Wacky Web Tales

Take a look at this WACKY site provided by Houghton Mifflin.

http://www.eduplace.com/tales/

Your students who enjoy Mad Libs will enjoy this site.

"The Raven" on You Tube

How could you use this YouTube video in class? Would you use this video or audio to engage students?

Quotation

It must be remembered that the purpose of education is not to fill the minds of students with facts... it is to teach them to think, if that is possible, and always to think for themselves.

-- Robert Hutchins

Educational Videos

Here is an additional link to some educational videos that may be of help to you:

http://www.kidsknowit.com/interactive-educational-movies/index.php

This site claims, "Our Free Educational Movies bring your student on a fun and interactive journey through the world around us. Each movie begins by introducing students to the topics that they will be learning about, and ends with an online quiz. In order to successfully complete each online video, your student must watch, and then successfully answer the quiz questions with 80% or higher accuracy....Students who do not obtain 80% comprehension will be instructed to watch the movie a second time, and then again try to answer the quiz questions."

Enjoy!

Saint Peter's College Launches CETL Website

Here is a link to the new Saint Peter's College Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning!

The mission of the Center is to promote excellence in teaching and learning. The Center seeks to communicate and provide information to students, link students to resources for learning; to support and foster the development of faculty as teachers and scholars and to create a venue for dialogue and sharing among faculty. The Center is intended to serve undergraduate and graduate students as well as faculty members of all ranks and status.

You will find many useful inks on this site.

April Fooling Worm?

Take a look at the CNN story about the April Fools' Day Worm:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/03/24/conficker.computer.worm/

Has anyone had any problems?

Campus Compare

I just received an email alert about this new website:

High School students looking to explore college options and school counselors in search of a resource for their students should examine CampusCompare, which is a new FREE online resource that merges current data on over 3,000 colleges, reviews, advice articles, financial aid calculators and more.

The website offers a variety of links to area maps, student reviews and "quick facts," and includes a tool that can predict a student’s odds of getting into any college in the U.S. Entire classes can be managed and communicated with via the website’s high school “networks.”

School counselors can use the site to monitor students from their own secure school network to schedule appointments, send individual or mass messages to students and manage key college application dates and suggest different schools that match a student’s academic and personal preferences.

Any thoughts?

Online Versus F2F Learning

In response to mmd's blog (GE555 class), I decided to post these articles regarding the debate between media, message, face-to-face (f2f) and online learning.

http://www.coe.tamu.edu/~mbastian/Clark-Kozma/CK-Debate.htm

http://www.umassonlineblog.com/2008/06/13/face-to-face-or-online-instruction-is-that-the-best-question/

Any thoughts?

Silly Books

This site is a safe and nurturing environment that encourages children between the ages of 3-13 to read.

Take a look and see what you think...

http://www.sillybooks.net/

More Twitter...

Continuing with the Twitter thread, here is a link for future librarians. How to use Twitter in the Library.

I think this link can be useful for teachers, too.

http://www.collegeathome.com/blog/2008/05/27/twitter-for-librarians-the-ultimate-guide

Twitter in Education

In response to Jim's blog (GE555 class Smitty's Section), here is some more Twitter information. Go look at his video to get an idea of what Twiiter is "in plain English".

This video explains how Twitter is related to education, blogging, and Facebook.

Enjoy!

How do I Publish a Webquest?

To my GE555 classes,

Thanks to Eric (on his blog) for this hint on how to publish your WebQuest:

"...Just sign on to questgarden using your temporary ID and then proceed like you are going to edit your webquest. At the very bottom of the editing menu is a section called "Tools". If you click on the link for "Publish" under tools, your webquest will become part of the questgarden domain and always remain available to you and your students. There are a couple of boxes that you need to check that give permission for them to make it available to the public. Check those and hit the "Publish" button and your webquest will be saved. Good luck!"

Kidspiration Help!

Here is a website from a terrific eduator named Vicki Blackwell.

