So many informational and interesting podcasts and vodcasts. Podcasting is almost the same as navigating the Internet in that you need to prioritize what and where you want to dedicate your time and exposure. I like how iTunes helps manage your podcasts and will stop subscriptions if you don't listen to podcasts after a certain period of time.
I found many student created podcasts in the Education Podcast Network (EPN). I listened to various selections from 1st graders presenting their original written works to middle school students describing their educational history to a high school monthly broadcast on school topics and news. In Podcast Alley (PA) I found selections on Canadian Bears and Astronomy. Both websites had very interesting podcast selections and offered different kinds of listening and viewing experiences. EPN offered many podcasts which were developed by students and teachers while PA seemed to have more seasoned producers. This may not be totally true, but this is my impression based on my experiences today.
After my introduction to podcasts in Thing 19, I felt that I had a framework for narrowing down my search for podcasts to view/listen to, but after spending time in EPN, PA, and iTunes Podcasts I feel a Little overwhelmed with all my subscriptions. I guess over time I will add more podcasts to listen to and unsubscribe to others.
Several podcasts that I subscribed to via my new iTunes account include Teach42-Education and Technology by Steve Dembo, National Public Radio's Science Friday, and Public Broadcasting Station's Share the Earth for K-12 and the Education Podcast by John Merrow. Now I will need to obtain an iPod so I can keep up with all my enriching audio podcasts. I am sure I will have to add others podcasts that looked interesting from the last Thing session. I also realized that I need to get a better computer to process all these new capabilities. I need to increase my efficiency to better manage my time. Have a great day, Gregory Jacoby
Monday, December 28, 2009
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Thing 19-Podcasts
Podcasting has been an area that I have been eagerly awaiting to add to my skill set. I am not sure why it has taken this class to get me to learn and enter the world of Podcasts, but it has. I am excited about the posibilities of making use of Podcasts to assist with my professional development and personal enrichment.
I enjoyed both the Uncle Seth and Ask a Ninja videos and there creativity (especially the regular feeding of apple pies to whales). I can't ignore all the Commoncraft videos that have been very instructional and enlightening in the clear presentation of new concepts for my learning over the course of this class.
I had some difficulty downloading and utilizing Quick Time and Adobe Flash Player. I was ultimately able to listen to both RESA Great Educational Podcasts but not able to view. One of the interesting interesting sites I browsed through was at Lower Merion School district (www.lmds.org/staff/techmentor/podcast). I found an interesting podcast on Three Suggestions for use of technology in the classroom. It explained how to access/evaluate how to better integrate technology into the your teaching, the curriculum and classroom.
The second podcast that was interesting was a discussion regarding the new administrations Race to the Top initiative. I found it at the Learning Matters Web site (learningmattters.tv/blog/podcasts/race-to-the-top). There always seems to be an interesting dynamic between politicians and education and the resulting programs that are devised to enhance and improve education.
I look forward to the next "Thing" and more podcasting. Gregory Jacoby
I enjoyed both the Uncle Seth and Ask a Ninja videos and there creativity (especially the regular feeding of apple pies to whales). I can't ignore all the Commoncraft videos that have been very instructional and enlightening in the clear presentation of new concepts for my learning over the course of this class.
I had some difficulty downloading and utilizing Quick Time and Adobe Flash Player. I was ultimately able to listen to both RESA Great Educational Podcasts but not able to view. One of the interesting interesting sites I browsed through was at Lower Merion School district (www.lmds.org/staff/techmentor/podcast). I found an interesting podcast on Three Suggestions for use of technology in the classroom. It explained how to access/evaluate how to better integrate technology into the your teaching, the curriculum and classroom.
The second podcast that was interesting was a discussion regarding the new administrations Race to the Top initiative. I found it at the Learning Matters Web site (learningmattters.tv/blog/podcasts/race-to-the-top). There always seems to be an interesting dynamic between politicians and education and the resulting programs that are devised to enhance and improve education.
I look forward to the next "Thing" and more podcasting. Gregory Jacoby
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Thing 18-Slideshare
More fun stuff....... Here is a presentation I found to be not only beautiful but meditative on Slideshare titled National Geographic by Gyula Dio:
I really enjoy reading National Geographic regularly and the photography is exceptional in every issue. I believe that I have seen this photographer's name in issues that I have read. I find National Geographic pictures to be great for engaging students to expressively communicate utilizing pictures for descriptions. Pictures can also be used for prompts for written expression activities.
Here is one regarding Music Therapy with Autism Spectrum Disorders by Mimi Sinclair:
I chose this presentation because it allowed me to review some of the literature and research regarding success with utilizing music with ASD students. This presentation reminded me of the standard PowerPoint presentations that I have created in the past and been exposed to when I returned to school for my Masters degree and when I was working in the business world.
I don't have much current experience with PowerPoint presentations in my current capacity as a speech pathologist in schools. I could potentially have students use PowerPoint as a language activity. Using Slideshare in the classroom would be a way for reinforcing a given subject or providing students with models regarding options available for creative presentations.
Based on what I viewed on Slideshare, what can be created and embedded into PowerPoint has come a long way from 10-20 years ago. When I worked with PowerPoint I was usually placing printed content into a given standard template. Another area that I will have to expand my adventurous-self to discover. Gregory Jacoby
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC
View more presentations from Gyula Dio .
I really enjoy reading National Geographic regularly and the photography is exceptional in every issue. I believe that I have seen this photographer's name in issues that I have read. I find National Geographic pictures to be great for engaging students to expressively communicate utilizing pictures for descriptions. Pictures can also be used for prompts for written expression activities.
Here is one regarding Music Therapy with Autism Spectrum Disorders by Mimi Sinclair:
Music Therapy with Autism Spectrum Disorders: Review of Research
View more documents from Mimi Sinclair.
I chose this presentation because it allowed me to review some of the literature and research regarding success with utilizing music with ASD students. This presentation reminded me of the standard PowerPoint presentations that I have created in the past and been exposed to when I returned to school for my Masters degree and when I was working in the business world.
