Unit 1 Topic B

Why are you taking this course? What would you like to get out of it? Please be as specific as possible.

39 comments:

Cori said...

I am taking this course for several reasons. The first being that I need the credit to graduate. Second, it sounded so interesting and I need to learn more about computers. The last reason is that I need to keep up with my children and know what they are doing on the computer. I am hoping to learn everything I need to know about all of these computer words. I would like to learn enough about them to be able to apply it in whatever career I end up in. I can already see that a blog could easily be used in any work environment, not just teaching. I think that this is going to be an excellent class and I am already having fun with it.

Worth Weller said...

Yes, I think you will like the blog unit a lot, and I think too the podcasting unit is one you will find useful for your kids too, in terms of what you can do with it to create interactive kids' activities. Kids like wikis too - a way to make their own web pages.

Diana said...

Honestly, I needed to get 6 credits in this summer to keep my teaching license current.

I got an email at school about this class and thought the description of the class sounded interesting and would like to include more technology in my classroom. I do a lot of research on line and use the computer as a presentation tool often but it is difficult to get the students on the computer in an elementary art class because of the scheduling issues.

I guess I am hoping to have a better idea of what I'll get out of it after our meeting on Monday. Sorry I can't be more specific.

Susan said...

Well, like Diana, I'm trying to get some credits for license renewal as well. I'm starting to see all kinds of possibilities for how this course will help me in my job.
I spend a lot of time answering questions for people and teaching them or telling them how to do things. I work with people in four different schools and I end up answering the same questions over and over again. I try to help people in a timely manner, but I can't be everywhere at once. I rely on e-mail to try to respond to people quickly with directions. But often they really need a demonstration. Later on in this course I hope to develop a lot of little mini-lessons that will be available to my teachers 24/7. That should help me save time in the long run and help them get the answers they need more quickly.

Worth Weller said...

yes - I think you all will figure out what you want to do as the course content unfolds

Sue said...

The title of this course caught my attention! Many of my students and my own children are already blog, wiki, and moodle savvy. I want to be able to utilize this technology in my classroom and at home.

I hope to gain enough knowledge to create my own wikis, blogs, and moodles. Also, I want to continue teaching myself more about this technology. This course will provide a great foundation from which I hope to continue professional development.

Shannon said...

Along with some of the others, I too need credits for renewing my license.
I know there are many teachers in my school who are wanting to use some of these tools, and I thought it would be beneficial for me to be up on them as well. Before our class today I was really interested in getting into the wikis and moodles, and brainstorming how to effectively use them in the classroom. Now I am beginning to see how the other programs would be helpful as well. I cannot wait to get started and see where all of this leads.

Laura S said...

I also need the credit hours to renew my teaching license. Even though I'm not currently teaching, I want to keep my license current to give me that option and to also stay current in the teaching field. I love the idea of using technology more to teach since it is such an huge part of our children's lives. I seriously had NO idea what a moodle, wiki, or blog was when I signed up for this class! That's part of the reason I signed up! I want to learn how to use them and how to it can help me to teach more efficiently. I also want to stay up to date on what's available and "out there" on the web so I can help teach my children to use the web safely, yet still have fun.

Carlos said...

I'm enrolled in the Master of Science in Technology program. Since my undergraduate work was in English (BA, Saint Francis, '87), therefore, a non-technical background, I need to build up a core set of undergraduate credits before I can start actual grad work. My advisor picked this class for me.

I know what a blog is, but I had never heard of Wikis nor Moodles. So, naturally the title of the course intrigued me. From what I've learned so far, I think (regardless of core requirements) this is an interesting class, and look forward to the rest of the session.

Bob said...

I have had an interest in learning more about blogging for while but just haven’t taken the time to really pursue it. Wiki's are somewhat familiar to me, having been a long time fan of Wikipedia, but moodles are new to me. I was first told about this class by my adviser, and it seemed like the perfect opportunity to learn more about this technology and how it is being used, and at the same time earn a few needed credits. So here I am ready to learn all I can, then spread the gospel so to speak.

Logan said...

I am taking this course to maintain my teaching license. I tend to always wait until the last minute (it will expire in October). I think there is a word for that...... :)

Since I haven't taught in 3 years, I feel like I'm out of the educational technology loop. So hopefully this, and the other class will help me get back in the loop!

Shelly said...

I also need the credits, but was immediately drawn to the class since my second occupation in life is now the IT Director (among other titles) for our family buisness. I can see many useful benefits with children, my own included. But also, I can see educating my employees on all the HR issues I am charged with complying with. I look forward to seeing how this unfolds....

Vanessa said...

