So this is it..............

Final Curtain Call….

I can’t believe this two weeks is over already. The time flew by but the knowledge I gained will last a lifetime. Like anyone, when this class started I was reluctant of the assignments but eager to get started. I knew that I would have to work my hardest to be the high achiever I am. I made a few mistakes along the way, like not following APA format for one of my assignments. That was such a silly mistake that affected my grade! This was my first full blown online course; however I was no stranger to any of the technology used because I have had Dr. Smirnova two times prior to this class. She gave me the tools and knowledge to be comfortable with this technology. Because of this, I was able to help several of my classmates along the way. I love helping others it is in my nature. I love to help people when they are stressed out and find a solution for their problems at hand. Even though this class was all online, I was still able to do what I do best-help others. I was able to help Zach, Cori, Jonathan, Irene, Nicole, and Faith. I was teamed up with two amazing students, Zach and Faith who I know have helped me out a lot. Having them work with me collaborating day in and day out for the past two weeks have been nothing short of amazing. Both of them are very strong minded and knowledgeable. They will definitely become wonderful teachers one day. Every time I have taken a class with Dr. Smirnova I have been put in the position where I had to collaborate with my peers. One year ago this scared me. I did not like group work because I always ended up feeling stressed out because someone wouldn’t do their part. However, Dr. Smirnova taught me what REAL teamwork is, and how to properly facilitate our group efforts, she taught me what true team work is. I now love team work, because I now know how a group should be run. This class has shown me how a school works, the roles of those individuals involved in the school system as well as who really controls education. This course was important for my education because I should know these things since I am studying to become a teacher. We watched a video on the paradigm shift and I believe Sir Ken is right. I believe we do not need a reformation of our education but a whole transformation! I also believe that the whole ADHD medication for children is a bit over the top, everyone is so quick to jump to medication. He said the older we get the less divergent thinking we do. I have to agree with him here, we push back our creativity as we get older. We need to aim high, if we create the right conditions in our schools growth will happen; we need to shift from an industrial paradigm to an organic one. He said the problem is technology is moving faster than we think. Our children live in a different world than we do. The impact on culture is to be extraordinary, the population is rapidly increasing and we have one major problem: We are trying to meet the future with what was done in the past. We as humans have the power of imagination and it is taken for granted by almost all of us. We systematically destroy this capacity in us and in our children routinely and unthinkably. My whole way of thinking is different now in a good way because of Dr. Smirnova. I am sad that my time with her is now over. I have gotten used to taking her over the past year. I look to her not only as my professor, but as a confidant. I know even though I will not have her again as my professor, I will keep in contact with her. I have grown close with her and developed a wonderful relationship. Thank you for always being there for me, including during the hardest time of my life! I will never forget how wonderful you have been to me!!! I don’t remember what school is like without a blog or a WIKI. I have been conditioned to reflect upon every single thing I do, and I will continue to do so into my career. This is how I will always be able to make improvements. I need to be able to see what works and what doesn’t. Dr. Smirnova puts you in real life situations so you can really see how it would work in your classroom. She even has helped me in front of a class. She is the only teacher who makes you teach your own lesson to an entire class letting you really get the feel of being a teacher. If any of you have not had her before ED5210, I highly recommend you take her for another course. I am glad I had the opportunity to have her for the past year; I wouldn’t change it for the world. I know I will be a better teacher because of her, and for that I am forever grateful. Thank you.

Half an Hour.........