I don't have much current experience with PowerPoint presentations in my current capacity as a speech pathologist in schools. I could potentially have students use PowerPoint as a language activity. Using Slideshare in the classroom would be a way for reinforcing a given subject or providing students with models regarding options available for creative presentations.
Based on what I viewed on Slideshare, what can be created and embedded into PowerPoint has come a long way from 10-20 years ago. When I worked with PowerPoint I was usually placing printed content into a given standard template. Another area that I will have to expand my adventurous-self to discover. Gregory Jacoby
Monday, December 21, 2009
Thing 17-Knowtes, Trailfire, and Remember the Milk
Very interesting Web 2.0 tools to sample and browse in "Thing 17". This lesson has further proven that I need to definitely be more adventurous with Internet use. But I guess this message has been reinforced with each step along my journey in this course.
I spent some time in the following sites:
Knowtes was my first stop. Although I do not teach a specific class subject, I can see some applications of this web site to support both language development and even articulatory drills with my speech-language students. Incorporating spelling and vocabulary lists on Knowtes would give students support to practice and prepare for their weekly spelling tests and improve vocabulary knowledge which would enhance comprehension of the various texts being read. I like the flexibility of being able to invite others to join into a "Deck". This site may have limitations in that students may not remain motivated after the initial exposure to the site. The other problem may be having access to computer to utilize the decks.
My second exploration was of Trailfire. I found several "trails" that were very informative in exploring many facets of a given subject/topic. One example was when I was searching for information about learning disabilities. Several of the trails included web sites dealing with basic textbook definitions, learning disability support organizations, medline, and intervention web sites that could be utilized by parents, kids and teens, and treatment professionals. I found this web site to be helpful in seeing what web searches others have come up with so that I can be more productive (i.e., not having to recreate the wheel). The trails also have the nice feature of allowing me the ability to email the originator to collaborate or comment which supports the interactive nature of Web 2.0.
The final site I browsed was that of Remember the Milk. This site could offer the potential to help me meet my deadlines especially in terms of the various reports, medicaid billing, and IEP due dates, meetings, etc. I often have to manage information at multiple buildings and have calendars at each building of items that need to be completed. Having the ability to place and prioritize information and get reminders via my email would be helpful. Some of my information applies to other colleagues, so I could share my organized list with others. Also rather than waiting for a calendar on a monthly basis, all my information could be loaded in at one time so that I wouldn't have to worry about it after my initial input of important dates or re-occurring reports that are due.
I look forward to trying to incorporate some of these Web application tools at work to see how I might better streamline and become more efficient in my administrative duties as a speech therapist. It seems that in this day and age, we are being asked to provide more written documentation than ever. The more I can be efficient with some of these tasks, the more I will have time to spend with my students providing direct therapy. That would make me happy. Have a great day, Gregory Jacoby
I spent some time in the following sites:
Knowtes was my first stop. Although I do not teach a specific class subject, I can see some applications of this web site to support both language development and even articulatory drills with my speech-language students. Incorporating spelling and vocabulary lists on Knowtes would give students support to practice and prepare for their weekly spelling tests and improve vocabulary knowledge which would enhance comprehension of the various texts being read. I like the flexibility of being able to invite others to join into a "Deck". This site may have limitations in that students may not remain motivated after the initial exposure to the site. The other problem may be having access to computer to utilize the decks.
My second exploration was of Trailfire. I found several "trails" that were very informative in exploring many facets of a given subject/topic. One example was when I was searching for information about learning disabilities. Several of the trails included web sites dealing with basic textbook definitions, learning disability support organizations, medline, and intervention web sites that could be utilized by parents, kids and teens, and treatment professionals. I found this web site to be helpful in seeing what web searches others have come up with so that I can be more productive (i.e., not having to recreate the wheel). The trails also have the nice feature of allowing me the ability to email the originator to collaborate or comment which supports the interactive nature of Web 2.0.
The final site I browsed was that of Remember the Milk. This site could offer the potential to help me meet my deadlines especially in terms of the various reports, medicaid billing, and IEP due dates, meetings, etc. I often have to manage information at multiple buildings and have calendars at each building of items that need to be completed. Having the ability to place and prioritize information and get reminders via my email would be helpful. Some of my information applies to other colleagues, so I could share my organized list with others. Also rather than waiting for a calendar on a monthly basis, all my information could be loaded in at one time so that I wouldn't have to worry about it after my initial input of important dates or re-occurring reports that are due.
I look forward to trying to incorporate some of these Web application tools at work to see how I might better streamline and become more efficient in my administrative duties as a speech therapist. It seems that in this day and age, we are being asked to provide more written documentation than ever. The more I can be efficient with some of these tasks, the more I will have time to spend with my students providing direct therapy. That would make me happy. Have a great day, Gregory Jacoby
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Thing 16-Google Docs
What an amazing Web 2.0 feature Google Docs is. I had no idea that such an application existed on the Internet. Over the years I have worked on documents and spreadsheets, and then emailed them to people back and forth updating version after version. Another wonderful learning experience today.
I can envision how this might make collaboration an even more powerful tool in my schools. Use of Google Docs would definitely allow all students to have the opportunity to all be involved in classroom projects. What a way to revolutionize the process of creating groups to create/share papers, reports, and presentations. I remember my days in the classroom as a young student and even in college and how this would definitely make shared projects easier to complete.
As for having access both at school and home for my students that may be problematic. There has been some developments at least at one of my schools over the last couple of months. I have noticed installations of wireless boxes in the classrooms. They are not functional at this time, but who knows....... Both my schools have some computers available, but access is limited to both to the number of students that can use them and how many times per week they are able to either use the 1-2 in each classroom and/or use the computer lab.
As for home use, I do know that some of my students have access to computers and Internet at home. It would be difficult for all to be able to use computers at home at the present time in Detroit. In order for our students and staff to truly be in a 21st century classroom and be able to incorporate Google Docs we will need to make access and computers more available both at school and home. There may be some policies and procedures that would need to be established for student email accounts.
