Blogs, Infographics, and More

I feel like I am 85 years old and completely out of the loop in the technologically advanced world. Am I the only one that is overwhelmed by RSS feeds, blogs, infographics, google sites, etc. I had always considered myself technologically advanced. I am an avid typist. I understand facebook pretty thoroughly. I can navigate Prezi, power point, etc. I know how to set up audio for events and use HTML inputs. I am active on instagram and Vine.  Despite all these skills of mine, I am learning that I am far behind. We live in a world of bloggers, and I am not a part of it, although I am pretending to be for this class. I am one who suffers from writers anxiety. It kills me knowing that classmates of mine are going to read this very blog that I am typing at this moment.

YET

I

WILL

TREK

ON.

So, my dear colleagues, this week I learned about infographics!

I tried three different tools: piktochart.com, glogs, and infogr.am. I traversed through these websites and found piktochart to be a perfect fit for me. It had the look of a professional without the need for a pro. It was easy to use and I was able to create this.
I tried for ages to imbed the image into this blog. I was unsuccessful. I'd appreciate any tips on that lovely 21st century skill.

I can see myself using infographics to make newsletters for my classroom and school. I think it can be an effective communication tool for getting condensed information across to a wide audience. We will see if I have time to utilize this amidst grading, lesson planning, and mounds of paperwork.

Copyright?

As a future teacher, I am so grateful for all the resources available to me and my future classroom. Thankfully I will not be traversing the world of teaching alone. My lesson plans will not have to be created from scratch, and I will not have to decipher the common core for the classroom on my own. There are thousands upon thousands of available resources for use. Praise Jesus!

However, I have been boggled by the daunting task of following copyright laws and regulations. Last thing this girl wants to do is to infringe upon copyright laws. Which is why I am happy that this week's class has focused on copyright and cooperative learning. I am especially happy that I was able to read the 4 fair use factors. I believe this will be valuable tool to use when deciphering what is an infringement and what is not. I can go through each factor: 1) What is the purpose of the proposed use? 2) What is the nature of the copyright work to be used? 3) How much of the copyrighted work will be used? 4) What is the effect on the market or potential market for the copyrighted works? Going through these factors, I can safely say that much of what I will be using copyrighted works are qualified as "fair use".

Furthermore, I never knew that Flickr has specific images that are free to use and easily cited. I am grateful to have learned about this tool as well.

Now how should I cite this knew knowledge gained? Oh no...

Curt Bonk

I am continually troubled by what I have read thus far from Curt Bonk. I am not a person to question everything about technology and assume it is the detriment to us all, but Bonk seems to not question much about technology and assume it is the savior for us all. He takes his ideas so far as to imagine a world where education no longer takes place in the constraints of the classroom. His imagined world replaces faces and places with screens. While I have found immense value in the online education I have taken part in, it is far inferior to that of an actual classroom. I find value in the sense of place. It is important to be in a classroom, with a teacher and classmates for education. It is important to go to an actual library to check out a book. It is important to drink coffee at a coffee shop and meet your barista. It is important to tap into all your senses for experiences in life, when possible. I want to be able to smell, hear, taste, feel, and see a classroom when I am learning ( not really sure about taste, but you get the idea). I also believe in expertise and mentorship. Bonk would refer to individuals having access to lectures and other learning opportunities at the tips of their fingers. Can you really learn all that one has to offer in a lecture online? What about a professor's mentorship? What about office hours?

I do understand that not everyone has the privileges for this type of learning. It is a benefit that someone can obtain a degree online, and have much more access to learning than we ever thought possible in the past. I do recognize the vast benefits for education in regards to technology. Bonk, however, takes it too far. In all of our reading for this week, Bonk was optimistic throughout. He had no critiques. He never questioned if technology can go too far. He equated quick access, instant sharing, and the like with improved learning. I really cannot get on board.