Google as a Part of Speech - Activity Reflection #3

Hello, Readers out in Blog-Land!

Have you ever “Googled” yourself?  Type your name in quotes in the Google search box and see what happens.  Go ahead, I’ll wait.  No, I’m serious.  Go ahead.  I have to write this blog anyway, so you might as well start the search while I’m typing.   So, what did you find? 

When I “Googled” myself earlier this week, I was surprised that there were over 110 results from my “Christi Scheirer” search - I had no idea!  (I think it is so funny that “Google” is a verb, and we have incorporated all forms of “Google” into the vernacular:  “Have you Googled that?”  “I am Googling this.” The same is becoming true for Facebook:  “We are Facebook official” was how my nephew announced that he had a new girlfriend.  And who hasn’t heard the term, “Twittered”?  Ok, back to “Googling”…)   Most of the results of my self-surf were work-related or had to do with my Graphic Design and Multimedia certificates.  Several links were press releases or newspaper articles about the time that I took over as editor for our college’s online art and literary e-zine.  Some were from those MyLife-type people search engines.  I had a few social networking results (Facebook, Linked In) and a few links to the One Million Masterpiece, where I had added my own little square of art to the world’s biggest collaborative arts project.  In addition, I was pleasantly surprised that my question (and his answer) was published in one of Roger Ebert’s books, Questions for the Movie Answer Man.

I was pretty happy to see that my presence on Google is pretty positive, and I am recognized for my profession and for my artwork.  I think I come across as a hard worker, a creative person, and one who is dedicated to the arts and to education.  That is how I want to be known.  That is how I would like my students to know me; that is how I would like my employers to know me; that is how I would like my family and friends to know me; that is how I AM.

It scares me to think that I could get fired (or not even hired) from a job for what I write or post on the Internet.  Just recently, I read about a young woman, Stacy Snyder, who was allegedly let go from a student-teacher program because she posted a picture of herself on her MySpace page, in costume, holding an unidentified drink.  While she did write, “Drunken Pirate” as the caption, “whether she was serious can’t be determined by looking at the photo” (Stross, 2007).  In an excerpt from a document we were provided in my graduate class, I read about a woman, Heather Armstrong, who got fired because she vented about her coworkers on her blog.  While she did protest her firing, saying she hadn’t mentioned any one or the company by name, in the end, she said she knew the risks, and “I made my bed; I’ll lie in it” (Solove, 39).  Many other workers have had this experience – getting fired after posting on their personal blogs, social networking sites, or in emails.  I wonder whether this kind of action is a new trend or have employers been checking up on us in other ways, and we just don’t know it.  Further inquiry into the subject led me to an article about Henry Ford, who “in his day … maintained a ‘Sociological Department’ staffed with investigators who visited the homes of all but the highest-level managers. Their job was to dig for information about the employee’s religion, spending and savings patterns, drinking habits and how the worker ‘amused himself’” (Stross, 2007).  So it seems as though this sort of thing has been happening for decades.  What is different now, I think, is that the media is “all over it.”

So, I go back to my Google search and really look at what I have put out there.  I check over my Facebook page and my desolate MySpace page to see how I would look to an employer.  My pictures look good, and my posts are pretty standard, mostly positive, and rarely ever work-related.  I check around some of the other results and I am pretty satisfied that I am okay in that area. I know that what we put out there on the Internet is out there FOREVER, and for some reason, the old diet quote runs through my head:  “A moment on the lips – forever on my hips.”  I realize that this is synonymous with what we post online:  “A moment in our fillintheblankwithblog,FacebookPage,YouTubevideo,Flickrphoto,etc,etc,etc, forever on the Internet.”  Doesn’t quite have the same snazzy rhyme and rhythm, but I think it fits my point.  In a few years, I might want to get a new job somewhere, and I want to be sure my online record is clean.  JJ Jarrell, president of the North Central Florida Chapter of the Society for Human Resource Management and human resource manager for Performance Food Group, states, “While potential employers shouldn't use affiliations with social networks or your personal posts as reasons not to hire you, why take the risk?” (Clark, 2011).  It makes an impression.  What impression do I want to make? So is it right or is it fair that we are under such scrutiny in our private lives?  I am not sure if it is right or fair, but to me, it is what it is:  Employers are doing it, and I have no other choice than to present myself in the most positive way I can.  But, why wouldn’t I want that anyway?