I spent much time attempting to copy/paste a spreadsheet from my computer to my Google Docs account. I tried the "Help" menu without any success. I was able to transfer the document, but then had to re-edit to its' original format. I was also able to then share the document with my supervisor which was wonderful. We have been emailing updated versions of this document back and forth for a couple of weeks. How great to now have one document that we can work on without having to email updated versions back and forth.
I can see huge potential for use of Google Docs both professionally and personally with documents, spreadsheets and presentations. I will need to see what I can do to become more versed and maybe find a course so I can facilitate greater expertise. Thanks for the enrichment. Gregory Jacoby
I can envision how this might make collaboration an even more powerful tool in my schools. Use of Google Docs would definitely allow all students to have the opportunity to all be involved in classroom projects. What a way to revolutionize the process of creating groups to create/share papers, reports, and presentations. I remember my days in the classroom as a young student and even in college and how this would definitely make shared projects easier to complete.
As for having access both at school and home for my students that may be problematic. There has been some developments at least at one of my schools over the last couple of months. I have noticed installations of wireless boxes in the classrooms. They are not functional at this time, but who knows....... Both my schools have some computers available, but access is limited to both to the number of students that can use them and how many times per week they are able to either use the 1-2 in each classroom and/or use the computer lab.
As for home use, I do know that some of my students have access to computers and Internet at home. It would be difficult for all to be able to use computers at home at the present time in Detroit. In order for our students and staff to truly be in a 21st century classroom and be able to incorporate Google Docs we will need to make access and computers more available both at school and home. There may be some policies and procedures that would need to be established for student email accounts.
I spent much time attempting to copy/paste a spreadsheet from my computer to my Google Docs account. I tried the "Help" menu without any success. I was able to transfer the document, but then had to re-edit to its' original format. I was also able to then share the document with my supervisor which was wonderful. We have been emailing updated versions of this document back and forth for a couple of weeks. How great to now have one document that we can work on without having to email updated versions back and forth.
I can see huge potential for use of Google Docs both professionally and personally with documents, spreadsheets and presentations. I will need to see what I can do to become more versed and maybe find a course so I can facilitate greater expertise. Thanks for the enrichment. Gregory Jacoby
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Thing 15-Trip back to my lonely Bloglines RSS Account
It seems like I haven't had time to check my Bloglines account and keep current with all the wonderful feeds coming my way. I guess I will have to see about whether I can add my Bloglines account to my Bookmarking with Delicious. ............. I just went to Delicious and added a bookmark. Pretty wonderful, now all I have to do is make a habit of going to my Delicious account when at school and home. It will be interesting to see if I can access these bookmarks through my school computers. That will be the next step.
I spent some time trying to figure out how to manage all the posts within each feed on my Bloglines account, but could not find out how to delete a post. Each post has a "Keep New" box and "Clip/Blog This" spot, but I could not find anything for deleting a specific post in order to keep what I was interested in saving to read. I searched the help button, but to no avail. Any suggestions? Otherwise won't I accumulate tons of posts within each of my feeds.
I definitely had a much easier time of creating feeds to my account this time around. RSS will definitely keep me more current and allow for greater ease to narrow down my search for topical information. I won't have to recreate the process of finding useful sites and now I will also be able to connect Bloglines into by Delicious bookmark registry. So I should have no excuse for not making it a habit to look for new posts to my account.
Have a nice evening, Gregory Jacoby
I spent some time trying to figure out how to manage all the posts within each feed on my Bloglines account, but could not find out how to delete a post. Each post has a "Keep New" box and "Clip/Blog This" spot, but I could not find anything for deleting a specific post in order to keep what I was interested in saving to read. I searched the help button, but to no avail. Any suggestions? Otherwise won't I accumulate tons of posts within each of my feeds.
I definitely had a much easier time of creating feeds to my account this time around. RSS will definitely keep me more current and allow for greater ease to narrow down my search for topical information. I won't have to recreate the process of finding useful sites and now I will also be able to connect Bloglines into by Delicious bookmark registry. So I should have no excuse for not making it a habit to look for new posts to my account.
Have a nice evening, Gregory Jacoby
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Thing 14- Delicious with gregory_jacoby
Delicious is such a wonderful tool. I have often been overwhelmed with search engines such as Google, Bing, FireFox, etc. It is great to have the luxury to have access to sights that have been ranked as useful by other professionals that are utilizing the Web to enhance their teaching experiences.
Social Bookmarking can assist in streamlining my search process for the best practices that can be utilized in the school setting. This would be particularly useful in the area of effective and efficacious support services in providing speech therapy. Sometimes it seems like I am an island unto myself being the only speech therapist in my buildings at any given day. By having access to other's bookmarks, I would have a handy resource to help trouble shoot when I do not have a colleague to brainstorm with regarding a special case.
The other great benefit to a site such as Delicious is that I can access my list of resources from any computer. Due to the fact that I travel to multiple buildings and am having to carry therapy materials, tests, traveling office and laptop, etc in and out of buildings, Delicious would simplify my life. It would allow me to utilize computers that are available in my buildings rather than always having to bring in and set up my computer on a daily basis. Not only would I have access to digital therapy materials, teaching/therapy resources, but also administrative forms that most other teachers do not use through my bookmark library.
I can definitely see how Delicious could ultimately improve my productivity and allow me to spend more time with my students and less time trying to find, copy, and transport material from one building to another. Over time I can see how my personal resource list could really be helpful to myself and others that may need certain information/resources.
So come and see my bookmarks as I begin to navigate Delicious at gregory_jacoby. I will be peeking at your lists someday soon. Bye, Gregory Jacoby
Social Bookmarking can assist in streamlining my search process for the best practices that can be utilized in the school setting. This would be particularly useful in the area of effective and efficacious support services in providing speech therapy. Sometimes it seems like I am an island unto myself being the only speech therapist in my buildings at any given day. By having access to other's bookmarks, I would have a handy resource to help trouble shoot when I do not have a colleague to brainstorm with regarding a special case.
