Day 12

Be clear, be quick, be gone! I will remember that mantra and reiterate it to my students! Most of the articles in Presenters University emphasize using the audience's time wisely. There is nothing worse than to leave a long presentation where it feels time was wasted. No one wants to feel that!

The tips for reaching a young audience are practical. I find myself thinking about the dynamics for the relationships formed in classrooms today. There is a fine line between being a buddy and being a mentor sometimes. I try to think of myself as a mentor instead of an authority in the classroom. I want my advice and lessons to be remembered. Besides, I probably won't be remembered, but the skills that students come away with will be with them forever. And, I try to be myself. I didn't see that particular advice in the second article, but it is good to remember to be real! Fakes stick out like sore thumbs among a group of teens.

Day 11

Now I understand why we always have a reflection piece with the work we turn in! I have always believed it useful, but now I see that is the norm across the educational community. These articles helped me to understand sources for portfolio contents and the file structure for those contents. As I'm reading these articles, I can't help but think about how I would explain this process to my students. I would have to teach them file structure and some software. I think I would make all the platforms the same--probably powerpoint. I wonder if digital portfolios could be created in google docs so that we don't have to use server space? Students could make me a collaborator and then future teachers could be made collaborators. Hey! Then the teacher wouldn't have to move students digital folders around--the students would be responsible for it! I have had trouble using google for its presentation program, but this would be an interesting idea! Then any computer could read it and the student could change it around from anywhere!! Can students save movies to google, too, and use that in presentations? I will have to find out!!

Day 10

I'm conviced that ePortfolios have much relevance in my classroom. I appreciate the tips on "working backwards" by asking the questions that decipher goals and objectives. As I'm reading I'm thinking of the possibilities with my students. Perhaps making it a year long assessment where the culmination is really the product in May will keep students motivated at the end of the year. They could have some time to re-do projects that didn't turn out as well as they had hoped. My only drawback is that the computer lab is booked at the end of the year for district assessments. I'll have to think the logistics through. Oh to have a laptop for every student in the classroom!!

It is nice to see that others have gone before and developed ePortfolios! It is strange that a neighboring country uses portfolios whereas we use standardized tests. I wonder if there is any research that can delineate the differences between students that graduate in BC and ones that graduate in the US.

Day 9 - portfolios

The first article had many examples linked to it, but none of the ones I tried had working links. Bummer! I would really like to look at some of the sources, especially the one that lists universities with portfolio requirements. I wonder if it is for undergrads or professors. It might be an idea to start my seniors with ePortfolios.

The second article was the same. I had to download a program to see the video, but I would rather not do that on my home PC. I will have to come back to this one!

I found the discussion on paradigm shift to be very interesting. Portfolios that reflect the acheivement against standards, and the portfolio that show what the student has learned according to goals they have or have set for them. It is hard to make the distinction on paper, but I think I understand the important differences.

Eportfolios seem to be the way to go, so to speak, when recording information about a student's progress. It would support the constructivist philosophy of teaching. The struggle I sometimes have with traditionally minded students is that they want the answers and the questions and then a test. That is learning to them because that is what they are good at. I have been brainstorming ways to counter that culture. Eportfolios would support that goal.

Day 8

ePortfolios are a wonderful innovation that I want to try. I don't yet have the resources to make it work--we just have one overused lab at work.  However, I could do it on a lesser scale than the amount of work in the paper and pencil portfolio.  We keep DAP folders that catalog student work from freshman through senior year.  They aren't considered very important by students if they don't use them very much. I confess I haven't been very consistent with them. If I could put students in charge of "filing" their own work on a computer, it would be more practical.  

We also have the issue of lost or misplaced folders. We have to figure out how to get them from one teacher to another when students have various teachers. If we kept all work in a folder on the server and then could go in and just move the folders, it might be easier and more accurate.

Teacher portfolios were in vogue when I graduated with my BS in 1997. I created one and it was handed back to me with the comment that my cover was not creative enough.  I liked it. It was simple with a picture of me and my name. Hmm.  An ePotfolio might give me more incentive to be creative, or perhaps my way of doing things would be more acceptable.

Day 7

Being well-prepared is the most important factor in communicating successfully. To prepare, a person can rehearse in several different ways. My favorite way is to rehearse in the car.  I recently sang at a two funerals and I never had a free minute at home to rehearse. So I rehearsed in the car.  My kids loved hearing me sing, so it was a good time to get in some practice time.  My first day of school lecture is in writing. I reread my notes every year and make appropriate changes. I have a power point I show along with my speech.  First impressions are very important, so I make sure that I am prepared to make the appropriate one!

Deductive reasoning has proven best for me, as the article indicates.  I have seen a few teachers use the inductive method and the audience loses some trust when that happens.  I definitely don't want to lose trust with my students.

Making a conclusion is important. I often skimp on this so I need to be more cognizant of this.

Day 6

Following just a few simple steps can produce pictures of higher interest.  I like pictures that are a little "off" but I can't always tell you why. Lighting is very important in nearly every tip. Using the flash even during the day is recommended, which is something I rarely do! I will just have to carry extra batteries!