This week, in my graduate class, we were given the assignment to create an “About Me” page.  I made one for my blog here and one for my Google profile.  With all the articles and textbook pages I reviewed this week, I decided to be proactive in how I am presented on the Internet:  I thought about how I want to be viewed, and made sure that my online presence matches my offline presence.  Put the positive and professional out there and be known for that.  That’s kind of how I am in person anyway.  Boring?  Maybe.  Safe?  Maybe.  Smart?  Yes.  I live in an age where Big Brother (or Big Boss) could be looking over my shoulder.  What do I want him (her) to see?

I think it goes back to our topic on ethics from a few weeks ago.  I do not recall, offhand, if the subject of the teacher’s personal and professional integrity came up in our reading. (I have since read a lot of articles and blogs about this subject, and I am hazy as to whether our textbook, Integrating Technology and Digital Media in the Classroom, covered it.) Irregardless, I think that in future editions, it should be a subject in that chapter.  “Employees, teachers, and students have an obligation to use computers responsibly and not abuse the power computers provide” (Shelly, 503).  This statement, to me, pertains to computer usage both inside and outside of the school walls.  Regardless of what we want to do, (and how much we argue “freedom of speech!) we, as educators, are in the public eye, and therefore live in somewhat of a fishbowl.  I grew up with a father for a minister.  I was a “preacher’s kid” and felt a lot of pressure to be well-behaved, quiet, and obedient, because that was what was expected of me by society.  As an educator, we have to live up to the same standards that society has created for us – to be upstanding citizens with high morals and “proper” behavior.  But who decides what proper behavior is anyway?  And, again, is it right?  Is it fair?  And, again, it is what it is, and I accept that. 

References

Clark, A. (2011, February 18). Watch what you post: Your boss also is watching. The Gainesville Sun.  Retrieved from http://www.gainesville.com/article/20110218/ARTICLES/110219428

Shelly, G.B., Gunter, G.A., & Gunter, R.E. (2010). Integrating technology and digital media in the classroom (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Course Technology.

Solove, D.J. (2007).  Information, liberation, and constraint. In The Future of Reputation.  (Chapter 2).  Retrieved from http://docs.law.gwu.edu/facweb/dsolove/Future-of-Reputation/text/futureofreputation-ch2.pdf

Stross, R. (2007, December 30).  How to lose your job on your own time. The New York Times.  Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/30/business/30digi.html?ex=1356670800&en=55ef6410d3cac28e&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

Activity Reflection #2 - Productivity Software

♥ ♥ ♥ Happy Valentine’s Day! ♥ ♥ ♥

One of my biggest life lessons happened one day in front of a class of 6^th graders.  I was teaching elementary music, and my third graders were doing a mini-performance that day for a kindergarten class.  I had forgotten my script at home, and so, in desperation, I called my father and asked him if he’d go over to my house, get the script, and bring it to my work for me.  He was able, and about 30 minutes later, he was in my classroom with the forgotten script.  As he handed me the book, he kissed me, I thanked him, and we each said, “I love you”.  Remember, I had a class of 6^th graders watching this exchange.  After we said, “I love you,” the entire class burst out in groans and giggles, “ewwww!  Miss Scheirer!!!”  My father, who was turning to leave, turned back to face those snickering 12-year-olds.  Having just lost his wife, my mother, several months prior, he looked tired and worn.  He opened his eyes wide and leaned towards the class, and said, in a serious tone, “Never be afraid to tell the ones you love that you love them.”

There was dead silence for a moment, and the children sat motionless for a moment while they processed what he had said.  I thanked him again, and he left.  After a moment, the class burst out, “ewwww!” even louder, but this time they weren’t laughing.   Their moan was more about them being uncomfortable with the “love” word, rather than their silly mocking of someone showing obvious love for her parent and the parent for his child.  I never forgot that day, and I doubt that many of them did as well.  In fact, on one of my former student’s Facebook pages, one of her quotes is “Always tell your loved ones that you love them.”  My dad would like that.