The other great benefit to a site such as Delicious is that I can access my list of resources from any computer. Due to the fact that I travel to multiple buildings and am having to carry therapy materials, tests, traveling office and laptop, etc in and out of buildings, Delicious would simplify my life. It would allow me to utilize computers that are available in my buildings rather than always having to bring in and set up my computer on a daily basis. Not only would I have access to digital therapy materials, teaching/therapy resources, but also administrative forms that most other teachers do not use through my bookmark library.
I can definitely see how Delicious could ultimately improve my productivity and allow me to spend more time with my students and less time trying to find, copy, and transport material from one building to another. Over time I can see how my personal resource list could really be helpful to myself and others that may need certain information/resources.
So come and see my bookmarks as I begin to navigate Delicious at gregory_jacoby. I will be peeking at your lists someday soon. Bye, Gregory Jacoby
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Thing 13-Tagging and Social Bookmarking
More expanding of my lexicon today.....
Some wonderful new words to add to my vocabulary--folksonomy, tag clouds, lemming, and camels. Very interesting.
Tagging and using a social bookmarking web site does have definite advantages. I presently use different computers whether at work, home, library, or at friends/families homes. It definitely would make my navigation for information in alternate locations much easier and efficient. I can see how useful tags are to find related information rather than having to "recreate the wheel" every time you are trying to locate information on a particular topic or interest. This is sort of like having an army of "like-minded" individuals seeking out information. I guess the key to tagging is to use some standard tags that individuals are using that you find out through lemming and then add some key tags that you feel are appropriate as well.
Tagging would definitely help me in organizing my digital sites into areas that are not just related to speech-language pathology, but could be subcategorized into articulation, language, fluency, voice, dysphagia, aphasia, etc. These subcategories could be further tagged by specifics such as phonemes, language area, type of voice disorder, diet, executive function, etc. I can see how important it is to think about the most appropriate tags for labeling your digital item.
One potential problem with bookmarks might be that you can use too generalized of a tag and still have to sort out alot of web sites looking for the specific information that you thought a certain site would be useful. I think the positives outweigh the disadvantages with tags. Just need to be careful to appropriately tag so that you are using objective descriptors rather than subjective or inappropriate labels.
The potential of tagging is quite impressive. Having the ability to network with others to find "jewels" in the greater Internet world is exciting. The saying that "many hands make lite work" definitely applies to tagging and utilization of social networking. I look forward to getting started in the next Thing. Gregory Jacoby
Some wonderful new words to add to my vocabulary--folksonomy, tag clouds, lemming, and camels. Very interesting.
Tagging and using a social bookmarking web site does have definite advantages. I presently use different computers whether at work, home, library, or at friends/families homes. It definitely would make my navigation for information in alternate locations much easier and efficient. I can see how useful tags are to find related information rather than having to "recreate the wheel" every time you are trying to locate information on a particular topic or interest. This is sort of like having an army of "like-minded" individuals seeking out information. I guess the key to tagging is to use some standard tags that individuals are using that you find out through lemming and then add some key tags that you feel are appropriate as well.
Tagging would definitely help me in organizing my digital sites into areas that are not just related to speech-language pathology, but could be subcategorized into articulation, language, fluency, voice, dysphagia, aphasia, etc. These subcategories could be further tagged by specifics such as phonemes, language area, type of voice disorder, diet, executive function, etc. I can see how important it is to think about the most appropriate tags for labeling your digital item.
One potential problem with bookmarks might be that you can use too generalized of a tag and still have to sort out alot of web sites looking for the specific information that you thought a certain site would be useful. I think the positives outweigh the disadvantages with tags. Just need to be careful to appropriately tag so that you are using objective descriptors rather than subjective or inappropriate labels.
The potential of tagging is quite impressive. Having the ability to network with others to find "jewels" in the greater Internet world is exciting. The saying that "many hands make lite work" definitely applies to tagging and utilization of social networking. I look forward to getting started in the next Thing. Gregory Jacoby
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Thing 12-Adding Widgets
Very interesting afternoon of Widget mania.
I enjoyed navigating all the various widget possibilities out there in the Internet. Adding Widgets is sort of like having a RSS streaming to your personal blog rather than going to bloglines. Widgets give you smaller bits of "real-time" information. The only complication that I had was figuring out that widgets are added to your actual blog page rather than being added to an individual post. Once I got around that confusion, I had fun.
After today, embedding has become much easier. As with any new learning that occurs the key is to practice, practice, practice. I selected three widgets to try out various sites. I chose a clock from Miniclock to add some color and time management monitoring on my blog. I found the quote of the day and the special education tips at Widget Box. I assist with the morning announcements at one of my schools and I am always looking for applicable quotes to share with students and staff. The special education tips widget looked interesting in providing new ideas to use with some of my students or to share with staff when we are brainstorming. I might also find something to assist me in my speech therapy practices.
At present I am not in any other on-line communities. I have been alittle hesitant about going on Myspace, Facebook and other sites. I guess I feel that I would rather have face to face interactions with friends and colleagues rather than engaging with others via the Internet. In the past, using the Internet to communicate has lacked the emotions and visual cues (i.e., the suprasegmentals that accompany speech) which has resulted in my limited use of email as a form of regular communication with others. I know that the younger generations are very computer savvy and engage with all electronic media for entertainment and interactions with others.
My social interacts that have resulted from this course have definitely opened up my views and shown me that you can develop relations with other people that you have never met face to face. Blogging definitely does facilitate meeting others that have your same interests and helps find others that are willing to engage with you.
I look forward to using my new skills and contacts to enrich what I do in the future both with Web 2.0 and my practices in my schools. Have a nice day, Gregory Jacoby
I enjoyed navigating all the various widget possibilities out there in the Internet. Adding Widgets is sort of like having a RSS streaming to your personal blog rather than going to bloglines. Widgets give you smaller bits of "real-time" information. The only complication that I had was figuring out that widgets are added to your actual blog page rather than being added to an individual post. Once I got around that confusion, I had fun.