There are four reasons I am taking this course.
1) I love reading my friends' and family's blogs, but have no idea how to start one on my own. I thought this would be a great way to learn.
2) I need to renew my teaching license and this counts for three of the six credits I need.
3) With a little one at home, I wanted a class that was online and convenient with my schedule. This fit that criteria perfectly.
4) The colleges I work for require professional development and this counts toward that as well.
I would like to learn how to start and maintain a blog, what exactly a wiki is (which I am starting to realize), and how to incorporate more technology into my classroom.

Mango said...

In the early 90s, I served my colleagues one period a day as a resource teacher who helped them implement technology in the classroom. (This was back when CD Roms were the size of LPs and we used Video Spigot to import images.) My skills need serious refreshment in order for me to feel competent in implementing technology in my curriculum.

I used a blog for the first time 2 years ago when we were planning our 25th high school reunion. One day, I accidentally became the blog administrator and by changing the password unintentionally locked out the real administrator! I want to run independent projects and group discussions using moodles, wikis and blogs, but I need to learn to set them up properly and feel comfortable about security and accountability issues. I love that IPFW is offering this class and giving us time to play the Wizard of Oz behind the curtain while we improve our technological tricks with confidence.

Another goal I have is to become more savvy about constant stream of information that our students wade in daily. How close are we to the dystopia depicted in MT Anderson's novel FEED?

Barry Culbertson said...

Here is why I am taking the course:
1. I need it to help reinstate my teaching licneses.
2. I want to become more proficient in the technology department. It is interesting how much more my son talks to me once I started texting him!
3. I would like to come up with some generic things I could get off of the internet easily when I get a full time job or as a substitute teacher.

Andrew said...

Hello again.
I am taking this course as part of renewing my teaching license. The great state of Indiana feels I must improve my skills and I have chosen this course to do so.
I am also very interested in learning how to use blogs in my classroom. I did this in a college course down at IU and really enjoyed it and how it was used as a source for discussion and learning.
I also am interested in becoming informed on all other sorts of internet tools this course offers..anything to impress the students next year and after that..
I have also never taken an online class and am interested in seeing how these work.
Finally, I think by the end of this class I will have created actual lesson plans I can use this upcoming school year.

Bill said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Bill said...

My purpose for taking a class at this time is for re-certification of my teaching license. The reason I chose this particular class is because it was recommended to me by a colleague who took the class last summer. She does a great job using technology in her classroom and I want to be able to do some of the same things in mine.

Abby said...

My purpose for taking this class is to gain more expertise in using technology in the classroom to make learning more interesting. My gradelevel received a grant for this coming year for all of our students to have mini laptops to use in the classroom and even for use at home. Our technology department has told us that our high school uses moodle and that they will set up an account for us, which has actually already been done on our Corporation's moodle page. I just want to make sure I am well-versed in all of these different areas so I can use this technology to the best of my abilities.

On a side note, this will also be able to count for my continuing ed. to renew my license.

Jenny said...

I registered for this course because I need to renew my teaching license. I chose this course because it caught my interest. I have been home with my children the last 4 years, and I am planning on returning to work. I wanted to return to the classroom with some more knowledge about the latest technology being used. When I go into another teachers classroom for inclusion and they are working on the computers I need to have an understanding of what they are doing. Teachers are also using technology to communicate with parents, students, and other teachers. I am not familiar with blogging, moodles,or wikis. I expect to learn a lot from this course. I also plan on applying what I learn in my classroom and as another way to communicate.

D.Chris Singleton said...

I decided to take this class for a few different reasons. The first reasons is that I need the credits to renew my teaching license just like everyone else. Another reason I choose this class is because I have three young kids at home and the convenience of an internet course it great! Saves babysitting money.

I would like to get out of this class a better knowledge about blogs, wikis , and moodles. It is getting very difficult to keep students attentions anymore, but I notice that if I take a normal project they are normally not interested in and put it on the computer they are excited about it. I would like to work towards using technology in my classroom and I have no clue what a blog, wiki, or moodle is and think that they could be valuable tools in engaging my students in the classroom. The moodles from what I have read so far seem very interesting.

Worth Weller said...

Here's a neat public school teaching blog I stumbled across yesterday; just copy and paste the link in the address bar of a new browser window:
http://chsjuniorenglish.blogspot.com/2007/08/syllabusschedule.html

Andrea said...

As with everyone else, I am also renewing my license this year. However, my principal is very big on differentiation and this is a great way to do so.

I think the moogles, wikis, and blogging will get my students interested in writing more especially if I can disguide the learning as fun. I can also direct the students' parents to their blogging websites so they have "pride of ownership" of their work.

Ackbar said...

Well i am a seven year ipfw student who has been working on a computer art degree for four years. Im two classes short right now and decided to take on general studies too. So i was looking for interesting class and came across this course. my interest in technology and the internet immediatly sparked my interest. Teaching is a possibility in the future and i would like to incorporate the technologies available to me.

physical fit for life said...

