This week was better for me than last.  I was able to check out more work from my classmates and respond to posts accordingly.  I had more time to mess around with Twitter, Tweet Deck, and Feedly, I even spent hours revamping my base camp.  I found digital stories that peaked my interest, one was older and one I saw live on The Today Show.

I found the digital story on blogging in the classroomfirst.  It was fairly old (all things considered) so I set out to find a more recent story on blogging in the classroom, but I struck out.  I thought it would be interesting to compare and contrast two stories on blogging, one from 5+ years ago and one from today.  I will keep looking and see if there is any current research on blogging. 

I really enjoyed critiquing the bullying story I watched live on the news.  Before this class, I would have just let that pass me by and not thought twice about the story.  But when I watch news or look at social media now, I am always looking for new stories to critique.

One thing I learned or thought about differently was the reasoning behind the dotcom crash and the switch from Web 1.0 to Web 2.0 in Lankshear and Knobel (as I blogged about here).  It was something I never really considered and was interesting to read about in the chapter.

There is nothing I would do differently this week, I feel like I have the hang of things!  However, I still have questions from the reading, but I am not sure how to ask them or what exactly I don’t understand.  I feel like I get 50% of the reading and I am missing the other 50%.  I am hoping the more I read, the more it will all start to click, but until then I will keep pressing on.  I would love if the authors would add a quick summary at the end of each chapter with the key points.  I feel sometimes they are long winded about ideas/concepts so I have a hard time picking out the main ideas (sounds like my students!).

I still don’t think I have dove in quite as deeply as I could.  I am having a hard time finding DS106 assignments and digital stories on my theme (I hope my video on Nokia phones counts) and that is frustrating, especially when you would think technology is a pretty important deal in 2015.  Maybe I am not looking in the right places, I will keep looking!

Grade: 10/10    

 

This is a short digital story I found about the pros and cons of blogging in the classroom.  I was unable to embed the video, but you can find the video here.

Three traits were chosen from Jason Ohler’s rubric to use in order to critique this story:

1.       Story

2.       Research

3.       Flow, Organization and Pacing

I believe this short story did work.  It covered a lot of information in a short amount of time.  It is a relevant topic (despite being created in 2009) and I think will become even more relevant in the upcoming years as blogging becomes even bigger.  Blogging in the classroom is a great way to address digital citizenship (as she briefly mentions) while teaching kids how to type, navigate the internet, etc.

I am split 50/50 on this one.  The author did have facts and statistics about blogging in general, but she didn’t listed them in the credits (not a huge deal but would be nice to see).  She also did not have facts or stats about blogging in the classroom specifically.  I liked her pros and cons about blogging but again, did she come up with them on her own or did they come from somewhere else?  More information here would have been nice.

I wasn’t thrilled about the organization of this story.  I felt it jumped back and forth too much between pros and cons; I would have like to see it organized all pros, then all cons.  This effected the flow of the video as well.  Her pacing was also a little fast and I had to watch the video a few times to get it all (maybe there was a time constraint?). 

Other comments:  I think I was a little hard on this storyteller, but I did like the content.  While I don't agree with all her pros being pros and cons being cons (I don’t think kids being slow typers is a problem, I think it is great practice no matter how long it takes), they were good thoughts and something to think about.

This chapter took me 2 days to get through and process and I still have questions.  However, for my response today, I am going to focus on what concept kept coming back to me while reading; the idea of Netscape vs Google and Britannica vs Wikipedia and ‘new ethos stuff’.  I remember using both Netscape and Britannica when I was younger, and I remember teachers telling me I can’t use Wikipedia in academic papers as a source and I shouldn’t “trust it” because anyone can edit.    

I think I have taken all this ‘new literacies’ and Web 2.0 stuff for granted.  This chapter really helped me understand how it used to be and how/why it has changed.  I even created a website for a class solely dedicated to Web 2.0 tools and I never really understood what a Web 2.0 tool was until now.  The examples Lankshear and Knobel use to help describe the shift (Britannica to Wikipedia) were really helpful to me.  They say, “In the Web 1.0 business model, producers create the product and make it available.  In the Web 2.0 business model, customers or users actually help build the business for the ‘owner’, by using the software to generate content - such as ideas, data, texts, images, video content, etc. - that creates value, and where this value brings advantage to the ‘owner’ of the business” (p. 69).  Again, this chapter was a lot to soak in but if I thought of it all in terms of Britannica to Wikipedia, it was easier for me to follow. 

    

Now I think I have a grasp on the shift, I have so many more wonderings about the future.  Will there ever be a Web 4.0 or 5.0?  Will the internet become too saturated with information and Web 2.0 tools that we have another crash?  What will the future hold in the next 20 years?  Looking back at my last internship in Marketing/PR before I decided to be a teacher, my job was advertising and promoting events through ‘grassroots marketing’.  When I interviewed I had no idea what that meant, I knew about blogs but didn’t really get them.  I think about how much I have learned in the past 5 years (Twitter, blogs, Instagram, Flickr, Tumblr, etc.) and I can’t even imagine what it will all look like in another 5 years!      