I got a lot of my traits from my father – my gift of the gab, my curiosity for the world, my musical ability, my sense of humor, my writing style, my disorganized desk, my procrastination…  Most of these traits I am grateful for – for the last two, however, I am not.  My father, a former minister, saved everything, and now, after his death, we are trying to sort through almost 80 years worth of papers.  Mixed in with bills from 1973 are shopping lists and sermon notes from 1980 and my homework assignments from kindergarten and his camp counselor rosters from 1967.  He had been retired for almost 20 years and he didn’t go through any of this stuff – AND he moved these papers from house to house at least 4 times! 
  

… All this prompts me to want to go through every single paper in my house and get rid of everything.  But, I have my dad’s organizational style (or lack of it) and my files are pretty much set up the same way.  The task is too overwhelming and so I procrastinate….

This leads me to our topic in my graduate class this week: productivity software.  While I agree that productivity software is great and can make life easier, nothing can make me more productive if I procrastinate.  However, there is an App for that!  I actually have downloaded an App from the Apple App Store that sends me alarms to remind me to do things so that I am not late.  Setting goals for assignments also helps me get them done on time.  So this week, I set my sights on getting my assignments done early, because this week’s due date falls on my birthday.  

We were given a grade book assignment for Excel, complete with a class list, grades, and a list of things that we need to do to update the file.  I’ve had a lot of experience using Excel, and I was able to complete the spreadsheet within 15 minutes or so.  I took two Microcomputer Applications courses in the past, and I have sequestered all of that knowledge into the back of my head, but nothing really taught me more about Excel than my real-life experiences.  I work for a college, and I am often assigned projects that require complicated formulas to process the results of interviews, surveys, and other data generated to track the trends and success of our students.  Then I take all that data and make pretty charts and graphs with it.  For me, it is not an issue of learning the software – that is the easy part – it is the issue of learning the language of what the results need to be that trips me up.  I can figure out the formula as long as I can figure out how to work the problem out (which comes down to my lack of skills in the math and statistics area).

Recently, I earned two certificates in multimedia and graphic design.  During the course of earning my certificates, I learned all sorts of cool multimedia programs like Photoshop, Illustrator, Quark, InDesign, and Avid DV Free.  Just recently I updated my resumé in which I listed all the different programs that I have learned in the past 5 years, and the list was exhaustive:  Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, Outlook, Publisher, InDesign, Quark, Photoshop, Photoshop Elements, GIMP, Illustrator, Paint, Camtasia, Avid DV Free, Premiere Pro, Flash, Professional Composer, Nightingale, Noteflight, Audacity, Contribute, PhotoStory, Movie Maker, etc. etc. etc.  I am sure I forgot some.  As an educator, I feel I have the world at my fingertips now.  Now, if I need something, I just create it myself.  It may take me a little more time, but I don’t have to worry about copyright and I can fine-tune whatever it is to suit my needs.  It may not be as convenient as pulling something off of the web, but in the long run, it is better for my students.

So what does it mean – productivity?  I used to think productivity was paralleled to “getting something done quickly,” and if I know how to use the appropriate application software programs correctly, I will be more productive overall.  Our text defines the same concept as “Productivity software is designed to make people more effective and efficient while performing daily activities” (Shelly, 144).  So, in a way, I am on the right track. 

However, software changes all the time. It can be overwhelming to try to keep up with technology.  Steve Pavlina, on his website, Ask Steve, writes, “Things are indeed changing very quickly, so I figured the best way to stay on top of it was to turn growth into my actual career.  Perhaps I cheated then. I take in lots of new information every day just in the field of personal development.  I read a book or two every week.  I read tons of articles.  I talk to people in the field.  I have plenty of “eyes” out there who email me anything that might be significant.  Authors and publishers send me their latest books to review.  But there’s still no way I can keep up with all of it.  New information is being created at a far faster rate than I can absorb it” (Pavlina).  Here is a man who makes change and growth his career, and HE feels that it is overwhelming….  So what is the ordinary person to do?  In a way, I feel the ever-changing wealth of information available makes me feel like I am treading water:  I have to keep kicking to keep current.  In other ways, it is incredibly exciting to be in such a field that is so varied and ever-changing.  Have I set myself up for failure by learning so many programs that I could not possibly keep with, or have I done a good job of educating myself to the best of my ability in order to share the most of my skills with my students?

