Jing Image

I have used Jing to create an image including text and graphics to help my students learn how to convert metric units. Jing is a small program that allows you to take a snapshot of your screen with boundaries that you set. I like this tool, but I don't think you cannot change or delete text boxes/shapes/arrows in your image after you save it, which was extremely aggravating. Both image and video files can be produced through Jing. Unlike some other image editers, your products can be saved anywhere on your PC. Unhappy with the file format of your product? You can convert them with an online image converter. Below you will find my Jing Graphic.

This tool and product meets the ISTE NETS T standard 1 for breeding a greater appreciation for and use of technology in my classroom. I'm sure my students will like the break from watching me write on the whiteboard and using a handout or presentation. The graphics I can use will definitely liven up the notes/activities more than text and lecture alone. This will also meet standard 5, because I am using existing (possibly emerging) technology to support student learning and I plan on using this technology to interest my students while demonstrating mastery and use of technology in the classroom. With the students I teach role modeling and demonstration of technology skills is key to actively involving them in the learning process.

Self Portrait

I created a self portrait through the picassohead online self portrait creation tool. The only thing I didn't like about the tool was that the it had a limited amount of images you can compile into your self portrait. I would like to see either more images to choose from or more distortion options. I had trouble finding images that matched my image of myself. I ended up combining/overlapping multiple images to get the desired effect.
My first picassohead:

My second picassohead:

This activity brought the creative side of online tool usage and can provide an outlet for my more creative/art-loving students while teaching them new technology skills and promoting a love for technology. This also would provide a fun learning environment where the students, and myself, can learn how to navigate an online tool and learning editing skills. This tool will show students that even technology can breed art and design opportunities and art is not only tied to the sketchpad or easel. (ISTE NETS T 1 and 2)

Snip-snip

I've just use the Snipping Tool that came preinstalled in my Windows 7-running netbook. The Snipping Tool is easy to find. Just open the Start menu from your toolbar, search for 'Snipping Tool,' and click the icon that appears. We can use the snipping tool to easily capture screenshots and paste them where needed. The Snipping Tool has replaced my old copy/paste procedure to add images into PowerPoint presentations, because I don't have to crop the image after saving the image or pasting it. The Snipping Tool is a copy function and cropping tool in one! Here is an image I have taken from Wikipedia to use in my photosynthesis Ppts:

This tool allows me to pick certain parts of a larger image and prevent my students from being distracted by a lot of graphics. I can have my students lock their eyes on a specific part of an image without them looking at other, less prominate graphics in a larger, more diverse image. I can use this tool to quickly modify the image and model how to identify and isolate the important information from an image or series of images by show them how to focus in on a specific image and isolate it by snipping it from a distracting collection of images to help them facilitate their own learning. (ISTE NETS T 3 and 5)

Google Profile

I've recently signed up for a Google Profile and have been using Google Reader. So far, I have picked 2 blogs to follow through Google Reader. They are: 1) Free Technology for Teachers and 2) Free Resources for Education.

1) Provides descriptions and links to free technology tools and tips to help me (and you) become more proficient and efficient as I use IE8 and Firefox. By the time you read this, I have used 2 of the tips given through the above blog on how to make my Google searches more efficient.
2) Provides a similar service as Free Technology for Teachers above. It is lighter on the descriptions (short and sweet) and I've already used the SimpleDiagrams program (requires installation) reported here to make a Vin diagram and flow chart for a Ppt I use to teach at FSU.

Using Google Reader is a form of digital syndication, which means I am gathering instructions and useful information for my use and allowing others to view this info for their own use. The Internet is a really easy way run a syndicate; so much so, that the term 'RSS' (really simple syndication) is used to describe this process.

Diigin' the Diigo

I'm not big on browsers add-on, but Diigo may be an exception. You can view my Diigo bookmark page to see some of my favorite science and educational pages. I will probably discard my current bookmarks in IE -8 and join the cloud with Diigo. I am running the Diigolet add-on to bookmark pages to my Diigo account  for my future use. I'm also running weather and translator add-ons. Both of these add-ons are on IE-8. The only other internet browser I've experienced is Firefox, which I do not like; I guess that is because I was trained on IE and can navigate through the toolbar with ease. An add-on is a small piece of software that is used by another, larger piece of software to improve your experience. In short, an add-on is something that can enhance or increase the use of an internet browser. I use the weather add, because I like to check the weather forecasts everyday and now I don't have to go to a separate website when I want to check the weather forecast. I use the translator add-on to translate a foreign website into English. I am a collector of and very interested in surplus military firearms, many of which are from non-English speaking countries. Also, some of the links/buttons in my blog are in Spanish and I cannot change my settings to English, therefore I use the Google translator. The three add-ons I use installed and run seamlessly.

I believe this activity mostly falls under ISTE NETS T standard three, because we are joining a very large, culturally diverse learning community where our bookmarks can be used throughout the world. Throughout the coming weeks we will be using this Diigo tool to "model and facilitate effective use of current and emerging digital tools to locate, analyze, evaluate, and use information resources to support research and learning."(ISTE NETS T, Standard 3.d)

Personal Educational Phylosophy

If you would like to view my personal educational philosophy, please do so. I've used a Flesch-Kincaid readability test through MS Word to help me edit my philosophy and increase the Flesch-Kincaid grade level of my artifact. Below you will find one-half of my philosophy embedded as a Voki avatar. Voki is an interesting application that can be used to add sound bites to a blog from text or your own recorded voice! Give it a try!

