March 10 Lecture

Unfortunately, I have lost the notes I made on our last lecture. (I blame my husband). There is one topic that Mr. Richardson discussed that stuck with me. Someone asked him a question about what makes a good blog. He responded that a good blogger will invite responses from others. An entry that makes people think will likely have multiple comments beneath it. Judging by the few comments my blog entries elicit I think my blogging skills could improve.

March 3 Lecture

I enjoyed hearing from previous students of this class and also from fellow classmates about the impact of on-line education in their lives. I am enjoying this course and have learned to use many new on-line tools while participating in it. I am not sure if I feel the strong sense of on-line community that some of them have expressed. I need to make more of an effort in this area.

My Adventures in Technology- Twitter

My husband signed up for Twitter and seeing as I did not want to be left in his technological dust I decided to join too. It really reminds me of Facebook status updates, which I check multiple times a day, except that you can get tweets from celebrities. This could be addictive for a person such as myself who loves celebrity gossip. Will more of my day be wasted away on the computer?

Here is the link for Twitter: http://twitter.com/.

P.S. I also finally learned what phishing means. There was an article about it in the S'toon Star Phoenix, complete with a definition. I can feel my tech I.Q. rising.

March 1 - Technology in Popular Culture

I was reading through an issue of US Weekly and was amazed at how celebrity worship is driven by technology. (I am embarrassed to admit that celebrity worship is one of my hobbies.) In this magazine you can text to say which star's outfit you like the most, check out more stories online, subscribe to celebrity Twitters, and see how a celebrity responded to the 25 things you may not know about me Facebook survey. In the world of celebrity technology is obviously of utmost importance, it is how they advertise themselves.

February 24 - The Amazing Barack Obama

I was very impressed that Dr. Couros let us use the last part of Tuesday night's class to watch Obama's address to the senate. The President is an amazing speaker. His message was hopeful yet sensible, America can get out of the recession by working hard. He is truly a man of all people. I appreciated when he commended the CEO of a major corporation for sharing his bonus with all of his employees and also recognized a young girl from an inner-city school for writing a letter asking for help. He represents the weakest and mightiest American citizen. This man is going to change the world. WOW!

February 10 Lecture

I found Tuesday's lecture one of the most interesting we have had thus far. The problems we face as modern educators are much different than those that were faced by teachers of previous generations. Internet has changed everything. The Internet is an invaluable resource for classroom research but there is definitely a more sinister side to it for those who seek it out.

Back From The Dead

It has been some time since I have posted. I am finally learning to function in the sleep deprived state that accompanies having a newborn in the house. Miller Gregory Gerwing was born on Tuesday Feb. 3rd at 9:00 am. He was 9 lbs and 2 oz and is a beautiful, healthy baby boy. We also have a jealous big brother, Dawson, at home. He is two and a half. I have been finding it hard to concentrate on school work, but the more sleep I get the more motivated I am becoming. One thing I have appreciated during this time is Facebook. It is amazing how many people wished us well during this time. It was also cool to be able to post pictures and have everyone see the new addition to our family. E-mail was another way people extended their well wishes. I really felt connected to my extended on-line community.