Blog Post #3

Peer editing is important. It is receiving something written by someone your own age. In a younger setting, that can cause a lot of hurt feelings or misunderstandings within the small group. An important aspect not really stressed in the videos was peer editing with a dictionary! Having something there to refer to can dispute arguments and save the stress of guessing one another on spelling or meanings of different words. Good points to make sure to use with students would be to make sure they give a compliment, not just tell them what they did wrong. Compliments tell the writer what they did right and gives them a good feeling about their work, instead of just criticism.

Gentle criticism is important for students to learn what they do wrong while not crushing what they think about their work. If a student comes to peer editing with a work they think the world of, but it is not what they think it is, it's very important not to step on toes and hurt feelings. Constructive criticism is the best way to get around that and teaching people at a young age how to positively edit someone's work is the best way to do it. Teaching children at a young age to peer edit will be helpful to them through everything they do, even if it's something bigger than a paper. Peer editing will be used for your entire life, it's best to be done correctly and nicely while still giving structure to what needs to be fixed. 

Blog Post #2

In the Mr. Dancealot video, there is a good example of how not to teach, but also the importance of students paying attention. To dance the final, all the students had were the notes the teacher had given, no prior experience. To me that shows the importance of not relying solely on the teacher for instruction, you also have to teach yourself. Saying that, he conclusion of this video is the importance of the teacher actually teaching and not just throwing material at the students. While it is important to let the students teach themselves you also have to guide them. I do not agree with the way Mr. Dancealot taught because it didn't help the students. They weren't taught how to do it, just briefly shown an example and told to take notes. 

For Robert, teaching in the 21st century is engaging your students to learn and integrating the technology while you do it. Teaching in the 21st century means new innovations for the way teaching is done, technology serves as a useful tool as a 21st century teacher. 
I. What kind of teacher teaches in the 21st century
II. What resources are available to kids
III. What can teachers do to integrate these resources
IV. What does it take to keep the kids interested
V. What kind of teacher do you want to be
Above are the main points made in the video about teaching in the 21st century. We need the technology provided in order to teach children and teach them correctly. Information online is easily made false and not worthy to meet a standard, but it is on there anyway for anyone to see. I think Robert sees teaching changing a slight bit more drastically than I do. I do not really believe that young children, like the elementary age I will be teaching, will be blogging, tweeting, or facebooking, simply because that is a young age to be on that, and from what I have gathered helping in elementary schools, most parents still keep an age level for when things like that are allowed to be used. If Robert is correct though, it will be my job as a teacher to have the kids learn right from wrong. They need to know when they're reading something legitimate or when it's made up from someone who just likes to make stories up. Credible sources are far and few between anymore, the news media is like the game telephone, every time a story is retold it changes just a little. Games like that would be a fun way to teach children credentials. 
The "networking" student needs a teacher for a lot of reasons. While his teacher may not have been helping to him, most teachers offer material for side reading, or at least a book that can be purchased for learning, that's usually not the case. The video is great in theory, but in reality, especially in high school, if a student has a professor that does not want to lecture, give any material, or assign a book, most people will drop the class. It's simple laziness. We are lazy in nature, and if the teacher wants us to have no outline of a class and no structure, we will drop the class. The networking student is just a figment of wonderful imagination that likely never exists. Even with technology playing such a big part, it still is not probable for someone to put in that kind of work. 
Mrs. Davis has a great idea for her classroom. She's connecting her children with so many opportunities and learning tools. Her idea of making them learn something to teach her is brilliant, because it was something the kids were interested in and that made her interested in it. If more teachers taught like this we would have so much more knowledge coming out of high school. Connecting her kids as far as the Middle East is huge for them, that gives them so much of an opportunity for new things and new ideas and thoughts. More teachers and schools should be integrating like Mrs. Davis is in her classroom. 
Who is ahead in the learning race? While the answer may seem obvious, it is not quite as obvious as one might think. While the graduates are supposed to have the most knowledge and be the smartest, third graders have figured out macbook computers when most have not. Undergraduate and graduate students are supposed to be ahead, but with all the upcoming technology, the tables have turned. Its no longer the college kids are the smartest, but the elementary school kids are so far advanced because of what they are given. Gulf Shores Elementary was a great place to show that because the children there are ready to learn and have great enthusiasm for everything they have done. As some one who has volunteered in GSES, I can say that those kids technology knowledge and where they are in their learning is far advanced. They have taken a step up and those kids really are "ahead in the learning race."

