Changes!!

I watched the YouTube video about the Medieval Help Desk and found it to be hilarious, but I could really relate to that poor guy that felt like he didn't know what he was doing!  I cannot express the times that I have been terrified that what I had just written would disappear!  Why did I feel that way?  Well, because things had "disappeared" before, never to be seen again!  I do feel a little more comfortable in my computer abilities than I used to, but I feel that I have a long, long way to go.

I loved the video about the Piano Stairs and they way it was titled "The Fun Theory."  It made perfect sense to me that 66% more people than usual chose the stairs once the piano keys and sounds had been added.  The piano keys just made it more interesting to use the stairs.  I can't imagine anyone passing up the stairs when they had the opportunity to try them out.  I believe that making something fun can change behavior for the better.  My grandson and granddaughter go to a daycare when their moms are working.  Miss Cathy used to have trouble getting the children to pick up the toys before lunch time.  She started a new "game" with them and they sing the "clean up" song while they do it.  It's fun, and now all the kids clean up with no problem as soon as she starts singing the song!

The third video "Pay Attention" was very interesting.  The statistics alone were mind-boggling!  I loved the statement, "If you're not using technology to teach, you should be."  I thought to myself, "AMEN!"  Our students today know so much about technology and they love to use it.  They are great about explaining all the new gadgets that they have and how to use them.  Many of them are all too willing to assist their teachers in the classroom when they need some help.  Technology does provide richness to learning.  It makes learning more fun and more interesting.  I think that educators need to get over their fear of technology and do whatever they have to, to become comfortable with using it in the classroom.  Schools need to have a more open mind to the opportunities that technology can provide for students to learn more in a way that is meaningful  and useful to them.

On Edutopia's Technology Integration website, I watched a video called "Big Thinkers:  Henry Jenkins on New Media and Implications for Learning and Teaching.  He talked about how schools are failing in two ways because technology is not being used as it should be because so many things are blocked from students being able to view them.  For example, students were reading the book "Moby Dick" but couldn't access any web information about it from school because the title contained the word "Dick"!  Students often cannot access YouTube, even though it is full of rich materials that can be used in many different ways to promote learning in the classroom.  A second way that schools fail is that they don't always provide ample time for students to use technology and many students do not have access to the technology outside of the school environment.  Mr. Jenkins believes that what you learn at school needs to carry over and have effect on your life outside of school, as well.  Students who learn how to use the technology in meaningful ways will carry that over into their personal lives.  He believes that we need to create a paradigm shift in the way that we teach everything in order to be more effective.  Students and teachers need to be collaborative and work together using the technology.  The support of principals and parents needs to be sought out to get everyone on the same page.  Teachers can learn from their students just as the students will learn from their teachers.  It is everyone's responsibility to share information with everyone else.

My goal is to eventually work with my e-board to post a "Counselor's Corner" newsletter that students and their parents will be able to access.  I want to put information about what is going on in the guidance office on there, but I also want to put some specific information about various topics such as eating disorder, cutting, etc.  I would love to have a blogsite that students could access and post to, but my school corporation doesn't allow that type of thing at this time.  I need to talk to Mr. Bujarski, our tech guru, to see whether he thinks that type of thing will ever be a possibility or not!

This is my embedded video: