Saturday, November 15, 2014

HOW TO BE PRODUCTIVE

Blog #3 for Module 5 - Reflection - How I Get Out of an Unproductive Mindset


     Productivity. A word we have all encountered, especially within the domains of our educational career. I have struggled with being productive in school as early as my freshman year of high school. Time management always appeared to be a struggle and, constantly, I found myself completing projects and assignments at the very last minute. While I never failed any classes or missed an assignment, I knew the way in which I was productive was not as efficient as it should have been. I'd average on four to five hours of sleep at night, I would prioritize insignificant duties over significant ones, and the pile of work I had to do would grow immensely with each passing day. While I still catch myself pushing assignments or tasks off until later, I have helped myself become a more productive student as well as person by following a simple set of guidelines I am happy to be sharing with you all today! Follow these simple steps and I can assure you that you will be a happier, more positive, and more productive person.

HOW TO BE PRODUCTIVE
  1. Get yourself in the frame of mind that you WILL accomplish something. 
  2. Once you've changed your mindset from "off-mode" to "on-mode", create a list of tasks that need to be completed. Order your list in a manner that sets the first goal not only as the most important to be finished, but also the most time consuming. 
  3. Work on a schedule. Push yourself to complete a duty by a certain time. This way, you can establish breaks to eat and, possibly, to run errands if you have errands that also need to be completed. (Ex. From 11 AM - 1 PM: I will write my essay. From 1 PM - 1:45 PM: I will eat lunch and get my brother a birthday present for his birthday this weekend) This example is to represent that productivity lies in all situations. Instead of getting your brother a gift last minute, get it out of the way during your free time or break time so you do not have to worry about it in the future.
  4. EXECUTE YOUR LIST. You have devised a plan with a timed schedule. Accordingly, you MUST carry out the plan. Get all the items on your list checked off as timely and efficiently as you can.
  5. Reward yourself. After a long day of non-stop going and working, it's only fair to treat yourself. Wind down. Take a bath. Eat some ice cream. Grab a drink with friends. You deserve it. Everyday after you have completed your to-do list, it will feel amazing knowing how productive you were within the amount of work you accomplished. Surely, this feeling enough will suffice as a reward. However, do something nice for yourself as a way to relax. This time will motivate you for the rest of your days to get sh*t done in the present time so that you are able to appreciate the future time. 

Thursday, November 13, 2014

Who Knew Social Media had Academic Benefits?


Blog #2 for Module 5: Analytical Response to the Reading, "Old Communication, New Literacies: Social Network Sites as Social Learning Resources" 

by Christine Greenhow and Beth Robelia


"In this paper, we argue that adult-driven discourses ought to consider not just academic literacies, but also young people's 'nonacademic' communicative literacies typically practiced outside of school as part of their overall development of new literacies." 

- Christine Greenhow and Beth Robelia


     This essay by Christine Greenhow and Beth Robelia emphasizes the utter importance of shifting the way we educate so that it corresponds with the way students learn in the new, technological awakening. I could not agree more with the valuable points both women made within their writing. The entirety of this essay was based on a study that examined the role of a social network site in eleven students' lives from low-income families. In addition to this, several times, both Greenhow and Robelia supported their ideas with data from the study as well as from scholars who similarly evaluated the role of social media as a new literacy in the classroom setting. Because their argument to conform the way we educate to the digital world was so credible and factually supported, it made their piece all the more convincing. 

     In the section titled, "New Literacies and Social Networking Sites", the authors referenced scholarly articles that also discussed similar ideas about transforming the way we educate. I particularly liked how Buckingham (2007) argued how new media has become a "significant dimension" of the majority of the youth and, with that, the relationship formed between student and technology is no longer school based. In essence, Buckingham is describing how the use of technology, for instance, the computer, is not primarily or only used within a school setting. These relationships are now more culturally dominated as a result of social networking sites. So, it is vital for educators to implement new media not as "curriculum delivery devices" but as tools to critically and creatively represent the world, communicate, and understand social and cultural processes (Greenhow and Robelia). 

     Technology is the future. Thus, it is critical that it is engaged and introduced even further within the education system, in ways that help learners shape their social relationships and practices.


Construction of Cultural Disability: Intelligence Comes in Many Different Shapes


Blog #1 for Module 5: Analytical Response to the Reading, "Reading Adolescents' Reading Identities: Looking Back to Get Ahead" by Donna Alverman


      "Largely through the writings of a cross-disciplinary group of scholars, reading educators around the world are being exposed to the idea that literacy education is less about skill development and more about access to cultural resources and to understandings of how schools that promote certain normative ways of reading texts may be DISABLING some of the very students they are trying to help." - Donna Alverman 



     This quotation by Donna Alverman prefaces her concerns with a few problematic issues. One being based on how the normative ways of reading are "losing their usefulness (and validity) in the wake of new technologies and changing literacies", and another being how the struggling reader is not only the one to blame for his or her individual reading level. I thought this was rather intriguing. Alverman emphasized how the "construction of cultural disability is all inclusive", in that the school, the teachers, the parents, and most importantly,  the curriculum along with testers determine a student's performance and understanding of subject material. In this, I think Alverman brings up an excellent point that is not often discussed or considered as credible. I feel students who have been identified as struggling readers from a very young age are frequently labeled with disabilities, and as a result, do more poorly within the classroom setting because they feel as if they are not capable of reading or learning in a way that which other students are. When in reality, it is important to look at the greater picture, in that, it is not the student's fault that he or she is deemed with the label of a struggling reader, but the surrounding elements that have major impacts on the student's learning and success.
     