After today, embedding has become much easier. As with any new learning that occurs the key is to practice, practice, practice. I selected three widgets to try out various sites. I chose a clock from Miniclock to add some color and time management monitoring on my blog. I found the quote of the day and the special education tips at Widget Box. I assist with the morning announcements at one of my schools and I am always looking for applicable quotes to share with students and staff. The special education tips widget looked interesting in providing new ideas to use with some of my students or to share with staff when we are brainstorming. I might also find something to assist me in my speech therapy practices.
At present I am not in any other on-line communities. I have been alittle hesitant about going on Myspace, Facebook and other sites. I guess I feel that I would rather have face to face interactions with friends and colleagues rather than engaging with others via the Internet. In the past, using the Internet to communicate has lacked the emotions and visual cues (i.e., the suprasegmentals that accompany speech) which has resulted in my limited use of email as a form of regular communication with others. I know that the younger generations are very computer savvy and engage with all electronic media for entertainment and interactions with others.
My social interacts that have resulted from this course have definitely opened up my views and shown me that you can develop relations with other people that you have never met face to face. Blogging definitely does facilitate meeting others that have your same interests and helps find others that are willing to engage with you.
I look forward to using my new skills and contacts to enrich what I do in the future both with Web 2.0 and my practices in my schools. Have a nice day, Gregory Jacoby
Monday, December 7, 2009
Thing 11-Community Building/Outreach
Building Communities is one of the key features of the Internet that I have not utilized as a Web 2.0 user to date. I have been using the Internet to obtain pieces of information and communicate by email. The "Things" of this course that I have completed so far are broadening my horizens and utilizing commenting will help me share/grow in my practices. This can only improve my speech and language services in Detroit Public Schools.
At this point, leaving comments still feels somewhat ackward. I feel as though I am sending a message "out in a bottle". But as this section of the course indicated, rather than sending a message out to the whole world, I am sending it to someone who has a shared interest. So ultimately, I will be more likely get a response and possibly build a relationship which can lead to more enriched sharing. I do know that I have enjoyed recieving feedback and have appreciated individual's comments on my blogs. Feedback has always been a concern of mine, especially with taking a course on-line. In the past I would usually opt for taking a class in a lecture hall rather than sitting by myself in front of a computer screen. But I have expanded my perspecitives by taking this course and feel "connected" by blogging and having others comment. By commenting, we end up validating the efforts that individuals are trying to share via the Internet.
I can see that students would benefit from working on-line. Not only would they be able to use the computer and its many facets, but they would also be able to interact with others in an enriching environment. It also gives the added benefit of reinforcing written communication which is an area that has been getting harder and harder to address in education over the last few years. Gregory Jacoby
At this point, leaving comments still feels somewhat ackward. I feel as though I am sending a message "out in a bottle". But as this section of the course indicated, rather than sending a message out to the whole world, I am sending it to someone who has a shared interest. So ultimately, I will be more likely get a response and possibly build a relationship which can lead to more enriched sharing. I do know that I have enjoyed recieving feedback and have appreciated individual's comments on my blogs. Feedback has always been a concern of mine, especially with taking a course on-line. In the past I would usually opt for taking a class in a lecture hall rather than sitting by myself in front of a computer screen. But I have expanded my perspecitives by taking this course and feel "connected" by blogging and having others comment. By commenting, we end up validating the efforts that individuals are trying to share via the Internet.
I can see that students would benefit from working on-line. Not only would they be able to use the computer and its many facets, but they would also be able to interact with others in an enriching environment. It also gives the added benefit of reinforcing written communication which is an area that has been getting harder and harder to address in education over the last few years. Gregory Jacoby
Monday, November 30, 2009
Thing 10-Embedded Video and thoughts
WELCOME TO MY NEW LEARNING IN THING 10-ENJOY: A GREAT MOMENT IN SPEECH THERAPY...............
I wish fluency interventions would be this easy for my students who stutter. I happened upon this video in my browsing through YouTube. I have never heard about this video with John Wayne. I am sort of surprised that it was not mentioned in one of my courses either in undergrad or my Masters program. It was nice to see that the topic of stuttering was being addressed in short movie clips. For so long over history, stuttering was something that people just did not talk about openly. Various public figures have been more vocal about educating the public or been willing to share personal experiences about their dysfluent speech. This helps greatly with individuals who are becoming aware that they stutter. As a school clinician I have tried a variety of approaches to help my dysfluent speaking students. Maybe I will have to work on my John Wayne routine and give it a go......
I found that embedding videos into my posts was one of the easiest ways to share a video with others. KeepVid and PWNYouTube sites required repeated tries to convert a URL to a downloadable version. I was only able to download from KeepVid to my desktop, but then had trouble with the computer recognizing what format it was. I believe that ultimately my problems may stem for my outdated desktop hard drive configurations. I have been using Microsoft's web support to download updates for this class, but I think I may need to upgrade my computer sometime in 2010 to easily run all these new Web 2.0 tools I am learning. Zamzar seems like it may be a good alternative via my email. I am still waiting for delivery to my email. We will see.......
Have a great week, Gregory Jacoby
I wish fluency interventions would be this easy for my students who stutter. I happened upon this video in my browsing through YouTube. I have never heard about this video with John Wayne. I am sort of surprised that it was not mentioned in one of my courses either in undergrad or my Masters program. It was nice to see that the topic of stuttering was being addressed in short movie clips. For so long over history, stuttering was something that people just did not talk about openly. Various public figures have been more vocal about educating the public or been willing to share personal experiences about their dysfluent speech. This helps greatly with individuals who are becoming aware that they stutter. As a school clinician I have tried a variety of approaches to help my dysfluent speaking students. Maybe I will have to work on my John Wayne routine and give it a go......