I guess that question can only be answered over time.  

But, then again, while I feel I have a pretty good hold on application and multimedia software, I do not have a lot of Web 2.0 experience – like Google docs, SkyDrive, and the like.  Today, I tried to upload two documents to Google Docs, just to see what it was all about.  Both documents (one a Word doc and another an Excel doc) were rejected by the server, so I don't think I will be using that service any time in the near future.  I wasn't impressed.  I did have some fun with Primary Pad and it's sister site, Primary Paint, and can see how both sites could be utilized in the classroom for collaborative projects.  I could see myself using these simple sites in my classroom.  However, I have been warned by several people - beware of all these free sites offering free services like file sharing and file storing.  They are under no obligation to continue their services to you, and they could stop at any time.  So, we shouldn't rely on them too much, I've been told, because one day they could be gone.

Before I enrolled in grad school, I hadn’t even heard of the term Web 2.0.  I know that I can’t possibly learn everything, and while I am not currently teaching, I can only do my best at keeping current with what I need for my classes, I guess. I had never ever read a blog before last term, and here I am writing one!  So, I guess the most important thing is that I am OPEN to new things, new possibilities, new ways of thinking and doing… 

Until next time, keep on lovin’!

~ Christi S



References:

Pavlina, S. (2006).  Keeping up with accelerated change. Retrieved from http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2006/07/ask-steve-keeping-up-with-accelerating-change/ 

Shelly, G.B., Gunter, G.A., & Gunter, R.E. (2010). Integrating technology and digital media in the classroom (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Course Technology.

Reading Reaction #3

Hello, Readers out in Blog-Land!

It’s been cool and dismal in normally sunny Florida this week, which I shouldn’t really complain about since the rest of the nation is buried under mountains of snow.  But, because I am used to wearing shorts and t-shirts with flip-flops year-‘round, I don’t always remember to bring a sweater, and like today, I am sitting at my desk, shivering.  I could sneak in a space heater, but the last time I did, it overloaded the circuits in my office, and knocked out power for half of the building.  I think if I tried to bring in another space heater, it would probably be confiscated as being contraband. 

And I don’t blame “them”.  You see, we have to have rules when we work in schools, no matter what level it is that we teach.  The rules are made to protect us.  We’re not supposed to have space heaters here because they can be a safety risk:  they can start fires, someone could trip over the cord, and they can knock out the power to half of an entire building.  So the custodial staff or the maintenance department sets guidelines to protect all the people who work or attend my school.  They have to think of all the scenarios that might happen because of space heaters and make informed decisions on whether or not they think that they are safe.  As a teacher or employee, it is my responsibility to adhere to those guidelines, whether or not I agree with them (or sit, shivering, under a blanket).

The same thing applies to all areas of the school, as well.  Those in charge (the administration) have the responsibility to protect all of the people who work there or attend there.  We absolutely cannot have a school that is not safe.  I am in total support of school safety.  That being said, that protection can be frustrating, when you have keys to your classroom but not keys to the building or when you want to access a perfectly educational video on YouTube, but the site has been blocked.  So where do we draw the line?  And who decides what is safe?

We were posed with this question:  Is it more unethical to allow threats to students/schools or to deny students/teachers access to instructionally-relevant Web-based tools and content?  That could be considered a loaded question to some, but to me, it’s a no-brainer.  I think it is more unethical to allow threats to students/schools.  Our job is to protect our students and allowing them to access the Internet free from restrictions is just asking for trouble.  I can hear some teachers moaning now, “But what about that awesome video I found on YouTube?  My school blocked that site!”  Well, first of all, you can download videos from YouTube by adding the word, “kick” to the web address (www.kickyoutube.com/restofthewebaddress).  Secondly, has the same video or similar video been uploaded to another website, this one teacher/student friendly?  Next, is this the ONLY resource that will support the lesson being taught?  And, lastly, is showing the video REALLY necessary? 

