Sunday, August 31, 2014

Blog Post #2

After watching the video, "Mr. Dancealot," I realized that teaching requires application! A teacher that engages his/her students and requires them to apply themselves to the material has much better success than a teacher who does not. The central message is that learning requires interaction with the teacher and the material. The author of the video made his point extremely clear at the end; the students did not learn because all they did was listen to him talk about dance, and demonstrate the positions behind a huge podium. I assume that we all agree that he should have at least demonstrated the dance positions where his students could see him. The conclusion of this video with Mr. Dancealot was nothing less than 100 percent valid. Even with their notes, and the couple of students who payed attention in every lecture, they still did not know how to dance. The students needed more in depth demonstration and practice! A dance class cannot be successful when they are learning in a lecture class room with power points; obviously, they should have been learning in the ballroom where their final exam would be held. It is not fair to expect one's students to absorb so much material on a screen and on paper and then be able to "burp it back," as Dr. Strange would say, physically and accurately.

Roberts's video, "Teaching in the 21st Century," caused me to really think about what I will be doing as a teacher in this technologically advanced generation. I believe that Roberts thinks we as teachers must be adaptive and, of course, engaging to be the kind of teacher we aspire to be in the future. He talks about using the skills we've learned about technology to motivate our future students to engage in technology as well. I feel as if this video is beneficial to both future teachers and current students because the questions Roberts asks are serious to our education. The internet has an endless supply of knowledge for people to obtain, but it also provides much distraction. I agree completely with what Roberts has proposed in his video, but on the other hand I do not think that technology will productively serve my students in a P.E. classroom. Applications and answers at your finger tips might work well in a traditional classroom, but I still believe children can be distracted in the blink of an eye. If personal technology becomes popular in the classrooms I would propose heavy monitoring and strict rules to be efficient. Lastly, I am not completely against using technology in a P.E. class because it could be helpful at any time; I personally just see it as a bigger distraction.

"Why does a networked student need a teacher?" is a very engaging question! Networked students have all they need at the touch of a button and a click of the mouse, but the teacher is the one who instructs them properly and guides them to success. A teacher is a mentor and a "filter of knowledge," as stated in Roberts's previous video; they don't just assign homework and grade projects all year long. If students didn't have teachers how would they know which direction to go? How would they know who they could trust? How would they know if they were making progress? These are the questions that come to mind when Drexler asked us her question. My opinion is that teachers are necessary to the quality of learning and the success of the student!

Vicki Davis's video, "Harness Your Student's Digital Smarts," was all about the collaborative work between students through the internet. By blogging and documenting and sharing, these students have interacted with others like them from around the world! As she stated in the video, "only using paper and pencil," will definitely limit the success of your students. Children and adults, too, can learn anytime and anywhere and I think it is a wonderful accomplishment; especially for the type of experience Davis is sharing with her students! Once students gain those skills they are never lost. The best part is, those skills can be passed on from there on out.

After watching Dr. Strange's video on who is ahead in the learning race, I would have to vote for the Elementary students. They are so privileged to be growing up with tools such as the Mac book. Those students are learning new things every day that people my age wouldn't have even dreamed of when we were 1st graders. It is truly amazing how much education can change and who it can affect. It seems to me that the Gulf Shores Elementary school is really making progress on the quality of education these students are receiving, and I am proud to know that now. I have had my doubts on the education system here locally but after a couple weeks in EDM 310 and watching this video by Dr. Strange I now hold this generation to high standards. It also seems to me that every upcoming generation has the ability to "one-up" the generation before them now.

The article, "Bringing the Locker Room into the Classroom," was inspiring to me. The author made some valid points on how teachers also need to be coaches in their classrooms. Teachers should coach their students the basic skills they will need to interpret material and to come up with the best possible answer. When I eventually become a Physical Education teacher, I will have to be both a teacher and a coach. I must teach my students the skills, the rules, and the goals intended but I also will have to coach them into applying their new skills properly. I also agree with the author when he stated that teachers have the ability to learn from coaches, and vise versa. I believe in the statement that has already been made clear in this class that educators are life long learners!

collage of words relating to technology in the classroom, such as: podcast, blog, engage, collaborate, YouTube, etc.

Sunday, August 24, 2014

Blog Post #1

What About EDM310?

