My blogging experience

The first time I ever heard the word "blog" was a couple of years ago when my brother went on a European vacation. He and his girlfriend were going to be gone for a couple of weeks, so they set up a blog to let everyone know what they were doing. Every night they would write about what they had seen and done that day, and we all got sucked into reading the posts. At that time I had no idea what a blog was, and I didn't know that I was supposed to respond to what they had written. Only a few people ever commented on his blog, so I guess most of my family didn't know that you were supposed to write back either.

I went on a similar vacation a couple of weeks later, and I didn't blog. I actually joked with him about the fact that he did. Now it is a few years later and he has a documented journal of his trip. It is complete with pictures, links, comments, and responses. He will always have his blog to look back on, and it is better than a regular journal or diary because it is interactive. Back then I did not appreciate the value of blogging; I only thought it was some new kind of thing that I just wasn't into.

I blogged for the first time last semester, and then I was very shy and nervous about posting my questions, answers, and ideas. I spent a while reading other people’s posts before I had the courage to participate. Once I got the hang of it, and felt comfortable posting, I learned to blog regularly. Now I blog just as I speak, in very long-winded posts that seem to never end. I don’t even think about what people will think when they read this. I just write.

During this semester I tried to blog at least once a week, and I was usually able to do that. I decided that the way that I was going to keep us with the assignments was to do the work on Saturday mornings as if I was in class. That method kept me focused and allowed me to schedule other activities around what I considered to be “class time”.

One of my favorite parts of blogging has become reading the comments that people have made in response to my posts. There have been times when I check up on the blog just to see if there have been any responses, and when there are, I get extremely excited to read what has been written. I guess that’s one of the great things about a blog; the feedback that you get. Also, I have enjoyed posting to my partner’s blog. I like to read how she felt about an issue or how she interpreted an article. I enjoy leaning from her posts. From reading them I am able to think about the articles in different ways, and sometimes even get clarification on information that I might not have understood.

This semester I learned that blogging is pretty easy, and that there are so many different ways that you can use a blog for educational purposes. I think what I like the most is that it is interactive, and unlike instant messaging or chatting, you do not have to be on the computer at the same time as someone else to communicate with him/her. If I had it my way, I would set up a class blog primarily as a place for students to ask and answer each other’s questions, and of course I would participate with them.

From this blogging experience I have learned different ways to learn. I have also learned how to use other people’s thoughts and ideas as resources to enhance my learning. As far as literacy goes, I think that understanding how this works is one type of literacy, and because you have to post your writing on the Internet (for all to see) you must make sure others will be able to understand what you have written. This deals with very basic literacy. Now let’s add in the fact that you have to read and write to blog and the more you blog, the better you will read and write. It sounds to me like this method of teaching/learning works, and like everything in life, the more you practice, the better you will get.

What I Have Learned From Shaun White

After a semester of trying to get better at playing a video game (Shaun White's Snowboarding Road Trip), I have to honestly say that I am still bad at it. I know that my performance is not because I have not tried, but I believe that it is because of my attitude toward playing. I am content with not completing the game and not having the highest scores. I am proud of myself for just improving my personal records and that gives me satisfaction. Playing the game took up so much of my time, so I chose not play every day. Even if I did play every day, I still don't think that I would have completed the game.

My experiences with this game have made me think about the learning process, and about myself. I know that in life I don't like doing things that I am not good at, and I think that playing video games fit into that category for me. I struggled with learning the different skills necessary to do well with in the game, so it wasn't always enjoyable for me. There were many nights when I played for over an hour and still didn't score what I needed to move on. I would not stop playing until I improved my score, but I didn’t enjoy wasting my night away doing something that I was bad at. In order to try to improve I read the manual and I watched others play, but in a game like Wii, you need to physically do the actions, so my attempts at "studying" were unsuccessful.

I’ve been thinking about it, and I wondered that if we were being graded on our progress and accomplishments in the game, would I have done better? I really think that I would have. I am definitely the type of student who is ok with not being the best, as long as I know that I have tried my best, but when a grade is involved things change. If I had to grade my performance in Shaun White’s Snowboarding, I think that I would have earned a “C+”, and the “+” would only be for effort. If that was going to be my grade for this project, I would be so upset. I don’t think that I would have let that happen, so maybe I would have stayed up late every night practicing. Maybe I would have put off the other responsibilities that I have to make sure that I did what was necessary to get a better grade.