My Resume

For those that are interested, here is my resume. The link is fueled by GoogleDocs. If you have never used the Docs program before, I suggest you check it out. From my limited experience with the application, I can see it will become a valuable program.

My internal locus of conrol

Luck, what's that? Now, listen to me, as I have an internal locus of control and I control my destiny!

In the past, I've taken some self diagnostic tests. I cannot recall which ones, but I remember being told I should be a woodsman in elementary school; didn't turn out that way, but I still find the time to explore God's creation, hence me being a science teacher. Looking back, I also remember being labeled as a thinker and having a medial level of authority. These two descriptions seem to be accurate. I cannot see myself as being at the top, nor the bottom of the totem pole.

I just finished a "locus of control" test and received a "16." This test basically assesses how well you can govern your own decisions and the decisions of others, along with how you perceive your control of your world. The test results span a scale of 0-23, with 0 being a very strong external locus of control and 23 with a very strong internal locus of control. A score of "16" results with me having an internal locus of control. I would have to agree. I find myself judging my actions and feelings more than other peoples' opinions and feelings towards me. Although, I'm sure that when I was a student in public school I was more extrinsically controlled, as you wouldn't say that I was the most popular kid around.

I see myself as an authority below an authority, in the school setting and other aspects of my life. I can take control of a situation, but also know when to relinquish the reins when it is best for the group. Which is as it should be, since I am a teacher with students below and administration above me. I feel all teachers should have an equal mix of internal and external loci of control. Teachers in public schools are to guide their students along with being guided by our administrators, experiences in the classroom, and partially by our students' actions.

After taking this test, I can see that one of my students has a very high internal locus of control. He controls 2 students, which I now see have moderately strong external loci of control. I need to do some more research on how to adjust his condition, if possible.

Being aware of one's susceptibility to persuasion and ability to persuade others is extremely important to identify in a learning environment. Being able to look at my abilities and downfalls allows me to identify how I learn best and how I can be of use in a group setting, like the current team of teachers I work with. We can all learn more and teach better if we can identify our students' and our own strengths and weaknesses.

Learning Style Test Results

I completed the VARK questionnaire and received the following:

Visual: 4
Aural: 1
Read/write: 8
Kinesthetic: 5

The results also state that I have a mild Read/write learning preference. I would agree with that statement. I find myself choosing to read over watch TV or listening to the radio. I can hardly retain anything by listening to an audio tape, thus I agree with my aural style being rated a 1. Not being able to find a scale to compare my aural and read/write scores, I nevertheless find confidence in this assessment that my aural score is well below my read/write score. I agree that I partially learn through kinesthetics.

I'd say that the VARK assessment does correlate with my own description of my learning style. I strongly believe that I learn little through audio outlets, which aligns with my test results. I will continue to learn and study as I have before this assignment, but with an attempt to add some kinesthetic elements to see if my learning truly does benefit from carrying out a physical activity.

My hope is to use this knowledge of my learning style to help identify the similar and dissimilar learning styles of my students and peers. For my students, I'll use this information to modify my instruction and attempt to teach to their style. That's what teaching is about, right? Meeting the student on their ball field of learning and playing by their rules, so to speak.

Working with others in our field is essential to our professional development. Learning the styles of coworkers and administration is key to effective communication which, hopefully, will lead to better communication and an overall benefit to the students' learning.

Reading Assignment #2 blog posting

After reading the Reading COP #2 I'd say that, of the seven learning styles explored in the reading (Visual, Aural, Verbal, Physical, Logical, Social, and Solitary) that I am primarily a logical/mathematical and solitary/intrapersonal learner. I have taken a learning style inventory before and I believe I resulted as a logical learner, with which I agree. I tend to work through a protocol or organized pattern I have deemed efficient based on my past experiences. I feel slightly anxious when I detour from my proven learning habits, especially when I work in groups. Don't get me wrong, I am occasionaly spontaneous, but those times are far and few between. I'm very predictable. I do like order and do tend to make lists as my further reading suggests I would. As a science teacher at both the secondary and post secondary level, I feel that the components of a system do need to be completely understood to understand the whole system, as the reading suggests the logical/mathematical learning techniques explanation suggests I would. I also tend to be a solitary soul; I prefer to work alone in science labs, both in my undergraduate course work and undergraduate research experiences in HHH at FSU. It's often that you will find me spending time alone at a hobby or flyfishing. I seem to learn best when alone and completely undisturbed and find great satisfaction solving a problem or ratifying a situation myself rather than looking to another for answers.

Since receiving a full-time position in Harrison County, WV, I have truly found that my learning style is not the only route to learning. This idea is contrary to my position that my way of learning was best during my undergraduate years.

My first ever blog post!

Hello, all, this is my blog for an online graduate course I am taking through FSU in West Virginia, USA. The course is called Advanced Instructional Technology (EDUC-6305), taught by Richard Pierce. I have a feeling that I'll get hooked on blogging. Good luck in class to all my peers who are reading this!