do not work, please send me an email.

Thanks!

There was some confusion in the Checklist about C4C # 1 and C4C#2. You are to leave two comments (one for Blog Post #1 and one for Blog Post #2 which is not due until Wed 6/6) for the student assigned to you as shown in the Doc which is now available to you in your Docs. BOTH comments are due 6/10 even though the Checklist says otherwise.