Is doing whatever is necessary to get an “A” worth sacrificing for? I don’t know the answer to that. Is learning about getting good grades, or is it about what you have actually learned? In school, do students only work hard to get good grades, and is that why some students (who do not care about their grades) do not work at all? I have enjoyed my experiences learning how to play this game, and I have learned, isn’t that what matters? I just have to keep practicing in order to improve. Every student learns at his/her own pace. Obviously a semester was not enough time for me; someone who has not played video games since high school, and who had never even tried playing this game until the beginning of the semester. What does that tell us about how we treat students in school? We often don’t take into consideration the fact that some students need more time and more attention to learn something. If they do not learn it they get a bad grade and we move on without them ever having learned the material. We do it every day, but that is definitely not right.

This experience has also helped me realize that students spend more time doing the things that they enjoy. If I really liked playing video games, I would have gotten better at it. I think that I like writing and talking about playing more than I like playing the game. Some students might agree with me, others would probably laugh at me. We all learn differently and enjoy learning in different ways and by doing different things. I think that is what I learned most from this project. My students would love it if I brought games into the classroom. However, I already had a student tell me that the games we play, like Jeopardy type review games, are not fun games and that those don’t count.

Now I am going to try to find computer games that involve American History, are age appropriate for high school students, don’t take too long to play, and can be used as valuable instructional tools. I have searched, and so far I have been unsuccessful. I don’t know why more companies do not make such games, maybe they do, and I just have not found the good ones yet. If I do introduce these “fun games” will I lose the interest of the students like myself who really don’t care to “beat the game”? Would some students play just to win, and not absorb the valuable lessons that the game is teaching? Playing Shaun White’s Snowboarding Road Trip has made me evaluate how I approach and deal with learning situations. Maybe playing games in class would help me evaluate the same things about my students.

Even though the assignment is over, I am not giving up on Shaun White. Maybe someday, and not any time soon, I will be able to say, “I beat the game”, but if not, that’s ok with me.

Only a few more weeks with Shaun White

There are only a few more weeks in the semester, and I have not made much progress with Shuan White's Snowboarding. At the beginning of the semester I was motivated to learn how to play the game. Once I started playing regularly I wanted to improve. As time went on I realized that the only way to improve is to study the game and spend a lot of time playing it.

This week I did not spend a lot of time playing. Instead I set a personal goal to improve on one aspect of the game. When I accomplished my goal, I allowed myself to stop (even though I did not actually advance in the game). I decided that I needed to practice making my feet do exactly what was necessary for specific tricks, so that is what I practiced. Previously I would just move my feet and push buttons on the controller, and I would be happy with whatever tricks I wound up doing. Now I am trying to perfect individual tricks so I know that I can do them. This way I will be able to use these tricks to score points when I need to.

This method has given me a different kind of satisfaction. Although I haven't progressed closer to the end of the game, I now actually have the ability to do certain tricks. I'm not sure which feeling is better, having acquired knowledge, or getting closer to beating the game. I guess real gamers use what they have learned to complete the game.

It is going to take me more than one semester to finish this game, but I am ok with that. I don't know if most video game players would be.

Waking Life

I have to admit that I didn't really understand the clip from Waking Life. I tried to comprehend what was being said about existentialism and the importance of the individual, so I watched the clip many times. I get that our actions and our interactions with others help create our identity, and the identities of others, and I know that we are all interconnected, and that our decisions will either directly or indirectly affect others. What I did not get was the purpose of the film. Was it to inform, to make us think, or simply to express someone's views?

I did think that the video format was interesting. I also read some of the responses that viewers wrote and it confused me as to who the characters in the film were. Were they real people? Were they interpretations of real people? Or were they fictional characters discussing the ideas of real people?

Choosing materials for our media center

One of the things that is so wonderful about creating a media center from scratch, and in the virtual world, is that we have the opportunity to make what we would consider to be an ideal space. However, even though we do not have to worry about funding or logistics, we do need to think about what would be appropriate in a real media center.

As part of the technology group, I tried to think about everything that I would want the students to be able to have access to. I thought about programs and resources that would encourage middle school students to spend time in a media center, but I did not think about things like internet filters. I guess I took for granted that they would be there.

