Welcome to EDC922---"Online Texts in the 21st Century Classroom."
Throughout these 10 weeks we will be covering a vast amount of information.
New sessions will be posted once a week (by the end of business on Wednesday, but this week only, the first session won't go up until Thursday night to allow everyone to try this practice session).
Throughout these 10 weeks we will be covering a vast amount of information.
New sessions will be posted once a week (by the end of business on Wednesday, but this week only, the first session won't go up until Thursday night to allow everyone to try this practice session).
Please keep in mind that there are new developments and trends in online information every day, therefore we may have to be flexible when interpreting the syllabus. This may mean some modifications, changes and condensing of information.
To ensure that we are covering the most current skills, I will be assimilating and collating information right up until the moment I post a session. This means that each session's link (over in the left-hand margin) will not be accessible until its respective Wednesday. Even so, there may be times when a cited link is dead. If that is the case, I will try to keep saved copies of all the information. Just email me (davefontaine1@gmail.com) and I will forward the data to you.
During the first few sessions we will be covering foundational skills. This is to ensure that we all have the basic essentials ‘down pat’. Once this is covered, we will pick up the pace and begin to delve into the mechanics, nuances, and meat of our course.
To ensure continuous accessibility to the information within these presentations I suggest you immediately download, and save the sessions, to your computer. I cannot emphasize this enough. Along the left-hand margin, there will be a link for each session. When you click on this link you may be prompted to 'save' or 'open' the session.
Always ‘save’ it to your desktop. Previous participants have found it easiest to organize if they create a folder and store all the sessions in one place. Another option would be to right-click on the link and choose, 'save target as.'
‘Saving’ the sessions will decrease problems relating to your bandwidth. Also, although it may take a while for a presentation to download (up to 10 min. or more depending upon the speed of your connection) it will be much easier to toggle between a PowerPoint and the Internet if you have it saved to your hard drive. Weekly sessions will also become portable if you save them to a thumb drive.
Additionally, you will need to have access to a computer that has PowerPoint version ’97 or above to view the presentations. (As a last resort I will also upload a copy each week to an online service where you can stream it live. You will find that link at the bottom of each weekly posting.) If you cannot hear the sound on them it is possible that the “wave” element of your volume is either on ‘mute’ or not turned up enough.
Please remember that we are all educators, and that this is a collaborative course. So, as you post your reflections and comments we will all be responding to you. Therefore, timely responses are imperative. After you have posted your weekly assignment, make an effort to return again later to read and comment about other participants’ assignments.
Once again remember that we are all perpetual learners; constantly growing. I hope to learn as much from you---as you will from me.
Now I would like you to try a practice download. Thursday evening I will update this page with information about our first session. Along the left-hand margin you will see the words "PRACTICE SESSION." Please try to download this session to your computer, strictlyfollowing the directions above.
Once you have been successful with this process, please also download the syllabus. There is only one required, purchasable text. Don't worry if it takes a week to arrive.
You may order it from most online book sellers. Until then you may want to read it online (not ideal and you usually can't access the entire text), but here is the link: Wikis, Blogs, and Podcasts
To ensure that we are covering the most current skills, I will be assimilating and collating information right up until the moment I post a session. This means that each session's link (over in the left-hand margin) will not be accessible until its respective Wednesday. Even so, there may be times when a cited link is dead. If that is the case, I will try to keep saved copies of all the information. Just email me (davefontaine1@gmail.com) and I will forward the data to you.
During the first few sessions we will be covering foundational skills. This is to ensure that we all have the basic essentials ‘down pat’. Once this is covered, we will pick up the pace and begin to delve into the mechanics, nuances, and meat of our course.
To ensure continuous accessibility to the information within these presentations I suggest you immediately download, and save the sessions, to your computer. I cannot emphasize this enough. Along the left-hand margin, there will be a link for each session. When you click on this link you may be prompted to 'save' or 'open' the session.
Always ‘save’ it to your desktop. Previous participants have found it easiest to organize if they create a folder and store all the sessions in one place. Another option would be to right-click on the link and choose, 'save target as.'
‘Saving’ the sessions will decrease problems relating to your bandwidth. Also, although it may take a while for a presentation to download (up to 10 min. or more depending upon the speed of your connection) it will be much easier to toggle between a PowerPoint and the Internet if you have it saved to your hard drive. Weekly sessions will also become portable if you save them to a thumb drive.
Additionally, you will need to have access to a computer that has PowerPoint version ’97 or above to view the presentations. (As a last resort I will also upload a copy each week to an online service where you can stream it live. You will find that link at the bottom of each weekly posting.) If you cannot hear the sound on them it is possible that the “wave” element of your volume is either on ‘mute’ or not turned up enough.
Please remember that we are all educators, and that this is a collaborative course. So, as you post your reflections and comments we will all be responding to you. Therefore, timely responses are imperative. After you have posted your weekly assignment, make an effort to return again later to read and comment about other participants’ assignments.
