Sunday, July 17, 2011
EDLD 5397 Web Conference Reflection Week 1
I was not able to attend the web conference due to a meeting that I already had scheduled. I was however able to watch and listen to the recording after it was put on Epic. Before watching the recording, I had a few questions regarding the week 1 assignment, but after watching I realized that I needed to find and adjust 8 pieces of my internship plan. I was glad to get the information to go ahead and contact my mentor so that I would have time to arrange a meeting for her to review my internship plan. Although there was some good information in the web conference, it was a bit confusing because of all of the different stages all of us students are all in-many of the questions that people had were not of any importance to me, and as usual there were several questions regarding TK20. It was good to hear from Dr. Martin as he clarified that this course is more “about thinking than writing”. Because the assignment could potentially be several pages or one page, it was also reassuring to get clarification on how much detail to go into on our responses. Although there were times during the conference that people were asking questions that did not pertain to ET cohorts, overall as usual, it was nice to hear from our professors and beneficial to get information right from the source(s)!
Sunday, December 19, 2010
EDLD 5366 Reflections
Being an elementary education major and teacher, I have had no background in digital graphics. I was unsure of what to expect as I entered the course. The first week’s introduction of CRAP was very informative. I did not know these design principles existed. The article regarding CRAP that I found the most helpful as I created my own pieces of work was the article by John Yearwood, which he simply states in regards to the “Sweet Home Alabama” poster that, “you can bet nothing on the poster is accidental”. I had never taken a step back and looked at ads in that way, but after reading the articles I have a greater appreciation for all graphic designs. Understanding the design principles will be beneficial when I am creating visual pieces whether it is a presentation for fellow teachers or a newsletter for students and parents.
Another piece that was new to me was the personal branding. I had never heard of this concept before this class. As of all of the projects in this course, I enjoyed creating the brand, through a program called Picnik, but found myself thinking and planning and brainstorming more than I ever thought possible. I was surprised to discover how long it took to create all of the assignments in this course. Each project in this course reinforced my desktop publishing skills in addition to thinking and creating on a higher level. In the article by Andrew Church, he states that animating and creating are under the umbrella of analyzing which is the highest level in Bloom’s Taxonomy. Creating animations, the logo, and the newsletter are all things that I could see my students enjoying doing in the classroom. It is engaging as well as using higher order thinking skills. Creating the animation was enjoyable, I used the program Stykz. I found it easier to use than Scratch. As far as using Stykz (animation) in the classroom, we are planning on having our technology club students create PSA’s and share with others in the school. My animation was in regards to recycling. I will use it as a sample as we teach our students about Stykz.
I created a newsletter for my classroom, something that I hope to incorporate in my classroom in the future. “Newspapers, newsletters, and other documents are just a few of the many tools that can make parents and other members of the community feel a part of the school” (Lamb, 2005). I agree with this quote, and enjoyed making the newsletter, although it was trying at times since we were not allowed to use a template. I had never experimented so much with Microsoft Word, and I found things and applied items to my newsletter that I did not know I could do with Word!
Lamb, A. (2005). Evaluating newsletters. Retrieved from http://eduscapes.com/sessions/publishing/evaluating.htm.
Dr. John Yearwood, P. A. (2009). Basic design principles and some observations on how we see. Lamar University, Beaumont.
Churches, A. (2007, April). Bloom’s digital taxonomy. Retrieved from http://www.techlearning.com/article/8760.
Another piece that was new to me was the personal branding. I had never heard of this concept before this class. As of all of the projects in this course, I enjoyed creating the brand, through a program called Picnik, but found myself thinking and planning and brainstorming more than I ever thought possible. I was surprised to discover how long it took to create all of the assignments in this course. Each project in this course reinforced my desktop publishing skills in addition to thinking and creating on a higher level. In the article by Andrew Church, he states that animating and creating are under the umbrella of analyzing which is the highest level in Bloom’s Taxonomy. Creating animations, the logo, and the newsletter are all things that I could see my students enjoying doing in the classroom. It is engaging as well as using higher order thinking skills. Creating the animation was enjoyable, I used the program Stykz. I found it easier to use than Scratch. As far as using Stykz (animation) in the classroom, we are planning on having our technology club students create PSA’s and share with others in the school. My animation was in regards to recycling. I will use it as a sample as we teach our students about Stykz.
