Friday, January 30, 2015

Blog Post III-Writing a Quality Blog Post

Learning the process of writing with good quality is very important.  The video and slides were very
helpful in reinforcing how to edit our peers and how to do it in the proper way.  I learned that it is
important to compliment someone's work first.  This lets them know that you are trying to be
helpful and positive.  We want to motivate and not insult.  Encouragement means a lot!

On the other hand, we must try to be constructive when we have to make corrections on some-
one's work.  This becomes important because we want to display work that is professional and
efficient.  In order to do this, we must proofread, redraft and edit so that the work we present to
others will reflect our intelligence and professionalism.  We must remember that everything we
do reflects who we are as individuals.

Peer Editing consists of staying positive and offering suggestions and details about the work being
presented. We must make sure that the words are chosen carefully to give details about the main
idea or theme of the story.  Sentences should be complete with proper punctuation and grammar.
Our spelling should be immaculate and a superlative form of excellence.

Becoming a great writer is an art simply because of the quality of work, suggestions, and corrections
given by our peers and associates.  The tedious work of editing and proofreading requires a great
deal of being organized aspiring to put out excellent work.  Without these things we will not be
able to be competent or persuasive with others.

These are the resources that I have used for this assignment.
Peer Editing
Writing Peer Review
Tutorial Peer Editing

peer edit

Friday, January 23, 2015

What will teaching in the 21st Century be like?

The central message of Mr. Dancealot is pretty simple and clear.  He is a dance teacher.  From looking at  the video,  it seems that he is attempting to show the students how to dance.  The author
shows the dance teacher making an exit from the classroom and leaving the students to the examples
of dancing that he has left for them.  They are left to experiment with the directions they have been
taught.  The students do not seem to have grasped the directions they were given.  It seems when
students neglect to pay attention to directions given in class by the teacher they basically are lost.
This is shown in the video with the students talking while the teacher is instructing.  I do not agree
with the conclusion, because I think students should be alert and adept to learning and instruction.
That's what learning is all about!

Roberts brings out the ways in which students can learn in the 21st Century by accepting the facts
about technology and the advancement of learning.  The classroom is not the only basis for learning.
Technology enables us to learn from other sources and to be creative in our learning process.  I do
believe that if Roberts is correct, it will and it should make teaching much more interesting in our
coming age of electronic exploration and change.

I think the networked student does need a teacher even though he seems to be very resourceful
in the video.  Even though he does have other options to learning, he needs the teacher there as
a motivator, articulater and translator for his thoughts and concepts.  She sets the example of  an
architect or builder for the ideas that's already in his head as a student.  I believe teachers serve
a very important position in the classroom as a leader.  They set the prime example of how
students can follow their lead successfully and win!

The thesis of Davis' video is to take in the information of her students enthusiasm to learn new
things.  When students are truly interested in what they are learning class is just much more interesting for everyone involved.  Ideas are floating everywhere from everyone and each student
is allowed to get involved with their own opinions. That's why teachers should always keep an
open mind to new things.

The movie "Who's Ahead in the Learning Race?" showed where elementary students were
certainly ahead in the learning race. They were more avid learners in the long run.

Flipping the classroom would certainly be something new.  I'm not sure at this moment and
time.  I think I would probably need more time to examine the pros and cons.
21st century teaching

The article "Bringing the Locker Room into the Classroom" was very interesting to read and
understand.  Dr. Owens showed in the article that learning is by example.  Many things can be
taught by a manual or book but by doing and putting what we learn into action gets results.
The article did bring out that there were teachers that experimented with his method of teaching
and received great results.

Friday, January 16, 2015

Blog Post I

The things that I heard about EDM310 consists of it being a class that requires a lot of  time in lab. Some have said it is very time-consuming.  Some people have said that is relatively hard.

In comparison with my other classes in high school and college, I think it does require a lot of independent work and thinking on my part.  I just hope that I can keep up with every project and every assignment in class.

I think the most difficult thing right now is mastering the technological part of keeping up with my
projects and assignments everyday.  Learning to master that will certainly help me to keep up with the class more effectively and efficiently.

The best way for me to address the "most difficult" aspect of EDM310 is to just face my worst fears and attempt to try to solve my largest problem.

My questions about EDM310 are as follows: how to do the work and how to keep up with class time and pace.  Right now, I don't have any immediate ideas but I am currently trying to find a way.

practice blog post

My name is Carol V. Williams.  I have always been enthusiastic about education. Knowledge is power.  I was born in Mobile, Al and  graduated from Theodore High School. My family is from
Mobile also. My mother and father both worked to keep me well-grounded as a kid growing up.
They always instilled in us the importance of working hard and accomplishing goals in life.
Because of those values,  my youngest brother was able to complete his degree at  the  University
of Alabama in Tuscaloosa as a Communications major in the area of television and broadcasting.
I am very proud of his accomplishments.

My personal interests are reading, cooking, and creative writing.  In the past, I attended Bishop
State College and Virginia College.  Upon completing my studies at Virginia College, my daughter
suggested that I should apply at South Alabama to get my teaching degree.  Of course,  I am al-
ready a substitute teacher in the Mobile County Public School System.  I am currently in my
ninth year with Mobile School System as a substitute teacher.  Because of  my experience as a
substitute teacher, this led me to consider studying to become a teacher.  I found as a substitute
teacher that so many students need the aid and assistance of  a responsible adult in their life.
Many children lack that guidance and direction in their life.

I would like to enter the field of education because I feel that I can be a guiding force for child-
ren that want to learn and accomplish great things in the world in which we live.  People that
have creative minds and a passion for knowledge should have a special place in the world.

My passion in life involves my creativity for writing.  To write creatively involves a great deal
of imagination and passion for the things that exist around us in the world.  I do believe that I
do that best!  Of all the things I would like to become a better cook.