PLN 15

I recently read an article called "Math in life" by James H., who asked some questions on how we will use all the math we learn in high school in life.

It makes me think, what should we be teaching? Are there subjects that should be
taught to students that would be more applicable to what they are going to see
in their future? Should we focus more math on applications like home mortgages,
credit card interest, taxes and other things that you might not learn in school?
I need to figure out how math is going to affect these kids in their future if
it does not include an engineering degree. I guess that my question becomes an
interpretation of the students question: Why do I teach this?

This made me think to, so I had a few words to say.
Dear James H,
This blog caught my eye as I was reading through some of your posts.
Your questions made me think about my future in math. I know it is important, but like you asked, where will we use it as an adult. I also thought it was interesting about what one of your commenter had said, from a. bradley…
"I loved math in high school because it was a challenge. But do I use it now? No."
I personally don't enjoy math, but now to think that all that I am learning won't be worth it, well that is something else. However, I most definitely agree with you about how schools should focus on teaching real world math in high school and college. I think this is a lot more important to learn than have to spend so much time learning theorems and equations. I guess it depends on what you will do in your future.

PLN 14 semseter 2

Today I read an article called "The need for Textbooks" by Karl Fisch who talked about how he had read this paragraph from a poster on tornado instructions. It said,

If there is not time to move rooms, students should assume the duck and cover
position under tables or desks in the room. If tables or desks are not
available, students should hold textbooks over their heads.

I thought it was very interesting and said this.
Dear Mr. Fisch,
I thought this was an interesting blog, not just because of the fact that it is important to have text books handy in case of a tornado. But I also started thinking about how many textbooks we will have in the near future. As we all know, technology is becoming more advanced and essential in our lives as we use more of it in our daily jobs and even at school. If we begin using all of this new technology, will text books slowly fade from our school curriculum? It is an interesting thing to think about.

Today in my English class we had talked about things similar to this and had discussed how we might change the school if we had wanted to. A couple of us had said that they wanted to use more technology in classes. I thought that this was would be a pretty good idea except, like someone else had said, we can’t let technology do all the work, or else what is the point? But like I have said, since we have so much to use, why not use it to expand on our learning?

PLN 13 semester 2

I found Darren Kuropatwa's ideas on how students learn from each other very interesting. This was on his blog called " Student Voices Episode 1: Jessie" I actually do agree that we students can learn a lot from the way we see each other learn. Though we all have our different ways, a lot of us will find many others who think and learn just like us. Since kids have such a big influence on each other, watching others can help us discover another way of learning. I also agree with Jessie about how sometimes teaching the things you know and sharing them out loud, can help you better understand what you have learned.

I remember in my English class about how we had talked about how we enjoy having seminars and talking and sharing ideas out loud. We agreed that being able to speak your thoughts and have others respond is a great way to learn. It is also nice to just listen to what everyone else has to say, you can learn so much by just listening to people who think like you and at the same level.

This is just like blogging to. In our class, we go and read a blog of someone else’s and then blog our reactions. Well I think that the idea of reading other people’s work is a good idea because you can learn a lot about how other people think and share how you feel about it with them. It is such a great way to communicate ideas.

PLN 12 semester 2

I read an article called "Phoning it in" on T Sale's blog where the author talked about how they had asked a question for the class and a student had used their iPhone to look up the answer. I had decided to blog about this because lately in my English class we have been discussing the new technology we have and how and when we could use it at school. I am fortunate to be in a class that uses laptops and have gotten used to the fact that we type up almost everything we turn in. We have also used new programs on the web for projects such as Voicethread, Moviemaker, Wiki, and others. Using computers is not only fun, but it is also a way to become involved with everybody else using computers. Just like these blogs, we are able to read other people's work and have them read ours. There are other hot spots for kids like us that can give us a chance to make friends on the Internet like Myspace and Facebook. But the question is, as the technology keeps developing, should we be able to use it in schools. Well I think we should. eventually as we get older, we will have to use the technology, won't we? But in our class, we also had discussed how we can sometimes be distracted by all of this new and fun technology. So their would have to be some rules to that. Using cell phones in class? Well why not have computers for every class?

PLN presentation reaction

After presenting my PLN 8 and 4 in class, I think I did pretty well overall. I think I spoke clearly and explained my ideas. I also read my classmates comments, they said things like how I needed to go over what I will say so I don't stumble over my words. It was interesting though, some people told me that I had good eye contact, and some said I needed more. I guess what I could do next time is try to look at the whole class instead of just a certain area. And if I prepare more for my presentation, then I can make more eye contact and not look down at my notes so often, and this will help me not stumble around in my talking.

