Podcasting

Podcasting
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I have just been introduced to the world of Podcasting, and there is a great deal of information to be learned. I listend to six different Podcasts this week, and found several things that made them so sussesful and intresting. I also, was able to get a better feel for how they operated.

Listen to Podcasts:
ConnectLearning
SmartBoard Lessons
KidCast
EdTechtalk
MacBreak Weekly
This Week in Photography



The first thing I noticed about these Podcasts were their introductions. Although, each were different, in their own ways, they all shared similar formats. Several of the podcasts would start out with the date, episode number, and who the podcast was brought to you by. Most of the podcasts started with an introduction of the people you were listening too, and guest speakers. Music was used in the introduction frequently, which I found to capture my attention quicker. For example, ConnectLearning Podcast used the same music for each episode which can help listerns identify the podcast immediatly. Most every Podcast I listened to had one thing in common in their introductions, they had small talk. Within the first 3 or 4 minutes, hosts and guests on the cast would keep the conversation light. They would talk about where they are from, the weather, and an overveiw of topics they would discuss. They would not just dive into a heavy conversation from the start. I liked this aspect because it gave me, a first time listener, time to get familar with what was going on and not be overwhelmed with to much information.

The second thing I learned about podcasting is the different conversational styles that can be used. Each podcast was different. Some were more informal. Speakers seemed to be more laidback with their language, and they used more of a conversational style of speaking with their guests. To me the podcasts moved at a quicker pace. They laughed, told jokes, and told stories. Others were more on the formal side and tended to speak at a slower pace; just presenting the facts on the subject they were discussing, and not venturing out to other topics or stories.
For the most part, after the introduction, most of the podcasts followed the same format. They would select certain subjects they were discussing for that day and basically ask questions, make comments, give advice, list examples, and give their opinions. They also had alot of feedback. Guests and speakers would not just voice all of their own ideas and thoughts, but they would get other inputs too, which I enjoyed. For example, the ConnectLearning, episode 90, podcast I listend to actually had 9,000 librarians all over South carolina involved in this one podcast. Actual teachers would comment and give advice on why podcasts in libraries benifited children. This allows listeners to have several different opinions from teachers who are directly expierencing the subject being discussed in their own classrooms.

The example above brings me to my next point I learned about how podcasts opperate. Podcasts differ with how many people can actually be involved, and where they take place. Some of the podcasts took place in quite areas, others in actual classrooms, and one episode I listend to from ConnectLearing took place in a noisy resturant. The ConnectLearning episode had 9,000 teachers involved and connected. Kidcast, on the other hand, had only one speaker who talked about videopod casting the entire time. He only made comments, and had no questions or feedback. This podcast was more about stating information, then having a debate or hearing opinions of others. I noticed there was not an average length to the podcasts I listend too, and each one differd. Some were very short and to the point, like the SmartBoard Lessons Podcast which lasted 14 minutes, and others were an hour long, like the MacBreak Weekly Podcast.
I also noticed that each podcast did not just have experts speaking. There were so many diverse people from every level including students and teachers. For example, on EdTechtalk, the subject being discussed was google docs templates, and the speakers included: teachers that used google docs templates in their classrooms, two students, the product manager of google docs, and two engineers that worked to create the templates. The creators, teachers, and users of google docs template's were able to share their different views, and give advice so all aspects on each leval were coverd.In conclusion, Podcasting is a great way to discover valuable information, hear different views, receive helpful feedback, and most importantly help others connect and learn from diverse people all over the world.