Out of curiosity and in an effort to find images for my post, I Googled "Web 3.0" and this image really struct me!             

This is a very interesting digital story from Education Week summarizing the summer job trends of our youth in America.

Three traits were chosen from Jason Ohler’s rubric to use in order to critique this story (each worth 10 points):

1.       Project Planning

2.       Economy

3.       Presentation and Performance

1. Project Planning- Is there evidence of a plan?

Yes, I believe there was evidence of a plan because this infographic was not created overnight.  You can tell that the creator took the time to gather data from the past 50 or so years and present it in an interactive graph. 

Score: 10

2.  Economy- was the information presented through the story sifted and prioritized?

I do not believe there is a lot of unnecessary information in this infographic.  It is fairly straight forward and easy to follow.  It is prioritized because you can filter by age and gender or view all data for the age group.  There are different trends that can be analyzed or studied further if so desired.

Score: 10 

3.  Presentation and Performance- How effective was the actual presentation?

I think this is a very effective presentation of this data.  It is more than just graphs.  You can filter the graphs and see only the information you choose; for example, you could select females in the information industry to better view the trend line.  You can also filter the second graph and hover over the third to get more information.  The only thing I think is missing is any information on how many of these jobs are internships, if any.  Summer is a big time for kids to intern to get experience so that information would be helpful.

Score: 9

Overall: 29

Other comments:

There are a lot of interesting things to note while looking at these graphs.  First, I was surprised to see that the information jobs trend line hasn’t grown much over the last 15 years (I guess you have to keep in mind that these are just summer jobs).  I also found it interesting that Denver is one of the highest cities over the past 10 years for employment/population rations for major cities.  It’s also a little frightening that the percentage has gone down in recent years, interpret how you see fit...  

I loved my childhood so I am not sure there is a lot I would change, I was very fortunate growing up so I don’t want to complain.  But, teaching third grade, I realize how great kids have it and how much simpler life was back then, so it would be great to go back! 

There are a few things I wish I could have done differently or done more of.  For starters, I wish I took the time to talk to my grandparents more and listened to their stories from the past...I am a huge history buff now and it would have been so cool to  hear it straight from the horse’s mouth! 

I also wish I hadn’t fought with my older sister so much, I was a big tattle tale and clearly not much fun to be around :) Finally, my two friends and I started a car wash business and one day I took $2 from the “bank” to buy snacks at a vending machine...I still feel badly about it! 

It would be so fun to be a kid again!!

Overall, I was a bit overwhelmed.  It was stated in the screencast that it’s OK to be frustrated and feel this way, so I am trusting this is normal and how others are feeling too.  I am going to answer the questions point by point so I don’t miss anything!

I believe I completed all the requirements of this week well and as expected to do, although there was definitely some trial and error.  I appreciate how well laid out the syllabus is with details of everything so it is easy to follow.  By following the syllabus, I was able to get all assignments submitted on time.

A few things gave me trouble this week.  First of all, I found the DS106 site confusing at first and a lot of information thrown at me all at once.  I also find Twitter confusing (embarrassed to admit) because I couldn’t figure out where to find the daily create assignments and I had trouble deciphering between hash tags and handles (again embarrassing but I figured it out!)  I finally was able to set up a class list on Tweet Deck and found the blog roll on DS106 very helpful.  I like how it constantly updates with blog posts. 

With that being said, I enjoyed getting to understand Twitter better and Feedly, as well as DS106;  although I am sure there are a million more things to learn.  I also enjoyed the critiques because it was forced me to watch videos and read articles I might not have watched or read otherwise, and I came across a hilarious video (check out the real housewives of the PTO). 

I don’t know that there are things I would do differently as this first week was very much just figuring everything out.  I think I have asked the questions I had on the course questions page as well as email.  For now, I think I am doing ok...

While trying to find DS106 assignments and digital stories to critique, I was having trouble finding things on my focal theme: technology for elementary learning.  This is part of the reason I played it safe and stuck with Ted talks to critique because I couldn’t find much on my theme.  Now I am aware of the assignments each week, I can keep my eye out for stories on my topic. 

In case you missed any of my assignments, you can find them all here on my blog!

My score: 10/10

I chose this Ted Talk because I am a huge fan of Carol Dweck (thanks to John McDermott, my pedagogy professor, for introducing me to her book) and I think all teachers need to live by her words.  Her book is an easy read and it worth your summer reading list!

Carol Dweck: The power of believing that you can improve

Three traits were chosen from Jason Ohler’s rubric to use in order to critique this story (each worth 10 points):

1.       Content Understanding

2.       Media Grammar

3.       Media Application

Comments:   Yes, the speaker understood the content very well, as she is the author of a book on the subject.  Some of her researcher is older but she followed up with more recent research when she paired with scientists from the University of Washington. 

Comments: Compared to other talks I have seen, this one was very smooth.  You could tell that the speaker has given many talks and was very comfortable speaking in front of an audience.  She spoke slowly and deliberately and gave proper wait time for the audience to view the screen and soak in her words.