I created a newsletter for my classroom, something that I hope to incorporate in my classroom in the future. “Newspapers, newsletters, and other documents are just a few of the many tools that can make parents and other members of the community feel a part of the school” (Lamb, 2005). I agree with this quote, and enjoyed making the newsletter, although it was trying at times since we were not allowed to use a template. I had never experimented so much with Microsoft Word, and I found things and applied items to my newsletter that I did not know I could do with Word!
Lamb, A. (2005). Evaluating newsletters. Retrieved from http://eduscapes.com/sessions/publishing/evaluating.htm.
Dr. John Yearwood, P. A. (2009). Basic design principles and some observations on how we see. Lamar University, Beaumont.
Churches, A. (2007, April). Bloom’s digital taxonomy. Retrieved from http://www.techlearning.com/article/8760.
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Sunday, November 21, 2010
The Book of Kells
The Book of Kells is a beautiful book to look at, some say one of the most beautiful works in the world. The book was written by at least three different scribes sometime around 800 A.D.
My favorite miniature is the full page illustration of the Virgin Mary holding a young Jesus. In regards to alignment, the scribe placed Mary in the center of the page and chose to make her larger than the other characters on the page. The contrast of colors on this page make the objects easy to identify as they too are telling a story. The glory around Mary’s head is yellow, representing high regard.
In the pages that contain mainly text, the scribes again made it as visually pleasing as possible. The placement of only seventeen lines on a page, as well as space between each line makes it easy to read, not cramped and complicated. When a sentence ended, many times the scribe did not begin the next sentence-they instead drew a picture of an animal and began the next sentence on the next line. There are many animals throughout the text and it is said that no two animals are alike. The first letter of the first word on the page was decorated and it was a larger text, but it repeats the same font. Throughout the book the text was written in different colors, colors that were said to come from lands far away. The main colors that were repeated through the Book of Kells are lilac, yellow, red, pink, green, and purple.
As in the Western cultures, symbols and drawings make up most of the story telling, this seems to be the case here. The illustrations are lavish and have deep meaning by using symbols to tell stories.
The book is a joy to look through, with illustrations and decorations not solely on major pages but dispersed throughout the text. Historians believe that the purpose of the book was more for aesthetic reasons than for actual reading of the text due to numerous errors in the text. This book was probably put on the altar and only taken off to read the Gospel during Mass.
Sullivan, E. (1920). The book of kells. Retrieved from http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/celt/bok/bok04.htm
My favorite miniature is the full page illustration of the Virgin Mary holding a young Jesus. In regards to alignment, the scribe placed Mary in the center of the page and chose to make her larger than the other characters on the page. The contrast of colors on this page make the objects easy to identify as they too are telling a story. The glory around Mary’s head is yellow, representing high regard.
In the pages that contain mainly text, the scribes again made it as visually pleasing as possible. The placement of only seventeen lines on a page, as well as space between each line makes it easy to read, not cramped and complicated. When a sentence ended, many times the scribe did not begin the next sentence-they instead drew a picture of an animal and began the next sentence on the next line. There are many animals throughout the text and it is said that no two animals are alike. The first letter of the first word on the page was decorated and it was a larger text, but it repeats the same font. Throughout the book the text was written in different colors, colors that were said to come from lands far away. The main colors that were repeated through the Book of Kells are lilac, yellow, red, pink, green, and purple.
As in the Western cultures, symbols and drawings make up most of the story telling, this seems to be the case here. The illustrations are lavish and have deep meaning by using symbols to tell stories.
The book is a joy to look through, with illustrations and decorations not solely on major pages but dispersed throughout the text. Historians believe that the purpose of the book was more for aesthetic reasons than for actual reading of the text due to numerous errors in the text. This book was probably put on the altar and only taken off to read the Gospel during Mass.
Sullivan, E. (1920). The book of kells. Retrieved from http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/celt/bok/bok04.htm
Thursday, November 11, 2010
EDLD 5344 Course Reflection
Getting through this course was no small feat. Before entering this class, I had limited knowledge about school law. As I delved into the course, I was in awe at the different types of law that entangles the educational system. When teachers add the internet and 21st century learning, you have opened an even bigger can of worms. Although the majority of the class was geared towards students receiving their degree in the Educational Administration, the knowledge regarding the laws and how they are/were interpreted was beneficial. It interesting to learn about why the courts decided what they did based on each situation. It is also makes me feel uneasy because if one small variable in a situation is changed, the entire court decision could be different than thought. When there is a situation or confrontation at a school, as a leader one needs to know these laws and history of the laws so they can make the appropriate decision and move forward in a positive direction. There is a fine line in between students’ rights and infringement, and it is the job of the administrator to decide what is in the best interest of the student as well as the rest of the student body.
