Brady Aulie and I did a podcast for our ECMP 355 class. Using Apple software, we recorded our podcast with Garage Band, saved it to iTunes, and uploaded it on Sound Cloud.
If you are a CFL fan, or have feedback on how to best use podcasts for educational purposes, let me what you think.
Thursday, 24 October 2013
Tuesday, 22 October 2013
Malcolm Gladwell's Latest, and Analogies to Education
I saw this intriguing tweet from my former high school VP (now principal) from my days as a student:
After reading this article related to Gladwell's latest book, it made me think deeper in regards to his concept of the benefits of "being a big fish in a little pond."
Now, Gladwell's techniques certainly have their critics. However, I do like how this categorization for big pond/little pond can be considered in an education context.
In reply to the tweet above, I sent the following:
Specifically, my reference here to the little fish in the big pond is for students who attend schools in communities of low socio-economic status, where transiency tends to be higher.
I used to work as a Dream Broker for the first four years of the program at two different inner-city schools. Often, when high-achieving students who completed grade eight came to visit once they had entered high school, these students would struggle with this transition; grades would drop, as it seems the transition from elementary to high school was excessive. While the transition from elementary/middle school to high school can be difficult for many students across socio-economic lines, I think this transition is stereotypically more difficult for students who attend inner-city schools in impoverished neighbourhoods. Charter schools seem to be a notable exception.
A critique I have against this article is that, how does one know in the world of education if they will or will not be more successful as a little fish in a big pond? Acceptance of being a big fish in a little pond (e.g., highly intelligent/motivated student attending a post-secondary institution without a strong academic reputation), could be limiting for that student in areas of networking/connecting to others within their field. I think this point is true in both specific fields (e.g., an Engineering student at MIT), and for students that are undeclared (e.g., acceptance and attending an Ivy League school).
I suppose, to reference another Gladwell book, if a student is an "Outlier", it may be worth the risk to be a small fish in a big pond. In "Outliers: The Story of Success", Gladwell references how not just talent alone, but connections to others, along with luck, has a lot to do with one's success.
What do you think of Gladwell's big fish in a small pond vs. little fish in a big pond analogy in reference to education?
Read Gladwell’s latest? I wonder if current k-12 system is #bigpond? In HS focus on marks squashes growth+chgs lives? Validates the chgs?
— Dawn Kilmer (@dellenanne) October 20, 2013
After reading this article related to Gladwell's latest book, it made me think deeper in regards to his concept of the benefits of "being a big fish in a little pond."
Now, Gladwell's techniques certainly have their critics. However, I do like how this categorization for big pond/little pond can be considered in an education context.
In reply to the tweet above, I sent the following:
@dellenanne it seems transitions from elem to HS can be #bigpond particularly if elem school is in a community that is not asset rich
— Garett Mathiason (@GFMathiason) October 20, 2013
Specifically, my reference here to the little fish in the big pond is for students who attend schools in communities of low socio-economic status, where transiency tends to be higher.
I used to work as a Dream Broker for the first four years of the program at two different inner-city schools. Often, when high-achieving students who completed grade eight came to visit once they had entered high school, these students would struggle with this transition; grades would drop, as it seems the transition from elementary to high school was excessive. While the transition from elementary/middle school to high school can be difficult for many students across socio-economic lines, I think this transition is stereotypically more difficult for students who attend inner-city schools in impoverished neighbourhoods. Charter schools seem to be a notable exception.
A critique I have against this article is that, how does one know in the world of education if they will or will not be more successful as a little fish in a big pond? Acceptance of being a big fish in a little pond (e.g., highly intelligent/motivated student attending a post-secondary institution without a strong academic reputation), could be limiting for that student in areas of networking/connecting to others within their field. I think this point is true in both specific fields (e.g., an Engineering student at MIT), and for students that are undeclared (e.g., acceptance and attending an Ivy League school).
I suppose, to reference another Gladwell book, if a student is an "Outlier", it may be worth the risk to be a small fish in a big pond. In "Outliers: The Story of Success", Gladwell references how not just talent alone, but connections to others, along with luck, has a lot to do with one's success.