I found that embedding videos into my posts was one of the easiest ways to share a video with others. KeepVid and PWNYouTube sites required repeated tries to convert a URL to a downloadable version. I was only able to download from KeepVid to my desktop, but then had trouble with the computer recognizing what format it was. I believe that ultimately my problems may stem for my outdated desktop hard drive configurations. I have been using Microsoft's web support to download updates for this class, but I think I may need to upgrade my computer sometime in 2010 to easily run all these new Web 2.0 tools I am learning. Zamzar seems like it may be a good alternative via my email. I am still waiting for delivery to my email. We will see.......
Have a great week, Gregory Jacoby
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Thing 9
Hello one and all,
Such an interesting experience today with exploration and learning about the history and endless potential of on-line video sharing/interactions.
It was very fascinating to see all the options in videos available on-line. I was able to find many videos regarding speech and language therapy practices, perspectives and client feedback. I loved the "Free Hugs" video. I was enlighten watching the "In my Language" video by the individual with autism. The "Honda Choir" was very creative and I enjoyed the trip back in time with "Pa and Ma on Math". Such a rich diversity exists in You Tube.
I found Michael Wesch's presentation on "An Anthropological Introduction to You Tube" to be great. His presentation highlights how use of the Internet has really transposed use of media from a passive activity (i.e., watching TV) to an interactive experience. You Tube is not just about creating and viewing videos, but also the interactive process of generating emails, blogs, diggs, and rating on technorati and others. His discussion on cultural inversion and cognition versus recognition was interesting. His video allowed me to see how use of videos and the Internet has really opened up new venues for individuals to interact. I guess my world knowledge has been further expanded. I may even get my own "glass dot".
There seems to be many educational and speech-language appropriate material on You Tube. Teacher Tube and School Tube also will offer options to provide visual referents and interactive experiences for myself and my students. All 3 venues seem to offer many potential supportive learning tools. I will have to see what kind of filters Detroit Public Schools has on access of these three sites.
I am sure you will find this "Thing" as interesting as I did. Have a great week, Gregory Jacoby
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Thing 8
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KMcElman_090516_P3 src="http://static.flickr.com/2334/3541683224_c3fc9415e0_t.jpg"> 
How much fun.........Flickr Mashups were very exciting to experiment with such variety. I could see using Spell with Flickr to assist with supporting students with word knowledge and spelling reinforcement. It could also be used for students and my own creative projects. I have some younger students who are having difficulty with color identification that I could see some potential with utilization of Flickr Color Pickr.
All the types of Mashups options I believe will provide a forum for language rich development. All the pictures that are available can lead to rich shared conversations either in person or via blog entries. I will have to learn how to play Sudoku so that I can use Flickr. I created some wonderful mosaics, in particular one regarding sign language that was beautiful and had such interesting photos. I wanted to save the mosaic, but was concerned about copy right laws. I still am confused about how we use all these options and then have to be careful about what photos are copyright protected from my saving to my computer for my use with students. I enjoyed the Flickr memory games which could be used with my students as rewards for completion of activities as well as reinforcing concepts covered. This is all predicated upon having decent computer options in my therapy spaces in the buildings I service.
So many option exist with image generators. The possibilities are endless. I see possibly incorporating these sites into use with my speech students to utilize in their special classes on the one or two days a week when they have computer time. There seem to be fees or subscription requirements for some of the options in Image Generator, so the Big Huge Lab might work better. Time and usage will tell.......
The one question I have in all of this use of Flickr is copy right infringement. When using some of the mashups it seems very hard to make sure that you are using authorized photos. It seems with image generators, it may be better to create your own photos to utilize. The only downside is all the richness of Flickrs photos that exist.
Using photos to expand world knowledge for students could be difficult when it comes to copyright restrictions. Does anyone have input regarding use of all the Flickr photos in your classroom or for therapy activities. Are you able to use any photos as long as they are for educational use? When I used the filters for photos that had no copyright, the options were very limited. Appreciate any input.
Have a great Thanksgiving, Gregory Jacoby
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Thing 7
One more step into the technological age. All these new accounts that I have now for Blogs, Bloglines, and now Flickr. I feel as now that I have a new arsenal of tools to use at school and home. I will probably now have to upgrade not only my camera, but my computer.
Flickr will have possibilities in my therapy activities with my students. I work with students at various building covering preschool to 5th grade classrooms. Most of my work with my students occurs in a pullout basis base with consultations with their teachers. At times I have collaborative session in the classroom with the teacher. Flickr would be useful with some of my expressive expression activities such as picture description and vocabulary expansion. I can also see expanding the verbal lessons to written activities with sentence structure highlights. Having students use Flickr to generalize there learning would also be wonderful. Flickr could be used to expand student's world knowledge and give students concrete visual referents for concepts and vocabulary and locations that are unfamiliar.
Another area that may have application to my student's carry-over from our therapy would be utilization of the social interaction of posting notes and comments on other people pictures. This would enhance there written, expressive, and pragmatic functional communication skills.
I am sure as I start using Flickr more effectively and learn how to better integrate my skills to the the work setting, that I will find more and more possibilities. Have a great day, Gregory Jacoby
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Thing 6
I feel I am making progress with my technological maturation. To have transitioned through new learning in blogs, RSS, and now Flickr is opening up new horizens for me and more importantly for use in my career.
I had a great time learning about Flickr and the endless possibilities that exist in the digital photo world. So many wonderful pictures. I was intrigued that not only can you view pictures, but you can also socially network and interface with the actual creaters of their photos. This is definitely going get me to finally, in 2010, get a digital camera and expand my photographic skills.
The only thing that I was curious about was when you search the Flickr site most of the photos I looked at had copyright potections. Does that mean that you can not copy them to your computer for personal use? At what level do you violate copyright with photos?
Through utilization of Compfight and the Library of Congress digital photos, I was able to locate photos that had either no restrictions or limited restrictions. Compfight was the easiest to find photos using creative commons commerial or only as a filter.
