Podcasting

I have been around podcasting for quite a while now. To be more exact mainly in terms of Video podcasting. Much to what I know about podcasting in general is fair. I on several occasions worked with friends on a podcast and even a video podcast a while back. I think podcasts can be used in the classroom in many ways. If a student is not there that day you can have videos and materials loaded up and put in a syllabus of what was covered on that day and have the entire lecture down. Or if the students only got half the notes they can go to the podcast and listen to the lecture and write down more notes. Even listen to parts they did not fully understand. You can also use podcasting to reach more people than just your students in class you can reach people all over the world.
Podcasting is similar to some aspects of web 2.0 tools that it is online and almost anyone can use it, but it is entirely different. Podcasts are user generated and can only be edited by the one who made the cast but usually means they have to reshoot the information. Versus web2.0 mainly wikis everyone can edit them. Podcasting is another form of social media. Anyone can make a podcast if they have the right equipment and anyone can listen to a podcast from anywhere. Part of the reason why I like podcasting as a medium, as long as you have the means you can listen to it anywhere. Podcasting can and very well be used in the future of teaching in terms of reaching people. It is a medium that has not fully been explored and is something I feel that should get looked into more.
I do own an mp3 player; more exactly I own a first generation Zune. I use it to listen to music on my way to class since I commute from Sulphur Springs to Commerce every day so for roughly 40 minutes each day I’m listening to it. Would I use an mp3 player in the classroom that remains undecided? Sometimes I feel it is a distraction, especially in class when I hear a phone go off or see students just listening to their mp3 player or texting instead of the lecture. I think it could be used but has to be monitored heavily to be used in classrooms. And also depends on the subject that is being taught if that medium could be used. I think the advantage of online communication tools outweighs the disadvantages. The main disadvantage being losing personal communications with the student. The main advantage is a student can listen to the same lecture he or she did not understand or even write down more detailed notes. And another advantage is you can watch or listen virtually everywhere.

WEB 2.0

I have heard of wikis before. i have occasionally used them in the past to get an idea of the topic i chose to to and then looked further on other websites. I did not know you could use wikis for other things than just that. i fell it could be good to use for projects in classes and such to coordinate what is needed and what information they already know. When i used sites like Wikipedia i don't just use that source of information or any other wikis in the beginning due to any one person can alter the page. So i would just use it for a brief intro into what i needed to look up in the beginning. Using wikis could be a great benefit to teaching but needs to be monitored so that the wrong information does not used. and if you are using it for research you need to only get an idea of what you are wanting to find not just use it as a sole resource. Though i never thought you could use a wiki for coordination like in the video. i hope that this could become a valued asset into teaching.

Copyright and Fair Use Policy, Cyber Bullying, Netiquette

After reading a bit on the Copyright and Fair Use Policy in great detail I learned a lot. I have known a little about the policy but never to this detail.  There were a lot of things that I did not think it would cover and what extent you could use of the material. I learned that some of my old classes were super restricted and I understand now why they only used portions of videos clips, poems, and such. I am a gamer and I know of cyber bullying. While I know of how bad cyber bullying can be. If I recall sometime in the past a several kids actually committed suicide because of cyber bullying. I feel it is a big deal with us moving toward a more technology based society. And I learned more of how to recognize some symptoms of cyber bullying and how to prevent it, which should be taught at an early age and parents should take note of it. Netiquette is a big deal for me. Personally I view it and treat it as if I were talking to a person face to face. And people should pay attention to it more. To me it is what I was taught growing up and should be handled like that. Basically to treat as if it were face to face with people.

How I feel about Copyright and Fair Use Policy, Cyber Bullying, Netiquette. For copyright and fair use policy I feel it’s too constrictive on teaching. Only using a certain portion from papers and such can be taken and used out of the context it was meant to. To me these should be reevaluated on the account of what they are teaching and should be extended on a case by case basis. For the cyber bullying I feel internet security should be a big priority to teach at an early age and teachers and parents should also be learning to deal with it and how to recognize if it is happening to someone. For netiquette its simple for me treat it as you were talking to someone face to face. That is how I view it and should be learned at an early age. These topics are a lot to discuss about the copyright and fair use policy can be taught later but the cyber bullying and netiquette should be taught early and roughly at the same time. And it is the parents and teacher to respond correctly and be able to identify what is happening along with how to deal with it.

MAPping Information avtivity

Normally I use Google for my online searches. Normally I did not care what sites it would pop out I just skimmed through each site one at a time until I found what I needed. I liked using Google was fast and easy to find multiple sites that I could use when looking up stuff. I have tried Bing but it was too clustered and a headache to work with. I did not know everything we covered about the search engine and search techniques.
I don’t think my habits will change for the most part, though I think I will broaden what I use instead of just using Google for everything. I will use the information learned here to help me with future projects, learning as much as I can about them. What I learned will affect my teaching many ways. It will help me with finding new ways to teach a subject and looking at different sources for my class. Yes my students will be affected by this.
My conclusion after doing this mapping exercise was before that I never really cared how a site or search engine was designed. I would just go through the motions to find the information I wanted to use. Each search engine I used was way different than what I normally use when using Google. They were sleeker, less obtrusive ads. The information was shown clearly and easy to sift through. I know in the future I will use more than one search engine to see what information I find.

Introduction

Hello everyone i am Christopher Lewis, since there are a lot of people that go by Chris i will just go by Guy, which is my middle name. I am 25 and I am a Math Major going for high school education. I have lived all over the place, but for now where i call home is a town called Sulphur Springs, Texas. I am a gamer, artist (somewhat), a writer, and a dreamer. I was in United States Air Force for four years now working on discovering what i want to do. It's an ongoing process but i continue to push forward.

I love technology...that is an understatement since when i'm not at the campus i am at home by my computer. when on campus i usually have my laptop, laptop around sitting in the library. So technology is near me at all time, and i'm a firm believer that it is essential for education in the future. From seeing the class in a new perspective to making its unpredictable.

In this class i hope to see what i can do to integrate technology to the everyday classroom. Seeing new ways to integrate technology in the classroom is fun and challenging and i hope i am up for it. Working hard and seeing how i can push myself is what i find fun. So my goal in this class is to find what technology is used in the classroom and see what can also be used as well as look into the horizon, and see what comes forward to integrate. I will leave you with a quote i found from one of the series i have grown an addiction to. "The theatre's magic, isn't it? You should know. Stand on this stage, say the right words with the right emphasis at the right time... Oh, you can make men weep, or cry with joy...change them. You can change people's minds just with words in this place. " David Tennant, Doctor Who

The Classroom is a stage and the students are the crowd.