LMO Wk #1, 2nd Comment. Lori Irwin

This article was written by Karen Gocsik for the Dartmouth Writing Program.   The point made that stood out in the beginning was discussing the differences between high school and college writing.   There are valuable tools given in high school that will serve you well there, but once you get into college it is not sophisticated or flexible enough to provide a sound structure for a college paper.     It must be written clearly providing an interesting topic that meets the requirements of academic writing.   One must construct paragraphs that are coherent and focused.
There are three main areas that need to be covered when developing an academic paper.   The one is make sure the writing is done by scholars for other scholars.   Once you enter into the world of college you begin your journey as a scholar so you fall within that category.   Secondly, the paper must be devoted to topics and questions that are of interest to the academic community and must be more than just a personal response.   Lastly, the writer must present the reader with an informed argument.

My comment

This is a well written article and it was very timely to read it.  It ended with a very good comment about the difference between what is real, true and what is an opinion.  This was very timely for me and I needed to read this at this time in my life.  Thank you so much for sharing that with me and anyone else who reads it.  It is amazing how we sometimes see exactly what we need to see at the time we need to see it.  Wow. That just shows how great God is.  He shows me things I need to see and evidence.  Keep up the good work.

Aug LMO Week 1, 1st Comment Sharon Hawn

The importance of knowing the history of instructional development is crucial, for the future designers of instructional media. Within Wikipedia’s article, about the History of Virtual Learning Environments, it began in the year 1728. With only seven noted years mentioned prior to 1920. It can only be assumed that there wasn’t a lot developed during those periods or instructional development had a lower degree of importance to be noteworthy enough to publish such findings.

Sharon,
  That is so true.  My father always said History Repeats Itself and people need to know where we've been to understand where we are going.  It makes sense.  Today, there are researchers in many areas, checking out history, culture and more, to learn how to tell industry, fashion and even education, what they need to be doing to keep up with everyone else.  Thanks for your words.

LMO Wk # 1 Aug 2010 Smith Karen Alphabet Soup and Connectivity Video

    This is a video that is dealing with my confusion.  Sometimes, as I read and read, I become more confused before I straighten it all out in my mind.  I am excited to learn all of this.  I fear I've let my latest computer problems become part of my brain spinning around.  I must settle down and begin making sense of the difference in all the management systems.

     It was said that we could be come experts in this, baby experts, but I like that.  I know that learning systems and organization is such a big part of what is happening in education and if I want to be a part of this, not a straggler at the end, but a leader in my school and when I'm teaching workshops in the state and at national conferences, I must be aware of the best ways to make our students be the learners they should be.

      It is not enough to say, "Well, I taught it.  If they don't want to learn it, it's not my fault."  I believe it is.  We need to dangle the right carrot in front of them to make them want to learn it."  When going into third grade, one doesn't understand why learning cursive AND multiplication tables is necessary.  One could think that just adding it all up was just fine.  .   .   Until one could know that 7 x 8 was 56 without standing around, adding the number 7 to the number 7 a total of 8 times.  So, learning is the same way.  Let's find out the best way to learn this and be better teachers.

   Here is my Alphabet Soup Video, an Analogy using Stars and Stripes Forever, by John Phillips Sousa. (Trivia:  My husband's High School's First Band Director was a retired member of Sousa's Band.)

 <object width="980" height="765"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/tcGwjPPgWxQ&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b&border=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/tcGwjPPgWxQ&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="980" height="765"></embed></object>

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcGwjPPgWxQ

LMO Wk 1 August 2010 Smith Karen # 1 Connectivity

 In watching the video by the student on connectivity, it was very well done.  Very easy to understand.  As  reading all the articles, watching the videos and reading again, was very enlightning, but it makes one start to get confused.

   The video made was on this subject and in deciding to write about this, it was to make it clear, and not redundant when reading and watching both.

   Students can learn when reading, watching videos, looking at charts and all the other styles of learning that are on various subjects.  Using the word, read, when discussing the various styles of learning, will suffice for them all in this article.