Comments:  As much as I love Carol Dweck, someone needs to help her with her power points!  I appreciate simplicity and speakers who don’t read directly from their power points word for word, but a few visuals never hurt anyone.  She had some interesting pictures of the brain and neurons but not enough to keep my interest.  A few times the words on the screen were sideways which isn’t the easiest to read.  Overall, I think she needs to stick to the talks and her younger interns need to make the presentations.

Other Comments: I teach her philosophy of the growth mindset to my thirds graders and it is amazing to see how their minds remember to say the word yet.  I haven’t quite seen the transformation of worst to first as Carol Dweck discussed but I do think it is good for kids to think with a growth mindset.  One way to make this talk better would be a better visual presentation as I mentioned earlier.  Also, she is a little dry in her speeches.  Talking about brain research isn’t the most exciting topic, but to a group of educators, what she has to say is exciting.  She could be more enthusiastic when talking of the successes she is seeing.

* if you are a reader not a viewer, here is the Transcript from the video.

Three traits were chosen from Jason Ohler’s rubric to use in order to critique this story (each worth 10 points):

1.       Story

2.       Research

3.       Voice, Creativity and Originality

Comments:   Yes, I believe the story was well articulated and compelling.  He started with how he came up with the idea and gave viewers good examples of actual comments from users on YouTube.  He then moved to the progression students will see as they work through the program and then the data/reports teachers can pull to help plan accordingly.  While working through the slides, he talked about how we can “flip classrooms” and use Khan Academy to transform the traditional classroom, which I loved.  I recently started using Khan Academy in my classroom to help struggling math students and I really enjoy it.  I believe what he was saying was 100% accurate and have not yet dug as deep as what I saw in the video, but plan to next year. 

Comments:  Because the speaker was the founder of Khan Academy, yes the presentation was well researched.   It wasn’t as thorough as I believe he could have been though.  Because I have used Khan Academy before, I knew a lot of what he was referring to and showing.  However, if someone has never seen the program before, he moved very quickly and it could have been confusing.  He could have made this better by slowing down a bit or showing viewers where he pulled the data from or the homepage where it shows all the skills kids can choose to work on. (Perhaps this wasn’t meant to be a Khan Academy 101 and he didn’t have time.)  I did like how he integrated screen shots of data teachers can pull and incorporated actual videos and tutorials from the site.

Comments: He seemed to be a bit nervous while speaking, stuttering and stumbling some.  I did like the creativity because he came up with this glorious idea all on his own.  With that being said, it was also original, especially because it is completely free (I’m still wondering where the money comes from to develop all this.)

Sidebar- My biggest fear with Khan Academy is teachers will use it as a means to be lazy and let students teach themselves and each other.  (Don't let this be you!)  However, if used as it was meant to be used them it is a great asset to the classroom.  If you have never seen Khan Academy before and you are a teacher, check it out, it is really cool and has a lot to offer! 

For my first response, I am going to focus mainly on the first two questions:

The first thing that came to  my mind while reading chapter one of New Literacies by Lankshear and Knobel was how much has gone on in the last 30-40 years in terms of policy changes, definitions of literacy and general viewpoints.  While reading, I couldn’t stop thinking about my very first course at CU Denver on my road to becoming a teacher.  I had to read chapter upon chapter of texts telling me about the achievement gap and how low income most always correlated with low achievement.  I had such a hard time believing that as I continued through the course.  I kept thinking to myself, ‘yeah but if someone really wants it, they can go to college and be successful’.  It wasn’t until I stepped foot in my first internship at my current school that I fully began to understand what all the achievement gap stuff truly meant.

As I continued to read, I kept thinking about the term ‘illiterate’ and how its meaning has changed over the years in some sense.  In the 60s and 70s, if you were ‘illiterate’ it meant that you couldn’t read or write and that typically you were of the lower economic status.  Lankshear and Knobel state, “'Illiteracy’ and ‘illiterate’ usually carried social class or social group connotation.  Being illiterate tended to be associated with being poor, being of marginal status, and so on” (p. 12).  After my second year of teaching in a low-income school, I 100% see the achievement gap and how it affects my students.  I have many students who, in third grade, can’t read or write but I have never or will ever call them illiterate.  They have many skills that will help them on their road to becoming literate.  But there still is a correlation, in my eyes, between being illiterate and economic status.  I had one parent tell me she can’t really help her child because “I can’t read good or do math good myself because I only made it to 10^th grade.”  I will never forget that conversation because it made me so sad and this parent wants to help her child so badly, but she doesn’t know how.    

However, I feel the term illiterate has taken on a more laid back, casual meaning in terms of ‘new literacies’.  For example, I hear my dad say all the time that he is technology illiterate or cell phone illiterate.  I don’t feel the term has such a negative connotation anymore in regards to new technologies, or maybe the term is just a generational thing...

Finally, as I was reading about the standardized tests internationally, I was getting frustrated that we are trying to compare ourselves with other counties.  There are so many factors that play into international comparisons that I feel it is like comparing apples and oranges.  Some countries only test their top 70% of students; some countries have longer school years or longer school days, some countries value education more than others.  I think it is OK to compare our students within our own country, but it is a sticky situation when you start throwing in different countries!  

I look forward to your thoughts!