At the Teacher's Desk

The blog At the Teacher's Desk is a very interesting blog about teachers using technology. I read five posts from this blog and learned a new perspective on a few things.I read the posts from October 20, September 24, September 18, September 13, and September 10.

In the October 20th post, the author discussed the need for teachers to become social networking experts. This is problably the post that I got the most out of. The author said that they had to cover for a teacher who was sick. The sick teacher's class would be testing in the lab. However, many of the students were already finished with the tests and needed something to do. The sick teacher said that they had been covering probablilty. So, author said that they sent out a tweet which said "Quick, I need some websites for students to do probability games. Sick teacher needs some help." Within minutes responses flooded in. The author of the blog said that this is a not only a positive pin story, but it is more. "It is a hint of what we will soon see in education." The author also stated that Students need a link to what they will learn, and that teachers are that link. I think that being experts in social networking is a great asset for teachers and this story proves how it can be.

The September 24th post was titled "How Do I Know I'm Not Just Being Selfish." The author discussed whether or not the he is imposing his belief that learning about blogging, creating media, and connecting with others or not. Is he forcing his intrests on others? Is technology better than traditional content? In my opinion too much of a good thing is not good. Everything needs to be in moderation. So, by combining technology and traditional content, students and teachers can benefit.

The September 18th post discussed using Skype to connect Mrs. Baker's ESOL class and Mrs. Whittier's Spanish class. I thought that this was a great thing. It shows how using technology can enhance learning and give people opportunities that they might otherwise not have. Mrs. Whittier wanted her class to learn about schools in Mexico and to have an authentic experience with the Spanish language. Mrs. Baker's class got an opportunity to see what attending a private school in Virginia is like. The classes were able to learn from one another and never have to leave their own classrooms.

The September 13th post discussed using technology efficently for communication. The author said that Twitter is good for quick communication, but that not enough parents access it to make it worthwhile. So, by combining it with the class blog by putting a Twitter feed on the sidebar of the blog, a few more parents access Twitter. However, he said that many of the parents do not access it enogh to get the updates on time. The author suggested giving out your cell phone number so that parents can easily access you. Some people are concerned that if they do this they will never be able to "turn off" work. The author said that he prefers speaking to the parents. The author also said that if "turning off" work becomes a problem, he is perfectly capable of not answering a call. I agree with the author here. I think that many parents would prefer speaking to the teacher if there was a real problem. I'm not talking about calling to find out petty things. I would let parents know that they can call me on my cell phone if there is something really important that they need to talk to me about. The technology of cell phones allows a person to be available at all times, which is why I think that this is a great way to use technology to communicate effectively. The author also suggested that teachers try using faceboook. Many parents have facebook and check it each day. By making a facebook account for the class, parents can have access to information on what is going on in their child's class.

The last post that I read was from September 10th. It stated that people are trying to ban pencils and crayons from school because they are dangerous. Now that there are colored penicls, the notes that students pass have drawings on them. There is also something new coming out called a ballpoint pen. People are afraid of this becasue it cannot be erased. This made me laugh. It reminds me of the way people are afraid of technology. It is important for teachers to not be afraid of learnig about and using technology in their clasrooms.

With blogging teachers can keep a professional collaborative blog such as this one. The author has links to his collaborators, which allows him to click and learn new information from peers. It is important for teachers to collaborate so that they can get new ideas and opinions. This will help teachers to stay excited about their job. It will allow them to provide an up-to-date education for their students.