    A student can read and then write what they have learned.  Reading is one form of learning, but it is a fact that if one reads and then writes what they have read, it helps the learning to become their own knowledge, rather than just what they read.  Reading and then doing something that formulates what the article was about will also do the same thing, but even more so.  Sometimes, one cannot "do" as easily as they can write on the subject.  (Meier)

     Students who listened to Podcasts from  iTunes made a good grade, better than the ones lectured to, in class.  But, the students who listened to the Podcast and took notes did even better than the others.  (Perez)

     If one puts that with the benefit of reading what others have read and written, one is able to learn from all the things the others have read, which makes it even better for them. That is the connectivity.  The fact that one is connecting with the other students in what they have read, learned, written and/or experienced makes it better than just listening to a lecture.  The teacher may be excellent, but one cannot learn more than what that teacher has to offer that way.

   Even at Full Sail University, the class of August 31, 2009 - Sept. 3, 2010, has taken 10 classes, counting this one.  One teacher has taught twice.  There have been 2 teachers who lectured during Wimba with very little chance for asking questions and no chance for discussion.  Those are two classes many feel they did not learn alot from.  That is sad, as one of those classes had a remarkable teacher.  One could tell the instructor had so much to offer, yet, in talking the entire time, did not give students a chance to ask questions of the confusing areas and with a couple of other confusing areas of instruction, made it difficult to learn as much as possible.  Too Bad.  The other class. . . well, it seemed the instructor liked to hear his voice.  While it was easy to pass the class, there was not much real learning in the class.  As long as students regurgitated the material back to the instructor, the students did well.  There was not connectivity in that class.

      Most teachers at Full Sail On line do a wonderful job of making students learn to learn from each other.  Well done.

     Connectivity is such a wonderful way to learn from the instructor, the materials of other wonderful instructors and from the other students.  Being able to offer what one learns, yet be able to listen, learn, read and develop more ideas from other students reading, even the same materials, makes learning such a n open ended opportunity for growing one's brain and mind.

  

Meier, J, Sound It Out, http://www.readingrockets.org/strategies. (2010). WETA, Washington, DC.,

                          funded by grant from US Dept. of Education, Office of Special Education Programs.

                         Retrieved June 5, 2010.

Perez, S., http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/itunes_u_proves_better_than_class.php. Retreived

Add caption

                         June 5, 2010. I Tunes U Proves Better than Going to Class.

August LMO Week 1 Smith Karen The History of Online Learning

  When reading the history of virtual, online or distance learning environments, it is obvious there are very few things listed from 1700 – 1900.  The earliest appears to be an advertisement of March 20, 1728 for persons who desire to learn the art of short hand.  Teachers will instruct these people using the mail as the delivery system.

     As one who took this art of shorthand in person, it appears to be one that would be difficult to learn in letters sent back and forth.  There goes on to be the next time a virtual learning environment is shown is in 1840, when Isaac Pitman began teaching shorthand, using Great Britain’s Penny Post.

     There was a period of 112 years between the two postings.  It would seem that it did not catch on to teach people in this manner. It had, there would have been many more postings of people teaching people through the mail, or by courier before 1840. 

       Whether it was due to the fact that the wealthy people could afford to hire someone to come to the home to teach them and that many of the people without a lot of money, were also without a lot of education.  Some may not have been able to read well, so sending anything by correspondence would have been futile as non readers cannot learn in a correspondence manner without being able to read. (Lambert, T.)

     Britian was becoming more literate in the 1700’s, although more was happening in Scotland than England.  IN that 100 years, Scotland’s literacy rate went from 45% to 85%, while Englands literacy rate went from 45% ro 63%.   (Smith, F. 2004)

     In America, most education was in the home for rich families and and poorer families went to town schools.  The boys in the south sometimes went to school outside under the trees.

      It is very interesting to see the one advertisement for learning through the mail in the 1700’s (the 18^th Century), then, 112 years later, there is another documentation of teaching through the mail.  34 years later, another one appeared, followed by another one only 9 years later, and one more 9 years later.  Those 4 took place over a 52 year period, from 1840 – 1892, the 19^th century.  The next one appeared 14 years later,  in the 20^th century.

      The 20^th Century is broken into various periods, due to the amount of listings becomes greater.  From 1906-1929, 23 years, there are 4 contributions.

     Nothing is listed in the 1930’s, then, there are 2 listings for the mid 1940’s, (1945 and 1948).

   1953, in the midst of baby boomers being birthed, is the first college TV classes for credit.  They ran 13-15 hours per week, and by the mid 1960’s, they had clocked more than 100,000 hours for education on the television station.  This happened in the first public TV station in the USA, at the University of Houston.  Over the next 6 years, there were 6 more documentations of TV learning, machines and articles devoted to learning in various ways.  

