Week One wiki excercise

I feel this is really a facinating way of learning. It opens up a wide variety of different learning styles and also naturally produces a number of different positive affects which teachers try to produce all on their own which in a wiki can be given by other students.

I found the scaffolding worked well. From the variety of additions and varied ideas I can see that each person found a way into the learning that they were interested in.

personally I found the choice overwhelming. I specifically chose the specific De Bono hat that had not been used very much. I felt that I did have a critical view of others posts and that was reflected in my addition.

I also feel that we can be very polite in spaces on the net that we are aware of our own ideas being presented and that we really don't want to step on others toes. I can draw a couple of experiences in forums on the moodle website that have posts by a high majority praising the work of others and very few drawing attention to the fact the there are no opposing opinions on the topic.

The ability to connect a number of resources to the site is invaluable. It creates a web affect that any one can follow links to information that others have added and then add others themselves which not only allows many points of view it also puts into the forfront the kind of information that exites people. It is not compolsory for each person to add a link, and by that very nature the links that are presented are of high value to that persons point of view.

Overall I feel that the experience was positive. The open format allows many individual learning styles and open thinking

Blog Practice

How do I feel?

God I look like such a nerd. Blonde with glasses. Interesting seeing myself think as well. who would have thought I might be articulate in any way (except for a few verbal glitchs)


would I ever thought that I would feel comfortable putting myself and my opinions rather than a character out in the open? It scares me that I even think that way, being afraid of my own existence in the universe.

How would others feel?

I can certainly see the attraction of doing this for a form of excitement and/or career. When I usually think of the people who daily put themselves out their, expressing their opinions in a multitude of divers ways and contributing to the wealth of information out there a lot of the time I think that most of them are kind of wasting their time. When I do experience (because you can't just say read anymore) another persons opinion that I know is not based on an informed experience on the subject I generally brush the thought aside, but what is happening when I do that? Even just the fact that I have experienced their opinion has changed me in some way, whether it be towards their opinion or towards another, so their opinion is important and so is many others. 

Why Blog?

The power of Blog's is in there ability to level the playing field. In the past the main source of information that was accessible was either through expert sources (communicating via direct verbal contact, literary and even through representatives) who could have many bias that couldn't be effectively scrutinized because another expert would have to refute them, or people with influence like the wealthy, political powerful, or just powerful in some other way. With a blog though anyone who has a computer or now mobile devices can post their opinion and compile and share information and be freely accessible all over the world.

Feeling better

For the past month my disposition has been declining. I have disengaged from a lot of things and have created negative imaginings in my head, but these are not real and I'm getting better. I have taken steps to help myself. It sounds so funny writting those words but sometimes we have to say that its ok to help ourselves.

All I can do now is keep going and try to improve myself.

Prezi as a instumental music teaching tool

WOW


I love this software. The way it moves and how easy it is to flow and create made me have so much fun going through it.

Ok lets go over some features.

One great thing that it has going for it is that it takes the PowerPoint presentation and makes it more of an organic and lively experience. The way the information flows creates a feeling that it's alive and possibly more interactive than just slides going across a screen. I kind of forget how far we have come with how complex software creation has come that it more than ever intuitively lets us do what we want to to do rather than not that long ago where you almost needed to understand the coding underneath the software in order to use it effectively.

The going from the last point, it makes the creative potential quite high because of how easy it is to use. you don't have the limitation that size, scale angle or point of view have brought in the past because it lets you play in any 2D plane (waiting for a 3D prezi now). I remember that I personally had trouble in taking notes because if I wasn't given the format that the information needed to be written down on the page by the teacher I wrote so many different side notes and annotation that the it was so hard to follow the thought. Prezi allows you to make so many connections and annotations in a way that can be connected to the main train of thought and without clutering it that those ideas arn't lost. And just being able edit is always something that I dreamed of. (erasers just don't work as well)

One Draw back that I had is the limitation of programs that can be integrated. Being a music teacher adding sound tracks that can be initiated when activating certain frames would be amazing. (note to the creators)

It would even work as a class exercise. The ability to be edited by many people means that any questions can be immediately added to the piece of information that a student doesn't understand or they can ask for more information.

If you want to take a look at what I've tried click Here

The stress of my own opinions

The one problem I have had over my entire schooling life has been the undervaluing of my ideas. It is so bad that I (like many others) will completely avoid the tasks in which I have to put my ideas down in written, visual, or oral form. It is this thinking which leads me to the stressful situation I'm in.