The photo above was chosen for this blog because it reminds me of my early days in my career transition when I was completing my teaching certificatation process in speech pathology. In 2000, I spent much time in preschool classrooms conducting circle time and interactive oral reading activites with my wonderful students. Brings back fond memories. Have a great day, Gregory Jacoby
Monday, November 16, 2009
Thing 5
This course is definitely captivating me. But I must say, this segment was the most challenging for me. Setting up an RSS site definitely has huge potential to help organize and keep me current with posts in a timely manner. I can see that the "end-result" of the reader will be very useful. Maybe my computer needs an upgrade to handle all this information/processing.
The tutorial on the 3 methods was clear and made sense. Unfortunately, I had great difficulties with making the "sub to bloglines" work on computer with the video tutorial. The steps to make this tab work and the end result did not match with the "links" to add to favorites. I had to do a fair amount of experimentation to get the end result......But ultimately I was successful.
I had mixed results with the blog engines of Google and Technorati. I had better success with Google--I was able to find blogs of interest and establish links. With Technorati, I had more problems especially with finding results for speech therapy in schools or speech language pathology as a topic. I have not figured out how to navigate searches and then add to my reader and then get back to my search engine results without having to start the search all over again(Sorry about the "run-on" sentence). I tried multiple tabs to operate on my computer but had problems with my computer processing.
I am having some difficulty with setting up the reader. My search sometimes brought up web pages versus blogs--some of the blogs I came to I could not get an address to link to by bloglines. The blog searches came up with individual blogs regarding a topic, but when I tried to link to the source of the main blog, I had some difficulties.
I guess the more I use my reader and add links, I will get more versed and better in setting up links. This segment definitely took a lot of time to navigate and get established. But I feel that I have made some concrete progress in getting more organized and to ultimately use this for future enrichment. Thank you, Gregory Jacoby
The tutorial on the 3 methods was clear and made sense. Unfortunately, I had great difficulties with making the "sub to bloglines" work on computer with the video tutorial. The steps to make this tab work and the end result did not match with the "links" to add to favorites. I had to do a fair amount of experimentation to get the end result......But ultimately I was successful.
I had mixed results with the blog engines of Google and Technorati. I had better success with Google--I was able to find blogs of interest and establish links. With Technorati, I had more problems especially with finding results for speech therapy in schools or speech language pathology as a topic. I have not figured out how to navigate searches and then add to my reader and then get back to my search engine results without having to start the search all over again(Sorry about the "run-on" sentence). I tried multiple tabs to operate on my computer but had problems with my computer processing.
I am having some difficulty with setting up the reader. My search sometimes brought up web pages versus blogs--some of the blogs I came to I could not get an address to link to by bloglines. The blog searches came up with individual blogs regarding a topic, but when I tried to link to the source of the main blog, I had some difficulties.
I guess the more I use my reader and add links, I will get more versed and better in setting up links. This segment definitely took a lot of time to navigate and get established. But I feel that I have made some concrete progress in getting more organized and to ultimately use this for future enrichment. Thank you, Gregory Jacoby
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Thing 4
Hello everyone,
I should have known that there would be a way to better facilitate the overwhelming amount of information out in the Internet "world". As I looked at other blogs in thing 2 and 3, I was concerned how I would be able to keep up with all the sites and posts. It is wonderful to see that there are systems to help us be more productive and organized as we attempt to utilize the latest information and Internet options. Using the reader will help to entice and enrich the educational experiences for our students.
Time management has always been a difficult area for me as I try and balance daily living. RSS will definitely help prioritize the information that I receive and allow me to better keep myself current with my posts and other's comments. Up until today, I have used the "old slow way" to interact with the Web. I look forward to seeing how I can use RSS to allow me to better utilize the Web. I will be curious to see if I can use reader not only for managing my blogs, but possibly other things like emails, new additions to topics of interest within favorite web sites, etc.
I enjoyed looking at the 3 sample readers used in this lesson, although I found that I easily got lost looking all the various links. It is exciting to see the possibilities in establishing a well organized reader.
I am enjoying this class. I wasn't sure I would like taking an on-line class rather than participating in a classroom setting. I guess this is all part of new horizons in my development. Have a nice evening. Gregory Jacoby
I should have known that there would be a way to better facilitate the overwhelming amount of information out in the Internet "world". As I looked at other blogs in thing 2 and 3, I was concerned how I would be able to keep up with all the sites and posts. It is wonderful to see that there are systems to help us be more productive and organized as we attempt to utilize the latest information and Internet options. Using the reader will help to entice and enrich the educational experiences for our students.
Time management has always been a difficult area for me as I try and balance daily living. RSS will definitely help prioritize the information that I receive and allow me to better keep myself current with my posts and other's comments. Up until today, I have used the "old slow way" to interact with the Web. I look forward to seeing how I can use RSS to allow me to better utilize the Web. I will be curious to see if I can use reader not only for managing my blogs, but possibly other things like emails, new additions to topics of interest within favorite web sites, etc.
I enjoyed looking at the 3 sample readers used in this lesson, although I found that I easily got lost looking all the various links. It is exciting to see the possibilities in establishing a well organized reader.
I am enjoying this class. I wasn't sure I would like taking an on-line class rather than participating in a classroom setting. I guess this is all part of new horizons in my development. Have a nice evening. Gregory Jacoby
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Thing 3
Good Evening. I am enjoying expanding my knowledge regarding blogs. Up until last week, blogs were an abstract concept to me. I was aware that they existed and many people who I considered very technology savvy were utilizing them. Over the course of completing "Thing 3", I am now entering the "blogosphere" myself.
In reviewing the sample blogs, I was enlightened by the range of topics and purposes that they can serve along with the number of potential participants that can be involved. As I spent time navigating these sites, I was a little overwhelmed with the amount and variety of information that they contain. I could get lost in my "browsing" in some blogs. I did find some interesting sites including: "Teaching Learners with Multiple Special Needs" and "The 100 Most Inspiring Blogs". I also googled a search for blogs that relate to speech pathology and found many speech language pathology blog sharing sites in which I can investigate further later this week.
