Alicia – What did we do before iPhones?

Posted on September 10, 2012 by awernicke

Journalist Lucy Morgan with video camera and phone

Hello all! My name is Alicia and I am a middle school teacher from Chilliwack, which is about 90 minutes outside of Vancouver. I am in my fourth year of teaching and teach Math, Science and PE. I am currently taking my fourth and fifth MET courses. Like many of you I’m sure, I am still in the adjusting phase, having gone from the leisurely days of summer to the hectic pace of a new school year.

I chose this photo because it shows the rapid evolution of communication and the media. We have come such a long ways just in the past 20 years and the pace of change seems to be continuously accelerating. In some respects, I long for the days of old when things seemed simpler. Although I am constantly using my Kindle and iPad, there is still nothing like the feeling of reading a good old-fashioned paperback novel. I am very interested in learning more about the pros and cons of new text technologies and how they can best be used in the classroom.

I look forward to working with everyone and wish you all a happy new school year,
Alicia

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George Orwell, Ted Hughes, and Writing

Posted on September 10, 2012 by cmck

This is an excerpt from George Orwell’s “Why I Write”:

Writing a book is a horrible, exhausting struggle, like a long bout of some painful illness. One would never undertake such a thing if one were not driven on by some demon whom one can neither resist nor understand. For all one knows that demon is simply the same instinct that makes a baby squall for attention. And yet it is also true that one can write nothing readable unless one constantly struggles to efface one’s own personality. Good prose is like a windowpane.

 

I like this excerpt because it takes me back to what we learned about the etymology of the word “text”, that a text is a creation. Orwell explains, from his point of view, why the text is created in the first place: we have some desire to write. There are exceptions of course. Sometimes we are forced to write, but in my experience, the writing that comes from Orwell’s demons is the best kind to encounter and experience. It’s like having someone talk to you because they want to as opposed to because a social situation dictates it.

 This next image is one I found in The Commons on Flickr. It was taken by someone with the alias Loopzilla (the license requires that I provide attribution to the photographer if I reuse the image). I chose this because I’d also like to discuss the poem “Thought Fox,” which is one of Ted Hughes’ poems. I don’t think it’s in the public domain, but you’ll be able to search for it if you’re interested in reading it.

It’s about the poet receiving inspiration in the form of a fox that gradually comes closer until it jumps into the poet’s head. I thought this went nicely with the idea of creation that I’d talked about in this post.

The poem has a nice moment where Hughes uses the actual paper he’s writing on as a part of the poem itself. The fox has “a body that is bold to come / Across clearings”. The line break is actually a break between the stanzas. Because the fox is walking through the snow, the clearing is represented by the white page between the two stanzas. I think it’s a nice integration of the medium into the text, instead of just being a place for the text to reside.

Chris

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John Lee – Feeling Like Charlie

Posted on September 10, 2012 by leemail

Five-Oh!

I enjoyed Flowers for Algernon earlier in life, but have found new connections as I grow older, especially as I feel my mental abilities fading. I have a 4 year old and a 6 year old and have just regained some semblance of a sleep cycle after 6 years of deprivation. I blame them for most of my cognitive impairment.

Along with this cognitive impairment, I find an impatience with technology in general. I’ve jumped on several bandwagons hoping for a solution, but ultimately end up disappointed with my ability to use technology in the way that I want. No tablet takes input as quickly, flexibly and clearly as pen on paper. E-readers lack the element of physical memory which allow me to “feel” what part of the book I was in, or where that one fact was around. I even find items like this course outline frustrating as I open three tabs in order to follow instructions, open the blog and locate the password at the same time.

But when I get it together enough to stop shaking my fist at the world, I teach Gr. 6 at a small school in southwest Ontario. This is my 6th MET course and my 10th or 11th year teaching. I’m currently try to remain in my house while we add a second floor and move the kitchen. I don’t recommend it. I see some familiar names in the introductions and I’m looking forward to working with you all this term.

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Orality and Text

Posted on September 10, 2012 by smyers

“Words mean more than what is set down on paper. It takes the human voice to infuse them with shades of deeper meaning.” ― Maya Angelou, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Reading Walter J. Ong’s Orality and Literacy over the past two weeks has been fascinating to say the least. As I get more to the heart of primary oral culture, it has become clear to me that a fundamental difference between oral cultures and typographic cultures is the significance of sound, rhythm, communication. Much like what Maya Angelou alludes to, there is a “magical potency” in the spoken, the sounded. In contrast, “deeply typographic cultures forget to think of words as primarily oral, as events…for them, words tend rather to be assimilated to things, ‘out there’ on a flat surface…for they are not actions, but are in a radical sense dead, though subject to dynamic resurrection” (Ong, 33).

