KiDDiE ~ KoRnEr

This video is very touching. I was so emotionally moved by this story; I wanted to share it with all of you. It made me think about how many times we prejudge or make hasty assumptions about people. The teacher in this video just assumed that this student just didn’t care. He was just another student who just did not want to apply himself. In most cases there is always a reason why a child acts out. As teachers it will be our responsibility to question and work with students who seem difficult or disinterested. We need to investigate by talking to previous teachers or by looking into past school records. These things may help to give us a clearer picture on a child.

We have a moral obligation not only to help children academically, but also socially and emotionally. As you will see in this video we have the power to make a difference in a child’s life. Wow! How awesome is that!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you are the emotional type, you are going to need to have a box of Kleenex handy as you watch this video.

This article on literacy produced by the National Council of Teachers of English, (NCTE) discusses how the innovative and rapidly changing digital technologies are defining and redefining literacy in our ever changing global world. They are opening up new avenues for educators to cultivate and advance reading and writing in a wide variety of ways. It is allocating interconnectivity through discourse among students at home and in the classroom environment. 21st Century Literacies

I thought it was an article that as Writing Arts/ Education students we could readily identify with, and relate it to our studies. In Technologies and the Future of Writing, Professor Wolff exposed us to the social writing space of blogs. Our collaboration in creating a blog site within groups opened up for us another forum. Here we can communicate and share our thoughts and ideas outside the writing classroom. It is kudos to the future of writing and to this writing module for connecting us to the literacy of the 21st century.

This blog has been created by a group of us that are dual majors:  Elementary Education and Writing Arts.  Through out this blog we have found many interesting articles, videos, new stories, and personal stories that have been related to the Education World in some way; however, we really have not focused any attention on writing.  Since we are Writing Arts majors, we must enjoy writing in some aspects and writing is a crucial factor for our children to develop skills that they need to take with them for life. 

On EducationWorld.com an article was written focusing on daily writing within school and it improving students skills and abilities.  They article discusses how it allows students to work on sentence structures without having to be graded and even helps special education students who have trouble communicating language.  The teachers have seen improvements in students writing along with changes in behaviors.  The daily journals have allowed the students to focus more clearly, prepare them for the lessons of the day and even improved writing skills that students may lack in the beginning of the school year.  Furthermore, teachers have seen improvements on academic work that students turn in; as one teacher puts it “it is more fluent with less think time”  and their writing ”runs more smoothly”.

The article is every interesting and it is such a simple idea that has many positive attributes to it.  And it only takes 5 – 10 minutes a day!  

Having mixed ability students in one classroom is completely normal these days.  Yet, there are also many different opinions on this topic.  So on that note, I have found a really interesting video on YouTube that may help some people understand why having this differentiation is important. 

Do you know what the candidates are saying on issues concerning education? As future teachers, it is important to know where we stand. I came across this news issue where Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama discuss their views on the issue of the No Child Left Behind Act, the voucher program, and teachers’ salaries. Both Clinton and Obama attack No Child Left Behind Act.

These are issues that will affect all of us. The No Child Left Behind Act has stirred debate with all the standardized testing which is affecting the way teachers are able to teach. Many teachers are frustrated because they feel they are forced to focus on covering material just so that their students will pass the test. They feel they lack the autonomy to present their lessons in a more creative and fun way because of the time constraints. It is time that is not afforded to them because of the amount of material that needs to be covered for the test. Also there is the issue of the voucher system where government money is given to families to use for the private or public education of their children. Lastly, the issue of how we should be paid as teachers.

I feel we need to keep ourselves informed with each candidate’s views, so we can make an informed choice. It will be a choice that will affect not only us as future teachers, but also our students and their families that we serve.

In Semiotic Domains: Is Playing Video Games A “Waste of Time?” Gee discusses the literacy perspective in learning video game playing. I feel that Gee offers valid reasons why playing video games is not a “waste of time” for a child. He talks about how through this type of play a child is able to actively engage in the learning process. It involves more than just learning the content of words written on a page, and then regurgitating them back. It involves learning through the literacy of images, sound, symbols and motion. It provides a child the chance to construct and plan, giving them a sense of autonomy to experiment. This allows the child to make mistakes, correct them, and gain a better understanding. It teaches problem solving skills and ways to strategically master solutions.