PLN 11

I read an article called "Making Kids “Googlable” " on weblogg-ed where the author talked about how many employers have admitted to searching a future employee on google an or myspace to see if there is anything negative about them. He says,

In most cases, they say that the intent is primarily to find out if there
is anything negative that surfaces. Almost all of them admit, however, that
finding positive things about their applicants, as in portfolios or
collaborations or even social sites, does or could make a positive
difference in the process.

I have heard that they do this and I think it is sometimes a good idea. I guess I don't totally agree because google can't always be a reliable source. i know that some of the kids i know who do have a myspace might not like that to much either. The autor talked about how parents might be worried about what their child's portfolios will look like in the future and if they are going to do anything to help change or make it look better. Some said, not much. io don't think they should. it is more of the child's responsibility to do they best work they can.

PLN 10

I read an article called "Bridging Differences: Finding Purpose in School for Bored Kids" by Deborah Meier who talked about how violence in schools is due to boredom in schools.

But the essential reason kids are unruly, I would argue, is boredom, feeling
dumb, and feeling “dissed”. They respond with intolerable rudeness. They enrage
us by just not taking the work we prepare, and our concerns for their futures,
seriously.

I think this idea is very interesting, I had never thought about it this way. But as I think harder about it, I can see it could be a possible reason, but it is mainly and excuse for their choices. Like my dad has told me, we don't go to school to be entertained, we go to learn. So for those who are behaving violently because they are "bored", well they should know that the teachers are not there to entertain them.

PLN 9 semester 2

After reading a couple of my fellow students' blogs, I came across a blog by kellys who read an article called " Teenagers as "Teamagers"...What do you think?" on webblogg-ed that talked about how teenagers work so much in groups, they don't think much of it. I guess this is true most of the time. So many people enjoy working on projects in a group, but then it sometimes gives some people a chance to have the "smartest" ones do all of the work. So those who do do all of the work might not enjoy group work as much as some. So it can depend, but it also prepares us for the future when we will have to work with the other employees on certain projects for our jobs. I personally do like doing projects in groups because they are fun. Not only that, but they also let off a lot of the stress of doing the project because the assignment is divided between all of the members. But like kelly s had said, and I have the same problem, sometimes the people in the group will leave most of the work to you and end up receiving the same grade as you do for doing practically nothing. Then again, sometimes you get a pretty good group where everyone participates, so like I said, it depends. I guess a good question from all of this is, are group projects a good thing to keep in the future? I would have to say yes, they are a great way of interacting with your classmates and sharing all of your knowledge to complete one big project.

PLN 8 semester 2

I read an article called" How to find Happiness without buying It" by David Bohl which I had heard a fellow classmate talk about in class today. The author talked about he does not think money can buy happiness. We had a discussion about this in class. I personally think that money can't buy you happiness because the things that I find make me happy, are things that I can't buy with money. Things like my family and friends and sometimes even life itself. But someone also had said that those who have always had enough money don't even realize what they have and can't really appreciate the fact of how much they have. Just like Hollywood stars, having all that money doesn't mean they are happy all the time. However, I can't say I could live without it or say that it is not important. We use money all of the time, we are in constant need of money to buy the things we need for everyday uses, like food and clothes, etc. Then another thing is sometimes, those who don't have all the money they need, are usually so much happier than those who do have everything they could ever want because they have come to appreciate the more important things that can't be bought. Just try taking a trip to Africa and visiting the children who are so happy with so little because the are thankful for what they have. Which is a problem for some of us American kids who are not thankful for anything we get. I guess the main point I got from this blog was that we need to not only appreciate the material things we are blessed to have, but also the other things that can't be bought.

PLN 7

I read an article called "Linear Fun #2: Stacking Cups" by a math teacher at my school who talked about a assignment he did with his students and the different twists in it to keep them interested. He even included a hands on activity to go along with his "cup stacking" problem. He challenged his students to find out how many cups tall he is if they are stacked. Then they were allowed to actually measure him to see if any of their answers were close to the actual answer. Then he tried this same problem a couple different ways. I always enjoy when my teachers try to add in activities that get us moving and using our hands. To me, it always makes the lesson a lot more interesting and easier to remember. I also know that a lot of my fellow students feel the same way. In my math class one time, we used bubbles and zometools to see a new thing we were learning called the Steiner's point. Not only was it a fun time playing with bubbles and building solids out of toys, but it was also a good visual way to see our lesson. Some people are visual, some audio, and some need to get their hands on it. I think all teachers should incorporate all three sometime in their lessons.