I for one have never been in or part of any online courses in any level of schooling. I do however find it to be extremely useful and an effective way of learning for students who may have trouble connecting face to face with a teacher because of different situations and difficulties.
In the past my mother worked as a hutterite teacher around Portage la Prairie. I went to visit quite often and saw that their high school students 9-12 had no actual teacher present. They did the majority of their schooling online, through web cam with often quite a lot of success. They were not able to get a full time teacher and this was the way it had to be.
This is the same for high school, university and graduate studies. I think it is great that it is an option. Although I still do believe the most effective and preferred way is to learn in a class with peers and teachers in a traditional manner. For those less fortunate to have distance, illness or any other thing get in the way doing a course or even diploma online is a good option. In the future I may think about doing my masters and know that something's may be required to be done online. I think at that time when I am busy with overall work life the online course load will be the way to go and a huge benefit.
Wednesday, 28 January 2015
TT #5 Your digital footprint OR digital identity
My digital Identity is similar to who I am offline. I don't want to seem to different on and offline because let's face it that confuses most people and in turn gives people a altered perception of who you are. I use social media for my personal enjoyment and mostly to see what my friends and people I want to know about are up to. In no particular order I use facebook, twitter, instagram and snapchat. I find most of these to have different but important uses in my life, the life of my peers, teachers and students. It allows us to connect and that is important.
I find twitter to be the most important for all these as a whole. You can easily get connected to people, teams, associations, etc. you want and their websites, blogs, videos, pictures you name it. I also really enjoy using snapchat. It is so cool how I can talk face to face with a friend that could be hours away. The picture and video quality is also very good. Facebook is a little older and I find I use it less but find it useful for making and organizing events. To finish instagram is just fun to check out some cool and interesting photos.
I also find my digital footprint to be made by the other apps I use and devices I own. I am a sports fanatic. I enjoy playing and watching almost anything. I also like to know what is going news wise, scores and to watch highlights. I use a variety of different apps to help me do so including; tsn, the score, nhl, mlb and more. I like how most sites now have apps so they are easily accessed from your personal device. Things like google drive, mobile banking, maps and yellow pages are extremely helpful. As for devices I own and use on a day to day bases that I consider part of identity or footprint are: my iphone, macbook pro, ipad, apple tv (notice the apple theme) and Playstation 4. I enjoy all these devices and find them to be extremely important in my daily life. They all have different functions and provide me with an easier student lifestyle.
I find twitter to be the most important for all these as a whole. You can easily get connected to people, teams, associations, etc. you want and their websites, blogs, videos, pictures you name it. I also really enjoy using snapchat. It is so cool how I can talk face to face with a friend that could be hours away. The picture and video quality is also very good. Facebook is a little older and I find I use it less but find it useful for making and organizing events. To finish instagram is just fun to check out some cool and interesting photos.
I also find my digital footprint to be made by the other apps I use and devices I own. I am a sports fanatic. I enjoy playing and watching almost anything. I also like to know what is going news wise, scores and to watch highlights. I use a variety of different apps to help me do so including; tsn, the score, nhl, mlb and more. I like how most sites now have apps so they are easily accessed from your personal device. Things like google drive, mobile banking, maps and yellow pages are extremely helpful. As for devices I own and use on a day to day bases that I consider part of identity or footprint are: my iphone, macbook pro, ipad, apple tv (notice the apple theme) and Playstation 4. I enjoy all these devices and find them to be extremely important in my daily life. They all have different functions and provide me with an easier student lifestyle.
Wednesday, 21 January 2015
TT #4: Follow an Edublogger!
For this task I was to follow an edublogger and get a feel for what they post about, who they are and what they do and bring to the online world.
I chose to post here about Dean Shareski who just so happened to be our first presenter of the year in Internet for Educators. He had a lot of good things to say during that presentation and that is why I chose to follow his posts using feedly and read what he has to say. His blog url is: http://ideasandthoughts.org/
Dean has been "Learning Stuff since 1964" as he comically posted an his quote on his blog. He currently is the Community Manager for Discovery Education Canada. He worked in the Prairie South School Division in Moose Jaw, Sask for 24 years and went on to get a Masters at University of Sask. and now does some sessional instructing at University of Regina.