Media Rich Posts

Michael Jackson

(CNN) -- The Los Angeles coroner has concluded preliminarily that singer Michael Jackson died of an overdose of propofol, a powerful sedative he was given to help him sleep, according to court documents released Monday. Los Angeles' coroner Dr. Lakshmanan Sathyavagiswaran reached that preliminary conclusion after reviewing toxicology results carried out on Jackson's blood, according to a search warrant and affidavit unsealed in Houston, Texas.
The affidavit outlines probable cause for search warrants of the offices of doctors who are believed to have treated Jackson.
The Associated Press is quoting a single law enforcement official, who says the L.A. County Coroner has ruled Michael Jackson's death a homicide. The Los Angeles County Coroner's office told CNN they had "no comment" on the report. An LAPD spokesman says the story did not come from their department.
The 32-page warrant said Dr. Conrad Murray, Jackson's personal physician, told a detective that he had been treating Jackson for insomnia for six weeks. Murray said each night he gave Jackson 50 mg of propofol, also known as Diprivan, diluted with the anesthetic lidocaine via an intravenous drip.
Worried that Jackson may have been becoming addicted to the drug, the Houston cardiologist said he attempted to wean him from it, putting together combinations of other drugs that succeeded in helping Jackson sleep during the two nights prior to his death.
But on June 25, other drugs failed to do the job, as he recounted to detectives in an hour-by-hour account that was detailed by detective Orlando Martinez of the Los Angeles Police Department:

Next Generation Learning

Next Generation Learning was my favorite video for the week. It encourages schools to have better technologies in the classroom, and at home. This way of teaching inspires children to learn in different ways, and to be familiar with technology in this day and age. For so many years classrooms have been very structured with chalkboards, pens, papers and computer technology never played a very big role in school systems. Next Generation Learning, pushes schools to put technology first.
There are many benefits to this kind of learning. For example, chalkboards can only be used to write on and many times children lose interest. Next Generation Learning uses whiteboards, which students can write on or it can also be used as a computer. Computer technology allowes students to be active, but learn at the same time through games like wee fitness, and brain training. Movement and activity greatly help students focus, and they stay engaged in learning. This new type of learning helps children participate in class, and helps teachers track their students' progress. Digital cameras are being used in the classrooms with projects so children can actually see and understand what they are learning.
Another great aspect of this new generation learning is that students all get the equal opportunity to learn. Students who do not have computers at home can check out lab tops from their schools so they also can have the opportunity to be familiarized with technology. Next generation learning is not just available in school, but also at home. Schools who participate in this program actually have sites where parents and students can log on and get information on what is going on in the classrooms. Students can also download their homework, and when they are finished they can upload it and submit it.
In my opinion, this is a great new way of learning. Technology has become the center of our world, and it will only grow bigger with time. That is why this kind of learning is so vital for children. It teaches students from a young age how to not only be comfortable with technology, but to use it in ways that will greatly benefit them in the future.

Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts

Vickie Davis is a full time teacher who has some very good tips when dealing with children learning digital technology. Vickie has a different opinion when teaching children that has been very successful. She believes that she does not have to be at the front of the classroom teaching all of the time, but instead she allows her students to think for themselves and figure out problems. This in return gives the students a since of empowerment. Vickie states that when children have there own empowerment from accomplishing things on their own the entire class runs better.
Vickie Davis also mentioned in this video the importance of the way you teach students. She did not always stick to the traditional way of teaching. When learning only requires a pen and piece of paper certain students will not be inspired to learn. She takes time to evaluate each of her classes, and recognizes their strengths and weaknesses. By doing this she better knows how to accommodate students with different learning abilities. This keeps students interested and engaged, but still getting the required curriculum accomplished.Vickie stated that so many teachers think they have to know all the answers or techniques to be successful, but she disagrees with this. She challenges teachers to learn from their students, and to challenge her students to be "thinkers", and push themselves.
Vickie Davis has done amazing things when it comes to the digital world. She uses things like open sim which helps students teach others. Also, Digi Teen, which teaches students digital citizenship. Students can blog and share ideas with others too. Vickie has also created Flat classroom which lets students experience technology trends by writing reports with others, and getting connected with other students all over the world.
In conclusion, this was a very helpful video, and I believe Vickie Davis is on the right track with reaching children in the best ways.