I read a blog post written by a teacher and I really liked it. I agreed with him and his views 100% which really made me feel good since I am not in this profession yet so I am not sure if my views are similar or different than other teachers. This blog post was very insightful and really got me thinking. He spoke about ten things you really need to learn. This post was amazingly informative and intriguing. The first thing on his list was How to predict consequences. He said you should focus on what might happen instead of what you want to happen. This is really important if you are going to be a teacher. We are watched every second of every day, our students look up to us and we need to ensure we do the right thing and make the best decisions on what we say and teach. The second thing on his list was you need to learn how to read, meaning learn how to find the hard cold facts looking past all of the fluff in one's writing. A lot of what we are presented to read we need to go through more than once just to get to the point. We need to look for the cold hard facts, get straight to the point so no time is wasted and we can then truly try to understand why we are reading it in the first place. The third thing you need to learn is how to distinguish truth from fiction. This is something I learned from Dr. Smirnova myself in my science class. She told me to question everything. Never settle for an answer always ask why!!! The fourth thing on this list was to learn how to empathize, it is important to be able to see where someone truly is coming from and understand they walk a different life than you have experienced different things than you. What is normal for you may not be normal for someone else. As a teacher it is imperative to do this with not only our students but the parents as well. We may not agree with a parent's view on education, but we have to be able to see it from where they are coming from. The fifth thing you need to learn is how to be creative,  you need to learn how to find things in common between the current situation and other things you know. Try solving a problem and use your past experiences and knowledge to come up with a solution. As a teacher this is imperative!!!! We need to have the ability to be creative and find solutions to problems. We are role models and we can't plan for every second in the classroom. We are going to be confronted with multiple problems that we have never come across and it is up to us to find the solutions, be creative! The sixth thing you  need to learn is how to communicate clearly. Know exactly what it is that you want to say before you try to say it. Think before you speak. Crucial for teachers, you never want to mislead a student or parent or give the wrong information inadvertently. Number seven is learn how to learn. Give your mind the exercise that it deserves, try to learn something new each day. Becoming a teacher means you need to become a lifelong learner. You never stop learning!!! Your success depends on it! Number eight is learn how to stay healthy. Take care of yourself and take proper precautions when necessary. I am guilty of not always doing this, I am the mother of three young children, doing my masters fulltime, working part time and took care of my dying father for the past four years. I never went to the doctor or ate right for myself. I am just now starting to try to take care of myself. I just went to the dr. for the first time in four years last week. If I don't take care of myself, who will take care of those I care for? This is a necessity. The ninth item on the list was to learn how to value yourself. You need to know that you are good enough to have a voice or an opinion. You are important, your thoughts are valued, there are no stupid questions. As a teacher we need that confidence, trust in yourself. The last thing on the list was learn how to live meaningfully. This means find what will give you a purpose, not money or fame, but something like teaching for instance. I was meant to teach -make a mark in others lives through helping and teaching them. This way when my life is complete, I will not feel like it was a meaningless journey. **I really like this list he put together and believe that children and adults alike need to learn these ten things. Every item listed was so true, yet no one teaches students any of these things. We want our youth to grow up to be successful adults, who can problem solve, critically think, and provide meaning to their lives and the communities they live in yet we don't give them all knowledge they need. I wonder why that is......

Group 2 Opinion time!!!!!!!!!!!!

Our Group all discussed and came up with the following:

The future in terms of the effects on human lives and the shape that school and education are likely to take:

We live in a revolutionary time of astonishing advances in technologies, a world of constant and unrelenting change.  We know that schools must make changes to accommodate the technology revolution. Many are already making changes in curriculum, teaching, and learning.  So how will the “Informational Age” affect human lives and the shape that school and education is likely to take?  Just watch this videoàEducation of Today and Tomorrow.  Their world demands more skills from them.  People are no longer being trained to work in factories for their future jobs.  People are expected to create, communicate, and compete.  The children that I will be teaching are digital learners and they need to be engaged.  There should be less lecture and more opportunities for students to learn by doing! 

The characteristics of a teacher in the new Informational Era and the role of the process of professional career development:

Teachers now, need to learn more about what is going on in the world and understand what will happen in the future.  Teachers need to understand children’s lives today and participate in their lifestyle.  Otherwise, teachers will be irrelevant.  Teachers need to think like children!  Teachers should be provided with the necessary tools and training in order to engage these digital learners in their classrooms.  Teachers need to become digital learners as well.  Keep up with the times and understand that we are living in a competitive world! We as teachers need to watch this video for some inspiration and understandingàA Vision of Students

Predict the development of Education and Schooling in the future:

Education of the future will encourage students to discover and develop their talents, and equip them with knowledge and skills that others don’t have.  The more teachers help develop people in terms of creativity and entrepreneurship, the better off we will be. I see students as global entrepreneurs. We should teach them to invent jobs, not find jobs. A lot of current employment may not be there when they grow up.  The future will be global! 

How much does student’s education and schools effectiveness depend on teachers?:

School teaching is the single most important profession in the world. Teachers pass on knowledge and values to children, prepare them for further education and for working life and are main contributors to good education. So I feel that teachers play a major part, but not the only part in student’s education and schools effectiveness.  It takes collaboration in order for student’s to be successful and for schools to be successful!

Topic 4.........................................

Today our group met for topic number four. We worked so hard today because topic four had two group assignments in it. The first one was a prezi on "Teaching with Technology, What  & How?" This was a lot of fun because I have learned so much about what you can do with technology in a classroom and I have to say, if I never had Dr. Smirnova as a Professor I would have never learned 90% of the stuff I know now. It is absolutely amazing reflecting on the knowledge I have now because of her, the crazy part is I still don't know it all this is only the tip of the iceberg!