She claims, "The purpose of this website is to provide a resource for ... teachers all around the world, as they continue to incorporate the use of technology into the curriculum. You will find my favorite links in the "Blackwell's Best" section. "The Classroom" has links to staff development materials and technology integration activities as well as tutorials for some of my favorite software. The "Tech Tips" page includes hints to help you become a more efficient technology-using educator, and the "TangiTech" section is devoted to our professional development programs for integration of technology into the curriculum. I hope you find something that will help you and your children."

Take a look: http://www.vickiblackwell.com/kidspiration.html!

Vocabulary

In my SE370 class, we are discussing the importance of developing a strong vocabulary.

Take a look at this free site that allows students, teachers and life-long learners to acquire and retain vocabulary.

http://www.vocabulary.com/

Blog Mirrors "Real Life"

I have always claimed that this blog takes on a life of its own, but have not seen it happen as strongly as it has this semester. Since I am teaching several online courses, the blog is an integral part of those experiences. My graduate-level GE555 class experience has really shown me that the blog mirrors "real life".

As all students know, we feel frustration at times. This stress can be felt in class, at home, and at work. Often, we voice that concern to our professor or friends either in writing (email) or by speaking to them. What do you do in an online course? I guess you could email me (and some have) or your classmates or friends, but I have found many of my students using the blog to communicate their feelings.

For example, I think most of my GE555 students voiced concern during the WebQuest "era"/module. There were cries for help, screams of anger, and grumbles. These pleas were heard by other class member and professor and were eased with private or public discussions. I know, I know... I am exaggerating here, but my students know what I mean. ;) For those of you who are not familiar with this time period, please go back to any of the GE555 students posts from about two weeks ago. We shall call this the WebQuest Week or Two or Three...Currently, this class seems to be content again and the feelings are showing in the Blogging "era"/module.

Just thought I would share this insight with you.

Do any of you find the blog taking on a world of its own? I welcome your thoughts--or complaints!

Blog away!

Bilingual Education and Technology

In response to Taran's (GE555) engaging blog posting on bilingual education and technology, I found this article.

Take a look and see what you think.

Tech Trekers Webquests

My GE 555 class just finished a module on WebQuests.

I thought I would share some other WebQuests with you:

http://www.techtrekers.com/webquests/

Any thoughts?

Word Verification Problems?

Is anyone having trouble leaving comments on blogs?

I wanted to share my problem with you. There have been several blogs that I have been unable to comment on. I write my comment and get a "Loading" message while I wait for word verification.

I searched the Help section of bloggger and found more than one other user having the same problem.

Please be patient. It is a blogger issue, and hopefully they will resolve it soon. Do not get frustrated. :)

Thanks!

La La La La

According to Howard Gardner, musical intelligence involves skill in the performance, composition, and appreciation of musical patterns. It encompasses the capacity to recognize and compose musical pitches, tones, and rhythms.

Some of us (not all, but a lot) have this intelligence and may not even know it. Younger children embrace and use this intelligence. Sadly, as we get older (or teach older students), this intelligence gets lost in the shuffle.

Take a look at this site:
http://www.songsforteaching.com/

Here is Dr. Jean's site, too:

http://www.drjean.org/

Any thoughts? Do you know of any other sites for music to teachers?

Another Live Chat: Obama's Plan

I wanted to share another opportunity for you to take part in a live online chat.

Live Online Chat:
Obama's Education Plan
When: Thursday, February 19, 3 p.m. Eastern time
Where: http://www.edweek-chat.org/

With the new administration in Washington comes the prospect of new approaches to education policy and practice that would directly affect schools and districts at the local level. Get an advance look at how decisions on the No Child Left Behind law, Title I, and other key legislation by President Barack Obama and U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan may change the education landscape.

Log onto this website on Thursday, Feb. 19, at 3 p.m. Eastern time for a free live chat with federal policy experts.

This chat coincides with the release of the latest book from Education Week Press, The Obama Education Plan: An Education Week Guide.

About the Guests:

• Chester E. Finn Jr., president of the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation
• Thomas Toch, co-founder and co-director of Education Sector
• Gene Wilhoit, executive director of the Council of Chief State School Officers

This chat will be moderated by Education Week Associate Editor Scott J. Cech.

Copyright © 2009 Editorial Projects in Education.