How do we overcome these opinions of ourselves?

I haven't found the answer but I find hope in the fact I'm still looking.

When not to use new tech?

I had a thought today about where I'm doing my placement. one of the rooms will not be connected to the schools wifi (how unforgivable). When I think about it internet is not essential. It is helpful but once you have the hardware and software it's fine. But I looked at the room and there is no tech in there what so ever.

So when to use tech?

I've been finding this interesting when I just look around.

I went to Jimoens show,on Wednesday night and was quite impressed when he started playing his guitar but that didn't set me up for what happened next. He took out his tablet, turned on garageband and started a song which he played before. He got to the chorus and turned the tablet over and layed the digital strings over the guitar and played chords. The image was hilarious and made me think about the question.

As long as you know why you are using tech, the same as knowing why you so anything, it will be beneficial, whether it's a failiure or not.

Shu-ha-ri (stages of procedural knowledge)

When I was reading about Procedural Knowledge I was instantly reminded of a Japanese martial art concept called Shuhari. The Metaphor of the chick breaking out of the egg is extremely evocative for me particularly.

Shu is represented by the chick growing inside the egg. It's state of growing is like learning a new skill in with the protection of a teacher.

Ha is the moment when the chick begins to break out of the egg, like the student who starts to apply the skills learnt to different situations asking the questions "why is the skill important?" "Is there anything I can change to make it better?"

and finally Ri when the chick breaks free of the egg, the transcendence of the technique and the internationalization of the skill

The translation I found On Wikipedia made me smile.

Shuhari roughly translates to "first learn, then detach, and finally transcend."


The concept describes the process of acquiring procedural knowledge but expends on a few aspects of it.


But thinking about it maybe not. The system of acquiring procedural knowledge is a simplified form of ShuHaRi. While there are aspects of ShuHaRi the Japanese concept applies to the entire process of education. 


If you want to know more about the stages have a look at this website
http://www.makigami.info/cms/japanese-learning-system-japan-36

The good points about Measurable Outcomes

I just had an experience today that was kind of like a ending point and I just realised that I have no way of knowing whether what I set out to do actually happened. The exercises happened but their was no real measurable outcomes for me. I'm sure the participants got something out of it but I'm not sure if any of those things were the goals I set out for them.

It's frustrating because I don't know how I can improve what I'm doing.

So the goal for the next session is to develop and implement systems where I will be able to know if I achieved what I wanted to achieve

Digital Isolation

There is drawback about distance online education. It gives me the ability to drop off the grid. I have not discussed anything with any one over the past 5 weeks except in the online collaboration. I spent some time on the forums in the first 2 weeks but then I just didn't spend the time.

I think that as a student I have the habit of that procrastination when I'm not physically involved with the activity, or socially and when I'm in front of the computer It does sometimes feel like I'm talking to myself sitting down and not moving around.

I definitely think there is a bias in modern western education towards visual learners, although it is changing, and I have always struggled with it myself. But that does give me hope that if I can find away then I can share this with my students to let them know that they really aren't alone.

Pre recorded Oral Assessments?

How cool would it be if you could get students to practice oral assessments as pod-casts, or even in the form of real pod-casts as assessments. The forms of public speaking are no long on the realms of just talking one live group of people but now includes the method of mass recording which basicly means that any public speaker is also talking to potentially the entire WORLD.

Learning Styles

I'm not sure if the test was iffy or I just don't understand the catagories

Active 7
Intuitive 5
Verbal 1
Global 7

I feel that it's broken down into methodical sequencial and self focused and experimental external and active.

So would be suited to Group activities which focus on abstract real world applications of visual and verbal stimulis and jumping to different tasks when the need arise.

....

Actually sounds really accurate.

So creating a variety of activities will ENGAGE (word of the week) the varying learning styles in the class

Cool

Today - To be Honest

wow am I late on the up take.

I have had a hell of a week organizing myself out of work commitments, teaching a new delivery driver, when I realised I have missed a perfect opportunity to be aware of my teaching practice. I went into the exercise not even being aware of my teaching methods and I realised this morning that I had missed on so many opportunities of applying good teaching.

But to be fair on myself, in hindsight, I saw my strengths as a teacher come out habitually. My exuberant energy; my ability to challenge while at the same time being honest with the student; and patience (although at 4 in the morning that was in short supply.

So never close yourslef to the possibility that at this very moment you might be teaching. 

How well are you succeeding?