Dean shares a lot of information whether it is education related to the past, present and looking ahead to the future to stuff that went on in his life in 2014. He uses a variety of ways to post his comments via text, video and sometimes podcasts. His posts are his and he has some opinions that have obviously had a lot of research to back it up.
I particularly liked his unique post http://ideasandthoughts.org/2015/01/03/2014-my-year-in-numbers/ This was his year in numbers. This was done in video and would have taken a lot of thought and time to produce. I liked how you can visually see what he was up to during the course of the year and how much time he puts into his education, fitness and golf game. It was cool.
I will continue to follow and read his posts. I would encourage all classmates to check his blog out.
I chose to post here about Dean Shareski who just so happened to be our first presenter of the year in Internet for Educators. He had a lot of good things to say during that presentation and that is why I chose to follow his posts using feedly and read what he has to say. His blog url is: http://ideasandthoughts.org/
Dean has been "Learning Stuff since 1964" as he comically posted an his quote on his blog. He currently is the Community Manager for Discovery Education Canada. He worked in the Prairie South School Division in Moose Jaw, Sask for 24 years and went on to get a Masters at University of Sask. and now does some sessional instructing at University of Regina.
Dean shares a lot of information whether it is education related to the past, present and looking ahead to the future to stuff that went on in his life in 2014. He uses a variety of ways to post his comments via text, video and sometimes podcasts. His posts are his and he has some opinions that have obviously had a lot of research to back it up.
I particularly liked his unique post http://ideasandthoughts.org/2015/01/03/2014-my-year-in-numbers/ This was his year in numbers. This was done in video and would have taken a lot of thought and time to produce. I liked how you can visually see what he was up to during the course of the year and how much time he puts into his education, fitness and golf game. It was cool.
I will continue to follow and read his posts. I would encourage all classmates to check his blog out.
Connecting with People Easily Online
The internet has the ability to operate at what seems to be light speed. It reminds me of the times in Star Wars when they could go from galaxy to galaxy in the blink of an eye. I have been in contact with a school in Thailand called Lertlah English School. With the help of the internet and the fact that I can email someone over half way across the world and they can get back to me in an instant I now have my first teaching job.
I like using email, text, facetime and snapchat all of which instantly connect me to people I want and need to speak with. The fact that this is something we are used to today is not something to take advantage of. I believe we do have an advantage now than any other generation before in our ability to connect.
My first teaching job is grade 1 at the Lertlah Campus 3 in Bangkok, Thailand. I will be away from my family and friends for a year minimum. I will also be ahead in time 13 hours from our central timezone. The amount of time during the day I will be able to connect with people is going to be a very small window. I will want to have a smartphone out there so I can still text (imessage) from wifi and snapchat my friends. I will also rely heavily on email for communication because of the time difference. Facetime will also be used but My early morning will be home's evening and vice versa. I will have to map out when to use it.
Going away for a an adventure of a year like this used to be more daunting. With all the apps and easy communication to people back home I don't think it will be a huge issue for me.
Thanks for reading,
Rod
I like using email, text, facetime and snapchat all of which instantly connect me to people I want and need to speak with. The fact that this is something we are used to today is not something to take advantage of. I believe we do have an advantage now than any other generation before in our ability to connect.
My first teaching job is grade 1 at the Lertlah Campus 3 in Bangkok, Thailand. I will be away from my family and friends for a year minimum. I will also be ahead in time 13 hours from our central timezone. The amount of time during the day I will be able to connect with people is going to be a very small window. I will want to have a smartphone out there so I can still text (imessage) from wifi and snapchat my friends. I will also rely heavily on email for communication because of the time difference. Facetime will also be used but My early morning will be home's evening and vice versa. I will have to map out when to use it.
Going away for a an adventure of a year like this used to be more daunting. With all the apps and easy communication to people back home I don't think it will be a huge issue for me.
Thanks for reading,
Rod
Wednesday, 14 January 2015
TT #3: Twitter
This isn't going to be my longest post because I think my tweets can speak for themselves. I have been on Twitter since September 2011 when Twitter was on the incline in popularity. I remember my friends jawing at me for getting it but I told them how fun and useful it was and surely enough a by that Christmas most of my friends were using it.
