The Professionals

I did not have any grand discovery about myself as a writer. If anything, I have confirmed I do not just the creative skills to craft ‘catchy’ or ‘inspiring’ posts as some of the ones I have had the opportunity to read. Nevertheless, it does not take away from my ability to write proficiently.

I learned digital writing could be a great tool to invite students into a world of writing frequently. I believe teachers should incorporate digital writing into their lesson plans, since 21^st century generation immerse in technology. I also observed the efficiency of immediate feedback when using some digital tools, which can be useful for teachers.

Integrating blogging into instruction allows students an open forum to “free write.” One of the essential components of an English language classroom demands students engage in writing. Blogging gives students that opportunity to express their thoughts freely without the restrictions of academic writing. Writing in any shape or form will enhance students’ proficiency, which ultimately all teachers strive towards.

Blogging definitely proved challenging for me. It took a while for me to learn how to post and to overcome the feelings of invasion into my thoughts. While I embrace the use of blogging in the classroom, I feel uncertain about blogs for personal use. Born into a world of slate and typewriter, I am yet to catch on to technology.

Yeah! I enjoyed the quantum leaps I have made in blogging. After weeks of holding my teacher’s hand, I got the hang of it and started working independently.

In Teaching Argument Writing, George Hillocks captivated my attention right from the beginning with the strategies he employed throughout the whole class discussions. I particularly liked his style of weaving the “conventions” and “structures” of writing into the enquiry-based discussions he conducted. Through the use of a visual, Hillocks engaged students into higher order thinking eliciting responses that demonstrate in-depth analysis. I felt a real ‘aha’ moment when I saw how easily he integrated ‘teaching grammar in context.’ Just from students’ responses, Hillocks created teachable moments for example in using ‘second person’ versus ‘third person,’ ‘absolute modifiers,’ ‘adverbial conditional clauses,’ and ‘transitions.’ Hillocks incorporated grammar into his discussion so seamlessly. The students engaged in the learning process without feeling pressured into a drill based styles of learning grammar.

I also liked how he refrained from providing direct answers to students’ questions and responses; but instead, probed deeper into their thought process by asking provoking questions like: “What do the rest of you think” or “What does that have to do with the fact that the glass is in his left hand?” In doing so, Hillocks allowed students to take full control of the discussions, thereby opening more opportunities for higher order thinking. As a future English teacher, this strategy becomes very intriguing to me because it is important to keep students engaged in discussions without giving direct instructions. When students lead discussions, they tend to move away from the mundane, monotonous teacher led voice, which yield less participation.

Yet another impactful strategy was his immediate inspection of students’ work. Hillocks underscores the importance of reviewing the worksheets his students used throughout the discussions in order to: “verify observations he made during the group assignments, determine who understood what, and get a clear indication about what to do the following day” (p.24). This strategy allows him to provide immediate feedback to students, which will help to guide their creative thinking. It also helps him to assess areas he may need to review for students who display misconceptions. Throughout the discourse, Hillocks conducted formative assessments as students discussed in groups their ideas of evidences they need to collect to support their claims. By looking over their worksheets, he could measure the levels of comprehension among students.

This entire book provides tips and guidelines in teaching Argument Writing engagingly and I definitely would recommend all first year English teachers get a hold of a copy. I certainly will keep the text as a reference guide as I face the challenges of adapting into real world classrooms.

When first introduced to this idea, I thought wow! What a great tool to implement in today’s classroom.  Students have so many devices at their fingertips and spend so much time on them that it makes perfect sense to utilize tech tools in the classroom.  Tech tools take the mundane out of learning and break the monotony.  Use them to reenergize students and refuel their desires to learn.  Click the link to view my vocab story.

Sometimes life leads us down paths that we never envisioned.  Paths that take us far away from home, paths that help us to conquer our fear, paths that leave us empty or paths that fulfill our dreams.  Today, I travel on a path that leaves me asking why?  Why is it that the things that mean the most to us are so easily snatched away?  Why are our dear ones taken away?  I must travel this path because it will lead to more pathways that will bring restoration.  As I travel along this path, I pray I will find the right way. For it won’t be long before I too am carried away.

1. Are you a native, visitor, or resident? How you do live your tech life?

I would have to say that I am almost illiterate in terms of Digital Literacy. I would consider myself a former resident of Skype, a native of emailing and texting, and a visitor of Facebook and Youtube. I use technology only when I am forced to do so or because of class assignments.

2. Tech Tools to Enhance Students Learning. Write about three and how you might use them. 

1. Slideshare 

Using Slideshare can help to keep students actively engaged in the learning process. Today’s students are technologically inclined and will stay alert if teachers employ technology as part of their pedagogical practices. Slideshare can be used to expand cooperative learning, which is important in an enquiry based learning community. Incorporating Slideshare presentations in the classroom, also gives students a glimpse at how to practice the requisite skills for surviving the working world.

I would use Slideshare for presentations that promote diversity in the classroom; thereby, creating a culturally responsive classroom. Another way I would use Slideshare is to share historical themes such as Race, Class, and Gender when teaching novels such as To Kill a Mockingbird or Huckleberry Finn. This would give students visuals as a hook to the introduction of the novels.