 There is so much out there and so much more to learn! Here is our prezi hope you like it!!! CLICK HERE

The second part of our assigned task for topic four was to create our very own school of the future. This was a big project that we started working on yesterday collaboratively, then again individually, to meet today and collectively put it all together. This was  a work in progress for some time and now it is complete. I really like the way it came out. We created a newsletter ended up putting it on a Word document, it started off in Google docs then we had some technical difficulties so we went to Word. This project discussed what we thought our school should be, curriculum, structure, design, goal, mission statement, teaching philosophy, and learning continuum. This assignment was really a great way to reflect on what we knew about the design and structure of a school and how it operates. Is it ok the way it is? Do changes need to be made? What? How? Really had us thinking!! Great day from group number two once again!

I am the Chair of Curriculum!!!!!!!!!

January 9, 2012

Dear Fellow Community Members,

Greetings, my name is Angela Morales, and I have just been appointed to the Chair of Curriculum position in the Happy Town School District.  I am writing to you simply to introduce myself and inform you of some of the changes I plan on implementing to enhance our traditional learning environment.  I have been a teacher at the elementary level in this school district for the past seven years.  My goal is to ensure that every student has an equal opportunity to succeed under my guidance.  It is our duty as educators to give our children the knowledge, attitude and skills needed to survive in a culturally diverse world.  It is my personal goal to provide a learning environment where children receive exposure to several different cultures so they have the knowledge to interact and communicate with diverse cultures and races in our society.  It is my belief that children must be taught respect for all cultures starting from an early age.

My top priority is to further expand our mindset of multicultural education.  Beginning in kindergarten and continuing throughout all grades, our curriculum will include lessons that pertain to the many cultures of the students in the classrooms.  Examples of some topics I plan on including are the arts of different cultures such as music, literature, food, holidays, and even clothing of each different culture.  These different cultures will be represented in classroom décor, in hallways, and even with food items on the lunch menus.  As the children reach the fifth and sixth grade levels and higher, they will be participating in other activities including book reports and research projects on a given culture.  We will also be incorporating different cultures into our annual holiday performances.  I feel that it is imperative to teach our children about the many different cultures that make up our world today.  My ultimate goal for this innovation is providing a school where there is less bullying, less racial tension, and increase in classroom performance for all students.

There are several books on this topic which I plan on making part of the curriculum.  One of my favorite websites I used for choosing the books for my library is http://www.multiculturalchildrenslit.com/  please feel free to take a look at it for yourself. For example, there is a book titled “The Rough-Face Girl” by Rafe Martin, which is a Native American Cinderella story. This is a book that will flourish in the elementary schools! There are also annual workshops for staff to attend. It is important for school staff to become more educated as well on such an important topic. 

This innovation will begin being implemented in the upcoming 2012-2013 school year.  I am very confident that each classroom will embrace our new way of thinking and hope you do the same. Please feel free to contact me should you have any questions or require any additional information. I am looking forward to a prosperous school year with all of you!

Sincerely,

Angela Morales

Chair of Curriculum

(555)555-5555

Angela@Ludmila.com

Topic threeeeeeeeeeeee

Today our group met to collaborate on topic number three. This was where defined the terms “Change,” “Reform,” “Innovations.” It was an interesting discussion trying to differentiate between the three terms. I think once we got it down, we felt more comfortable moving onto our group task. We had to do research on charter schools and collectively create a google docs presentation based on our findings. I think we worked really well today, Zach was our facilitator and he did an excellent job. He was organized, he set up the google doc, he led the meeting keeping us focused. Here is the presentation that we created: CHECK IT OUT!

    

After we finalized our meeting on topic three we put number four on the table. We decided who was gonna do what and scheduled another meeting for first thing tomorrow morning! I really enjoy working with this group because we all work so well together, I am greatful that is has worked out this way. Each of us puts in 100% and that is important when working in groups, we all help one another!

Topic 2!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Today was another great day of learning and collaboration for Without Teachers Life Would Have No Class...or WTLWNC as Dr. Smirnova referred to us, I like it! We worked diligently once again for over three hours today discussing learning theories as well as some of the other assignments on moodle. Such as the video of When I become a teacher........that was such an amazing message coming across that two minute video. We then shared personal experiences in the classroom and how they reflected or didn't reflect what was in that video. 

We then shared our notes on the Constructivist/Cognitive learning theories and the Multiple nine Intelligences. We then set out to complete our assigned task of creating a google docs presentation and we all had a lot of fun doing so. We all work so well together I really could not have asked for a better team. Both of my teammates are very knowledgeable about the content, they both do everything they can before our meetings to be well prepared. I am proud of our team and would not have it any other way!!! If you would like to view our awesome presentation click HERE Enjoy!!!!

When I become a teacher....