I found this article to be extremely insightful. As a future teacher, I can see the benefits of applying the video playing concept to the classroom. The face of education has changed dramatically in the past several years. Most of the changes are positive. Notably the role it plays in promoting the social aspect of learning in a multimedia world. The classroom is designed for a community of learners, a place where ideas and thoughts can be shared. Gee discusses “affinity groups” which closely resembles the idea of a discourse community which we discussed in Professor Courtney’s, “Issues in Writing” module. This is where a community of individuals exchange their mutual interests in varied mediums and through a shared language. Gee’s “affinity group” ties in with the same concepts of the learning and discourse community. This social interaction promotes the sharing of ideas. This can enable one to build upon their knowledge base and apply it to many other areas. This permits multilevel learning to happen.

This social aspect in learning also ties in with what we are doing in “Technologies and the Future of Writing.” We are able to express and expound our ideas through our social interactive networking, such as blogging and social bookmarking.

Just as James Gee stated, “Many people who don’t play video games, especially older people, are sure to say that playing video games is “a waste of time.” I used to fall into this category until I actually tried to play my five year old nephew’s Playstation game. I learned that it takes more than just picking up a controller in order to play a video game. I found that the most important part of playing video games was learning what each button or symbol on the controller commands. This was crucial, even with just reading through the commentary. I also learned that it is important to have well developed eye-hand coordination skills in order to be somewhat successful.

The video games that are created today are much more complicated and advanced then the video games that I used to play during my childhood. My childhood video games consisted of Pacman and Super Mario Brothers. Games today are also made for general audiences, just as Pikmin was rated “E” for everyone, and this is one reason for the expansion and success of the video game industry. Another reason is due to advancements in technology. Like all electronics, there are constantly new video game systems being created.

I can see why people might say that video games are “a waste of time” because they take a lot of time to play them. What those people need to understand is that the reason for video games consuming a large amount of time is the different skill levels. Video games require players to conquer multiple layers in order to finish the game. While they require a lot time, they also have memory cards as an option of saving the place in a game for the player to be able to continue at a later time. Like everything else in the world-video games should not be played in excess.

Check out this youngest college professor,  Alia Sabur who is only 19.  Imagine having a class with a professor who started college at the age of 10!

To read her story, go to this link: World’s Youngest Professor Can’t Legally Drink

This morning before leaving for school I saw an interesting topic being discussed on the TODAY show.   It was about students taking a year off from school after graduation before entering college.  It is known as the Gap year.  The specific reason for most students is the feeling of being burnt out.  I totally agree with this Gap year.  Except I personally think I only needed a semester off.  I think 6 months is enough time to take off.  A whole year may be a set back. The article, Should your child have a ‘gap year’ before college? Explains fully what this ‘gap year’ is, and provides excellent tips for parents and future college bound students. 

I started college right out of high school.  I graduated in June 2002 and started Community College in September of 2002.  If I could go back and do things differently I would, simply because I experienced the burnt out feeling a year after.  If I would have taken the break initially, I probably would have had a clearer state of mind.  I always knew I wanted to attend college, but my goals were not as clear.  During my first semester I was not sure if I wanted to be a teacher yet.  I started by taking all my gen Ed courses, and then decided to study elementary education. 

Once I discovered I wanted to be a teacher, I attended one more semester and then took a semester off.  I still took one class, but only once a week.  I thought I had all the time in the world.  Boy was I WRONG.  If I would have known I would still be in school 6 years later I would have picked up the pace. 

In Understanding Comics, McLoud makes valid points that I totally agree with.  First thing I agree with is that we humans are a self centered race.  This is so true; we constantly associate things to humans, like the car, and the wall outlet.  We want things to be more relatable to us and what better way to do it than associating objects with humans. 

Also, humans have very imaginative minds that can easily be distracted.  I think he is smart in making his cartoon character simple.  If he would have created himself in a more intricate way, we would be too distracted.  The point of writing is to get the message across with as few distractions as possible.  Humans are visual learners.  With comics we get the “big picture” by reading and observing.  Too much of writing or pictures can be a bad thing.  When balanced out they work the best.   McLoud refers to this being harmonious. 

In Tweedie’s module we also read a chapter from McLoud’s comic book.  I have never read a comic in an academic sense before, and I think it is a creative approach to taking in material.  It is extremely helpful and entertaining when pictures accompany text.