About Me

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Gulf Shores, Alabama, United States

Sunday, November 29, 2009

Goodbye for Now


I'll be back to my class blog for sure. Too much effort and good ideas to let go to waste.
Lacey Musgrove

Don't Forget
lvmugrove@gmail.com
251-752-7253
lvm901@jaguar1.usouthal.edu


Saturday, November 28, 2009

Project 6: My Personal Learning Network

My PLN consist of..... the internet.

I understand the concept behind a personal learning network, it just has not become second nature to me yet. Dr. Strange's class was the first time I had heard of the term. Before that I had only been exposed to "Networking". Remember that? Haha. But I very much appreciate being putting on the right track with my PLN due to EDM and Dr. Strange.

I can undoubtedly say that the following people are part of my PLN: all the students of EDM 310 in Fall of 2009-especially students in the Wednesday night class; Dr. Strange; Mr. Chamberlain; Mr. McClung; Mr. Goerend; Kaia and her father and all of my teachers so far at South.

Also, I have become exposed to SOOO many great people, websites and books through EDM and I know that, with these resources as part of my NETWORK, my PERSONAL LEARNING will be increased greatly.

















Thank you everyone.

EDM AND ME : )


I believe I was moderately technologically literate before EDM and now I believe I am more technologically literate after. And, as I have for... my whole life... I'll continue to use technology in every aspect of my life, especially my future teaching.

PROGRAMS/WEBSITES
YouTube - is changing People.
Twitter - Great for news and views.
Skype - I have one. Who knows who I'll end up talking to with it.
Picasa - Love Picasa. Eventhough, I don't remember anything about it from class.
iTunes/iTunesU - Beneficial to me personally. I'm not positive if it will affect my future teaching.
Delicious - I have one. I'm sure I'll refer to it in the future.
Wordle - Love Wordle! I'll definitely use it.
Foliotek - Dr. Strange's directions made Foliotek understandably for me... FINALLY!
ACCESS/ALEX - For me, a monthly resource.. at least.

IDEAS
PLNs - Still trying to convince myself.
Comment4Kids - I hope it grows even larger. Its a true symbol of education reform.
HTML - A whole new world. I look forward to becoming a HTML professional.
Podcasts/Videocasts - Not sure if I'll be inspired to create one of these on my own.
Wikis - I've joined two other Wikis (besides Tech Literate Teacher) since being introduced to the concept. So, Go Wikis!!
Technological Literacy - Undoubtedly important.
The Future of Schools - I hope I'm an influential part of it.
My "Intellectual Trail" - Something I think about every time I get on a computer.
Me as a Professional - Closer and closer every day.

GOOGLE - A great bundle of tools.
Blogs/ Blogger - Love Blogger.
GoogleDocs - Love GoogleDocs.
Google Spreadsheets - Meh.
Google Reader - Useful.
GoogleForms - I think I may find a use for these in the future.
Google Earth - Always useful.

My Favorite Posts
Presentations
I liked creating my GoogleDocs Presentation.
The podcast my group and I made was a new experience.
And I'm glad I learned how to make a voicethread through Project 11.


What I would have liked to have learned.
More basic HTML stuff and more basic computer stuff. Tricks of the trade and such.

What I wish I didn't learn.
Umm... I can't think of anything.

What I got excited about learning in EDM.
HTML, Google Tools, Comments4Kids.

Anything intellectually challenging?
Nothing stands out. However, I think some things were slightly challenging from a creativity aspect.

Bored at any time?
Its hard to be bored on the World Wide Web.

Ways I would change EDM 310.
-Less blog posts.
-More Comments4Kids.
-More of an introduction to programs and concepts. And therefore more programs and concepts.

Project 11: Voicethread

By: Anthony Capps, Lacey Musgrove
and Heather Anderson
Anthony, Heather and I very easily created this voicethread on Voicethread.com. Then Anthony and I demonstrated to the class all the different ways that anyone (with a Voicethread.com account) can comment on the material within the voicethread. I think voicethreads will be a great teaching tool for me. I could make a voicethread and have my students access it at home.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

The Tech Literate Teacher: Project 10 Podcast


Edutopia
SMARTboard Lessons
TeacherTube
By: Lacey Musgrove, Anthony Capps,
Heather Anderson and Lauren Karadimos


New Classroom Rules, Seven Stupid Mistakes and
Seven Brilliant Things


NEW CLASSROOM RULES
from Education Innovation
**My Favorites**
1. Come to school every day, unless you would rather just go on line. **less restrictions will result in less rebellion**
4. Bring required materials, including your laptop and cell phone every day. **less restrictions will result in less rebellion**
6. Don't Talk to your neighbors, unless you are sharing your ideas, asking for help or giving help. **less restrictions will result in less rebellion**
8. Do not cheat, but remix, re-purpose, and sample other peoples’ work and ideas and give them credit. **former approaches to "Cheating/Plagiarism" hinder creative thinking**
15. Know what you are supposed to be learning, why, and what you will do with the knowledge. **too many teachers assume that we students ALREADY know these things**


SEVEN STUPID MISTAKES TEACHERS MAKE WITH TECHNOLOGY
from Doug Johnson via Education World
**My Favorites**
1. Not backing up data. **something I need to take heed to**
5. Believing that one's teaching style need not change to take full advantage of technology. **something my former teachers weren't aware of when I was experiencing Middle and High School during the booming age of the Internet**
6. Ignoring the intrinsic interest of tech use in today's kids. Kids like technology. Not using it as a hook to motivate and interest them in their education is stupid. **YES, STUPID. I completely agree**

SEVEN BRILLIANT THINGS TEACHERS DO WITH TECHNOLOGY
**My Favorites**
1. Empower kids with technology.
2. Creatively find and use resources. **even as easy as showing your students the result of a Google search of the subject matter you are studying, once they see how many OTHER people care about it, I know you will intrigue at least one of your students**
3. Make conferencing real-time.
4. Put kids in touch with the world. **students would rather learn about the Fall of the Berlin Wall if they could, for example, have a conversation with someone who was there before, during AND after its existence**
5. Accept the role of co-learner.
6. Use the kids' own deviced to teach them.
7. Delight in discovery, the newness, and the fun technology holds.