What do you think of Gladwell's big fish in a small pond vs. little fish in a big pond analogy in reference to education?
Sunday, 13 October 2013
Making "The Door Scene" with iMovie
This past week in my ECMP 355 class, we recreated "The Door Scene" (p. 17) using iMovie.
iMovie is a fantastic tool that can be used as a summative project for learning for a number of different subject units. It is fun to learn how the different tools can be used to edit scenes into movie-esque quality.
For middle years students, it would be best to get students familiar with this technology first with a simple project such as "The Door Scene" (p. 17). Once familiar with some of the nuances of this program, students would be able to create fantastic projects that display their learning.
iMovie is a fantastic tool that can be used as a summative project for learning for a number of different subject units. It is fun to learn how the different tools can be used to edit scenes into movie-esque quality.
For middle years students, it would be best to get students familiar with this technology first with a simple project such as "The Door Scene" (p. 17). Once familiar with some of the nuances of this program, students would be able to create fantastic projects that display their learning.
Tuesday, 1 October 2013
Solving my Personal Mystery of Pinterest as an Education Tool
Last year early my during internship, I heard my co-op teacher speak about ideas that she had and shared on Pinterest. I was curious, so I set up an account , however as you can see I did not initially understand how to use Pinterest, and how to get "Pins" to share with others.
Once an account is set up, in the top left hand corner there is a search bar, along with a drop down menu with a variety of categories, including education. Here, there seems to be infinite resources available, however because of how general the topic of 'education', searching a more specific search in within education is helpful.
For example, one area where I have observed teachers use ideas from Pinterest is for use is for classroom set-up. By typing in the search bar classroom, other searches are prompted, including classroom organizing. My search eventually became specific to classroom organizing middle school . From here, you will see a large variety of innovative ideas that can be used for classroom organization and set-up. From this page, I found the 'pin' at the end of this article that I would consider using in my classroom one day.
Pinterest is a form of social media, and as such, its power is in sharing ideas. I decided to 'pin' this on a board I titled: "Education ideas". It is also encouraged to follow other Pinterest users with similar interests. It is also possible to share pins through Twitter and Facebook.
I think Pinterest is a valuable tool for teachers, since it provides valuable visual images of ideas that teachers can use in their own practice. From what I hear, Pinterest can also be quite the procrastination tool, so be sure to utilize it for a specific purpose in planning as a teacher.
Once an account is set up, in the top left hand corner there is a search bar, along with a drop down menu with a variety of categories, including education. Here, there seems to be infinite resources available, however because of how general the topic of 'education', searching a more specific search in within education is helpful.
For example, one area where I have observed teachers use ideas from Pinterest is for use is for classroom set-up. By typing in the search bar classroom, other searches are prompted, including classroom organizing. My search eventually became specific to classroom organizing middle school . From here, you will see a large variety of innovative ideas that can be used for classroom organization and set-up. From this page, I found the 'pin' at the end of this article that I would consider using in my classroom one day.
Pinterest is a form of social media, and as such, its power is in sharing ideas. I decided to 'pin' this on a board I titled: "Education ideas". It is also encouraged to follow other Pinterest users with similar interests. It is also possible to share pins through Twitter and Facebook.
I think Pinterest is a valuable tool for teachers, since it provides valuable visual images of ideas that teachers can use in their own practice. From what I hear, Pinterest can also be quite the procrastination tool, so be sure to utilize it for a specific purpose in planning as a teacher.
Thursday, 26 September 2013
Wednesday, 18 September 2013
Perspective from my Internship: One Year Later
Last weekend, I took the time to read this blog I stumbled upon through a twitter post from Alec Couros. This blog resonated with me for a few key reasons.
First, a little background information on myself. I returned to post-secondary studies in the fall of 2010, when I was accepted into a Middle Years After Degree Program at the University of Regina. After graduating in 2005 with a degree in Kinesiology, I continue to work in the field to this day. In addition to my studies, I am a full time coach for the Saskatchewan Rowing Association. From working as a rowing coach, and previous to that as a Dream Broker for Sask Sport, Inc., the desire to begin a journey as a teacher had evolved to the point that I applied, and was fortunately accepted, into the Faculty of Education at the U of R.