1. ii) Diigo 

Diigo is a powerful information capturing, storing, recalling and sharing tool. Here are just a few of the possibilities with Diigo:

• Save important websites and access them on any computer.
• Categorize websites by titles, notes, keyword tags, lists and groups.
• Search through bookmarks to quickly find desired information.
• Save a screenshot of a website and see how it has changed over time.
• Annotate websites with highlighting or virtual “sticky notes.”
• View any annotations made by others on any website visited.
• Share websites with groups or the entire Diigo social network.
• Comment on the bookmarks of others or solicit comments to your shared bookmarks. (https://sites.google.com/site/team8project9440/using-diigo-in-the-classroom-2)

I like the idea of Bookmark Lists. As a teacher, I would use this feature to organize bookmarks according to themes or topics. Also, to encourage collaboration, I would open discussions among all students from different sections of my course. Students will benefit from having access to websites other students deemed useful and the annotations made. The collaborative group efforts will even allow students to respond to each other. I like this feature of Diigo because it allows me to open communication for all students in all my classes.

1. https://www.scribd.com/ 

This website gives access to over a million books, audio-books, comics, and more. I would definitely use this site as a means of encouraging students to read more. With the wide variety to choose from, students may find novels that suit their likings. The genres of novels include: romance, fantasy and sci-fi, science and technology, young adult novels, biography and memoirs etc. I would also use this site to help struggling readers and English Language Learners. The availability of audio-books will ease this process.

3. How do you keep learning about teaching after you leave school? What is your insight about virtual professional learning? What do you notice about virtual professional development?

I believe my learning about teaching actually begins when I start my first day in the classroom. The theoretical aspects were given to me in college; however, the bulk of my knowledge will come from the practical experiences I will gain. I think virtual professional learning is a great way to quickly build skills. Teaching pedagogies are countless and becoming a member of shared networks can only increase one’s potential to become an expert in the field. Virtual professional learning allows both veteran and new teachers to share ideas and learn from each other. I have already seen benefits from reading articles published by the National Council of Teachers of English. I have noticed that virtual professional development provides websites that are useful in addressing many issues new teachers may face. I have also noticed that there are many chat links available to teachers for bouncing ideas around and getting feedback from a pool of other teachers. Teachers will definitely build an affinity to integrating web tools and improve or build digital literacy through virtual professional development.

4. Authentic Tasks for Students: Here is a list of tools that you can use with students to write virtually. Why is this important? What are the benefits? The risks? Tell me about your favorite discoveries

It is important that teachers utilize the virtual tools available for writing because not only are students engaging in writing but also they are using the tools that have become a part of their ‘digital age’. Today’s students are digitally literate and it is essential that teachers provide opportunities for them to develop these skills, which will later become beneficial in the working world. Notwithstanding, there are risks involved. Students can become so digitally dependent that writing manually becomes a challenge. The availability of tools that fix writing mechanics will hinder students’ proficiencies in this area of writing. Students will and have become too dependent on spell checks etc. Storybird.com offers students the space to create graphic novels. This site appealed to me because it can be a great tool to use with English language leaners. I also liked prezi as an alternative to power point presentations.

5. What Lies Ahead? Check out what is going on in the teacher-tech world. Review Jane Hart’s Slideshare Top Tech Tools for Educators 2014 and see what teachers are using around the world. What do you notice about the tools that educators are using around the world?

I am not surprised that social media networks are in the top ten. Even educators are looking for medium through which they can reach a wide audience and receive instant feedback when sharing ideas, questions, and concerns. The top ten Tech Tools allow the space for visual and audio learning experiences, which are crucial learning styles. Educators are using mediums in which they can share more presentations and are tapping into the global networking with people across the world.

6. Check out this digital tool version of Bloom’s Taxonomy. Based on what you have done today and what you understand about Bloom’s Taxonomy, what do you need to consider as you choose to integrate technology.

The updated Bloom’s Taxonomy using Tech Tools will be an essential tool for me as I transition into the classroom. It is important to consider the relevance of the wide availability of tech tools in different projects that I may assign. Although there are countless web based tools, teachers need to know what is appropriate to use and how the tools connect to students’ learning.

7. Reflect: Based on your exploration what do you think you will try next?

My exploration was an eye opener and also a threatening environment for a novice. However, I am learning to integrate technology in my future classroom and I am glad to have the exposure to so many tech tools prior to starting my professional journey. I will use my summer to learn as many of these sites and start building my knowledge in preparation for my teaching assignment.

Hello Friends,

Just want to share some  great news.  I am the proud recipient of the Order of Pegasus and will be inducted on April 1, 2015. Learn more about it here: http://honors.ucf.edu/articles.aspx?id=15994

Let God be praised.

Hi everyone,

My name is Cavel Austin and I was born in the city of Kingston on the beautiful island of Jamaica. I am the middle child with an older brother and a younger sister.  I am currently in my senior year and look forward to walking across the stage in December when I graduate.

After one year at University of Central Florida, I became engaged in research and recently completed my undergraduate thesis on “The Representation of Poverty in Great Depression American Literature,” for which I have been awarded a scholarship. I have also been nominated for the prestigious Order of Pegasus award and am the sole recipient from the College of Education of the Founder’s Day award. I serve as president of the National Society of Leadership and Success (Sigma Alpha Pi) and am a member of the Education College Student Council. I also founded and coordinate the Honors in the Major mentoring program. I am passionate above serving others; and as such, I volunteer at the Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida through my church, Patmos Chapel Seventh Day Adventist. Ultimately, my goal is to attain a doctoral degree in education in order to help prepare a future generation of intellects and to self-actualize.