**These are all my favorites. I'm going to make a mental note to make a poster of these rules to display for myself in my classrooms.**




Doug Johnson's Wiki
Looks like a great Resource!!

Collaborative Blogs

I hope to be a part of many collaborative blogs throughout my teaching career; with my colleagues, my school district, my students and their parents. Also, my mentors and members of my personal learning network. Any excuse to communicate with fellow teachers or parents is a good excuse in my book, so I would absolutely advocate collaborative blogs.

Components of At the Teacher's Desk--
"An experiment in professional learning, collaboration and sharing of ideas."

Gadgets
  • Visitor Tracker
  • Contributor List
  • Contributors' Blog List
  • Most Active Contributors
  • Twitter - Search
  • Twitter - Follower Counter
  • Labels List

Members

My Top 5 Posts from At the Teacher's Desk




*YouTube* is Changing *People*


The Machine is (Changing) Us: YouTube and the Politics of Authenticity
Micheal Welsch

This presentation was shocking to me because I am absolutely a part of the MTV/Whatever!/Reality TV Generation. Apparently, all of this technology will change drastically in the next ten years, but I'm extremely happy that I have the curiosity to research and comprehend the true magnitude of the current age.
The phenomenon of MadV and the Free Hugs Campaign still blows me away, eventhough I'm not surprised by its existence.

Micheal Welsch's YouTube Channel It has other great videos.

Referenced books I want to read:


"Believing, Inventing, and Implementing Technological Pedagogies" By: Anthony Capps


Anthony Capps' post, Believing, Inventing, and Implementing Technological Pedagogies is a great example of the very thing he discusses in it. I especially love being introduced to thoughts of people I KNOW. Reading such a thoughtful post with so much insight makes exploring my peers thoughts even more enjoyable.
And also, to make an example of another point in his post; I hope so much that using the technology I've learned in Dr. Strange's class will help me to inspire my students to care, consider and comment on their fellow peers' thoughts.

Importance of Children's Work on the Internet: PS22 Chorus and Dear Kaia


What an incredible display of inspiring our students to do great things. Celebrities, parents, students (like us), and other children especially, watching how much fun the children of PS22 are having can only encourage good things....



.....good things that can lead to GREAT things like this!!!!





And Kaia's blog is something that even I feel so touched to be a part of. I can't wait to facilitate such a connection for my future students.

ACCESS: Alabama Connecting Classroom, Educators and Students Statewide


The Alabama ACCESS Distance Learning Initiative was launched on November 1, 2004. I was shocked when I read this because I attended an Alabama public high school from 2003 - 2007, and I had never heard of the program since classes at the College of Education. My school did have a dual enrollment option, for only one course. I'm sure it was a part of my school but it never crossed my path.

ACCESS is what it sounds like. A program that Alabama implements statewide, that uses the technology of computers and the Internet to allow students to go to classes (online) that aren't offered at their school, with qualified instructors

Overall, this program seems to be an appreciated one; also, fairly successful with "75% of students and 82% of teachers involved in ACCESS expressing that their virtual school experience was as good as or better than that for traditional courses".

2009-2010 ACCESS
Video Conferencing Instruction (VCI)
COURSE OFFERINGS
Subject

Mathematics
Algebra I
Algebra IB
Geometry
Algebraic Connections
Algebra II
Algebra II with Trigonometry
Precalculus
Calculus
AP Calculus AB

English
AP English Language and Composition
AP English Literature and Composition

Social Studies
Honors World History: 1500 to the Present (Grade 9)
United States History to 1877 (Grade 10)
United States History from 1877 to the Present (Grade 11)
Economics
United States Government
AP United States History
AP European History

Science
Forensic Science
Environmental Science
Biology
Chemistry
Advanced Chemistry
Physics
Human Anatomy and Physiology

Foreign Language
French I
French II
French III
German I
German II
German III
Latin I
Spanish I
Spanish III
Mandarin Chinese I

Other Required
Health Education
Computer Applications

Electives/Career
Tech Accounting I
Bible as Literature
Business Technology Applications
Advanced Business Technology Applications
Education and Training
Floral Design and Interiorscaping
Poetry
Sociology
ACT Preparation

Other course offerings are web-based instruction courses. Just about the same amount as the previous section of course, in most of the same subjects. ACCESS also provides Alabama High School Graduation Exam Remediation Materials. Hopefully in my future schools this program or one similar to it will be a useable program for me and my students.

ALEX: Alabama Learning Exchange

The Alabama Learning Exchange website is composed of vital resources for anyone in the field of Education. It has Alabama courses of study, web links, lesson plans, a personal workspace section, a professional learning section and a podcast gallery (gallery360).

SIDE NOTE: Every student in the College of Education should review (print out if necessary) all of the Alabama standards under the course of study section of the Alabama Learning Exchange website.

The subjects included under the course of study section include; English language arts, science, mathematics, social studies, arts education, career/technical education, driver and traffic safety education, health education, languages other than English, physical education, technology education and miscellaneous courses of study.

The web link section has links for teacher web links, administrator web links and student web links. The lesson plan section has lesson plans for practically every subject and area in every grade.

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Google Time Based Search Options




The WonderWheel and Time-Based Search Options are SO cool. I will be using them in the future for sure.