Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Blog Post 1

Krissy Venosdale and Sugata Mitra have great unconventional ideas about education. I loved the concepts presented in Krissy Venosdale's post If I Built A School. Her school is completely oriented around making kids enjoy learning. Letting students go explore different topics at their own pace and not teaching them to the tune of a state test is an incredible idea. Instead of forcing kids to sit still in a boring environment and learn something they have no interest in, put them in a place full of imagination and watch them learn because they love it. On the other hand you have educators like Sugata Mitra, who do not just have ideas, but have shown that anyone can succeed if they are determined. By giving Indian children computers with english text he is showing that anyone with the desire to learn can be successful. There are no barriers to learning. All that a student needs is positive reinforcement. One correlation that I liked between both Venosdale and Mitra was that both of their educating viewpoints involved not forcing the kids to learn, but letting them do it by themselves.

What do you want your students to know?

I want my students to know that not everyone is the same. We all have different strengths and weaknesses. There is no such thing as the ideal, prefect, cookie cutter person. I want them to know that being different and beating to the tune of their own drum is okay. I want them to be free to have their own style of creativity in my class.

What do you want your students to be able to do?

I want my students to do what interests them. I want them to be able to choose what they learn and guide themselves to learn as much as possible. I do not want to be the teacher that forces them to learn. I want them to love coming to school everyday because its not just learning, but a new adventure and experience.

What will be your primary way of teaching your students what you want them to know and to do?

I want my primary way of teaching to be a combination between the two methods of Venosdale and Mitra. I want to be able to give my students an incredible learning environment with every tool and resource readily available. I do not want to dictate what they do, but be there to help them solve problems and give them positive encouragement to keep learning. I know there will be lessons at the front of the class, just as there have always been, but I want them to be able to take that lesson and work at their own pace to reach their full potential. I believe in a lot of Sugata Mitra's findings in that if you let their curiosity inspire and drive them, their ability to learn is limitless.

What tools will you use in your classroom?

Along with the normal up to date technology, I want to have live animals apart of my classroom. Although I agree that technology is very important in our world today, I do not want my students loosing their connection to natural world around them. I want them to be able to go outside, see the animals, interact with them, and create not only a connection, but a deeper understanding. You may be able to read about animals and different topics on an Ipad, but until you work with something in real life with your hands it does not hold the same value.

students with animals


What role will students play in your classroom, i.e. how will they participate in the learning process?

In my classroom students will be the ones in control of their learning. They are naturally curious when it comes to new things. I want them to be able to find something that draws them in and explore it until they are satisfied with their learning.

REVISED

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Practice Blog Post

My name is Maggie Adkisson. I consider myself to be from Alabama because I was born here in Mobile, but I have lived in seven other states around the country. Growing up in a military family that moved every 2 years taught me to be very adventurous. I do not talk a lot, but I love going to new places, trying new things, and being outside. On a normal weekend you can find me hiking, running, hunting, riding horses, or being out on the water.

Initially, I went to college in Nebraska at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. I loved living in Nebraska. It is the one place where you can go from being out in the middle of no where to being in the city with 400,000 people in 20 minutes. In my Sophomore of college my grandpa was diagnosed with cancer. Despite how much I enjoyed living off by myself I was not willing to lose the remaining time I had left with my grandpa. I moved myself back to Mobile over winter break. Now I live with my grandparents on their farm and attend South. I could not be happier than where I am at right now, with them.

Entering the field of Education for me was an obvious choice. I love kids. My little brother and sister are my world. Through helping them with school I have figured out that Elementary education is the career I want to pursue. I can not imagine doing anything else. My goal is to not make a lot a money, but to love what I do everyday.

Below is a picture of my grandparents and I. We went on a two mile hike at Mammoth Cave.
my grandparents and I

My Test Post Title

This is my First Post. I clicked the HTML button which I should always do in EDM310. I am now a Blogger!