Reflections

In a note to Todd a short time ago, I likened Edu255 to a tasting menu at a wonderful upscale restaurant. There was so much delicious food, but too little of each course. By the time I got to the seventh course, I forgot the name of that wonderful wine that I had sipped in the second course…or, was it the third? And what was the name of that cheese that came with the grilled portobello mushroom?

Perhaps, it’s because of my advancing years, but I would like to have had more time spent on each application/tool that we have covered during the course. My recommendation – for what it’s worth – is that Edu255 be made into a two-semester course; where two weeks are spent on each application. The students would be required to complete two assignments for each application, thereby reinforcing the learning.

I guess that was something that I had left out of my post on teaching philosophy – so consider this an addendum: repetition is the key to learning. And even though this final project does serve as one repetition of many of the applications/tools that we covered, I sure would like to have been assigned to repeat them again.

In my teenage years, I was a springboard diver. The rule of thumb was: once you nailed a dive, get out of the water and do it again immediately three more times so that the moves would become embedded in your brain. That’s the way I feel about working with all of the great web tools that we have been exposed to this semester.

An additional week for each tool would have also enabled me to give some more time to think about how to use these various web tools for my classes. Even though I did employ a Wiki to some (perhaps, limited) success (see the Fine Arts page), and have used YouTube videos and podcasts in my classes, I want to learn to use them more effectively and creatively. Certainly, exposing us to the resources in the blogosphere has and will help me fashion these tools to become more effective instruments. And, by the way, thanks for introducing me to TED; it’s a site to find all these new-age Marshall McLuhans in one spot. Now, if I only had time to watch all those videos.

That I would like this course to be twice as long as it is, reflects upon the value that I place in the talents of Todd, Thatcher, and Ruth as enthusiastic and dedicated instructors. I am sorry to see this end. Thank you.

Reflections on Video

There must be something wrong with my equipment. After multiple takes, all of which cut the video nearly in half when I published them, the YouTube "recognizing microphone" clock will not stop spinning when I attempt retakes. Consequently, I haven't been able to record additional takes.

It's puzzling. I shut down the computer and restarted; plugged in a power source; added an external microphone and made the proper adjustments in the YouTube microphone window and in my computer's system preferences, but the clock will not stop spinning. So I'm a bit flummoxed by it all.

Therein lies a lesson: whenever I feel as if I have gained supreme mastery over the computer and it's various tools, the computer kicks me in the ass and brings me back to reality.

Podcast

My Wiki Pages

http://dermanskestrelclasses.wikispaces.com/

My Ning Page

http://ycedu255.ning.com/profile/RickDerman?xg_source=profiles_memberList

Teaching Philosophy

I believe that students must learn to think critically in order to function as responsible adults. I attempt, especially in my American History classes, to create a scaffolding for critical thinking and analysis. At the same time, I believe that it is important to make the information that is being presented to the students, engaging and interesting. And here is where the information that I have learned in Edu255 is applied.

Back in the late 1960’s Sesame Street was seen as a great innovation because the producers responded to the effect that television – especially 30-second commercials – had upon the attention span of pre-schoolers. Forty years later, that approach almost seems quaint. Students today are media multi-taskers. And, as educators, we must respond in kind. I find that my classes today are a mix of media meant to engage: lectures with internet based visual accompaniment; current event podcasts (thank you, Ruth); YouTube clips; DVD films; Wiki research projects, and; traditional text-based reading assignments and class discussions.

Richardson (pp.10-13) notes the dangers of students landing on inappropriate internet sites and revealing personal information. However, another danger in this read/write universe in which our students are immersed is accepting as the truth factually incorrect and politically loaded material that is frequently presented in slick legitimately-looking packaging.

When, in our media rich environment, people take information presented to them at face value, they may loose their ability to see a situation objectively, and, consequently, formulate an opinion based upon incorrect facts. Many of my students last fall, for example, were supporting John McCain for President primarily because they believed that, were Obama elected, he would take away their guns. Certainly, there were enough valid justifications to support the Republican candidate without a specious reason concocted to rally support of gun owners; but how were the high school students to know?

I attempt to have students question everything they read on the web, hear on the radio, and watch on television. Students learn the difference between editorials and news reports and the sources of news that will provide them with unadulterated factual material.

Further, I make the effort to have American history synthesized and integrated with current events so students see the relevance of the past to their present. An example was a class discussion last fall of Roe vs. Wade following a discussion of the Supreme Court decision in a televised Presidential debate. The emotional class discussion that followed covered the rights of the individual as guaranteed by the Constitution, the power of the Supreme Court, and such provocative ideas as when does life begin. I believe that our readings in the area, and the thoughtful class discussion, gave the students a realization that issues have more depth to them than the buzz phrases associated to them; that questioning issues and opinions, and digging to find the underlying facts and philosophies will enable the students to make their own educated decisions on any issue.