On twitter you have the power to voice your opinion, be a comedian, talk trash, sports, music, entertainment and basically anything you wish. Using the hashtag or number sign # you can find trends that are occurring all over the globe. I use it to see what my friends, and some famous athletes are up to along with current issues or events. I do not like to follow people who tweet to often as when you follow many people or teams on twitter you can be quite busy looking at your feed, especially if you don't check it that often. Trust me once you get on, you will check it as much as you do texts or emails.
If you want to follow me here's what you need to know:
First off I'm @RodMcLeod13
I tweet about current funny things along with retweeting some of these items.
I tweet about sports quite often and my favourite teams before, during and after big games.
I tweet about a trip I may be on and whatever is happening in the area I am.
Don't take my account to seriously as I don't take myself that seriously either.
Thanks from @RodMcLeod13
PS: I found this picture while googling myself on images
From 2012 when I worked at Big Brothers Big Sisters, Portage.
Put good things online folks!!!
On twitter you have the power to voice your opinion, be a comedian, talk trash, sports, music, entertainment and basically anything you wish. Using the hashtag or number sign # you can find trends that are occurring all over the globe. I use it to see what my friends, and some famous athletes are up to along with current issues or events. I do not like to follow people who tweet to often as when you follow many people or teams on twitter you can be quite busy looking at your feed, especially if you don't check it that often. Trust me once you get on, you will check it as much as you do texts or emails.
If you want to follow me here's what you need to know:
First off I'm @RodMcLeod13
I tweet about current funny things along with retweeting some of these items.
I tweet about sports quite often and my favourite teams before, during and after big games.
I tweet about a trip I may be on and whatever is happening in the area I am.
Don't take my account to seriously as I don't take myself that seriously either.
Thanks from @RodMcLeod13
PS: I found this picture while googling myself on images
From 2012 when I worked at Big Brothers Big Sisters, Portage.
Put good things online folks!!!
TT #2: Organizing your self online
I've said it before and I'll say it again organization is one of the fundamental keys to running a smooth operation. Curation is essential to staying on top of things and bringing your "A" game whether its teaching, being a student, coach, player or just taking care of day to day chores. If we teach our students to stay organized the amount of success in a classroom has an extremely high ceiling.
I myself take pride in being organized. I learned to be organized from a young age with the help and kick in the butt from my mother. Who I might add was a teacher for 33 years. It is just easier to stay on top of things and be organized. My room, the places I have lived, my vehicle and my school work are always organized. I never run into problems finding something, losing an item or forgettfulness. It just is not in my DNA.
Staying organized online and in Internet for Education is a challenge but nothing impossible. We are given many outside the box sites and apps to try from Mike. I find myself still relying on basics to keep myself involved in social networking. I consistently use email, twitter, instagram and facebook. Out of all those if I were to get rid of one it would probably be facebook though, it has not adapted the way I'd like to see as compared to newer social sites and apps. I have gotten into some other networking mostly through the ICT courses in BU Education with the help of Mike. I love the power that google has all in one. It makes it so much easier when you sign up for a new networking site and you can just use your google gmail. I bet google really has a money problem, they have so much they don't know what to do with it all. The blog isn't really my thing but I do find a use for it. One of the best things we have been shown is feedly. That site is exactly what curation is all about. It makes organizing your blogs so easy. When Mike set up our google classroom site that is also a huge help. Lastly pintrest, I have an account that I barely use but should get more involved in using it because boy does that make searching for ideas easy, a very unique and useful site.
So now what to do with my own classroom (once I get one of course). It's all dependant where I end up and with whom I work with. A middle years classroom that I see for most my classes would be easier I beleive. You get to know your students so well in this situation. The google classroom circle/site is great for letting students know ideas, links to articles, assignments, homework, etc. I would like to take advantage of that if the division has it set up so we can. Social networking sites other than pintrest may be an issue because of possible cyber bullying and overall may not be apporiate for a class. I just want somewhere so curation so my students can learn the organizational skills I was so lucky to learn. It helps!
I myself take pride in being organized. I learned to be organized from a young age with the help and kick in the butt from my mother. Who I might add was a teacher for 33 years. It is just easier to stay on top of things and be organized. My room, the places I have lived, my vehicle and my school work are always organized. I never run into problems finding something, losing an item or forgettfulness. It just is not in my DNA.