Chapter 8 in the textbook, Integrating Technology and Digital Media in the Classroom, is about computer security, Internet safety, copyright, and ethics.  It is imperative that schools safeguard their computers against viruses, unauthorized use, information theft, and hackers.  In addition, schools also need to protect the students from seeing inappropriate content, controversial subject matter, or inaccurate websites that might fool an innocent visitor.  (For example, have you ever gone to the website, www.nasa.com?  Don’t bother.  NASA’s real website is www.nasa.gov.)  In the year 2000, “Congress passed the Children’s Internet Protection Act ... to protect children from obscene, pornographic, and other information considered harmful to minors” (Shelly 492).  As a result, public libraries installed filtering software to avoid such sites.  I read that some people say that when schools block certain sites, it violates their freedom of speech, but that argument was upheld in 2003 (Shelly 492).  I agree with that argument, and quite frankly, I am not sure if I care about whether or not children have freedom of speech.  They are minors.  We have the responsibility to protect our children.  PERIOD.

In our textbook and in our instructor’s supplemental materials, we were given a lot of information about cyber safety and protecting our students as well as protecting our computers.  We had the opportunity to read the how’s and why’s of Internet security in the following articles:


The 10 Commandments of Computer Ethics
Lift the Cell Phone Ban

But how would a parent protect their children?  Most likely, families don’t have their own IT department hidden away in the closet, so what can they do about it?  I feel it is part of our job as teachers to educate our students and our students’ parents in this area.  I found a neat site called Internet Safety Day that has a parent’s guide.  Inside are guidelines to assist parents in opening the doors of communication with their children in the areas of instant messaging and chat rooms, cyber bullying, and cell phones.  In the guide, the authors write, “Most parents would never drop a teenager off at the local mall known to be a hangout for thousands of registered sexual predators or allow a strange adult to visit their son or daughter’s bedroom. However, many of those same parents wouldn’t think twice about allowing their child to sit in their bedroom using online chat rooms with complete strangers or hanging out in social networking sites known to have registered predators” (ISD 2011 Parent Guide 4).   Parents can utilize parental controls on their computers as well as programs such as Net Nanny to block inappropriate content.  Also, in my opinion, I think children should have their own accounts on their parents’ computers so that they cannot get into or change any sensitive information on the computer.  Recently, my six-year-old nephew accidentally rearranged the start menu and task bars, as well as hid some icons when he was using the computer.  Now he and his sister have their own account, and their parents have to use a password to get onto their computer.  By creating separate accounts, the children cannot accidentally delete any files or modify any settings.  In addition, their parents can block certain programs and websites, certain words in search engines, as well as track their computer usage and sites visited.  About 15 years ago, I gave my dad my old Apple SE30 computer.  On it was a little program that ran whenever something was put into the trash can:  Oscar the Grouch came out and sang, “Oh, I love trash!  I love it because it’s trash!”  Well, when my dad’s seven-year-old grandson came to visit, he put every icon on the computer into the trash, just so he could see Oscar pop out over and over….  We not only need to protect our computers from viruses and other security risks, but also our very own kids!


As children become more and more tech savvy, we have to be more diligent in our protectiveness. Computers are instruments of communication, and, ironically, the best way to protect our children is to communicate with them – OFF of the computer. 

Until next time… let’s keep our kids safe. 
 

~ Christi

References:

Family Safe Computers (2011).  ISD 2011 parent guide. Retrieved from http://www.internetsafetyday.com.

Shelly, G.B., Gunter, G.A., & Gunter, R.E. (2010). Integrating technology and digital media in the classroom (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Course Technology.

Happy Day-After-the-Day-After Groundhog’s Day!

