Course Reflection

I am like the old dog that can’t be taught new tricks. When I learned that the course was online, I was not happy. I had taken a course that required some minor use of blackboard, but never an online course. I do not like change. I want to sit in a class and listen to the teacher lecture me. That is the way it has always been. If I have a question, I want to be able to get an immediate response. Sending an e-mail and waiting for an answer is unacceptable. I was apprehensive, and unsure of what to expect. I prepared for the worst. However, once I started looking over the provided material, I found a well structured class, with excellent tutorials. It took me awhile to get through all the material, so I was a little behind getting started. But the funny thing is not once did I have to ask a question that was not found in either the course assignments or the course syllabus. So the FIRST thing I learned is that online classes do not come from the devil. I entered the class with a fairly extensive understanding of computers. I co-owned a printing and graphics shop for seventeen years. All twenty-one of our commercial printers were digital. I have worked with all types of computer software. For word processing, I have used Ventura, Quark, Word Perfect, Professional Write, and of course, Microsoft Word. For design work, I have used InDesign, Arts and Letters, Pagemaker, Photoshop, and CorelDRAW. I have used excel not only for budgets, but also for data input for Microsoft Access. And since the company did mail merges, I worked with databases. Based on this experience, I did not expect to learn much about computers that I did not already know.

Blog
I have followed two blogs for a couple of years, both relating to sports teams. However, I always thought that the “blog” part was the comments section. I believed “blogging” meant responding to somebody’s article. And since everywhere I went I saw these nasty, polarizing comments, I did not want anything to do with “blogging”. So the SECOND thing I learned in the class was exactly what a blog is. I want to start by saying I think there are some people that love to put their thoughts down on paper. Then there are those people that would much prefer to keep their thoughts to themselves. I fall into the latter group. I equate a subject blog with those journals I used to have to keep, especially in English Literature and History. I will be the first to tell you I hated those journals. Don’t misunderstand; I have no objection to writing an informational blog, such as the one in this course. Ask a question, I will give you a question. Ask for my reflection, you will get surface at best. However, the way I feel does not mean I do not see its utility in education. I may have hated those journals, but they at least made me think, regardless of my answer. But, I also look at things from a mathematics perspective, since that is what I plan to teach. And a blog does not have the same utility in mathematics that it does in other classes. That said, I think it would be great way for students to do their homework, and have their group comment on their approach to the problems. So if everything was ideal, I would at least try this. But in reality, it would require every child to have access to a computer to do their homework, and I just do not see that being the case.

Threaded Discussion/Listserv
The use of threaded discussion in this class amounted to a help section that had not a single post. The section where we put our URL is only somewhat threaded, since very few comments were placed. However, I have another class, Research in Education, where we did use a threaded discussion. Everybody in the class had to post their introduction section for peer review. Then we had to review three of our classmates work. I will say it was convenient. It was nice to open their paper, make suggestions/comments, save their paper with our name and be done with it. But it is easy enough to open their paper and save it to my computer, do the work, and send it back as an attachment. A little more work, but not much. So while I like threaded discussions, I cannot say that they are significantly more helpful. The other problem is that while I have used the threaded discussion, I have no idea how to set one up in my classroom. Based on these factors, I will most likely not use it in my classroom.
The listserv on the other hand, is quite useful to me. I understand there are other methods of doing the same thing, but I have not been exposed to them. I have never had the occasion to send a group e-mail. That will definitely change as a teacher. If I have 100 students, that is 100 parents I will have to communicate with, quite often through e-mail. Addressing each parent one by one would be a huge waste of time. So yes, I will most certainly be using a listserv as a teacher.

Podcasts
This was my first experience with a podcast, but I found they are not much different from the playing of music on the media player. The first podcast proved to be very distracting. I spent more time rewinding, because I found myself looking at the designs too much. That was eliminated when I realized I could minimize the screen without turning off the podcast. The biggest problem I had is that they quite often failed to follow any written information. I have two classes right now that are done in lecture mode, with Power-Point slides provided as a read along, and as a means to facilitate note taking. I get a great deal of retention out of these classes. But these podcasts were, most of the time, unrelated to the book or the Power-Point slides, so I got less utility out of them. The exceptions occurred in the locally produced podcasts. However, for those auditory learners, it would be a good means of instruction. As far as use in the classroom, I am having difficulty seeing it as a major tool in a mathematics class. Unlike other courses, mathematics is not reading intensive. Almost all mathematics instruction is done verbally. The possibility exists that I might try a podcast, at least once, if I knew I was going to be absent. Then the substitute would not have to worry about what to teach.

