RSS For Education

O’Keefe, K. (2007). How an RSS Feed Reader Works [Chart]. Retrieved from http://kevin.lexblog.com/how-an-rss-feed-reader-works.jpg

My Teaching Resources Folder

I can see that using Google Reader or RSS would be useful in my classroom. Employing these tools in an LD classroom might allow me to set up some categories in advance so that I could filter, somewhat, student explorations in a given area. Teachers in our school could assign reading topics to study at home so class time could be spent working and discussing.

Some of it concerns me, in that too much information can overwhelm. Having never blogged before now and only seeking research I chose to seek, I feel overwhelmed with information now. I can only imagine one of my students with Organizational Management difficulties or Time Management issues trying to negotiate all the information in a feed. Hopefully, I can play with the filters to explore how to regulate this flow.

I certainly see how this connects to ACET Standard 4 Management, 4.4 Information Management as you can select the feeds that interest you and your specific research. Certainly that selection allows for information to come straight to your computer. It is a new era for me and I will explore how to control it as I progress.

Learning Log Assignment

Learning by immersion is all well and good. “Sink or swim!” is an expression I grew up hearing quite a bit. However, sometimes, having a life jacket, someone with a shepherd’s crook, or just starting in a shallow pool can give someone the confidence to move ahead. I will admit, I vacillate from feeling strong in my coursework and progress one moment, and then the next I choke on mouthfuls of water. This morning is no different. Setting up this Learning Log has been and continues to be a challenge as I swim harder trying to unlock all the widgets and whatnots that make my blog work.

I fully accept that the journey must be recorded. Successes are not nearly as important as the failures as we chart our courses. It is slow going for me as the tools are quite confusing in my opinion. I feel quite the buffoon as I flail about likening myself to Stan Laurel rather than Johnny Weissmuller making the apparent easy task harder and longer. Riis’s Stonecutter’s Credo is not lost on me. I see the value in making each and every step or misstep, fully realizing that at some point this will come much easier. I know as I continue this path, I will reflect on this lesson. Archiving it, I will remember not only as a source of the detail needed to complete a task in the future. I will remember this as I teach, knowing that another student learning differently, might be struggling.

Exploring the ACET Standards for this lesson, I see validity in both Standard 4: Management, 4.4 Information Management and Standard 2: Development as well. This tool serves to be a wealth of information, charting and categorizing my journey, making reflection and access to experiences easy and beneficial. It will also help me plan and develop computer-based lessons that meet the needs of my learners and guide me to teach not only to their weaknesses but mine as well.

Introduction Video

I embark on yet another first as part of my journey to an MET at Boise State University. I have never blogged before and now I begin my first post reflecting on my Introduction Video assignment as part of Ed Tech 501, Introduction to Educational Technology.

This involved many new things for me. I have made videos before and even seen a few posted to You Tube. However, those movies were made using some sort of tape first. Up until this class, I have never completely composed a movie, filmed, compiled from others and edited on a computer. As with most projects, there were a combination of factors I could control and those I could not. I discovered I could not edit the lighting of subjects who recorded their parts and emailed them to me. I could control the audio and edit high frequency pitches evident in some of the portions. I incorporated transitions and music to make my video more interesting to the viewer. I used IMovie to compile and edit my production, and Garageband to add sound effects. A key issue learned was time. When I posted my movie, it was five minutes in length. Once on YouTube it became 5:01 and now embedded here it is 5:02. It serves to remind me to insure my production is as intended when I teach. I also learned how to edit my Preferences in order to embed my video. Nelson Baquero was patient and calm as he guided me through yet another first.

I certainly would align this video with ACET 2.4 Integrated Technologies as I compiled multiple media into one production. I combined the numerous elements to weave an introductory video for my peers and teacher. By posting it on the class discussion board, my video became interactive allowing others to offer feedback both affirming and critically analyzing elements of the work they viewed. This provided insight to me from those both near and far geographically reinforcing the value of my chosen Master’s program.

As you can see, I still have a great deal to learn, with this production resembling more Ed Wood’s Plan 9 From Outer Space than Akira Kurosawa’s Rashomon. I look forward to learning new skills and applications to make me a better communicator, listener and educator.

Kurosawa, A. (Director). 1950. Rashomon [Film]. Toyko: Daiei.
Wood, E. (Director). 1959. Plan 9 From Outer Space [Film]. Los Angeles: Reynolds.