The ideas for photo-enhanced learning were good ones.  It was quick, easy, and took little additional time!  These are all must-have considerations when I consider incorporating new ideas in my classroom.

I have used a scanner before, but this was a useful tutorial if I need for students at some point. 

Day 5

I never hear someone mention the emotional impact of a font!  It is so true, though!  There are "fun" fonts and "no-nonsense" fonts I like to use with my students. I will use that term when I tell my students the importance of choosing a font!

I hear something consistent throughout many of the article we are reading--take the time to plan, be sure you fulfill you plan, and then plan to deliver.  I need to think of something more catchy. But that reiteration of time really eliminates the habit of procrastination. I wish I could train that out of my students!!!

The last article was all about Photo Shop!! Use a photo that is original. Change it to suit your needs.  Etc.  I want to play around with this more so that I can use photos in my presentations that I take. I love taking photos and have tons!!

Day 4

There are many many definitions! Many I already know, but there are a few that I don't.  It is always good to have a refresher.

The timeline only went through 2001. It might be a neat exercise to have students fill in the rest of it, just to get them thinking about what important revolutions have happened in just seven years!  I want to read the Bunny book that appeared in 1940. It would be interesting to see what has  happened since then.

The tips for writing in the multimedia genre were full of common sense, but addressed common errors.  Keep things in chunks. Make it simple. Stay in the active voice. (I esp. like that last one!)

The article on piracy was very intriguing. I couldn't just skim it, in hopes that I could use it with students. However, it is dated, but still had some sobering information. I have students who have published books on the net (lulu.com) and copyrighted their information at the age of 16. Cool! But we live in the age where it is acceptable to steal intellectual property because it is so easy and everyone does it.  It is hard to counter that culture. Real-life stories of how it is done or how it hurts people are useful!

The sites that were full of info on the particulars of copyrigh and fair use were very helpful.  I glanced at them so I would  know where to go for more detailed information.  I will use these in my classroom as references for students to go to when they have a question.

Day 3 readings

Presentation Story Boarding

I'm convinced that using a storyboard is important. I often like the creative process of just jumping in and then letting the ideas flow as I go-that often turns out to be most of my final project and the product could be so much better if I planned more ahead!  I wish I had a computer I could write on. I confess that using pen and paper is necessary to my creative process!!

Most of the articles that show how to create a storyboard are ones that use programs I already know how to operate fairly well. These would be good tutorials to use for students in teaching them how to create their own (would save on copying,huh!)

The template in the last article looks very useful--it is more detailed than the others.  I think that might be a useful series of articles to peruse more deeply.

Day 2 readings - Design Principles

Design Tips

These were common sense type tips that are good reminders for presentations. Having some guidelines for presentations is helpful if you want to know if you're doing it "right."

Five Ps

The most important of these (in my opinion) is to plan your time according to the time slot.  How many times have I been frustrated when presenters in classes disregarded the time they were allotted and then used up others' valuable time? I tune out after a presenter has gone over the time slot because I'm worried about the time.  This is a good article to give my students when they do presentations.

Writing for the Web

I will definitely use the  HTML pointers from this article.  The tips for writing can be applied to many types of writing. In our generation it's important to be concise and emphasize important information.

Seven Deadly Sins

Some of the most important of these include eliminating corny images and being careful of copyright infringement. Again, this is a useful article to use for a quick lesson for my students on effective presentations. They do not believe me when I tell them copying and pasting images can be a crime.

The other articles...

These all give wonderful tips on how to make sure presentations are effective and make the presenter look good and the information accessible.  In the past I have had students just focus on the function of the presentation and not so much the details.  The details often come together on their own but there are always a few students who should have had a tutorial on how to do an effective presentation. Perhaps I can do one of my presentations on this topic.

Day 2 reading-Constructivism

How do I apply constructivism in my classroom?

This article mentions that some student may feel uncomfortable because they do not know the answer the teacher is looking for. I have found that to be true with my Advanced Placement students.  I try to scaffold direct instruction with models and step by step instruction (in writing for example), but when I don't give a formula for an essay, there is this feeling of floundering.  I usually just let students deal with that frustration and try to keep encouraging and giving detailed feedback.  But I have had a student or two drop my class out of utter frustration.  That is disturbing, but not surprising. I think those students may have a longer adjustment period when heading off to college. A key component of constructivism is collaboration. Collaboration needs to come from a class that has a feeling of community. And building community is this intangible feeling that many take for granted--you know when you don't have it, but you don't necessarily know how to get it. 

Something that really struck me was when the author stated, "the Learning Cycle is a design that can be used as a general framework for many kinds of constructivist activities." The Learning Cycle involves discovery, introduction of concept, and then application of concept. It was modeled to me to interchange the first two, but it is more exciting to let the students do the discovery. Yay! Someone said it!

Constructivism and Technology

This chart had many common sense reiterations that were not new to me.  I thought the note about an individualized learning program was interesting. I want to know more about this aspect.