What I learned from ED 408
This class and its text is all about going global in the classroom. It challenges future teachers to create a flattened classroom, a classroom that tears down the walls between school work and the real world. In this model of the classroom, students use technology to supplement their learning and are exposed to global issues. The students in a global classroom benefit from it because they have been introduced and understand the world globally. I began to create a Personal Learning Network, which keeps me connected with several of my personal mentors. This class also changed my mind about social media. All of my years in school told me that social media was a NO NO for a classroom. But my eyes have been opened to a whole new world of social media interaction. There are so many awesome people doing COMPLETELY awesome things in the world of education, and I can read their thoughts and actions on MY phone?! How awesome and inspiring for a new teacher! I also learned that I wanted to be the outlier teacher in my school- I want to be the one who dares to use the newest, emerging technologies to supplement my traditional pedagogy teaching style. Finally, I learned that going global does not have to be hard at all. You do not have to plan out synchronous communication times or worry about language barriers, because we are in the age of this amazing thing called TECHNOLOGY! We can use wikispaces and translators to break down the global barriers. There are so many sites and organizations devoted to getting students globally connected- All that's left for me to do is sign my class up! I also learned that a global project doesn't have to be a huge, extravagant plan- just keep it simple and clear. The students are going to LOVE some of the global projects I have planned for our class (One that I created in college is featured below!).
Who I "Met" in ED 408
Since my Issues and Trends class was strictly online, I did not actually meet anyone. However, I learned about some really great people through the case studies. I learned about Lizzie Hudson, an international educator who currently teaches in Malaysia, Cameron Paterson, a History teacher in the United States who has used several projects and counting to connect his 9th-12th grade students with countries around the world and help them understand different eras of history, and lastly Peggy George and Wesley Fryer, who have both been instrumental in the making of the K12 Online Conference. This conference is focused on teaching teacher how to be technologically and globally connected to other educators. The organizers' goals are to guide the betterment of education. The set up of this conference is what makes it so LOVABLE. It is completely online! The presenters prepare videos of their speeches and then the organizers release the videos at specified times. There are tons of other really cool things, like this, that sparked my interest in this class. And through the case studies, I got to "meet" awesome people.
Going Global
At the end of the class, we were called to "Go Global," with a project plan. I created the "Budget Buster" project that is presented in the short video below. Feel free to watch it and send any questions or concerns you might have as parents.
Lastly, I would LOVE to hear your global plans. E-mail me your ideas and I will do my best to implement them into our classroom!