Staying organized online and in Internet for Education is a challenge but nothing impossible. We are given many outside the box sites and apps to try from Mike. I find myself still relying on basics to keep myself involved in social networking. I consistently use email, twitter, instagram and facebook. Out of all those if I were to get rid of one it would probably be facebook though, it has not adapted the way I'd like to see as compared to newer social sites and apps. I have gotten into some other networking mostly through the ICT courses in BU Education with the help of Mike. I love the power that google has all in one. It makes it so much easier when you sign up for a new networking site and you can just use your google gmail. I bet google really has a money problem, they have so much they don't know what to do with it all. The blog isn't really my thing but I do find a use for it. One of the best things we have been shown is feedly. That site is exactly what curation is all about. It makes organizing your blogs so easy. When Mike set up our google classroom site that is also a huge help. Lastly pintrest, I have an account that I barely use but should get more involved in using it because boy does that make searching for ideas easy, a very unique and useful site.
So now what to do with my own classroom (once I get one of course). It's all dependant where I end up and with whom I work with. A middle years classroom that I see for most my classes would be easier I beleive. You get to know your students so well in this situation. The google classroom circle/site is great for letting students know ideas, links to articles, assignments, homework, etc. I would like to take advantage of that if the division has it set up so we can. Social networking sites other than pintrest may be an issue because of possible cyber bullying and overall may not be apporiate for a class. I just want somewhere so curation so my students can learn the organizational skills I was so lucky to learn. It helps!
Tuesday, 13 January 2015
My Daily Routines, On and Offline
Everyone has daily routines, some consistent, many scattered but we all have certain things we just do on a day to day basis. I'll give you my Monday to Thursday for example. I am a university student I have a class schedule. I am also involved with things in and outside the school setting. I believe in hygiene, nutrition and exercise. These are definitely essential in anyones success. My class schedule is paired; Monday and Wednesday mirror each other along with Tuesday and Thursday. Everyday is somewhat similar until the evening at least.
Monday and Wednesday (sleep in days, short days)
Get up between 8:30-9 am, cook breakfast (usually eggs), go to the Healthy Living Centre to workout. Come home to shower, make lunch then off to class. I have a one hour class 12:40-1:30 and Internet for Ed 1:40-3:30 then its after school where I could be doing x number of things one of which includes homework, blogging and lesson planning.
Tuesday and Thursday (coach basketball. long days)
Get up at 6:50 am, quickly cook breakfast and off to Harrison School to coach Green Acres boys Basketball practice. Once that is over its off to the HLC to workout then home to shower and eat. My class schedule is different today. I have the same first class then I head to the gym for Early Years Phys. Ed methods from 1:40-3:30 and then back for my final class 3:40-5:30. This a long day at school for anyone. Friday is often a homework day and the weekend is mine.
So that is basically my semester in a nutshell. I am a man of routine and I think having routines in a classroom make your class a success and you a successful teacher. But what about tech routines, often we don't think about it because with most of us its so automatic its like walking to school. Almost all of us now have smartphones and they make having a access online a breeze and quite convenient.
Basically this is how a day would shake up with myself and technology. I wake up and usually check 4 things: texts, snapchats, my twitter and instagram feeds. I used to not be big on instagram but like it quite a bit now. I will often also look at my email, fantasy sports and facebook on my macbook. Throughout the day I continue to check twitter, texts and snapchats from my iphone. I try not to get to distracted but I often do. If I have some down time and I want to just relax I usually will watch something online using Netflix or youtube. It's funny to think about how much I do actually look at a screen now a days. It seems to be just part of my daily life. The same as brushing my teeth in the morning. Sometimes when you can get away from that technology I either find myself really missing it or just totally content with being disconnected. The middle ground is lacking...
Anyways, so long for now
Keep Fit and Have Fun
Rod.
Monday and Wednesday (sleep in days, short days)
Get up between 8:30-9 am, cook breakfast (usually eggs), go to the Healthy Living Centre to workout. Come home to shower, make lunch then off to class. I have a one hour class 12:40-1:30 and Internet for Ed 1:40-3:30 then its after school where I could be doing x number of things one of which includes homework, blogging and lesson planning.
Tuesday and Thursday (coach basketball. long days)
Get up at 6:50 am, quickly cook breakfast and off to Harrison School to coach Green Acres boys Basketball practice. Once that is over its off to the HLC to workout then home to shower and eat. My class schedule is different today. I have the same first class then I head to the gym for Early Years Phys. Ed methods from 1:40-3:30 and then back for my final class 3:40-5:30. This a long day at school for anyone. Friday is often a homework day and the weekend is mine.
