Blog Reflection

            Blogging seems to be the new method of communication where one records his or her thoughts.  I actually began blogging before this class but it served as a resource for twenty something females.  That experience merely helped me get my thoughts out through an Internet median.  This experience however, has taught me a lot when it comes to the design, layout, and content of a blog.    My other blog is through blogger, which is why I decided to go with it again for my educational blog.  It has been easy to work with and I have begun using it also for another class I am taking. 

            I will definitely use this site as I grow in my educational endeavors, because it has helped me include technology that I find useful as well as videos that give inspiration to the educational field.  As an educator I tend to reflect often and it has and will always serve as a method of further reflection and growth.  I also believe it has been beneficial in helping me organize various resources for education. 

            Technology can have it’s set backs because it is a learning process.  I have found that my only difficulty has been in uploading media.  This process took me several trials and a lot of looking into how to go about it.  Luckily I feel more comfortable in this process now.   

            In viewing my peers’ blogs, I have been able to tweak mine from seeing an idea I hadn’t thought of.  Looking at how others create their sites is a great method of learning new methods not yet used.    I can also see myself having my colleagues view my site for additional resources.

            I have a site I use with my students for assignments, current events in the classroom, and links to newsletters etc.  I will not intertwine the two as this is more personal and I like to use examples from my students and wouldn’t want that to interfere with my relationships with them or their parents.  In addition to the class website, my students are blogging on a class blog site that gives them each a profile and blog space.  It was a neat experience having them learn the blogging world as I learned more about it.  We learned together.

TE 808 Course Reflection

TE 808 Reflection

      I didn’t know what to expect when taking this course.  I knew it was a research class but honestly did not make the connection that I would actually be doing an action research project.  I learned a lot about myself and it gave me insight into what career paths I am interested in for the future.

       The first thing I realized is how much this course has influenced my teaching practice.  I now see various components to my teaching and think about what results it is producing and what findings I can discuss and/change.  I think of my teaching as research into what best practices I can do for my students.

       Another thing this course has done for me is made me realize how interested in research I am.  I love teaching but after conducting this project as a teacher I see myself growing and expanding in other areas as well due to the simple fact of how fascinating it truly is.

       I have also learned from my students from this course.  The technology tools and videos were of interest to me and therefore I used them often in my classroom.  My students showed me how interested in technology they are and I appreciate having that tool for them.  I never would have thought I would have students blogging this year.

       This class has also helped me get an understanding for how busy schedules can get with various deadlines.  I have a vivid picture of how to organize my assignments to produce quality work but not to get bogged down or overwhelmed with having a teaching job as well.  I can organize my schedule in a way that benefits me and I found this course to aid in that organization.

       In reflecting, I would have to say the most challenging part would be the amount of time it took for the literature review.  The articles were lengthy and finding articles that pertained to my research was time consuming.   The beneficial part was seeing my research produce successful data.  I was convinced through this research how beneficial the Rocket math program was to my students and have buy in with it now.

       Lastly, if someone told me they were taking course I would urge them to be organized.  This was so important as not only did being organized effect me but also my peers with partner activities.  I would tell them to make sure they could vest their time in this class full heartedly as it is not one you can simply do bare minimum.  I would also tell them how much they will learn and the interesting research you can do and how wonderful it was to choose my own research!