This is the first I have heard of classroom flipping. I do not currently think it would be useful, but only trial and error would tell. Just from the amount of work kids already sit in school getting instruction and going home with homework is over the top, and to try and force kids to watch lessons and learn things themselves without any prior instruction is a huge overload for some kids. I believe in the end it would do more harm than good, although it is a pretty good idea for more driven students.
Teaching students the system is a great way to harmonize them. It tells them exactly what is expected, what to look for and find, and they have a better chance of acquiring a goal because of it. Coaching in the classroom gives new light on boring topics, such as the writers Shakespeare. His kids did not enjoy it until he taught them the system and opened their eyes. That would be so useful in so many classroom objectives. Explain to the students exactly and the results will be phenomenal. 

Blog #1

I've heard EDM310 is a class you have to work for your grade, push yourself to success. My biggest fear about this class has to be the blogging. I have never blogged before and am very confused about other blogs, posting, and the commenting. Just a few minutes ago my following list went completely blank, and I thought I was going to have to go re-add everyone in the class, which was a victory the first time I did it. This is my first semester in the college of education and I have 16 credit hours, four classes are education based and I still am not sure how to even navigate the building. EDM310 already seems like it will be one of my harder courses, but as someone who is new to the 300 level classes, I miss those easy 100 level classes. I have plans to go to the lab and get some help more than once this semester, especially if I never catch up on how to work a blogging website and learn how and when to comment on others blogs.
My only questions about EDM at the moment is the commenting portion, and when we are supposed to comment on our peers, how many peers we are supposed to comment to, and when we will be commenting on teachers and students around the world. EDM310 has given me a lot to take in this first crazy week, but I expect a great semester with a great group of professionals. 

Practice Blog Post 1

Outline
I. About me
II. Why I want to be an educator
III. 21st century educators
IV. My passions

My name is Kirstin Bailey, I was born and grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, and moved to Gulf Shores, Alabama five years ago as a freshman in high school. Being someone who was not fond of high school, I did dual enrollment and early graduation, and knocked my entire freshman year out so that when I started South in the fall, I was a sophomore. I work at a vet office, animals are almost as cool as children and a big interest of mine. Animals are a challenge but the work is definitely a blessing, and a lesson in the medical feild.  I always thought I would end up back in Georgia after high school, then I found South. I first visited my sophomore year of high school, when my sister decided to go to nursing school here and I fell in love.
My family is very special to me. I am very close with my mom and go home to see her as often as I can. My family used to be very spread out, but my nana has finally moved to Foley, Alabama. That just leaves my aunt who lives in Houston. She comes to visit a good bit, I am often mistaken for her daughter because we look so much alike.
Education is important to me. I think it's important that children have a place to go where they feel safe, especially if they don't have a great home life. Teachers are supposed to be the foundation for such kids. For all the other children, it's important to be a foundation to them as well. It is important to mold their minds and encourage them to learn in exciting new ways.
Twenty-first century educators have so much technology right at their fingertips. It's important to utilize that technology and use it any way possible to teach children and to inspire them. Teaching in this century means advanced everything, advanced knowledge, advanced abilities, and advanced learning. Children are smart and capable and full of questions. They just need to be pushed, listened to, and answered, and this century gives more of the capabilities for it.
My passion is animals and children. While I haven't gotten to work as much with children as I have with animals, I enjoy the time I have gotten with each. My boyfriend and I have a bird dog named Millie, she is a boykin spaniel and is sweet and wonderful and incredibly intelligent. Watching her work is a huge passion for me, her grace and her beauty I would not trade her for anything in the world.