Once again remember that we are all perpetual learners; constantly growing. I hope to learn as much from you---as you will from me.
Now I would like you to try a practice download. Thursday evening I will update this page with information about our first session. Along the left-hand margin you will see the words "PRACTICE SESSION." Please try to download this session to your computer, strictlyfollowing the directions above.
Once you have been successful with this process, please also download the syllabus. There is only one required, purchasable text. Don't worry if it takes a week to arrive.
You may order it from most online book sellers. Until then you may want to read it online (not ideal and you usually can't access the entire text), but here is the link: Wikis, Blogs, and Podcasts
You could also check your local library here.
If you run into problems, please review the directions again. It is not uncommon for participants to 'stumble' a little getting used to this forum.
If you run into any trouble after that, then please feel free to email me or call.
You'll hear from me again on Wednesday.
Thank you,
Dave Fontaine
Internet Librarian and Information Specialist, NBCT
DaveFontaine1@gmail.com
401-835-3782
5 comments:
Angela D. Tarr, School Library Media Specialist
Fort LeBoeuf High School, 931 High Street, Waterford, PA 16441, 814-796-2616
tarra@fortleboeuf.net
Greetings. I am currently the librarian in a high school in Northwestern Pennsylvania with 750 students in grades 9 – 12. I have a B.S. in Communication Arts from Clarion University and a master’s in library science from Mansfield University. This is my fifth year in the library; for the 15 years prior to that I taught English, theatre, and journalism. Previously, I’ve been the yearbook and newspaper advisor. Currently, I am the Leo Club advisor; Leos are the teenage version of the Lions Club. I am the Edline master and building representative for our website. I’m also the sponsor of two book clubs, one for the students and one for the adults. (I also have a third book club with the parents of my children’s friends and teammates. We spend a lot of time together on the bleachers during basketball season, so we talk books.)
Not surprisingly, I’m a book junkie. I’m not one of those people who refuse to even consider changing from paper to electronic books. I have had a Kindle for two years. (I have to give my husband credit for that; he gave it to me for Christmas. Best present ever!) I also very recently purchased a dozen e-books for my students and teachers; in the fall they will be able to read these from computers, not e-readers. I want to keep my library the information hub of the school. I don’t want students or staff thinking that it’s only a storage area for paper books. I want them to come here for their information whether it is in print or electronic form. I encourage them to use both.
My main responsibility is to teach information literacy skills. Students need to know how to find information, evaluate it and use it. I team teach with any teacher who will work with me; often it is the English department members, but I’m getting more and more of the other subject area teachers to let me into their classrooms. I support the teachers’ curriculum with my collection, but I also support the students’ needs, both academic and personal. With all of the recent budget cuts in Pennsylvania schools, we are losing money for books (and teachers, and programs, etc.) Several schools in this area are eliminating their librarians. What happens to the library without its guide? How will these children find what they need?
I hope to learn as much as I can about e-readers and digital content to better serve my customers. If they have an e-reader I want to help them find books for it. If they want print books I’ll get those for them. I want teenagers to read for pleasure. Many of them lost their love of reading in middle school thanks to Accelerated Reader, as did my own children. According to research those “who do not develop the pleasure reading habit simply don’t have a chance – they will have a very difficult time reading and writing at a level high enough to deal with the demands of today’s world.” (Krashen, Stephen. The Power of Reading: Insights from the Research. Portsmouth: Heinemann, 2004, x.)
I also have the ulterior motive of wanting to continue to make myself indispensible to my administrators. The more I know, the more they need me, and I can continue to serve my students and teachers. Free textbooks? I need to know more.
Hi- My name is Betci Weldon. I am a library teacher in Hopkinton, MA in two elementary schools. I have been a library teacher for ten years. I have also taught Social Studies in high school, and even a college art appreciation course. We recently received a grant to pilot the use of Ipads in second and third grade for reading and I hope I'll be able to use what I learn here to maximize their use.
My email is bweldon@hopkinton.k12.ma.us
Hello everyone. My name is Mary Kay Risi. My email is risimk@gmail.com. I am a teacher-librarian in a grade 7/8 middle school in northern New Jersey. I am completing my 7th year. I was not a classroom teacher before making this my second career. I spent my 20s as a newspaper reporter and then spent a dozen years raising three children, during which time I did freelance writing and editing. I am very excited about the use of technology with my students and faculty, especially online collaborative tools. I have been thinking a lot lately about digital reading - this was the year that most of my students received Kindles and Nooks and are doing more and more of their reading on their ereaders - and am excited about having a community of learners with whom to explore this fast changing educational, information and reading landscape of ours.
Hello classmates :) My name is Karen Mercado and I am an English teacher in Camillus, New York. I've been teaching high school English for 27 years and I'm always looking for new ways to interest and motivate my students. I don't know a lot about "e texts" but I did use NOOKS with my students recently. I'm looking forward to learning more on the subject and especially interacting with everyone else to see what other people do in their schools.
my email: kmercado@westgenesee.org
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