As educators, and creators of a space for students who are at such a critical and impressionable age, we need to make sure that we meet their needs as curious learners. At the same time, we need to make sure that we meet the needs or their parents. We need to make sure that we create an environment for their children that is safe for them to explore; and one that does not allow them to be exposed to inappropriate content or to online predators.

Intellectual Freedom

Intellectual Freedom in School Libraries
By Linda J. Shirley

School libraries and media centers need to make sure they provide students and faculty with the opportunity to access information. While students are researching, there is the possibility that they may come in contact with inappropriate or incorrect content. School library and media specialists and teachers have the responsibility to teach students how to decide between reliable and unreliable sources. As students use the internet to research topics, they should know what sources to trust and which to skip over. If a school curriculum is set up to meet the needs of the students, then critical researching skills should be included. However, use of the internet can get complicated if students are allowed unlimited access. If schools do not use filters, then students can, and will, be introduced to inappropriate materials. In order to lessen the likelihood that this will happen, school libraries and media centers have the ability to block certain websites. Is this censorship? I do not think so. Even though many educationally appropriate websites are blocked by the filters, they do their job and prevent most of the inappropriate materials from being viewed by the students. If a student absolutely needs to view the contents of a blocked website, he/she can copy the website and view it at home (hopefully with the supervision of his/her parents).

As for banning books, I think that is a completely different issue. Books are banned for various reasons, usually related to political or religious beliefs. I understand that school libraries and media centers cannot always provide students with every book that has ever been written. However, I do believe the students should have the ability to read books that may be appealing to them, even if the topics or language used in the book are opposed by the political and religious beliefs of the neighborhood or school district.

I think that the confidentiality issues involved with student library records is an interesting topic. I never realized that students’ beliefs, interests, and identity issues could be tracked by the books that he/she takes out from the library. I also think that a student may take out books to learn about different topics, and the books may have no relevance to the type of person he/she is. If circulation records were not confidential, many misconceptions could be made about students, which could lead to negative attitudes toward the school and the library, which would probably discourage the students from reading.

Software and art

Post-media Aesthetics
By Lev Manovich

In my opinion, the most interesting aspect of this article is the idea that software affects how works are created and also how we read, view, see, and hear them. If different types of software are used to create a piece, the finished product will come out differently. Software also influences how we perceive what we are viewing. Without specific software, the product may not be received as it was intended to.

The example of a DJ spinning and remixing music helped me understand how important software is. When you listen to a mix made by a professional DJ or music technician, the flow is seamless. You do not notice the transitions from one song to the next, and you have no idea that whole pieces of the original song have been taken out and then added back on later in the mix. DJs can add sound effects, combine songs, and loop sounds to create what can be considered their own work. This practice is definitely an art form. Without advanced software and machinery, DJs would be spinning records like they did twenty-five years ago, and although many were successful then, the finished products were definitely not as advanced as they are today.

If we take this same idea and apply it to other types of art and even student work, we can understand how important software is. I have received many e-mails where I could not open an attachment because I did not have the necessary programs to do so. It is frustrating for both the sender and the receiver. I have had many problems in school because of Microsoft Office 2007. My students have tried to e-mail me projects that I could not open because they saved them in Office 2007 formats. They have also had trouble printing their work in school because the school computers do not support Office 2007. All of these problems could be easily solved, but what if they couldn’t be? In this digital age, are we being forced to purchase certain software? Are decisions being made for us that can cost us a lot of money? Do the various types of artists know that the viewing of their art is conditional upon what software the viewers are using? The artists might not realize this, but the software companies do, and that is how they make a lot of money.

When I don't play regularly I get worse

I have realized that if I take a few days off from playing Shaun White, I get really bad. I guess that's why gamers spend so much of their time playing. The more you play, the better you get. I have also learned that I am ok with never finishing the game. I've been playing for a few months now, and I am not even close to completing the game. I'm sure this would bother some true gamers. When I play with others it does bother me that they are so much better than I am, but it does not drive me to spend all of my free time improving.

As for the learning process, the more times that I've played the same course on the same level, the better I have gotten at it. By repeating the same course over and over I've learned when to turn, when to jump, when to go faster and slower. Does that mean that memorization is still something that is necessary for successful classroom learning? Does that mean that in addition to all of the activity based learning that we are promoting in the classroom that there is still a place for repetition and memorization? Based on my experiences learning this game, I think that there is.