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Friday, February 28, 2014

20% Project Blog Reflection 2--Who might benefit?

      When my 20% project is completed I feel as though many will learn and benefit from my presentation. Being that I am researching social media in classrooms, I believe that teachers and soon-to-be teachers will benefit the most from my project. However, there is still room for non-teachers to take away valuable lessons from my presentation as well. I believe that from my project and my exploration, anyone that needs to demonstrate, communicate with, or unite a large group of people will be able to do so with the tactics I will provide about social media. They will learn how social media can connect and distribute messages of many kinds and different ways in which they can carry out such communication.
      For maximum benefit from the audience, there are many ways I could change and format my blog. If I expand my blog posts to include follow up inquiries for my readers, I can open up a forum where questions can be asked and comments can be made. This will be of maximum benefit for my audience because it will allow them to interact with each other, and with me, on the topics addressed. Providing this message board will also allow for other points of views and ideas to be exchanged, thus furthering everyone's understanding on the topic at hand.
     In accordance with my 20% project, a communication medium like this will be of great use for follow up questions and examples that teachers and non-teachers can post and share with others interested in social media integration. They can provide items that worked, ways that did not and ideas for future incorporation.

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

20% Project Blog Reflection 1--Is your topic limited or too broad?

     For my 20% project, I have chosen to discuss the advantages (and perhaps disadvantages) to using social media in a classroom to enhance technological integration with meaningful learning. I have decided to focus primarily on Twitter and YouTube, but I am open to exploring other popular options.

     Although the topic may seem broad, I believe that I will be able to focus on the aforementioned social media networks specifically, and how they can enhance general classroom communication and enrich the learning environment.  I do not anticipate that I will need to modify my selection to make it last through April. However, if such circumstances should arrive I will extend my project to include other mediums and social networks that are being used by teachers such as Facebook, Google Hangout, or Wikispace in an effort to explore a more general topic of social media.

     I imagine that I can further break down my topic to address smaller questions concerning different aspects of using social media in a classroom. First I could start by analyzing advantages and disadvantages, move to exploring ways these medias are integrated into classrooms, search for studies incorporating the success of using social media for learning, and also explore other networks that could serve to enhance meaningful learning.


     I am excited to start this project and begin researching, as I believe I will find a lot of interesting tactics that could be applied using social media in order to develop a classroom and create an exceptional learning experience for students. With the rise in social media, I believe that harnessing this attraction can prove beneficial to teachers trying to reach their students and provide them with an entertaining yet educational atmosphere.

Sunday, February 9, 2014

Reflection on the Horizon Report for Higher Education

           The Horizon Report for Higher Education provided plenty of insight into the booming world of technology and the future that will transcribe in years to come. I found much of the article to be interesting, and their assessment of trends and challenges to be accurate and fair. In whole, I found the article to be very detailed, covering different aspects of technological learning and encompassing a wide range of fields. Personally, the most relevant key trend appeared to be the discussion in the rise and demand of skills from college graduates that are often gained through hands on atmosphere where students can engage in real life scenarios. As a soon to be graduate, I find this information of value, as I can understand how internships, online interactions, and personal experiences can easily propel you further ahead of the curve.
            In particular I was intrigued by the rise of MOOCs, or massively open online courses. It is exciting to know that an online community will exist to provide free education in a wide array of subjects, in the near future.  As an alternative to traditional learning, MOOCs can also provide an increase in efficiency of online skills for the upcoming generations.
I was not surprised to learn that social networks are on the rise and how their use can predictably provide assistance in the online classroom. Being that the increase in MOOCs should occur in a year or less, I find it useful that programs such as Wikispace, YouTube, and Google Hangout are joining in the success of massively open online courses.

            Among the most interesting of the technological inquiries, is the 3D printing aspect that is raising scientific discovery within the next 4-5 years. I found this portion of the article to be extremely interesting and wide-ranging as far as possibilities go. The notion that students could participate in the entire building process from design to production really intrigues me, as I understand how observing the methodology and progression could immensely educate a student. The possibilities in the medical field as far as 3D printing is gratifying, as our hopes toward medical miracles could significantly be altered thanks to these machines.

            Personally, I feel as though my personal learning could easily be propelled through the trends mentioned in the Horizon Report for Higher Education. The potential in the vast amounts of fields is strong and will only continue to prosper. The devices that are in the production process could serve to better our lives and create opportunities beyond our imagination. I would be very open to trying the wearable technology as it was advancing towards its highest level of achievement because I see it as a practical use of technology. Although the question of how much technology works before one becomes dependent on the device arises, I see technology as an indicator for an increase in learning development. While the challenges are important to discuss, I believe the rewards will soon outweigh the shortcomings.