OTEN Conference (Incl. Yodio post)

The OTEN Conference basically made me feel much better about my technological deficiencies.  All three speakers I saw stressed that we as educators do not need to know everything about all technology to bring it into the classroom.  Instead, we should bring technology into our classrooms and have students teach us how to use it better.  We should experiment with new technology and look at that as a way to play.

This got me thinking about the question...why do some teachers balk at the idea of learning new technology?  Is it because it's unfamiliar territory that is hard?  If that is the case, then we should want to learn it in order to be good models.  We ask our students to willingly tackle hard unfamiliar material, and we should be doing the same thing.  If they see us eagerly learning in the same way we ask them to learn, that may be a skill that they will take more seriously.

To check out my Yodio review of the keynote and the 2 sessions I attended:

Blogs as Tools

Thinking about blogs a bit more, I see how useful they can be for teachers and students, on a multitude of levels.  The use of blogs, along with a variety of other activities, can give an opportunity for all students to find a voice.


For Teachers...

• Blogs provide a convenient location to post all students' homework, extras on class topics (i.e. links to music clips, video clips, & anything that might interest students), post-class discussion topics, etc.
• Teachers can post a video or audio clip for students to check out before coming to class, thus allowing instant discussion without wasting precious class time viewing or listening to the piece.
• This opens up an excellent discussion forum where teachers can better assess their students' understanding of the material and concepts without the students feeling "tested."
• Communication with parents is quicker and more easily accessible.

For Parents...

• Parents have a direct link to the teacher and classroom.  They can see assignments and what goes on in their children's classes.
• In addition, parents can see the discussions and idea development from all students, not just from their own child's perspective.

For Students...

• Students gain more technical literacy and proficiency.
• Blogs provide a format for their ideas without the strict academic writing structure of a formal essay.  Students are able to spend more time formulating ideas and less time worrying about format.
• Time is set aside for discussion and reflection.  In this format, all students' opinions matter.
• In addition, this type of discussion helps students learn from and teach each other, which brings a much deeper understanding of the material and allows different points of view.  They can see the collective picture better and find correlations to other areas of life.
• Some students find this format an easier place to speak up than the face-to-face setting in the classroom.  In addition, students are able to do this work at their convenience and in a place they are comfortable.

Bio (First Blog Ever!)

Today begins my foray into blogging.   While this is new territory, I am a bit scared but mostly excited.  The beginning must start with my bio...just a little bit about myself. 


I grew up the only child in a Montana ranching family that raised race horses.  We moved around a lot trying to find the best place for such a life (Montana, Wyoming & Louisiana) until my parents came to their senses and switched careers.  Because of those moves, I developed a wanderlust and an ability to easily adapt to new situations.  Between high school and college, I backpacked through Fiji, Australia, New Zealand & the Cook Islands.  (I also just learned that there is now a phrase for that - a gap year.  Back then some people just thought I was crazy.)  I went to college at the University of Vermont & then worked my husband through law school in Topeka Kansas before moving to Oregon.  In all of those places, the common thread has been my interest in culture and society, particularly how it all comes together.


I am beginning my MAT degree at Willamette University so that I can be a high school social studies teacher.  Having a degree in Comparative Religion, I am primarily interested in world studies, humanities and history.  My goal is to help students break from some of the compartmentalized learning they encounter and to teach them how everything ties together.  No one institution in any society is separate from the other parts, and students deserve to learn how to think for themselves and see the broader picture.


In school, I found that social studies can be excruciating if the teacher is boring.  I hope that my students will leave my class with the power to see that the past directly affects our lives and will also leave with a desire to see what lies beyond their worlds.  Really, I would be happy if my students leave my classroom with a few "ah ha" moments and a sense of adventure.  (I would love to bump into one of them in some far-flung corner of the globe.)