Commenting on other blogs "feels" uncomfortable to me at this time. It reminds me of making a "cold call" when I was in sales in my younger days prior to entering the educational setting. I posted a comment on an individual's review of utilizing an age appropriate book with an augmentative communication device and one to a fellow classmate. Neither posting that I responded to had a name attached to it and I felt that I was making more of a editorial comment rather than engaging in a communicative exchange. I suppose, if I get a posting back, possibly I will have a name in the reply and potentially start a more personal interaction.
I appreciate the explanation regarding what a "Dashboard" is all about. I was confused after I set up my blog last week. I have adjusted my settings so I think I will be able to receive posting and ease of communication. I look forward to continuing to navigate other blogs to support my engagement with other colleagues for suggestions in utilizing these sites to further engage my students. Gregory Jacoby
In reviewing the sample blogs, I was enlightened by the range of topics and purposes that they can serve along with the number of potential participants that can be involved. As I spent time navigating these sites, I was a little overwhelmed with the amount and variety of information that they contain. I could get lost in my "browsing" in some blogs. I did find some interesting sites including: "Teaching Learners with Multiple Special Needs" and "The 100 Most Inspiring Blogs". I also googled a search for blogs that relate to speech pathology and found many speech language pathology blog sharing sites in which I can investigate further later this week.
Commenting on other blogs "feels" uncomfortable to me at this time. It reminds me of making a "cold call" when I was in sales in my younger days prior to entering the educational setting. I posted a comment on an individual's review of utilizing an age appropriate book with an augmentative communication device and one to a fellow classmate. Neither posting that I responded to had a name attached to it and I felt that I was making more of a editorial comment rather than engaging in a communicative exchange. I suppose, if I get a posting back, possibly I will have a name in the reply and potentially start a more personal interaction.
I appreciate the explanation regarding what a "Dashboard" is all about. I was confused after I set up my blog last week. I have adjusted my settings so I think I will be able to receive posting and ease of communication. I look forward to continuing to navigate other blogs to support my engagement with other colleagues for suggestions in utilizing these sites to further engage my students. Gregory Jacoby
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Thing 1 and Thing 2
Good Evening one and all. I have an unusual feeling as I start my first blog ever. I have heard about this class in sketchy details from other teachers in Detroit Public Schools and was fortunate enough to register for this class now. I always have wanted to expand my computer expertise and consider myself versed in computer applications from Microsoft (i.e., Word, Excel, Power Point, etc.), but I have had not had any experience with really expanding my use and involvement with the Internet other than for email and searching for information. Participating in "The 23 Things" on-line course will finally facilitate my "getting with the 21st century program".
I have been a teacher of the speech and language impaired (TSLI) within Detroit Public Schools for 9 years. My caseload has ranged in size around 50-60 students covering preschool to high school students. I have felt for sometime that connecting with my students has been a problem over extended periods with utilization of auditory and visual material for therapy activities. So much of students hobbies revolve around electronic media (i.e., cell phones, television, gaming devices, video games, computer usage, etc.). Over the last few years my role as a student support service teacher has revolved around attempting to mold my interventions and therapy around the curriculum in the classroom. Maintaining student interest has been challenging at times due to a multitude of issues. It is my hope that this course will allow for better interactions and successes for my students and myself as a support educator.
The material presented during Thing 1 was very interesting and intimidating for me. Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and media sharing are all very new topics for me. The article by David Warlick sounded so wonderful in the way that everything completed by educators, students, administrators, and parents was so interconnected and relevant to the education goals for students. I felt overwhelmed by the end of the article. But I also realize that one has to start somewhere to create change and improve my professional process. The video was very enlightening in regards to the realities of the potential that digital learning can have on today's students. Not only can learning occur within the classroom, but also by interacting digitally.
I will be interested to see how well interactions with my students and colleagues will be impacted by utilizing the tools that I will be learning over the next 10 weeks. I hope and trust that I have created my blog and post in Thing 2 satisfactorily. I am not sure that I set everything up properly. I am not sure how to change or "go back". But I guess with time and your input, I will learn.
Thank you for taking the time to read my thoughts. Have a nice evening, Gregory
(P.S., I tried to upload an image of kindergarten school children from New Orleans to my blog. I am not sure it worked. If it is not here, I will try again another time. Bye.)
I have been a teacher of the speech and language impaired (TSLI) within Detroit Public Schools for 9 years. My caseload has ranged in size around 50-60 students covering preschool to high school students. I have felt for sometime that connecting with my students has been a problem over extended periods with utilization of auditory and visual material for therapy activities. So much of students hobbies revolve around electronic media (i.e., cell phones, television, gaming devices, video games, computer usage, etc.). Over the last few years my role as a student support service teacher has revolved around attempting to mold my interventions and therapy around the curriculum in the classroom. Maintaining student interest has been challenging at times due to a multitude of issues. It is my hope that this course will allow for better interactions and successes for my students and myself as a support educator.
The material presented during Thing 1 was very interesting and intimidating for me. Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and media sharing are all very new topics for me. The article by David Warlick sounded so wonderful in the way that everything completed by educators, students, administrators, and parents was so interconnected and relevant to the education goals for students. I felt overwhelmed by the end of the article. But I also realize that one has to start somewhere to create change and improve my professional process. The video was very enlightening in regards to the realities of the potential that digital learning can have on today's students. Not only can learning occur within the classroom, but also by interacting digitally.
I will be interested to see how well interactions with my students and colleagues will be impacted by utilizing the tools that I will be learning over the next 10 weeks. I hope and trust that I have created my blog and post in Thing 2 satisfactorily. I am not sure that I set everything up properly. I am not sure how to change or "go back". But I guess with time and your input, I will learn.
Thank you for taking the time to read my thoughts. Have a nice evening, Gregory
(P.S., I tried to upload an image of kindergarten school children from New Orleans to my blog. I am not sure it worked. If it is not here, I will try again another time. Bye.)
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