I find it difficult to describe myself succinctly in text but here goes. I am a creative person with a wide range of interests. I enjoy music, good food, debate, travel, reading, yoga, sports, nature, the arts, learning new things and experiencing things for the first time.My father was an artist and my mother was a librarian. I have 2 children, Eden 7 and Ariah 4 who keep me happy and busy. I have a long time Partner Peter. I teach full time in a grade 2 classroom but I have taught all grades and I often fill in for the principal as teacher in charge. I am involved in lots of initiatives and activities and adventures….I love keeping my mind active and feeling refreshed by new things. I am IT Rep at our school, Currently I am involved as school representative in Distributed leadership Forums and the School Improvement Team. I have taught in Japan and I am currently involved in an action research project re: inquiry learning of which I will be publishing a paper this summer. Oh! I love to dance! See….I find this difficult! I think outside the box and I do not follow common knowledge or new initiatives unless they are sound. I question current teaching practices and I promote change if and when it makes sense. I would say I am an individual and do not follow trends. I think for myself.
I have helped design and teach a course on setting up classroom websites and I am currently attempting to integrate technology and blended learning in my practice. A MAJOR roadblock right now is that our infrastructure and tech support is horrendous. Right now our Smart Boards aren’t even functional due to an upgrade this summer to Windows 7. In addition we have just received laptop carts and I-Pad carts that can be signed out for classroom use but there are so many issues and problems with the programs, connectivity, etc that it is basically futile to use them until these are rectified.
If you would like more information about my background professionally it is available on LinkedIn at: http://ca.linkedin.com/in/mifurlotte/
In regards to this course I am interested in finding our ways that LMS could be used in an elementary school setting and what costs are associated with this. What are the positive aspects of LMS and what are some drawbacks? Can LMS be simplified for younger students? In regards to social software I wonder how this can be used safely and securely and with prudence in an elementary school setting. There are many issues around privacy and accessibility to photographs and information in regards to young children. These are roadblocks to moving ahead with some of these exciting ways of communicating. I also wonder about the vastness of information and ways of communicating. i wonder if this is causing more connectedness or less? I often feel like i have to be part of EVERY social site or I will miss out. There are too many to keep up with. How can we mitigate this and what is the future of these sites? I found some good basic information on a site called “techopedia” and the link is here if you wish to check it out.
http://www.techopedia.com/definition/424/social-software
To be frank, I would really like to learn what works and what doesn’t. I know this is an oversimplification, but with the myriad of technology tools and designs and platforms out there, as a busy educator I would like to find out the best tools or software to use with elementary students. I would like to learn how this can be accomplished in a streamlined way and I would also like to know how I can be assured that the technology will be designed with care, has some long range usability (it will not be replaced in a year!) and that it is accessible to students, parents and teachers and that these parties all feel comfortable with it.
Below are a few interesting links/sites which have helped me begin thinking about integration of technology.
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/integrate-tech-keeps-changing-todd-finley
In regards to assessment, I am interested in the whole child and so I find assessment online tricky. Then again, perhaps there are assessment strategies that are available online that are less grade or mark oriented? I would like to learn if there are any types of assessment currently available inline that can give a picture of the whole child rather than defining them as a mark or a grade. I would like to learn more about online portfolios or dropbox BUT find a way that engaging in these types of assessments does not add hours to my already busy day!