One of the reasons I took this class was for the credit hours to renew my teaching license. The other reason is to be more informed about the internet for myself, my kids, and for my occupation.

Angela said...

Hi again! I am taking this course to renew my teaching license and as I said in my other post, I tought I'd get a lot out of it. The course sounds interesting and it seems like I will be able to use the information I'll be learning in my classroom this coming year. I am not good with technology at all. My husband usually helps me with computer and internet things, but he already told me I was on my own for this, which is better anyway since I want to learn it so that I can actually use it. Since I really have no idea what most of the stuff is that we are going to be using, I am looking forward to figuring it all out so I can start in with it right away this school year!

Josh said...

To be honest I am taking this course to fill some requirements within my study. I can see by reading the syllabus that there is a lot of potential within this course to gain knowledge in some areas of computing. I hope to learn more about posting you tube videos, and creating presentations at the end of 6 weeks.

Travis Fisher said...

I am taking the class to renew my license. I'm taken with the idea of blogging, but podcasting scares the bejeebies out of me even though I understand the allure and some of the educational value. I'm also curious about how to use class wikis and wondering how I can okay this with my administrators. I have no idea what a Moodle is, so I'm reserving judgment on that.

SeƱora Riley said...

I too am taking this class to renew my license, but I also believe that this will be a very interesting class. I had always thought that I was good with technology, but over the past few years, I have not been able to keep up or nor am I very familiar with the technological advances such as wikis, moodles, and podcast. I am hoping to not only learn about them, but also wish to come out with a working product of each of these to be able to utilize in the classroom. It is difinitely true that the kids are very technologically advanced. Sometimes I find that my students are helping me, not the other way around because they are so much better at it than I am. I do not like that. I would like to be aware of the things they know and even more.

Being the only Spanish teacher in the building made it difficult sometimes to bounce ideas off of others, so I am always looking for new technology and appropriate websites that I can implement in my classroom too.

Anonymous said...

I am taking this course because I am a General Studies Major and I am taking all kinds of different courses. I would like to learn more about blogs, wiki, and new technologies that will help me in my future career.

Kevin said...

Hello,

Like many others in this class, I'm also using this course to fulfill certification requirements. The convenience of an online course also made this a good choice for me and my schedule. Also, I wanted to have the opportunity to acquaint myself further with the topics presented in this course: blogs, wikis, podcasting, etc. I have been interested in using these in my teaching.

Shane Miles said...

I'm taking this course to fulfill a credit for a middle school math certificate. Other computer courses were available, but "Harnessing the Internet" sounded most useful for the educational work I plan to do. My experience with the Internet is fairly limited--I have not created a blog, webpage, or website, and have infrequently participated in chat rooms--so this course seems practical on an individual and professional level. I have no preset expectations for course outcomes, though I would like to learn how to set-up a website. Aside from that, my hope is this class will increase my Internet literacy in a way that will improve my effectiveness as a teacher and community actor.

andyheller said...

I am taking this course to renew my teaching license! I am also taking this course to become more in tune with todays students and the technological learning styles many schools use! I am "out of it" according to my kids! :)

klyons said...

I am taking this course for several reasons. I need to renew my teaching license this year. THe past 2 times I've renewed, I have taken History courses and I decided that I wanted to try something different this time.

I would love to learn to incorporate more technology into my classroom. My own son started Moodles and Wikis at his school this year, and I think he really gained a lot from them. I would like to catch up with all my students, and my own children, as far as technology goes!

ChrisHudecek said...

I am taking this course in order to renew my license next year. I am excited to learn some new tricks to use in incorporating technology in my classroom. I am always looking for new ways to engage my students and make learning more "hands-on".

Faith S. said...

I am also taking this course to renew my teaching license. I always that of myself as someone who could navigate freely through technology. I don't feel that way anymore. Just trying to post my comments has taught me otherwise.
I feel that it is important to share what we know, as teachers, with our students in ways that they will understand and enjoy. And in today's world that means using and understanding technology. I look forward to learning how to stay relevant.

Worth Weller said...

great - seems like we are all on the same page here, which is good. Tell me what you think about the course wiki - is it a reasonable way to present the course? The true nature of a wiki though is that it can be used as a "collaborative" workspace.

ChrisHudecek said...

From what I've seen, a wiki can be a great way to organize information and present a lot of resources in one location. One requirement for a wiki to be effective though is that it has to be continually checked to make sure that all the links are up-to-date. If there are broken links, it can quickly become ineffective.

Christine Russell said...

I am also taking this class for renewal credits. I would say that 99% of our classrooms incorporate technology in some way each day at school. I am looking for new ways to help keep my students engaged and continue to be successful 21st century learners.