Dr. Strange's summer edm310 class has completely taken me by surprise. It is not at all what I had expected and has managed to take me out of my comfort zone into a new world of experiences and a new level of appreciation for today's classroom teacher. The realization of teaching as I new it and teaching today are in two different arenas.
As a product of 'burp back education' myself and out of education for quite some time, it has been difficult for me learning to study and keep up with assignments presented basically in their entirety on the computer. It has certainly been a challenge and one that I have found quite rewarding.
Many useful ideas and concepts have been presented that I feel will not only apply to my future teaching but actually in my everyday work environment. The presentation and use of different social networking skills is an example of one that I plan to explore in more depth and expand upon. Twitter still confuses me but I am convinced it can become very useful to me as I become more adept at following the conversations. Google definitely has opened many doors. The use of it for spreadsheets, presentations and blogging are limitless and inexpensive as well.
Following blogs 'at the teacher's desk' can provide many opportunities to explore other teachers, their students, their projects and cultural differences in education in general. Reading the comments following the blogs has actually become as interesting as the blog to me, as well as being helpful in finding new resources and what actually works and what doesn't. In addition, learning how to find new websites for resource information was very helpful; Alice Christi, Alex and ACCESS learning to mention only a few.
Podcasts both video and audio are becoming valuable tools for teachers and i tunes University offers a wealth of resources at your fingertips. Other topics/items I found useful include: wikis, social bookmarking, tiny urls, and you tube.
Several thoughts also caught my attention: "in order to teach it, you have to do it" and "don't put a price on what a customer can buy" which is probably even more relevant to me. In closing, it goes without saying that Randy Pausch's talk left a lasting impression on me as has Dr. John.
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