I only recently changed my major to the College of Education, I was majoring in Exercise Science, so I haven't heard much talk about these required courses such as EDM 310. The only information and opinions I am aware of is what has already been provided by Dr. Strange and his assistants. I haven't been scared off yet, but I usually try to have faith in myself during the first week of a new course. If I had received troubling feedback about this course I would have disregarded it anyway because I try to maintain an unbiased opinion about everything. On the other hand, If I had gotten positive feedback, I would be excited to learn new things from this course. As of now, the only worries I have about this course are managing my time and not to forget any assignments! Forgetting about things is probably my biggest weakness, but hopefully that can change. Compared to other classes I have taken here at USA this one is by far the most impressive! I was first impressed about the lack of paper work and that all work is through the internet; every professor should go green! I have heard teachers all my life say something like, "Don't waste paper, let's save the trees," but I have never actually seen one do something about it. As stated before, I think my most difficult task in this class will be not to forget an assignment. To prevent that awful mistake from ever happening I plan to leave myself reminders everywhere I look: on my phone's calendar, on the dry-erase board in my room, and in my class notebook.
To conclude, I am still not quite sure what exactly to expect from this class so I'm not very inquisitive about anything yet. I always remind myself to listen closely in class and to have an open mind, and with that being said, if I am unsure about something I will not hesitate to ask for help and get answers!
photo of an alarm on a smartphone

Friday, August 22, 2014

Practice Blog Post

I. Background information on myself
a. Personal History
b. Previous sports/interests
c. My major
II. Why Educate?
a. To help the next generations
b. To continue learning myself
c. Interest in teacher benefits
III. Skills to be an Educator
a. Knowledge of the subject
b. Energy and patience
c. Time and commitment
IV. My passions
a. Daily physical activities
b. The environment
c. include media

About Me
My name is Shelby Lynn, I am 20 years young, and I was born and raised here in Mobile, Alabama. I have a fairly small family that all live nearby so we are all pretty close, except for my cousins who are at school in CA and NY. My family and I enjoy the outdoors probably more than anything else. My dad has been sailing boats since he was a kid and because of that we've had the opportunity to go on awesome private cruises in the Caribbean. My parents, my brother and I are also SCUBA certified and enjoy boating in the Gulf of Mexico and spear fishing. Those are our summer activities; during the fall and winter we are at our hunting camp in NW Alabama preparing for White Tail deer season. I also really love to travel. I have been to almost all 50 states and out of the coutry a handful of times as well, to the Bahammas, Belize, the British and Spanish Virgin Islands, and most recently Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands.

I am majoring in Physical Education, and I was influenced to this major because I have many years of experience with sports and fitness. Not only am I interested in playing the game but also all of the meaning and purpose that I have put into sport, as well as what I have gained from it. Through the years I have participated in gymnastics, cheerleading, swimming, tennis, dance, basketball, and volleyball; although practicing yoga is probably my favorite activity. I believe that my physical fitness has allowed me to better myself, and that is what I hope to accomplish with others when I receive my degree.

Why I Want to Educate
The most important reason I want to teach physical education is to help influence the upcomming generations in our society. Our nation's concern with obesity and diet related illnesses worries me, as I believe it should worry every one. If we do not teach the children what it means to be physically active and healthy nobody will, because the parents are already the ones who are unhealthy and exhibiting bad habits. We all play a role in how our society develops, and it's not fair to be dissapointed in it when we haven't tried to do anything to change it. By teaching the children in our nation I will also have the ability to continue learning myslef; I believe that teachers are life long learners in their field. Like most people, I look foraward to having a summer season during the year. So, becoming a teacher who gets the summers and weekends off was very appealing to me. During that time I hope to pursue another area of teaching-becoming a yoga instructor.

What is an Educator?
To me an educator is a friend, a parent, a family member, or they could even be a stranger. No matter the relation that person has to you, if they have shared something that positively influences your life or holds deep meaning to you, they have educated you. An educator also helps to develop ideas and morals and helps steer the path of right and wrong. I have always heard people say that those who want to teach do not do it for the sallary, they do it because they have a passion for teaching; and beacuase of that reason teachers carry a lot on their plates. Obviously a teacher must have knowledge and understanding of the subject to be able to share the lesson. But that is not all a teacher should have; they need to have energy, patience, time, and a sense of commitment. Even though they are young, children can notice when a teacher doesn't care and that definitely influences how and what they learn from them.

My Passions
My passions include my daily physical activities. Every weekday morning I take my new puppy on a walk around our neighborhood, when we get home I usually start my yoga practice, and then in the evenings when my boyfriend gets off work we go to the gym together. These activities are very important to me to do daily because they keep me on track and feeling good. When I am unable to do them my whole day feels off, and I can almost feel the laziness in my body. I really love being active and having something to do that'll make me sweat (and with that said you can guess I am not like most girls my age). On almost any day, except maybe the past few days of August, I would rather be outside doing something active than sitting inside. Another one of my passions is helping the environment. After my recent trip to the Galapagos Islands (for those who do not know, is a very strictly preserved national park) I have a much better understanding on how the population influences it's environment, which is something that is taken for granted. If we want a clean and safe place to live then we need to make it that way. The following picture was taken of me doing a yoga pose on the top of Santa Cruz island in the Galapagos.
Image of myself practicing the yoga pose known as dancer in the Galapagos Islands