The Importance of Creativity

I greatly enjoyed this speech given by Sir Ken Robinson, " The Importance of Creativity. " Sir Robinson spoke on the importance and vitality of creativity in our education system. He points out that today in our schooling system creativity is not taken as serious as it should be taken, and it is almost being forced out of children these days. In school, mistakes are looked badly upon and not considered a good thing. Sir Robinson did a great job of explaining that " if you are not prepared to be wrong or make mistakes then you will never come up with anything original and your own. Children today are willing to try new things even if there is a chance of having the wrong answer, and that is apart of being creative and different. Yet, our school system stated by Sir Robinson is educating kids out of their creative capacity" because we teach that mistakes are not worth the risk, and are not to be made.
There is a hierarchy in schools. Math, sciences, English always come first, and are taught much more than music, art, dance, and theatre. Sir Robinson argues that these creative classes should be ranked just as high as any other subject. Classes that were designated to help a student get a job (math, science, English) came first, and many students are driven away from subjects that actually interest them ( art, dance, threatre) because it is assumed students could not get decent jobs studying these subjects. Our educational system is forcing creativity out of children, and putting them in the mind set that they must ignore things they enjoy and are interested in and instead focus on the subjects and schooling that will get them jobs.
A very interesting story I enjoyed was about a little girl who was struggling in school, disruptive in class, and was have behavioral issues. The mother of the little girl took her to a specialist to see what was wrong with her. The mother spoke with the doctor for a while explaing her problems. Next, the doctor and the mother walked out of the room, but before he left he turned on his radio on his desk. They continued to watch the little girl and she immediately got up and started dancing. The doctor told the mother her daughter was not sick, she was a dancer. So her mother took her to a dance studio, and she has become one of the most sucessful dancers in the world. The point of this story is that many times we mistake a child for being bad or mis-behaved when really all they need to do is find there passion, a different way of learning that they excel in.
In conclusion, I really enjoyed this speech. It was very helpful, and showed to me the importance of creativity in education.

Did You Know?

This presentation was very interesting. It showed in depth just how much are world is expanding not just in population, but also in technology. To me is was a great representation of how our world as a whole is relying more and more on the use of computers, and advance technology to sustain life. The Internet, computers etc are not just being used in the work world anymore, but they are being used in all aspects of life. For example, people are now using the Internet for dating. The video did you know stated that " 1 out of 8 married couples last year met online." Also, " there are 200 million people registered on my space" " if My space was a country it would be the 5th largest in the world.
This video showed, not only that technology is very big in are world today, but that it will continue to grow in the future. The video claimed there were "31 billion searches on google every month, compared to 2.7 billion in 2006." This proves that this movement is just beginning, and that technology will only grow larger and more complex in the future. People are finding out faster more effective ways to market, and advertise there products to the world. "The amount of new technical information is doubling every two years" The video says, this creates very big problems.
New information, advancements in science and technology is growing at such a rapid pace students who are going to school to learn these advancements can not even keep up with these growing discoveries. By the time a student graduates, the information they have learned in many cases are out of date, and something new has replaced it. We are sending workers out in the workforce inexperienced in some areas because it is almost impossible to stay up to date with technology advancements. It appears as if the world is in a never ending cycle of catching up.
One thing that scared me was that the did you know video predicted that "by 2013 a super computer will be built that exceeds the computational capabilities of the human brain." In conclusion, this was a very interesting video that showed just how large our world really is, and most importantly it showed that our world will continue to grow in every aspect.

First Post

My name is Amy Flarity, I am 22 years old and currently working on a degree in Elementary Education. I am a very active person. I enjoy being outdoors and playing all kinds of sports.
I have played volleyball my entire life. My mother, sister, and I all three played division I volleyball in college. Athletics is a huge part of my life and always will be.
I would say the two most important things in my life is number one God, and next my family. These are the things I live for. I come from a very big family. I have two older sisters, and an older brother. I also have two nephews that are four and five years old that live with me. They played a very big role in my aspirations of becoming a teacher.
I am a very light hearted person. I try to keep a smile on my face and laugh as much as possible. I try to find the positives in every situation. I love all types of animals. When I was growing up I had every animal imaginable including pigs, goats, and chickens even though we lived in a regular neighborhood. My greatest fear is getting struck by lighting. I have been terrified of storms my entire life, and will not step outside if it even looks like rain is comming. I love living in the South, and would not live anywhere else. I enjoy fishing, hunting, and anything outdoors. I am a very outgoing person and I enjoy meeting new people.