Wow! What a powerful video and unfortunately, it holds very true. Many teachers are there just for the paycheck and they really do teach the one year for 25 years. What a powerful video. I know that this is exactly of what not to do. When I become a teacher I will dare to be different. I will explore and create an environment that is hands on minds on. I will reflect and make changes constantly. I will continue to learn for the rest of my life. Becoming a teacher means becoming a life long learner. I become a student for life. The world around us changes by the second why wouldn't a teacher want to try to keep up????? AmAzInG!!!!!!
Here is the video for those of you who want to see it:

You think you know you..........

I took the educational philosophy survey/quiz. I had a top three: Cognitivism/Constructivism, Progressivism, and Humanism. This was a very interesting activity to really find out what I truly believe and what I feel will make me a successful teacher. The descriptions were very appropriate and I am going to share them with you here:

Humanism
Humanist educators consider learning from the perspective of the human potential for growth, becoming the best one can be. The shift is to the study of affective as well as cognitive dimensions of learning. Beliefs include: human beings can control their own destiny; people are inherently good and will strive for a better world; people are free to act but must be responsible; behavior is the consequence of human choice; and people possess unlimited potential for growth and development. There is a natural tendency for people to learn, which will flourish if nourishing, encouraging environments are provided.

Cognitivism/Constructivism
The learner actively constructs his or her own understandings of reality through acting upon and reflecting on experiences in the world. When a new object, event, or experience does not fit the learner's present knowing structures, a conflict is provoked that requires an active quest to restore a balance. Teachers facilitate environmental conditions and mediate experiences to support student learning.

ProgressivismProgressivists believe that education should focus on the child rather than the subject matter. The students' interests are important, as is integration of thinking, feeling, and doing. Learners should be active and learn to solve problems by experimenting and reflecting on their experience. Schools should help students develop personal and social values so that they can become thoughtful, productive citizens. Because society is always changing, new ideas are important to make the future better than the past.

Although I do not have just one style or belief, I feel all three are all appropriate for me! This was a fun excercise, I think we did this in Science as well but I can't remember!

DAY 2 of Topic Oneeeeeeeeee

So today Group number two aka Without Teachers the World Would Have No Class, we worked diligently on finishing up the second part of topic 1.

We all work so nicely together I love it. We each posted our thoughts on the white board then all together edited and created a new prezi presentation.
 We each set out and found pictures we thought would be appropriate for this task :

Objectives:

• Discuss the relationships of social, cultural, political factors in schooling and education.
• Evaluate issues in American (or any other) society and education, especially those related to race, ethnicity, gender and sexism, economic status and politics and discuss the alternatives in and to public education.
• Discuss the ideas in relation to the main theme of the week in the form of group presentation on the assign aspect : social, cultural, economic, and political
• Tasks:
• 1. Read and ponder the issues, questions regarding the week's theme.
  2. Collaboratively in a group your are assigned to, prepare a PPT on the assigned topic:
  
  Group 2 Cultural Issues of Education and Schooling

So we did this and successfully created our presentation and you can view it HERE

Hope you enjoy it!!!!! We meet again tomorrow for topic number 2, we already have 5 hours in online collaboration already! I think we may surpass the required ten in no time at all!!!!

Topic 1...Shouldn't be so bad...

Ok, so today our group had our first scheduled class, it lasted three hours!!!!!! 
WOW!!! First and foremost my group is awesome, we are all on the same page with everything.

 

Everything just flows so nicely with all of our thoughts and ideas. We all quickly chose our team name and motto. It was amazing! To show you how awesome we are, we created a digital card which you can watch by clicking HERE. Next, we designed our group's WIKI page on Dr. Smirnova's pbworks site. You can look at it by clicking HERE.

We also collaborated with one another on the Education in Changing World Worksheet. We also created a very nice poster to summarize what we did with it.

 After working diligently for three hours we decided we would create another class tomorrow to complete part two of topic one. What a great day! Feeling very accomplished right now!

Here we go again!!!!!!!

Ok so we had our first virtual class and I think it went well by the exception of a few technical difficulties. I am looking forward to the journey we are venturing on over the next few weeks.

 This is my third and final class with Dr. Smirnova and I must say I know for a fact that I will be a better teacher because I had her in my college career. This class has a pretty decent amount of students in it so it should be very interesting.

I am eager to push forward and learn all that I can about the nature of schools and the society within. We spoke about how to use the WizIQ site and hold our very own classes within our groups. My group is three people total, myself, Faith and Zach. 
 I am looking forward to learning and working with both of them!

I really like how Dr. Smirnova had each of us introduce ourselves and briefly showed us the ropes. That made me feel much more comfortable with the site. We have to do a required 10-15 hours of online collaboration through this site so it is vital to know how it works.

 All in all, I feel well accomplished thus far!