So that is basically my semester in a nutshell. I am a man of routine and I think having routines in a classroom make your class a success and you a successful teacher. But what about tech routines, often we don't think about it because with most of us its so automatic its like walking to school. Almost all of us now have smartphones and they make having a access online a breeze and quite convenient.
Basically this is how a day would shake up with myself and technology. I wake up and usually check 4 things: texts, snapchats, my twitter and instagram feeds. I used to not be big on instagram but like it quite a bit now. I will often also look at my email, fantasy sports and facebook on my macbook. Throughout the day I continue to check twitter, texts and snapchats from my iphone. I try not to get to distracted but I often do. If I have some down time and I want to just relax I usually will watch something online using Netflix or youtube. It's funny to think about how much I do actually look at a screen now a days. It seems to be just part of my daily life. The same as brushing my teeth in the morning. Sometimes when you can get away from that technology I either find myself really missing it or just totally content with being disconnected. The middle ground is lacking...
Anyways, so long for now
Keep Fit and Have Fun
Rod.
Thursday, 8 January 2015
Back in the Saddle...for the last ride.
It's hard to believe after 5 years at Brandon University the journey is almost over. I decided I wanted to go straight to university after graduating from Portage Collegiate Institute in 2010. It didn't take me a long time to decide BU was the place for me. I have had plenty of friends that reassured me that it was a quality school and city to live in. For the most part it has been and it did feel like home right away.
I got involved in the university life right away at BU. I quickly chose to take the newly formed Bachelor of Physical Education Studies which was a decision I would not regret. From my first class at BU in the program I met most of my close university friends I have to this day and are still my classmates in the Bachelor of Education. It's pretty wild to think that we all have taken this 5 or more year journey together. Hopefully we can contribute to each others careers in the future.
But on to the present, what is this semester all about, what does my final semester at BU entail. For the first time in the education program we got to pick some courses. This is unique and fun task. I have chose to take along with my one mandatory course Reading, Thinking and Study Skills; Positive Behaviour Interventions for Adolescents, Physical Education Methods for Early Years and of course Internet for Educators. Having this choice is a great opportunity even through the first week I'm enjoying the courses I chose and the Professors have been great. I'm excited for the road ahead.
I haven't blogged since I was in Using ICT in Education. I'm not quite sure if I am a blogger. I do bring more to the table through other social media being Twitter @RodMcLeod13 Instagram @rodmcleod13 and Facebook. I will continue to use these now and into the future (in the right way I mind you) as reassured by our discussion with Jon Finch. He reminded us that technology although extremely useful does have its downfalls especially if it is abused and used in a negative manner. This can get a future educator such as myself in some trouble so I best be minded my p's and q's.
Anyway thats going to be a wrap for this week. Stay tuned as I'm back to the blog...for now being anyway. Respectfully Rod.
I got involved in the university life right away at BU. I quickly chose to take the newly formed Bachelor of Physical Education Studies which was a decision I would not regret. From my first class at BU in the program I met most of my close university friends I have to this day and are still my classmates in the Bachelor of Education. It's pretty wild to think that we all have taken this 5 or more year journey together. Hopefully we can contribute to each others careers in the future.
But on to the present, what is this semester all about, what does my final semester at BU entail. For the first time in the education program we got to pick some courses. This is unique and fun task. I have chose to take along with my one mandatory course Reading, Thinking and Study Skills; Positive Behaviour Interventions for Adolescents, Physical Education Methods for Early Years and of course Internet for Educators. Having this choice is a great opportunity even through the first week I'm enjoying the courses I chose and the Professors have been great. I'm excited for the road ahead.
I haven't blogged since I was in Using ICT in Education. I'm not quite sure if I am a blogger. I do bring more to the table through other social media being Twitter @RodMcLeod13 Instagram @rodmcleod13 and Facebook. I will continue to use these now and into the future (in the right way I mind you) as reassured by our discussion with Jon Finch. He reminded us that technology although extremely useful does have its downfalls especially if it is abused and used in a negative manner. This can get a future educator such as myself in some trouble so I best be minded my p's and q's.
Anyway thats going to be a wrap for this week. Stay tuned as I'm back to the blog...for now being anyway. Respectfully Rod.
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