I have no idea if Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow the other day.  I haven’t had time to check.   I’ve been at the Florida Educational Technology Conference convention in Orlando this week, and I am in information OVERLOAD mode right now.  While I am sitting in meetings and workshops, learning about all the new techniques and technologies available to use in the classroom, I am also meeting new people, talking, and exchanging ideas.  In other words, I am creating my own personal educational technology NETWORK.

Then, yesterday morning, I read chapter two of our textbook: “Communications, Networks, the Internet, and the World Wide Web.”  Whoa.  Can we say IRONY?

Basically, the whole idea of networking, whether personal or electronic, reminds me of the old shampoo commercial:  One person knows about something, she tells two friends, they each tell two friends and so on… until everyone knows about it.  The same is true for how our students can use networking to enhance their educational experiences.   Dr. Wendy Drexler beautifully illustrates this concept in her video, The Networked Student.  This student, who represents the possibilities of what can be achieved as a result of a strong technology background, is typical of today’s students – who is already technology-savvy, is driven to use different types of technology simultaneously, and has built up a substantial technological community (generally, an informal one, mostly made up of their friends and relatives).  Because they have had such varied technological experiences, they are more prepared to create an electronic learning network, in which they can access numerous learning resources to augment their education.

In our textbook, the authors refer to the World Wide Web as a service of the internet.  I, like others I am sure, thought that the Internet and the World Wide Web were synonymous, when the World Wide Web is just a part of what it can do.  However, it is the “most widely-used service on the Internet” (Shelly 78).  Initially, when I was teaching, the World Wide Web was accessed in the classroom to access websites, view videos, and do research.  It was not an active participatory activity – it was passive, but brought the world into the classroom.

Now, with the Web in version 2.0, our students are not just observers of information on the www, but they are participants and CONTRIBUTORS.  And, isn’t this the goal of education:  to create future contributors to the world?  By creating contributors, we give our students a voice.  Their voices are strong and creative; their voices are already being heard in chat rooms, on their Facebook status comments, and in their blogs, emails, and discussion boards.  Kids want to be heard.  They want to be a part of something bigger.  Giving students the skills to network, they are opened up to the world of communication.  Next up is Web 3.0, in which the www will become more intuitive, more informative, and more personalized.  “In essence, the Web will become one huge searchable database, and automated agents of every type will retrieve the data you request.  Some researchers predict that this next generation of the Web will perform practically any task imaginable” (Shelly 79).

The idea behind student networking grows exponentially.  Just as one computer is connected to another computer which is connected to a server which is connected to the Internet, which is connected to millions of other computers, the same is true with students.  By providing students with the skills and knowledge to create contacts, students can make connections with people all over the globe.  When I think about that, I smile, because suddenly our big world becomes smaller.

When I was a child, I was lucky, because my parents loved to travel and took my brother, my sisters, and I all over the world.  I had the opportunity to see the inside of the Sydney Opera House in Australia, hear music played in an ancient church in Salzburg, Austria, watch giraffes graze on tall grasses in Kruger National Park in South Africa, smell the scents, both good and bad, of a street market in Guatemala, and drink from a coconut that had just fallen from a tree in Fiji.  I actually made friends with children from all over the world, and became pen pals with two kids in New Zealand and Honduras.  I had so many varied experiences in my life that made me aware of the world and my surroundings, that my classmates had not had the opportunity to have.  I could tell stories, and show them pictures, but nothing compares to being there in person and living it.  I was happy to see that there are sites like www.epals.com where kids can email with other students in a safe environment.  While it is not the same as visiting, making a personal connection makes a big impact. Then being able to go online to Google Earth brings the world even closer.

Perhaps if we, as educators, can help our students develop personal, positive relationships and learn to communicate with others around the world, we can show our students how to become more tolerant and compassionate.  And I think that is the most important lesson of them all.

Happy Networking!

          ~ Christi



References:


Drexler, W. (2008). The Networked Student.  Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XwM4ieFOotA

Shelly, G.B., Gunter, G.A., & Gunter, R.E. (2010). Integrating technology and digital media in the

      classroom (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Course Technology.