Friday, September 16, 2016

Self-Directed Learning using Feedly


Melissa Holt
Assignment 4
EDT 5372
Dr. Zhang

After reading two educational post from the educational technology blogs that I subscribed to, I found all of the posting very enlightening.  The first educational post that I read was entitled, 6 Essential EdTech Tools for Your Classroom, through the Educational Technology and Mobil Learning blog. This educational blog post provides Web 2.0 users with technology based websites that can be easily integrated and implemented into the classroom setting; thereby, allowing educators to build upon their teaching as well as enhancing student achievement and academic learning.  The blog post recommended Classdojo, Schoology, Seesaw, Edmodo, Kahoot, and TedEd.   While I do have personal experience using both Edmodo and Kahoot, I have never had knowledge or exposure to the other recommended websites.  Classdojo seems like a great way to keep students engages and promote active learning.  Schooology seem to be a great approach to increasing classroom management with the use of technology.  Seesaw would be a great approach to maintaining parent, teacher communication and building a positive working relationship with parents.  Finally, TedEd would be beneficial because educators can use TedEd as a visual resource that can help facilitate best praxis in the classroom setting.



The second educational post that I read was entitled, Cultures of Perpetual Learning, through the Will Richardson blog. This post offered an interesting look at the current educational framework which is systemically traditional in many regards.  However, educational reform on curriculum, educational approaches, and techniques are necessary when educators aim to prepare students for the future.  There were two thought provoking questions within the post that were points of contention and self reflection. The two questions were...


·         Do educators in our systems see themselves as the CEOs of their own careers?

·         And, maybe most importantly, are we working to help our students understand what it means to be the CEOs of their own learning?


Although I do consider myself as the CEO of my career as an educator, I am not confident that teachers at all grade levels are working to help all students understand that they are CEO’s of their own learning.  I agree that as educators and future administrators, it is imperative that we create and maintain a culture of students who will always be perpetual learners.



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5 comments:

  1. Hello Melissa,

    Our current generation includes many different technologies, which can be overwhelming for someone who is not very good with technology (I am pointing at myself HAHA). My students often laugh at me because I struggle to turn on my projector! But in all seriousness, I truly believe incorporating technology in the classroom at a gradual pace has helped me to become a better teacher. I currently use Schoology with my students and it has been a great resource for my classroom. You really hit your description of how different educational web tools can serve its own purpose in the classroom. As educators we just have to be patient enough to figure out what program will support our students best as we work to help them achieve their academic goals.

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  2. Hi Melissa,

    That second article raised two great questions, questions that I never thought of before in a educational setting. During my time in the Army I would use a similar context to explain to Soldiers that they're in charge of their own careers, but never would I had thought to take that and apply it to my future career as an educator.

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  3. Hello Melissa, I really liked your explanation of having students see themselves as the CEO of their own learning. There is so much information students have at their finger tips, and they really don't have to try hard to go online and generate information on a particular topic. The learning experience comes when students are specific about their research, have a purpose in mind as they analyze the information, and are able to use the information to their advantage. One of the most effective ways is to have teachers nurture and encourage their cognitive growth and curiosity. As future leaders, we see the importance of building teachers that believe in themselves and believe in their students.

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  4. Hello Melissa, I really liked your explanation of having students see themselves as the CEO of their own learning. There is so much information students have at their finger tips, and they really don't have to try hard to go online and generate information on a particular topic. The learning experience comes when students are specific about their research, have a purpose in mind as they analyze the information, and are able to use the information to their advantage. One of the most effective ways is to have teachers nurture and encourage their cognitive growth and curiosity. As future leaders, we see the importance of building teachers that believe in themselves and believe in their students.

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  5. Those blogs you mentioned are very interesting and they do make a huge impact on assisting teachers with their lessons and learning structures for students. The question about if leaders and students question whether they are CEO's of their domain is good, we all should be CEO's of our educational careers as well as our employment. Good blog.

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