Still no word

I haven't hear whether or not we've been accepted, but I did get a cool link sent to me :

Wolfram Alpha Widgets. S'ok, s'cool.

Not that anyone is reading this, as you are all teaching your double.

But these are widgets for your blog or facebook page, in case you want to jazz it up.

I can has Cheezburgerz?

Just kidding.

Serioulsy, they now have a conference ... for bloggers. Seems you can make money on them. Article is here.

I think we need to see about how I can make money doing this. That'd be awesome.

I also think there are tricks that we should follow to make an online learning group really work. Article is here.

Day 10 The use of technology to study the use of technology.

Well, I finally found it. An article called "How to help students use social media". I thought I gone to heaven.

This is the stuff, man.

Along with this article about using online tools to aid in learning.

Along with an idea of use of technology will aid in DI for students.

And this one about virtual high schools in the States.

I also like this idea, although I'll have to read into it a bit more, later.

All this was emailed to me today - how interesting that the use of technology is aiding in our study of the use of technology.

Day 9

I know these are not consecutive days - these are going in order of when stuff is emailed to me and what days I have available to me to read stuff.

Carolyn emailed me this link .... if you go through some of the articles, there are some very interesting ideas with education and technology.

I also read this article about blending the use of technology into the daily routine. It focuses on Literacy and the younger student, but you get the idea.

Finally, a Youtube video about a new type of school,



and I saw this video later. You can't tell me you don't want to do this:




Have a Monday.

Day 8

I will post this link to St Mary's Schools Mobile Tech

Looks like a pretty useful tool for our school, man.

And I signed up to start exploring Edmodo...

Day 7...ish

I saw this post and wanted to put it here so I could read it later.

Looks good - alternatives to the regular school assignment.

This is also an article on the use of Podcasts to learn, man.

And a search on Open Forum website on the use of Social Media.

And this is something I found refreshing ... a retired Naval Officer teaching Science in the State of Washington. Classic line in it reads "I got tired of judging parents' work". I'll look further into his story later. Article from the Washington Post is here.

And another illustration of the use of technology to engage student's learning, this time in Chicago ... I'd like to win a Blue Ribbon for MY school....alas, we're Canadian... ;)

Day Six

Closer, closer ... just waiting for a blurb to come from a couple of you (no names will be mentioned on this blog .... ;) but you know who you are....)

anyway, read this article about teachers in Wisconsin being made to learn how to teach online courses. Me ... I think it's better to be ahead of the curve, myself. Which is what this PD thing is all about.

I followed up and saw the link to the University online course, it's a tad on the expensive side, but here is a blog, with an already set up framework to peek ahead...


OK, now, off to do my shopping and to get a walk in.

Day five ... it's getting close to the day

I understand that I have to get the proposal in by Friday to Oecta. I will be filling it out and getting it to our Unit President on Monday.

In any case, I got a really cool email about this article, about using Facebook as a teaching tool. Of course, the teachers in this story have two accounts; one for school stuff and perhaps one for their own personal use. Personally, I think that is a bad idea, if only because it takes one slip up to ruin a career. Edmodo, I'm betting on, will do a better job of stopping such foolishness before it gets out of hand.

At least that is the interpretation from here.

This article has a bold prediction: that "every student in America will be using a mobile device for learning within five years". Wouldn't you want to be the part of the teaching staff that can use those devices to teach, if such is the case?

And here is a guy who learned how to turn a cell phone into a spectrophotometer. Something to think about for your classroom...

Day Four supporting propaganda

When I was a younger person, I was taught by a really good History teacher, who happened to be a part time peacekeeper, too. One of his terms that has stuck with me is "Justification Ideology" - which is another way of saying "propaganda"

One of the basic ideas of this learning object is to develop some materials for other teachers to use.

This was published last week (Oct 5th, 2010 to be exact) which lists a few ideas about social networking. The ideas apply to both life in general and teaching, too.

I think this link about a non-traditional school teaching will help with some further ideas, too.

