last class and soon to be my last semester

My fingers cannot type fast enough. It's the last class of the semester, bittersweet for me because I only have one more semester of college left.

This class has been a pain in the neck at times and it has been grossly beneficial at times. I could not get myself to do top quality work on all of the assignments, mostly because some of them were a little bit too tedious for my liking or I just had other things going on. Other things include 5 other classes with equally as oppressive course loads, the school newspaper and an active role on a New Orleans service trip.

At times, I had a hard time seeing the connection between integrating technology and English, because, from my experience, it's a lot easier just to pick up a book. However, I really did find some of the interactive websites helpful for English instruction.

Overall, I learned a bunch of neat tech stuff, some of which will come in handy and some of which will not. What I can use, however, I will not know until I get situated with a teaching position. However, unlike most of my education classes, at least this class offered me something tangible to use in the class room.

Thanks for keeping me on my toes. Take care.

I'm actually putting on a benefit tomorrow for something so worthwhile that i forgot about my blog

It's been a crazy time between court, school and the New Orleans Benefit I am putting on tomorrow. The fall semester is all but over and I am going to able to breath easy soon.

At first, I was uneasy about the website final because I had such a hard time with Weebly the first time. But that helped me out, because it made me more familiar with the site. I am pretty excited about the website project. It ties in many aspects of technology we have learned this year.

As far as class goes, I had a hard time staying focused. I was exhausted from being in court all day and I was not expecting a lesson on de-fragmenting and cleaning out temp files. I hadn't started my website yet and I didn't even have the chance to read the article for class.

Overall, I feel like it was a wasted day for me. However, I'll have to make up for it with my website. I will not falter, unlike my Giants today.

Well, I guess it's back to the enormous sociology paper that is beckoning.

this is the first sunday where i did not worry about home work (and it feels great)

I'm sitting on the couch. It has never felt so comfortable. Generally, weekends consist of a lull on Friday and Saturday and then an absolute cram on Sunday. While not a suggested method, doing work on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday works just fine for me.

As far as the power point project goes, the topic we had (internet assessment) was far too broad for me to wholly grasp. On the research paper, I found myself caught up in the historical aspect of internet assessment. Overall, I was unable to find definite answers on the future of it.

I'm optimistic that Bobby and I can give a competent look into internet assessment, and I intend to engage the class because I really want to hear their opinion on internet assessment.

Oh, and the the Giants WILL BRUTALIZE THE PHILADELPHIA EAGLES TONIGHT!!!!!

When the clock strikes 12, it's going to be my birthday and i don't even have time to celebrate

I complained last week about the amount of work I have; those complaints are still relevant at this time. However, after watching the FU Men's Rugby Team play on Saturday before a raucous home crowd, i saw something truly beautiful. I saw a team with glee streaked faces, jumping in the air and howling in triumph.

I am curious about the power point project just because internet assessment might have been one of the most difficult research topics I have ever tackled. The library media specialist looked at me like I was crazy when I asked her for assistance on the topic.

I never realized that there were ISTE technology standards in education. For one, most schools do not meet these standards. Many schools do not have the facilities to accommodate the full spectrum of educational technologies. Even more schools teach in traditional modicums - book and test assessment - as opposed to internet based, interactive learning. That would explain why these standards are not enforced.

The bigger question is when are our public schools going to be overhauled so there is a general consensus on how to productive educate the youth. Education is at a crossroads; as for technology, schools must be able to provide their students and teachers with the means to utilize technology as a supplement to their instruction.

The lesson plan sites are great resources - the lesson plan project will help me in an area where, overall, I have little experience. I particularly liked Thinkfinity - it offered interactive resources for teachers. Their exhibit on the election and the mechanism of voting was impressive. It actually assisted me with my sociology paper. It was coordinated with the Smithsonian website.

I also liked the Columbia Education Center's setup. It was easy to search, especially within the subjects. It offered a minimal amount of web-based lesson plans. When I looked at some of the English lesson plans, they were rather generic. In high school, I always remembered the more creative assignments over the less original, more rudimentary exercises.

These sites are great tools, but a teacher should draw on a variety of areas in order to create a coherent, engaging lesson plan.

The Giants are bringing it to the Cowboys and I still have a sociology paper to write - cheers to FU rugby too.

The NY Giants are playing like the old Giants, my roommate is yelling in my ear about it and I have more work than I know what to do with it.

It's a stressful time, late October. I feel like college begins around this time, when the work never seems to stop and the teachers just pack it in without care. Sometimes, I think teachers feel that their class is the only class a student takes.