      It is evident that not every student learns in the same manner or is capable of the same skills as other students. With that being said, mandatory state tests that determine the comprehension levels of students, I feel, are unfair. This is  because intelligence is not strictly confined to academic subject matter. Each individual possesses a different kind of intelligence. Furthermore, Sally may read perfectly, and thus, perform highly on a state reading-comprehension test. Whereas Nico, an identified "struggling reader", does poorly on the test, but, had the test been based on his cello skills, he would have flawlessly passed the exam because of his intelligence with music. 


Tensions Between Writing vs. Speech


Blog #4 for Module 4: Analytical Response to "Reading Images: Multimodality, Representation and New Media"




     Gunther Kress, author of Reading Images: Multimodality, Representation and New Media, is a "professor of semiotics (philosophical theory of signs and symbols) and education in the Department of Culture, Communication, and Media at the Institute of Eduction Of the University of London" (Gunther Kress). In this writing, Kress discusses his take on the central concerns that differentiates the medium of the book versus the medium of the screen and their individual importances under different circumstances. The circumstances that which Kress referred to were situational. Moreover, he described how each medium shifts in forms of reading, authority, knowledge, and within the social/natural world.

     In the section of his piece titled, "Modes and their affordances: the materiality of modes", Kress brings up an interesting idea when he stresses the need to consider the materiality of modes. He uses the example of speech being a material of human sound and writing being a material of graphic substance to paint a better picture in the reader's mind. With this, Kress brings up an excellent point in describing that the two material modes are not interchangeable, simply because there are things you can do with speech that which you cannot do with writing, and likewise for writing versus speech. In that, he states,

                   "The up and down of the voice, which produces the melody of (English) speech, makes many meanings, from straightforward questions to highly modulated ones: imagine saying, in a tone of incredulity, ”you did what?”; to many varying forms of emotion and affect. Even highly experienced writers find it impossible to reproduce these meanings in writing and need to take recourse to devices such as '… she said incredulously'". 

     I find that there is great truth to his claim. Additionally, it is interesting to wonder how to link the two materials, so that both can be utilized and perceived in the same manner and interchangeably so. Kress then theorizes how the increasing use of image could potentially level the differences between writing and speech. This made me think of the use of digital images within our blogs and even within our ignite talks and how those digital images beneficially impacted the general engagement and understanding of the class. 

Monday, November 10, 2014

Blog #3: A Reflection on Ignite Talks vs. Ordinary Presentations - Module 4


     I can remember the first day of this class and how utterly captivated I was by Professor McVerry's lecture. At the time, I did not know that the presentation method was known as an ignite talk. Simply, I just remember thinking how engaging the lecture was. The ideas he discussed and emphasized were symbolically represented through pictures on a slide. Not once was I distracted.

     When our class came to learn about ignite talks and what exactly ignite talks entailed, I thought the presentation style was brilliant. More usual presentations, like a powerpoint with bullets, are informative, but often times, I find myself bored after only a few minutes of viewing the presentation. I think this is because the presentation lacks excitement or passion. The speaker is merely speaking about a subject, but is not immersed within that subject. The speaker tells the audience the facts, reads off the bullet points, but no one is fully engaged. Information hangs in the air; the audience, presentation, and speaker are just there.

     Whereas within the ignite talks, I feel the experience differs immensely. The speaker is passionate about their topic, therefore, he or she is fully immersed within the topic. Consequently, this makes the speaker want to teach others about their topic. The speaker is fully engaged; his or her voice is not monotonous, but rather enthusiastic. It is evident that the speaker WANTS to teach the audience about his or her topic. The speaker is excited to inform his or her audience. Likewise, I feel that the audience responds accordingly to this. The general ambiance of the ignite talk type presentation is fascinating to me. From my experience, I saw that the energy given off from a captivating speaker quite literally demands attention from the audience. The presence of a passionate, interesting, well-informed speaker makes for an involved audience. The speaker who wants to teach and is thrilled to teach encourages the audience to want to listen, and therefore, to want to learn.

     Above all things, I think passion within the classroom is most important. Or maybe vital would be a better term. I do not think a learning environment can last or survive without there being a form of passion present. With this, I feel there needs to be a mutual connection of passion and desire to learn between the teacher and his or students. Similar to the ignite talks, teaching in the classroom is all about learning and teaching passionately as well as through positive energy. With this being said, I believe ignite talks should be implemented more frequently in the classroom setting, especially with students in middle school and high school. During those academic years, students feel less motivated to work efficiently and productively in school. Ignite talks would give middle school and high school students a purpose to want to learn and to want to be academically focus.

     Ignite talks are inspiring. Even when I was listening to my peers discuss subjects that did not necessarily pertain to my interests, I still felt moved and touched. I still noticed the gears turning in my brain, the creativity forming in my imagination. In my personal opinion, ignite talks are the best way to present if one wants his or her audience to not only listen and learn, but to also be passionate and inspired by the subject matter.