Another idea that I think is foundational, is being able to teach our students how to use their cell phones to their own advantage - using the technology they already have to educate them.

I don't mean to bury this article in the middle of this post, but this article, about the use of Frog, another social networking site for teachers, is another facet of the overall learning I see this group doing.

Not sure I'd want my students to film themselves and put together a promo vid like this for me, but I'm sure it worked for this dude:


Me? I'd rather this promo:

Day three and a half

Umm.. yeah, not sure if this gets posted, or what, but just read this article on e-portfolios. This is what I am thinking about touching on, too.

And a little bit of inspiration from an interview with a Prof from MIT:

Technology is a wonderful conversation opener because it's so seductive. That doesn't mean it's where the conversation should end. It's a wonderful means of collaboration. But the collaboration is between people who are excited about the ideas. The technology is not the product. Sherry Terkle

I think in mastering Edmodo we would have both the start of the collaboration between student and student and student and teacher AND the means by which said collaboration would be made much easier.

Hmmm ... does that make a good opening for the proposal, or WHAT?

Day Three

Hello, dedicated fellow professionals.

I approached John about going forward with this proposal, and he's good.

I also saw this article "Would I want my child in this class". I'm thinking we're good.

I'm starting to word the actual proposal tomorrow in order to fax it off Thursday.

Day two World wide!

Here are a few students, even if they are British, sharing why Edmodo is good for them:




Here is a dude from South America .... telling me his top ten tips for using technology in the classroom....




I did a search on YouTube and also on Facebook.


It also seems that Google has just released improved versions of a bunch of their stuff.

It also seems that more US states are going textbook-less, just like California.

But I think one of the best reasons to go into teaching online is that it will make some students have more experience with technology. Here is an article about new grads in India having to go back to school after getting a job ... any student who already knew how to use this technology would have an advantage.


And then I ran into this blog post about a conference that was attended .. top ten list of things that should be talked about between teachers is there.

Day one of research

It's an article from New Jersey (ok, no use of the word "Snooki" needed here) on educators using hand held technology to further the education of their students.

As with most of them, articles like these always stress the focus should be kept on education. These devices, if used in a silly manner, will be a hindrance, rather than a boon, to education.

Just like my teacher yelling at me to stop playing Tank Wars on the PET, back in 1977.

The main idea .. or something like it.

The main point of this PD exercise is to gain the ability to use any current or future micro- blogging website (ie Edmodo, Facebook, or something new that comes along) for the benefit of the students in our classrooms.

In being dedicated instructors/teachers, we know about Differentiated Instruction, and the permutations that online learning allows, and will continue to allow into the future. That individuals will be able to participate at their own level and hopefully grow into something greater than themselves.

Being intelligent, aware citizens, we are also aware that fraud, "the evil teacher needs unfair harassment" and other cynical attitudes potentially exist in any online relationship between teachers and students. But to ignore technology in today's classroom is to just keep the anachronistic "chalk and blackboard" idea alive, even though it seems to be on the way out.

Why Edmodo?

As far as I can see, it's free.

It seems that this is the place to start. As I am writing this, I am in a computer lab - there are students on Facebook, a website who's popularity is basically universal in appeal. In the coming days, there is a feature movie being released about it's formation and development. The current number of users of Facebook is in around the 500 million mark; something that demands at least our passing interest as teachers. Edmodo has a very similar feel and look to it, at least as far as I can tell at the moment.

Edmodo does not require an email address, has other safety features to protect students and teachers in all online interactions - something sadly lacking in Facebook.

What next?

Hands on time with this micro - blogging website, a chance to find out what others are doing with it in their classrooms. If there are other sites like Edmodo, perhaps a short investigation and their inclusion by Jan would be in order.

Give it to me in less than a sentence:

Open up Edmodo, see what it is, learn how teachers can use it in class and put a framework or learning object together for my fellow OECTA teaching professionals to explore safely what they can do to continue growing as teachers.

Of course, anything we come up with, we'd have to be willing to share and speak about.

This is the first thing I did to start looking into Edmodo: