Google - Don't Be Evil
Google - What do you really know about me? As a Gmail account holder for the past three years and a Google search user for the past five or six years, I would love to see the file Google has on me. They must know me pretty well. Most recently, they know that I search for A LOT of artwork on Google images and art lessons. If Google weren't evil, they would cater to my every need by emailing me suggestions of things that they KNOW I would find useful. Hmm...to the Google employee reading this, will that be your next pet project? But as much as they "know" about me, they don't really "know" me. So I think. Do they know my favorite drink at Starbucks is a Caramel Macchiato. Well, they do now, but I doubt it before because I've never searched for a Caramel Macchiato. I think I've only looked at the Starbucks website once when I got a little curious about how many calories a Grande Caramel Macchiato actually has. A lot, I found out, even with Non-fat Milk. Do they know that I am for being Green and environmentally friendly? (I hope you are too Google.) Do they know what music I like? Unless they tapped into my Pandora account, which has my Gmail as the email, no. So in other words, yes. Do they know what sports I like and that I don't like 99% of television?
My main qualm with Google is the fact that they don't delete my email I want deleted. If I want it gone, I want it gone. What's it to you Google? Put it in the Cyber Space Paper Shredder, cross-cut please. And the Flight Tracker? Who's the brains behind that one? I can't believe that one person actually thought that was a good idea, let alone the entire company. Hmm...I'm questioning your common sense Google. Something that I've learned though is that common sense is not at all common, it's a rarity among men and women. That means it's even more rare among companies.
As much as I don't like the big guy to have all the power (and arguably they don't), I think Google is doing some great things. Google Scholar came in handy searching for academic sources in undergrad. I used Google maps today. I get a kick out of the ads they put on my emails. I never click on them and usually I'm blind to them. However, sometimes in my peripheral vision, I catch something. I lied. I clicked on two of them. One was about coffee. (So maybe they DO know me!) The other did prove very useful when I was looking for a cheap ticket from MCI to BDL.
I did feel more comforted when I came across this in the comments:
"When the American government came knocking for user's data - both Yahoo and Microsoft handed it over without batting an eyelid. Google refused, and took it to court."
So Google, I've got your back. Do you have mine?
17 April 2008
15 April 2008
Week 4 Writing Prompt-You Tube
I think You Tube is a great tool to use in the classroom, though it does have its drawbacks. Most students are familiar with You Tube, so it automatically draws them in. You Tube is something they identify with much more than the dusty slide projector of Christmas Past and still-frame videos from 1983. I have been able to find a variety of useful clips, ranging from an art high school teacher in California demonstrating how to throw a pot to high-grade student demonstrations.
On the other hand, I wonder how many minutes...maybe hours...I have wasted sifting through You Tube material that is useless to me. It would be awesome if Teacher Tube could build up their collection and/or You Tube could create categories for education, entertainment, etc. Since anyone can post anything, it can get overwhelming if you are looking for something in particular. It's crazy to think about students posting videos of a confrontation of a teacher and student. The tazer incident at UCLA last year came to mind. Hopefully, knowing that these types of things can be posted serves as a reminder for teachers and authority figures to be responsible for their actions and to act wisely.
On the other hand, I wonder how many minutes...maybe hours...I have wasted sifting through You Tube material that is useless to me. It would be awesome if Teacher Tube could build up their collection and/or You Tube could create categories for education, entertainment, etc. Since anyone can post anything, it can get overwhelming if you are looking for something in particular. It's crazy to think about students posting videos of a confrontation of a teacher and student. The tazer incident at UCLA last year came to mind. Hopefully, knowing that these types of things can be posted serves as a reminder for teachers and authority figures to be responsible for their actions and to act wisely.
06 April 2008
Online Article Reflections
Article #1 - Students Leave Technology At Home from Education Week
This article presents the disparities of the ways in which young people use technology. Many children and adolescents use technology much more often outside of the classroom than inside. As educators, we need to be making more of an effort to keep up with technological advances. Children will need to learn technology for their future jobs and careers.
Using technology in the classroom also speaks the language of students more than traditional teaching. It engages students more and creates immediate interest. The high school at which I am teaching installed LCD projectors in every classroom this year. My colleagues and I have noticed that students are much more interested in subject material when it is viewed on the LCD projector than shown on the overhead or TV. Watching a DVD on the LCD projector engages students more than watching the same video on VHS on the television. My drawing students are currently underway on a scratchboard self-portrait. I started the lesson by having students use Photoshop to crop and adjust their digital portrait. I was amazed by how quickly the students flew through the steps and how few questions they had. Whereas I didn’t even learn Photoshop until my first year at design school (and that wasn’t even that long ago!), many of my students have Photoshop at home and are already familiar with the program.
On the other side, not every student has access to technology at home. Not every household has a computer with internet access and an MP3 player. With this in mind, we as educators have an even bigger responsibility to use technology in the classroom. Otherwise these students will be at a tremendous disadvantage in the job market. If we don’t teach it, how will they ever learn it?
Article #2 - Teachers Use You Tube in the Classroom
Having used You Tube in the classroom, I agree with Mr. Colosi, videos on You Tube help hold the interest of students. From what I observed, it doesn’t seem to matter if the clip is an old video uploaded onto You Tube. For the scratchboard project mentioned above, I incorporated two You Tube clips. The first was a twenty-minute instructional video. Though parts may have been a little slow, the students watched quietly through the entire video. The second clip was a four-minute time-lapse by a college student demonstrating his scratchboard technique. The clip’s soundtrack, Daft Punk’s “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger,” immediately engaged students.
I will admit that I was skeptical of using You Tube in the classroom. Initially, I didn’t know that it had educational resources. I can understand why some administrators would block You Tube, but I would hope they would consider the academic resources it does have to offer. It is helpful to see what other teachers are doing in their classrooms. I had not previously heard about TeacherTube and SchoolTube, so I will have to look into those resources.
Article #3 - $50 Computer Being Tested in Schools
A $50 computer for every student? That sounds great! This seems like a great way to engage students and for their personal needs to be catered to. Students are automatically drawn to the computer and don’t even realize that they are actually learning educational material. In a classroom of 20-22 students, it is difficult for a teacher to devote large amounts of time in class to students who need extra help.
However, I somewhat agree with the comment from thespecialeducator. We cannot replace the role of the educator. While the “teachermate” can contribute to a child’s development of language and math skills, it does not replace the teacher.
Article #4 - Online Speech Pits Students Against Teachers
The immediate thought that came to mind while reading this article was, “Have students written anything about me on the internet? Maybe I even have a MySpace page I don’t know about!” While students do have First Amendment rights and freedom of speech, students also need to learn about what is appropriate and what is not, especially in the domain of the internet. To me, it seems obvious that overtly calling administrators names and making a fake profile for a school principal would warrant punishment. While students may think they are voicing their opinion in the private sphere, the internet is the public sphere. Perhaps we as educators need to educate our students on appropriate use of technology. Although students do have First Amendment rights, if schools districts clearly set guidelines of expectations of their students, then students would know the repercussions.
This article presents the disparities of the ways in which young people use technology. Many children and adolescents use technology much more often outside of the classroom than inside. As educators, we need to be making more of an effort to keep up with technological advances. Children will need to learn technology for their future jobs and careers.
Using technology in the classroom also speaks the language of students more than traditional teaching. It engages students more and creates immediate interest. The high school at which I am teaching installed LCD projectors in every classroom this year. My colleagues and I have noticed that students are much more interested in subject material when it is viewed on the LCD projector than shown on the overhead or TV. Watching a DVD on the LCD projector engages students more than watching the same video on VHS on the television. My drawing students are currently underway on a scratchboard self-portrait. I started the lesson by having students use Photoshop to crop and adjust their digital portrait. I was amazed by how quickly the students flew through the steps and how few questions they had. Whereas I didn’t even learn Photoshop until my first year at design school (and that wasn’t even that long ago!), many of my students have Photoshop at home and are already familiar with the program.
On the other side, not every student has access to technology at home. Not every household has a computer with internet access and an MP3 player. With this in mind, we as educators have an even bigger responsibility to use technology in the classroom. Otherwise these students will be at a tremendous disadvantage in the job market. If we don’t teach it, how will they ever learn it?
Article #2 - Teachers Use You Tube in the Classroom
Having used You Tube in the classroom, I agree with Mr. Colosi, videos on You Tube help hold the interest of students. From what I observed, it doesn’t seem to matter if the clip is an old video uploaded onto You Tube. For the scratchboard project mentioned above, I incorporated two You Tube clips. The first was a twenty-minute instructional video. Though parts may have been a little slow, the students watched quietly through the entire video. The second clip was a four-minute time-lapse by a college student demonstrating his scratchboard technique. The clip’s soundtrack, Daft Punk’s “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger,” immediately engaged students.
I will admit that I was skeptical of using You Tube in the classroom. Initially, I didn’t know that it had educational resources. I can understand why some administrators would block You Tube, but I would hope they would consider the academic resources it does have to offer. It is helpful to see what other teachers are doing in their classrooms. I had not previously heard about TeacherTube and SchoolTube, so I will have to look into those resources.
Article #3 - $50 Computer Being Tested in Schools
A $50 computer for every student? That sounds great! This seems like a great way to engage students and for their personal needs to be catered to. Students are automatically drawn to the computer and don’t even realize that they are actually learning educational material. In a classroom of 20-22 students, it is difficult for a teacher to devote large amounts of time in class to students who need extra help.
However, I somewhat agree with the comment from thespecialeducator. We cannot replace the role of the educator. While the “teachermate” can contribute to a child’s development of language and math skills, it does not replace the teacher.
Article #4 - Online Speech Pits Students Against Teachers
The immediate thought that came to mind while reading this article was, “Have students written anything about me on the internet? Maybe I even have a MySpace page I don’t know about!” While students do have First Amendment rights and freedom of speech, students also need to learn about what is appropriate and what is not, especially in the domain of the internet. To me, it seems obvious that overtly calling administrators names and making a fake profile for a school principal would warrant punishment. While students may think they are voicing their opinion in the private sphere, the internet is the public sphere. Perhaps we as educators need to educate our students on appropriate use of technology. Although students do have First Amendment rights, if schools districts clearly set guidelines of expectations of their students, then students would know the repercussions.
04 April 2008
Week 2: Podcasting and video in the classroom
Last week when I searched for art education blogs, I discovered a middle school teacher who had her students make their own podcast with different segments. I think it's a great idea, but it's hard for me seeing that fitting into my high school art classroom. One main concept that our art department would like to do is to incorporate more art history into our lessons, and eventually have a separate art history course. I think podcasts would be a great way of introducing artists to students. They could hear curators from museums around the world. Here are some links to some art podcasts that I found:
http://www.idiotvox.com/Podcasts_About_Art_85.html
http://moma.org/visit_moma/audio.html#mk
The MoMA has some great resources. There is even one podcast called "Red Studio" created especially for and by teens. There is another podcast called "Modern Kids," which would be more age appropriate for elementary school students.
As for video, it would be neat for students to create an art gallery of their work and discuss their artwork and the process.
http://www.idiotvox.com/Podcasts_About_Art_85.html
http://moma.org/visit_moma/audio.html#mk
The MoMA has some great resources. There is even one podcast called "Red Studio" created especially for and by teens. There is another podcast called "Modern Kids," which would be more age appropriate for elementary school students.
As for video, it would be neat for students to create an art gallery of their work and discuss their artwork and the process.
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