The after degree program at the U of R is a two year program, where you enter a cohort with other students that have completed their previous two years of study in education. While working full time as a coach, I was somehow able to get through this year of study without too many scars. I maintained an 80+ average, and was able, for the most part, to continue to coach and commit my studies at a high level.
As a mature student, with a wife and a mortgage, I always knew that in order to complete my degree in education, I would have to maintain full time employment. Coaching rowing has been ideal, since it is something I am very passionate about, and the hours while in school tend to me more flexible.
While it may have seemed on the outside that things were going well for me, there were some challenges that may have foreshadowed my internship experience. Moments such as locking myself in my office for two weeks, day and night, to write 10 Science lesson plans.
During my internship, things started out great. I was in a grade 7/8 class, and I worked to build strong relationship with the students, and to be accepted into the school community. However, as the weeks went on and my responsibility increased, I started to have some significant challenges. As my perfectionist ways started to get the better of me, the lack of sleep that resulted from my 8:30am to midnight sessions at the school were starting to catch up. My health was deteriorating.
With many supports, I was able to get through my internship experience successfully. It has taken a long time, but I have developed a more balanced and experienced view of how I hope to enter the teaching profession. Here are some of the lessons I have learned:
During my internship, I leaned on a few key people to help me. But, as the saying goes, "it takes a village to raise a child." This statement is very true in my journey to become a teacher.
First, a little background information on myself. I returned to post-secondary studies in the fall of 2010, when I was accepted into a Middle Years After Degree Program at the University of Regina. After graduating in 2005 with a degree in Kinesiology, I continue to work in the field to this day. In addition to my studies, I am a full time coach for the Saskatchewan Rowing Association. From working as a rowing coach, and previous to that as a Dream Broker for Sask Sport, Inc., the desire to begin a journey as a teacher had evolved to the point that I applied, and was fortunately accepted, into the Faculty of Education at the U of R.
The after degree program at the U of R is a two year program, where you enter a cohort with other students that have completed their previous two years of study in education. While working full time as a coach, I was somehow able to get through this year of study without too many scars. I maintained an 80+ average, and was able, for the most part, to continue to coach and commit my studies at a high level.
As a mature student, with a wife and a mortgage, I always knew that in order to complete my degree in education, I would have to maintain full time employment. Coaching rowing has been ideal, since it is something I am very passionate about, and the hours while in school tend to me more flexible.
While it may have seemed on the outside that things were going well for me, there were some challenges that may have foreshadowed my internship experience. Moments such as locking myself in my office for two weeks, day and night, to write 10 Science lesson plans.
During my internship, things started out great. I was in a grade 7/8 class, and I worked to build strong relationship with the students, and to be accepted into the school community. However, as the weeks went on and my responsibility increased, I started to have some significant challenges. As my perfectionist ways started to get the better of me, the lack of sleep that resulted from my 8:30am to midnight sessions at the school were starting to catch up. My health was deteriorating.
With many supports, I was able to get through my internship experience successfully. It has taken a long time, but I have developed a more balanced and experienced view of how I hope to enter the teaching profession. Here are some of the lessons I have learned:
- I can always do more, but at a certain point more becomes less.
- Have boundaries, and understand and respect my limits.
- Develop a network of support.
During my internship, I leaned on a few key people to help me. But, as the saying goes, "it takes a village to raise a child." This statement is very true in my journey to become a teacher.
Thursday, 5 September 2013
Round 2
After getting too bogged down last winter semester with my career, I unfortunately had to drop my Technologies in the Classroom course. I am now taking it again this fall, with the added accountability of face to face meeting times twice a week at the U of Regina.
I am excited to build on some of the skills I learned the last time I was in this course. From where I started last January, I think I evolved from a technological dinosaur, to perhaps a technological turtle.
Wish me luck!
I am excited to build on some of the skills I learned the last time I was in this course. From where I started last January, I think I evolved from a technological dinosaur, to perhaps a technological turtle.
Wish me luck!
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