Ethereal Delusions

Moments in time linger breathless
Fragments of light caress the dying soul
Daydreams waft aimlessly
Traces of darkness teeter on the minds edge
Joy is fleeting sorrow
Hope denied by songs of grief
Willowing away in the depths
Harmony stands chaotic

reflection in the wind…

I stood in my yard last night listening to the scarce remaining leaves rustle under the torment of a seemingly boastful wind.  Though not entirely enthused about wild, careless gusts and the inability to get the dog to do her business, I found myself taken back to early childhood memories.  A train whistle sounded in the distance as if calling me to remember those days when things were simpler.  A time taken for granted.  How I long for the days when my biggest worry was whether the Justice League would overcome the latest villian on Saturday mornings. 

There were so many missed opportunities of play…not enough time to daydream and certainly not enough distance from innocence to adulthood.  The generation before me has gone on, well most of them.  Few remain and those that do are painful reminders that my life is drawing to a close as does all life eventually.  Will I remember the joyous moments in my last breath or will I be so instilled with fear of the inevitable that I forget to celebrate one more time the brisk wind, the snowflake, the rain, or the scorching sun that I regretfully did not embrace as I should have?  Will there be more….or just darkness drowning away those memories?  Perhaps it will be many years yet before I discover the answer.  In the meantime, I shall grab each moment.

DE Project

Okay, so I’ve got my basic classroom set up on TappedIn, thanks to JeffC- He totally rocks.  All I have to do now it add my lessons, links, discussions (he’s already set up two of those also-he’ll be your tech guy) etc..get my student to log in and do some work!!!!  Yay!!!! Now back to Gaming and Research…getting there…like I said before..I’ll make it or die trying!

EDUC 688

I’ve searched and searched for a game design program that wouln’t cause my blood pressure to go any higher.  I’ve tried Scratch, Game Maker (lite, I can’t make myself pay for the pro version having no idea how much I can do with it) and a couple of others.  I’ve come to the conclusion, I’m going to have to figure out some type of PPT game.  I’ve seen Jeopardy, Wheel of Fortune, and all the other game show type PPT games and I’m not sure what I can come up with that’s original and promotes higher cognition.  I’m very frustrated at this point….beyond imagination.

Research Idea

Pick a topic for research in Distance Education and write a brief synopsis of how you’d study it.

I’m not sure exactly what I would research with DE- I’ve been interested in gender specific classes but I am curious if there is a difference between genders with DE.  That might prove to be interesting. 

Write up the proposal for your final project. Make sure you answer the following questions

• What are you going to do?   First I’m going to panic.  I’m not entirely certain but I would like to set up an online classroom to post assignments, lessons, tutorials, blogs, wiki’s, and so on.
• How are you going to do it?  I need to find a site (maybe tappedIn or nicenet [not sure what you can do there]) which would allow me to post video, ppts, etc.
• Who is it intended for?  I previously taught 9-12 Language Arts, but I’m currently working on my MAE for Reading Writing specialist.  I think I would like to create an area for a Reading Recovery program, multiple grades
• Why are you doing it?  Although I’m not teaching now, I do plan to go back into the classroom.  This woul be great to have something ready.  With success it would also be a great opportunity in the future for a research project:  Whether kids showed significant gains in Reading/writing using these kinds of tools.   
• How will you know if it’s working? Track what my students are doing, submitting…they would have to share what they were working on, what goals they had set for themselves, take comprehensive exams, depending on the group we could meet online for book discussion via video, they would do reflective writing, make recommendations, pose questions for one another, etc.

Kearsley on research

What does Kearsley have to say about research? Pick a point or two and expand on it in your blog.

*Impact on Student Achievement

A comprehensive study was completed by S.R. Hiltz and colleagues and found the following:

- mastery  = or + than traditional classrooms

-students felt access to instructor was greater

-student participation, satisfaction, and interest increased

-synthesis of information / dealing with complex problems increased

However, Kearsley notes that this was not true of all subjects/courses – it depends somewhat upon the instructors design and maintenance of the course and the students access to the necessary equipment- an internet connected, reliable, computer. 

* School Level Impact

Kearsley discusses trying to” implement technology in schools as part of reform /restructuring initiatives” and notes the difficulty in researching the changes occurring in the classroom when a school/class is not entirely online.  One has to take into account other variables in the classroom; whether the teacher has made other changes beyond the implementation of technology.  According to the Co-Nect project, their research shows “steady improvement in all ubject areas (4th & 8th grades) on state assessments,” “significant gains in Dade county FL,” “increased writing proficiency in TN,” “fewer behavioral issues in urban schools,” and “greater student ownership/responsibility and parent involvement.”  Perhaps these research findings will benefit other schools in receiving grants to make the switch. 

Kearsley notes the teaching activities have changed (which could make an argument against teaching strategies rather than for implementation of online classes) and how the environment of the school changed.  Considering the environment of most children outside of school is digitally based, it only makes sense the school environment should keep up.

 

Research article wk 12

2009 MILE Guide: Milestones for Improving Learning & Education from OLdaily

It sounds great in theory but it really doesn’t tell you “how” this is any different than other programs /plans.  We often think of literacy as reading print but as we’ve discussed before, literacy can apply to various areas.  In the “technology” age this program sound like the saving grace for the educational system.  However, it makes the assumption that teachers will teach in a fashion which is current and meets the needs of the digital student.  I had a great deal of trouble finding something to write on for this assignment.