I found our book, Cyber Law, by Aimee Bissonnette to be the most beneficial part of the course. The book is a recent publication and had great examples of what can happen if students are free to roam the Internet in their homes and classrooms without any provisions. It touches on everything from cyberbullying to AUP’s. This book is reader-friendly and has examples of what schools and communities are doing to alleviate problems that come up when using the Internet. The underlying theme of the book is for schools to be proactive, not reactive to situations. Many schools are in the dark about many issues that come with using the Internet, and this book explains what can happen, what has happened, and how to deal with and avoid legal issues when using technology in the 21st century classroom.
I found our book, Cyber Law, by Aimee Bissonnette to be the most beneficial part of the course. The book is a recent publication and had great examples of what can happen if students are free to roam the Internet in their homes and classrooms without any provisions. It touches on everything from cyberbullying to AUP’s. This book is reader-friendly and has examples of what schools and communities are doing to alleviate problems that come up when using the Internet. The underlying theme of the book is for schools to be proactive, not reactive to situations. Many schools are in the dark about many issues that come with using the Internet, and this book explains what can happen, what has happened, and how to deal with and avoid legal issues when using technology in the 21st century classroom.
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Week 5 Blog Post-PSA Production
After a long journey, we are finally finished! Our PSA is completed and is published on YouTube! Our PSA is geared towards parents and voters on how it is imperative for high school students to use technology in school.
We began in the second week, actually during a video conference with Dr. A. Sharron and Jeron were in on the conference, and Jeron messaged me to see if I wanted to join them. I agreed. Jeron and Sharron had done some work in the previous classes and were on Skype, so I immediately joined their Skype group! Summer joined the same night, and Vicki joined a few days later. Almost every night we Skyped to discuss our assignment, and quickly got the ball rolling. It was decided that I would do the script writing, Jeron would film, Summer and Vicki were in charge of the audio, and Sharron would do the editing and put the product together. Vicki posted the final product to YouTube as well. Although we were spread out all over Texas and Wyoming, we came together as a team well. Each person fulfilled his/her jobs, and if someone needed help on their assignment, we worked and did edits together over Skype as well as edited our official production page via Google Docs. When it came to revising the script, reviewing the audio, or revisiting the video, no one took offense any editing or changing of the production that took place. The hardest part was condensing our video-but ensuring our message wasn’t deterred. In Week Four, our video was around 1:15, and we needed to cut it down! Thanks to Summer and Vicki for re-recording their parts and a group effort in re-editing the script in the final week. We succeeded and got the PSA down to under sixty seconds! Jeron did a great job filming the clips and Sharron edited the pieces together seamlessly and effectively. If there was something that we could have improved our PSA, it would be for it to be longer so we could have more information and film to prove our case! For the copyright we used the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License that is shown at the end of our PSA.
If I had to start over and do this project again, I would definitely choose to work with every person on my team again. I know that we will continue to Skype and help each other out with future projects.
We began in the second week, actually during a video conference with Dr. A. Sharron and Jeron were in on the conference, and Jeron messaged me to see if I wanted to join them. I agreed. Jeron and Sharron had done some work in the previous classes and were on Skype, so I immediately joined their Skype group! Summer joined the same night, and Vicki joined a few days later. Almost every night we Skyped to discuss our assignment, and quickly got the ball rolling. It was decided that I would do the script writing, Jeron would film, Summer and Vicki were in charge of the audio, and Sharron would do the editing and put the product together. Vicki posted the final product to YouTube as well. Although we were spread out all over Texas and Wyoming, we came together as a team well. Each person fulfilled his/her jobs, and if someone needed help on their assignment, we worked and did edits together over Skype as well as edited our official production page via Google Docs. When it came to revising the script, reviewing the audio, or revisiting the video, no one took offense any editing or changing of the production that took place. The hardest part was condensing our video-but ensuring our message wasn’t deterred. In Week Four, our video was around 1:15, and we needed to cut it down! Thanks to Summer and Vicki for re-recording their parts and a group effort in re-editing the script in the final week. We succeeded and got the PSA down to under sixty seconds! Jeron did a great job filming the clips and Sharron edited the pieces together seamlessly and effectively. If there was something that we could have improved our PSA, it would be for it to be longer so we could have more information and film to prove our case! For the copyright we used the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License that is shown at the end of our PSA.
If I had to start over and do this project again, I would definitely choose to work with every person on my team again. I know that we will continue to Skype and help each other out with future projects.
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