Video Clips
This is my thing. There is no comparison between a lecture and a video clip, even if it covers the same material. Students today are much more video oriented than in previous generations. Video clips are a great way to engage them. Obviously, as the textbook noted, there are some checks you must do. It must be pertinent, it must be current, and it must be received in the intended manner. But still, video is a great teaching tool. It goes without saying that this is excellent for visual learners, but even other types of learners will be stimulated by this method. The video clips we were exposed to left me with mixed feelings. Sometimes they provided useful information, but quite often the material was too general, or not age appropriate. Discussing how to diverse students in a second grade class does not hold much practical value to a high school teacher. I am all about practical information I can use in my classroom, but most education educators, like some of the video clips like to deal in the big picture. Regardless, I still think video is the future of education. I plan to make as much use of video clips as possible.

Hands-On Projects
This was the core and the essence of this class. Each project provided a learning experience, that will be valuable in teaching, even if I choose a different method. They are also the most memorable aspect of the class, the part of the class that the majority of students will like the most. Each project was provided a tutorial, and examples as helpful aides. The tutorials were structured about as well as they could be. I was able to complete each project without questions because of the instructional materials that were provided. Since I have already commented on the projects, I will only provide a quick summary of each.

Rubric – Every education class I have taken has provided instruction on how to develop a rubric. It is without a doubt, important to almost every subject area, with the exception of mathematics. The only reason I would use a rubric is if I assigned some type of project. When that time comes, I will be amply qualified to develop an acceptable rubric.

Flyer – I understand your comment regarding the reason for this assignment requiring the use of Microsoft Word, and I acknowledge it is a valid point.. I also acknowledge that every teacher will prepare numerous flyers in their career. But I will say it again - there is no way that I will ever create another flyer in Microsoft Word. What took me an hour, would have taken less than ten minutes in CorelDRAW. I have produced well over two hundred flyers in my life, and have never had the difficulty presented by Word.

Grade Chart – Microsoft Excel is an excellent program, well worth an assignment in the program. However, if I was to actually use the assignment in a real situation, I would be fired for revealing confidential information. I understand the assignment was just for learning to use the program. I can say without a doubt that I will use Excel to prepare Progress Reports, I will just compare the student to the class average, not to particular students. I became familiar with the program itself, when it was used for budget development in the military unit I was in.

PowerPoint – This program is probably the best teacher aide ever designed. I cannot imagine a teacher that has not prepared a presentation in this program. It will be utilized quite frequently in my classroom, although I will probably never use the sound feature.

Puzzle – This was my first involvement with this type of program, and I think it is absolutely wonderful. They are so easy to prepare, and will certainly engage students. The variety is also a plus. I will make frequent use of this technology.

Trackstar – I took three other classes in which we had an assignment to research websites and maintain a record of them. The difference was in those class I did the recording manually. The need to keep a record of websites is clear – you never know when you will be asked to provide additional assistance to parents – and you had better be able to provide them that assistance. Trackstar is a wonderful means of maintaining additional sources of information. I have already included previous websites into trackstar for later referencing.

Website – I have never created a website before, and expected it to be much more difficult. I think this was the most valuable exercise, because communication with the parents is the key to success in the student’s education. There is no doubt that I will create one for my classroom, although I am concerned about the constant upkeep that seems to be required.

Movie Maker – Besides the puzzle maker, this was the only project I did not have some previous experience with. This project also kicked my tail. I spent over fourteen hours trying to get my narration in sync with the pictures. It became a very frustrating experience, especially when I considered the utility. I cannot envision a situation where I would use this in the mathematics classroom, so it would most likely be used on the website for the parents benefit. The effort is much to exhausting for parental information, especially when a podcast would achieve the same goal. On the bright side, if the situation presents itself that a movie would be the best option, I will know how to prepare it.

Electronic Portfolio
A portfolio is an excellent means to show progress through the school year. Portfolios have been shown to motivate students, and increase self-esteem. Electronic portfolios provide all the benefits of a manual portfolio, however, they are easier to access and update. I acknowledge the benefits and would have no problem utilizing them, however, I am having a difficult time visualizing their use in a mathematics environment. Maybe actual classroom experience will provide the answer.

I came into this course with experience in about half of the information presented, especially dealing with computers. I have experienced the affects of a virus that requires complete wiping of all hard disks, and starting from scratch. I experienced the installation of network wiring, and the switch to wireless. I have utilized dial-up, DSL, and cable connections. I installed Bluetooth devices for connectivity. All these things I have lived through, yet I never considered myself technologically literate. I cannot pretend to match up with even eight graders and their gadgets. Calculators today, like the TI-83 graphing calculator, almost require a dedicated bachelor’s degree to operate. IPods and IPhones and PDAs and now IPads. Touch screens, and whiteboards, and virtual environments. How is an old dude like me supposed to keep up?