World Book Encyclopedia offered easy to use options all in one place. The search options and, particularly Educator's tools. The Create a Time line function is clever and, honestly, one of the most readily applicable educational resources.

It is especially helpful with historic events and I still, to this, day remember timelines i did in elementary and middle school on the Revolutionary and Civil Wars, the Civil Rights Movement and the Women's Suffrage Movement. Timelines really are effective tools.

Brainpop.com was a tool that I felt was very childish and watered down. it would be an effective instrument for younger children, like 4th graders. However, as the grade level goes up, the videos are not comprehensive enough. The quizzes offered do not promote learning either; they're about memorization and that is it.

Easytestmaker.com is awesome. A quick little book quiz or grammar exam. I LOVE IT!

Rubistar is an asset because I have never been a fan of rubrics. As a result, I tend to shy away from them. A website like this gives me more incentive to incorporate them.

Overall, I'm stressed; a senior in college is a strange place to be, especially when you live at Fairfield Beach and you have mounds of home work to do. But the GIANTS WON, HUGE WIN OVER THE STEELERS IN PIT!!

And the internet went down for over an hour while I was working on my blog, or else I would have been able to get it in. (Almost forgot to add that)

This is my first post in over a month (and I watched senior girls play football at the park yesterday)

Well, the economy is still in the toilet so not too much has changed over the past month. Yesterday was one of the highlights of my senior year thus far, and not just because of the skimpy outfits that the girls were wearing. It was an event celebrating the senior class, organized and paid for by the senior class and executed without incident or complaint. In the scheme of the real world, this is a microcosm on the importance scale; however, for 21 year old Fairfield students, it was a giant step.

Red Sox comeback the other night, by the way, was surreal; never before has a team blew it as hard as the Rays did. My Mets are out, however, so baseball I am indifferent to every team but the Phillies.

As far as class goes, Animoto.com is a wonderful site: it's easy to use and even easier to apply. However, I feel as if it is only applicable to a distinct set of circumstances. For example, it is great for putting together a presentation on your fall internship, but it is not as useful when you have to do a math lesson. It's trendy too because it is not as rigid as Powerpoint.

The quality of the videos on Vimeo were stunning. I found the content to be more professional than youtube. Still, they both essentially serve the same purpose. For what I use the youtube for (songs and sometimes, technical explanations for homework), the video quality is essentially a non factor. If it is, now I can check out Vimeo.

Thebigdealbook.com was a fabulous resource: who would have thought that it would be that convenient to get a grant. I also liked the Web Wednesday tidbit on global awareness. I think that the site is a great resource to teachers. I loved the easy to use setup, as well as the alternate options of teaching. It gives you ideas for inexpensive, creative lesson plans.

The news letter is informative - however, i often find myself questioning, how many possible news letters can i read through in a day?

Picnik served a purpose for taking facebook pictures off of Facebook. This also made it easier to complete y Animoto project.

While the economy is hurting, at least you can still have a good time at the beach. Even in October.

I'm concerned about the money I do not even have (and two tech projects due next week does not help)

Well, the economy is teetering off the cliff of depression. It's early Thursday morning and I cannot sleep. Reading mass media reports on the Presidential summit featuring Bush, Obama and McCain is actually refreshing - it's about time some of those archaic, party boundaries are dissolved, even if it is only temporary and in their best interest.

On today's class, there were some interesting topics discussed. I definitely was not impressed with eprintable.com just because I know I would never use it. Selfish, absolutely.

We talked about it in class, but veditor.net was certainly practical. However, it is a dangerous tool. It's along the same line as sparknotes.com in that it does all the work for you. There has to be some brain activity taking place, especially in the correction of papers. That is how mistakes are learned from.

I respectfully disagree with the notion that Microsoft Word is actually beneficial to the student as a speller. Personally, I feel as if I have become a worse speller since computers have become the norm for writing. Sometimes, I wish that typing on a computer was not so efficient.

Komando.com was a resource. And I really cannot hate her for wanting to make the most money and live the American dream. Her site offers the convenience of having a variety of tech tips even though you can no longer search the archives for free.

Email marketing was an aspect of technology I never even considered. I figured that whichever school I worked at would provide general services for students to get grade updates and school reminders. However, how applicable would this be at Central High School. I always return to my experience there because it is one that I will never forget. I cannot understand how a school can be that poorly run, that obsolete and that helpless.

I was not remotely impressed with Discovery Education United Streaming. Maybe that was because the internet was kinking out during class or there weren't enough servers or whatever it was. All I know is that the videos were on par with bad utube and the videos seemed outdated.

Anyway, as I stir in bed and wonder what the economy will yield tomorrow, I realize that I'm still a student. And I despise politics. A LOT.