In his Introduction, Ong discusses the age of “secondary orality” – telephones, radios, televisions, and the like – and I found myself doodling a cyclical image at the bottom of the page that goes from orality to chirography, to typography, and back to orality. It seems that the written word needs the spoken word and vise versa.

(Thanks to Maya Angelou for saying so clearly and beautifully what I have been struggling to articulate!)

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Andrew Murray – Back To School

Posted on September 10, 2012 by murray12

The comic above really speaks to my first few days at work this school year and to some of the tones towards writing and technology that I have experienced in ETEC 540 so far. New technological advances come with loses and gains. Teachers, even with the best intentions and preparation, are not immune to the ‘finikiness’ of technology. I just started a position at a school as their ICT Integrator. I met many teachers who came back to work after summer filled with optimism and great tech integration ideas, but wireless/log in troubleshoot, low battery, etc. proved to completely drain the effectiveness of their lessons. The Tweeting comment in the comic also speaks to the ever changing influence technology and popularity can have on our concept of writing. Iambic pentameter vs. 140 characters 🙂 I am currently in my 9/10 MET course and have had a great experience, I’m sure this course will be no different. I look forward to working with all of you!!!

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Jody McKinnon – Architecture as text

Posted on September 10, 2012 by admin

Hello. My name is Jody McKinnon and this is my 4th MET course. I have found that I can really only do one at a time. I applaud those of you who are doing multiple courses! I just don’t have enough time with my online job at www.virtualhighschool.com and my day job at a high school in Ajax, ON. I just recently started at this building after 10 years at the same school. In the end, this is my 17th year overall. I am hoping that this course will offer a nice distraction from the current labour issues in Ontario. Let’s just say it’s been the most difficult start up I’ve ever experienced!

On the side, I am also finishing up a new geography text/e-text. I’m excited to see it published/go live this coming spring.

I spent most of August traveling across Europe and there was one particular place that I visited that has made me think of the definition of text. I had the honour and privilege of visiting Barcelona for three days. I went to the Sagrada Familia and it was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced.

As a media teacher, I have been very open to the definition of a text. Many of my English teacher colleagues shudder at the thought of what a text could be. Most think it must be a piece of writing. I would like to think of architecture as another text. This church was breathtaking in its interpretation of the written word. Gaudi was a master storyteller, but he chose image, shape and design to relay the messages of the Bible. Since I can only share one photo, I will share this one that depicts the Nativity. I’m not a religious person but the building is impressive. The opposite side tells the story of the Passion and the main door to the front contains the Lord’s Prayer in multiple languages. It was an amazing experience and if you ever have a chance to visit Barcelona, this is a must see!

Sagrada Familia, Barcelona – August 11, 2012 – Jody McKinnon

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Jennifer Schubert – Developing Relationships Through Varied Text

Posted on September 10, 2012 by jenniferschubertubc

Hello there fellow METers! My name is Jen; I’m a crazy American who is currently in London attempting to find a home to stay in for this term. (Hence my delay in posting… I left the morning this class opened and have had spotty connection since!)

This is my 7th (or 8th, depending on how you look at it) MET course. (I am also enrolled in ETEC 522 this semester.) I started the MET program last September and have been enjoying my time here immensely! Outside of school, I am a Lego Engineering Instructor. (Yes, this is a real job, and yes, it is as amazing as it sounds.) I get to teach children engineering/physics concepts through play. We have a great time!

Other than school and work, most of my time is spent creating. Whether I am on stage, filming, shooting (both in front of and behind the camera), or editing, I am always most comfortable, productive, and happy when I have a creative project to work on. Last semester, I chose to focus research on fandom (a collective appreciation for a particular piece of media/performer represented by various forms of expression) and its possibilities in education. I am very proud of my work in this realm, especially since it is a personal passion of mine.

I have been able to meet, connect and develop both relationships and new media texts through my exploration of fandom. It is a truly fascinating social phenomenon with varied implications on the creation, and policing, of both existing and new media texts. I have included the picture above to represent a small branch of the fandom tree that has come under quite a bit of controversy in the world of copyright and free expression: fanfiction. Fanfiction is an area of expression that I have been narrowing a focus down to in my exploration of the educational benefits of fandom. I hope to continue my research with the goal of reaching reluctant writers and promoting the advancement and development of overall literacy.

