Blog Assignment #10

What can we learn from Mrs. Cassidy?

    In the video "Little Kids...Big Potential" by Mrs. Cassidy, Cassidy emphasizes the students' knowledge and creativity. She makes the video with the children in her classroom narrating it. It is full of pictures and videos of the work they are doing in the classroom. The students even transitioned the video from segment to segment. The students explain the work that they have done as you see the different pictures and videos. It allows you to see the excitement that the students have for using technology in their class.

   The next video was the first of three interviews with Mrs. Cassidy, conducted by Dr. Strange. This one is entitled "Interview with Kathy Cassidy Part 1". Cassidy describes what it was like starting out with using technology in her classroom. Cassidy also explains how to use classroom privacy when using the web by posting only students' first name and not last. She also discusses how technology is not going away, but is here to stay. She also tells about how when students blog it gives them an audience, and benefits writing skills; comments that people post make the students want to continue to write, and write better.

   In "Interview with Kathy Cassidy Part 2", Cassidy begins by telling teachers to begin using technology in their classrooms by using technology that they like. It helps to develop knowledge of technology and skills. She also speaks highly of Twitter and other social networking sites as a personal learning network.

   In "Interview with Kathy Cassidy Part 3", Cassidy goes into more detail with her class's use of blogging. She says that the class size and the school year decide how much her students blog. She further explains that with a small group of students, she can blog once, sometimes twice a week. She also discusses how she used blogging as a small group break off in previous school years. Cassidy discusses adapting blogging to the physical education class, and issues with plagiarism. She explains that it is the teacher's responsibility to teach his/her students how to use sources creatively and not plagiarize. She also describes safety when using the internet. You can teach your students what is safe and what is not, and you can encourage you students to use the internet in a positive manner.

   I believe that I will encourage personal learning networks in my classroom. I would encourage venturing into the uses of Twitter and Youtube so that students would be able to find more resources outside of the classroom to enrich their math skills. The only thing I think that I would encounter is students possibly getting off topic in the classroom while using these sites. There is endless information and entertainment on the internet. Naturally everyone gets distracted from time to time. I think setting up classroom rules on what is and is not allowed would lead to a decrease in such behavior. I would also use classroom webpages to keep students and parents updated on what is happening in the classroom, and provide resources for homework help. A Facebook page for parents and/or students to be reminded and notified of assignment and assessment dates would be wonderful to use in the classroom. The only problems I would encounter is whether or not the school system would allow me to do such things.