   The 1960’s has so many things that happened, there are paragraphs for the various year.  1963 and 1943 have 3 for each; 1965 has 5, 1966  and 1967 have 3 and 1967 has 3, 1968 has 4 and 1969 has 8.  That is 29 contributions in 10 years.

  The 1970’s has things for every single year, totaling 44.  The 1980’s totals 70 things.  The 1990’s growth is primarily due to the internet and the world wide web.  At this point, how does one count all the things that are happening on the internet?  It would be almost impossible to count all the growth on the internet.   Much more than we can possibly imagine, as all groups are reaching out, trying to figure how the internet can be a part of their world.

The year 2000 has 20 listings, 2001 has 15, 2002 has 13.  2003 has 4, 2004 has 9 and 2005 has 14 listings.  2006 has 8 and 2007 has 9.  The information in this website (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_virtual_learning_environments)

stops at this point. 

    When one looks at the numbers alone, it shows how slowly the virtual world of teaching information began 300 years ago and how it began moving along at such a pace that when the internet became a part of it, there was no way to keep up with  that part of it.

     The world has continued to find ways to teach and as one looks through their email each day, one can see even new things showing up in one’s own email letters.  When people say this is a new way to go to school and get an education, it is a slight understatement.

Lambert, T. Local Histories, !6^th Century Education, Education in the 17^th Century.      

                    Retrieved June 4, 2010, http://www.localhistories.org/education.html.

Smith, F. (2004). MacroHistory and World Report. Britain in the mid-1700;’s.   

                         Retrieved June 4, 2010. http://www.fsmitha.com/h3/h29-fr.htm.

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_virtual_learning_environments. (2010).   

                         Retrieved June 5, 2010.  This site  has over 70 references and I’m

                         unsure of how you document this one.

 Means, B.; Toyama, Y.; Murphy, R.; Bakia, M.; Jones, K. (2009), Evaluation of Evidence-Based.   
                     (2010). retrieved August 3, 2010. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-learning.

Week 4 publishing my AR report - the computer isn't responding.

My computer is doing everything it can to be very bad.

The little colored wheel keeps spinning and taking a very long time to do everything.

I haven't been able to get my powerpoint into the idisk.  I am still trying to get that done.

I have other work still not working..

I see that the problem with finding my discussion questions was a problem with the website, so I wasted time redoing that.

I didn't want a bad grade again because of missing a question.

Today has been frustrating.  I did go to church, but now I'm questioning my wisdom, but I hate to miss church, so I am hoping that won't make me make a bad grade.

I promise, the rest of the day I have worked.

I did not call FSO to get a ticket number.  I contacted them once, on ichat to see if it was working and it was, but they were very busy and went back to the person they were helping.

My time will be up in 7 minutes, but I will continue to try to get this powerpoint into the blogspot.

If that doesn't work, I am going to try a different route.
Thanks,
karen smith

Wk 4.Presentation of AR Project at FEMEA Summer Conference, Aug. 7, 2010

 I am going to share my Action Research project in another week, lots of work to do, getting handouts ready, movie on the computer, board, etc.

The Florida Elementary Music Educators Association Summer Conference is going to be held in Jacksonville, FL on August 7, 2010 and I will set up a "science board" by the registration table and do it at the beginning of the conference.  I was going to do it during the Lunch time, but we decided I could choose either time, or at the end, and feel this is a more effective time as people come in over a longer period of time, as I will go when we set up and will be there as they trickle in, eat food, visit, etc.

I would be there then, anyway, as one thing I've learned as being a board member, when you go off the board, you aren't really off.  Especially when you were on it for 11 years!  Whew!  So, I would be there anyway, helping set up, and this way, I'll help some, and be at the table, by registration table and share with them as they come in.  There will be some new teachers there, as we always invite new teachers to come free of charge, just so they can find our organization and get to know us and see how valuable it is to be a part of your professional organization.   We are a part of FMEA, which is a part of MENC, which is the National Organization for Music Educators of all kinds, band, orchestra, vocal, elementary, jazz, guitar, recorder, Orff, Kodaly, Dalcroze and more.

I'm a member of AOSA (Orff), The Recorder Association, and the Research Group of the Orff Association. But even those are associate members of MENC.