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The Impact of Technology on Literate Environments

Posted on September 10, 2012 by Johanne Brochu

Technology and Literacy

This image and quote from Richardson is representing technology and how it is evolving the complexity of the changing spaces or reading and writing.  New forms of representation are developing with the use of new media and it changes the face of literacy.  Communication is now done through a multitude of mediums and sometimes by using symbols, characters, emoticons, pictures, etc.  The common space of reading and writing is allowing people to share information, collaborate and learn together with anyone in the world.  Barriers and frontiers between people are progressively disapearing.  Hence, more than ever, people have to use their critical thinking skills as they look up for valid resources in the Web environment because not everything is equally good to read.

I am an online teacher at www.apprentissageenligne.org.  I teach senior French courses (and one sociology course) to students from French high schools from all around the province of Ontario.  Prior to that, I taught face to face in the South West of Ontario, Windsor, where I still work as my office is in the school.  I taught in Schefferville and Québec, in the province of Quebec, and in Baton Rouge, in Louisiana.  I also had the opportunity to single write two textbooks (grade 9 and grade 11) that are actually used in the French high schools in Ontario.  Of couse, I believe that there is still a place for textbooks in education!

I got interested in educational technology while working on an online test for the adult education to determine the students’ level of competency prior to their return to school.  Then, my curiosity brought me to the MET program.  After my first course in the MET (ETEC 510), in January 2010, I was so excited that I started using MOODLE blended with my f2f courses in which, within other things, I included what becomes a very successful discussion forum.  It was then clear to me that I will pursue my teaching using technology and had planned to do a Wiki with my students duging the following year… quickly I developed more and more ideas to use technology blended with my f2f courses.  By learning together in a community of practice, I could see first hands the confidence it brings my students to improve their writing and express themselves orally in French…

This is my 9th course in the program and I am still very excited to be part of this great learning community.  What a privilege this is!! And, finally, on a personal note, I am the proud mother of two sons from whom I have learned how precious life can be.

I am looking forward to learn from all of you.

Johanne

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Hall of Records

Posted on September 10, 2012 by Adam Matthews

Hall of Records, N.Y.C. (LOC)

This is nothing like the image I wanted. The image I wanted had two major parts. A man and a commodity. As it was, that commodity was a record or record store bag containing vinyl records. I am somewhat caught up in the resurgence of this ancient technology. What attracts me most is tactile familiarity. I enjoy holding a heavy, cumbersome disc, making sure not to touch the surface where it counts, carefully cleaning off the lint, lifting the arm, placing it in a way to get adequate scratchy goodness before the music takes over. This, however, is an annoyance. A luxury that is reserved for special occasions when I want to listen to music, not just put something on.

Technology in education seems to mostly go for convenience. The entire year’s notes wound up in a clear plastic overhead scroll. A Powerpoint (my friend made) for every class. Someone else’s YouTube video. These all seem to take teacher and student away from the process of learning, of creation. Used in this way technology seems to give people a chance to relax and read it later.

My base definitions of text and technology are similar to a product and the understanding and skill to create that product. Records allow me to interact with the music,  and never get the same experience. Something that isn’t possible with the usual content delivery systems. I’m excited by the direction of computing as it becomes more intuitive. We are able to interact with computers in more natural ways that lead us away from mindless consumption.

A young person with a bag full of old technology reminds me of a desire to participate in the creation and enjoyment of life, not to merely copy and paste. My major problem is this picture was taken 100 years too early for my subject to be wandering around.

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Technology defined

Posted on September 10, 2012 by jkotler

Great. (2010, May 28). What is Technology? [Web blog image]. Retrieved from http://great-premiertechnologies.blogspot.co.il/2010/05/what-is-technology.html

When I was searching for something to define what I think technology means, I came across this statement and felt that it captured exactly what I was looking for in one short phrase. That is, I believe technology comes in many different shapes, sizes and forms but at the root of it all is the notion that it cannot be directly found in nature as it is created and manipulated by humans. In addition, not only is the world of technology continuously evolving, but the rate at which it is being developed is at such a rapid pace that it can easily be described as being constantly in motion, or simply put ‘in action’.

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