Blog Post#13

A Vision of Students Today is a video that was created by Michael Wesch with the help of students at Kansas State University. This video gives a breif look into what it is like to be a student today. It covers how much time students spend completing day to day tasks, issues that they have to deal with in their schools and at home, and about the changes that they will experience not only in school but in their lifetime.

Once I watched this video, I decided that I would like to tell from my point of view what it is like to be a student at the University of South Alabama. A full time student consist of twelve credit hours.The tuition and fees is $3102 for each semester and $7250 for tuition and fees and room and board for in-state students. I can only have loans to attend college. My parents are currently paying a $500 monthly bill to pay off my loans. Most students register for admissions online. There are 14,000 currently enrolled students. Aproximately 1600 freshman will arrive in the Fall of 2012. By the Spring of 2013 the number of freshmans will decrease. By your junior year, you will only know a handful of students that you met your freshman year. The average class has twenty-three students. Some classes may have up to fifty or more students. Most professors lecture from a smartboard while a select few still use the chalkboard to teach their students. Students must maintain a C in the class if they want to pass. Almost every student has had to re-take a class or failed. South offers blended courses. Most students still prefer lectured based classes. In some classes I bring my laptop or recorder. Some professors allow me to use my phone during class. Today, professors stil have to take the class attendance. I attend the same classes twice a week. Most of the classes that I take are two hours long. The crime level has decreased since my freshman year. A guy was murdered last Summer and I lived directly upstairs from that dorm room. I try not to go out late at night by myself. I always have to let someone know where I am just incase something happens to me. Even though I stay next to the police station on campus, I still see bad things going on right next to it. I have two jobs. I usually take thirteen credit hours in the Fall and Spring. To graduate on time I have to take fifthteen classes. Most students graduate in their fifth and sixth year of college. That is only to earn a Bachelor's Degree. Through all of this I have to study and complete homework. Some of my professors expect me to spend atleast 16 hours a week completing only their work, but I'm losing focus on my other classes. At the end of the semester I will make an A,B, and C.
How will you teach me in the 21st century? is a video done by Melinda Kraft at the Full Sail University. She is completing her Master's Degree their in Media Design and Technology. This video asks teachers whether they are using the many techniques that are available to help their students learn in the 21st century in order to prepare them for the world? During her video, she listed that students should know how to use technology, have communication skills, understand the impact of media, and interact globally.
If i had to create this movie, What would I want my students to know that their resources are limitless, to be able to do without a pencil and paper in the classroom, to have experienced the many forms of tehcnology, and relect on their creativity and progress for the that year. Students' resources have no limit because the internet provides them with all of the information that they will ever need. New information is added everyday. I want them to feel comfortable without the use of a pencial or pen. I want them to feel that pencil and paper is optional instead of a must have in class. I want my students to have experienced many forms of technology to broaden their use and let them feel encouraged when learning and using different devices. Students will have to reflect on their creativity because that is what sets them apart from everyone else. They have to record their progress to about their strengths, weaknesses, and how to improve those skills.
At the Teacher's Desk blog by Mr. Miles Webb who teaches in Brazil left a wonderful blog and movie which involved two of his students. One of the students by the name of Carlton is legally blind. And it is amazing to see him and his classmate working together to show their responsibilities in the video. I also enjoyed the jokes.
After watching the video my reaction is that with a little time and patience, any kind of student as able take technology and put it to good and educational use. Seeing Carlton demonstrate on how he helps the environment shows that not only does Mr. Webb teach his students about a subject, but he teaches them about the world. Before watching the video, I never thought about recording students doing their everyday responsibilities and making it fun and creative. This is a great method if I want to motivate my students. They could watch this video and feel encouraged enough to do those same things in their own class and feel like they are doing the right thing when they complete important tasks.
Jenny She is a teacher in Auckland, New Zealand. She is a driven teacher who is loved the use of technology. she teaches year two students at the Pt. England School in Auckland. She also uses web two tools to integrate learning into her classroom programs. Her class in room six has recently received their very own iPads to learn through the use of technology. I'm very excited for her students because that they will definitely be in engaged in learning the material.

Project #15 Part Two


PLN Progress
I have been the PLN for about a year now and I must say that it is very beneficial.With the PLN, I am able to save links to my favorite websites. I can also discover new interesting sites as well by searching for them through Symbaloo. Symbaloo makes it easier for me when I'm trying to find a website for class or for my own personal reasons. Symbaloo is now my default page on my Google Chrome search engine. I will continue to use this PLN throughout my entire time here at South. I would even like to use it once I've graduated from college.