The Good the Bad and the Ugly of Slide Show Edits

When it comes to Slide Show Photo Edits that we had to experiment with online, the three that I used I found of them pretty terrible and one that I would use again. The worst edit that i used was PhotoPeach.It was so unsatisfactory that I couldn't even embed the slide show into my blog. In order to use your slide show you must purchase the video. The songs that they allow you to use are somewhat cheesy and not realistic to use if I were to use this for a school slide show. One thing that I did like about this website is how you could go on other websites for photos and the switch button that made it easier to select photos.

The next best but not great Slide Show Edit would have to be Vuvox. Vuvox is tricky with how you have to select collage. The way you can select the photos is a little time consuming because I had to select each photo individually. The extras on this site were also not as cool as PeachPhoto and Slide.

The best Slide Show Edit I felt was Slide.com. I again liked how I could go onto my Facebook to get pictures. Also I like all of the different themes for the background and for the entry of the photos in the slide. This whole site is every essay to navigate. All in all I would say that in the future I can see myself using Slide.com for my personal and professional life.

The Bigger Picture of Technology

For Luis an 18 year old senior from Oregon, in the Video Digital Youth Portrait: Luis, technology is seen to be much more than a way to connect with friends. Being the son of immigrants Luis uses technology to help his parents who do not speak English pay bills. This video is very powerful because it shows the potential students with no back ground in technology have if given the resources. Luis is a great example of younger generations who look at the bigger picture and see how technology can be used to help others. This is something that I feel is very often portrayed for our generation and especially being a future teacher needs to be proven that the "kids these days" are thoughtful individuals.

My Vitural Tour of The University of Montana

My Family

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

Introducing Digital Dossier to the Classroom

This video completely shocked me! I never knew that there was something as extensive as a digital dossier to tract your history online. This video does a great job of showing that you are always being watched with you internet activity. I always knew that the internet was not private but I this video really put it into prospective. In the article What's in Your Digital Dossier? it talks about how to introduce digital dossier to students. I agree with this article saying how it is very important have students aware of their actions on the internet at a young age, but I also think that along with showing them what not to do you have to show them how to build a positive image on the internet. This could be done by having them do blog posts for homework like we do in this class and also with your classroom website display what they have accomplished in the classroom.

Future and the Arts

In the video No Future Left Behind, students talk about the future and how teachers are not allowing it in their classrooms. The part of this video that impacted me the most i would say was the part where the students say no more tests. Also that school should be "like a game" and if they get the answers wrong they should be able to correct them. I believe the main mission of this video was to show that the future is much more arts related. Ideas should be able to be expressed through things like; dance, music, building, acting, photography, programing, and painting. The students are asking for the future to be embraced in the classroom because this is the only part of their life that it is being held back in, where this should be the place where it is the most encouraged.

For this to happen several things need to change. For one schools need to have more trust in their students. They need to be allowed free speech and less restrictions with electronics in the classroom. The students see this as their teachers not trusting them which should be seen as a failure. The future needs to be accepted in the classroom so that our students are ready for the outside world.

Determining a Line of Privacy

In response to the Article in BBC News, US School Accused of Web Spying, I feel that this lawsuit over computers cameras turning off if the computer is stolen is not something that is a black and white topic. Having grown up in a family of teachers and administrators I have seen my fair share of accusations. Having a camera on a computer that someone else has control if it is activated with the owner having no knowledge of is not right I believe this. However, on the other side of this argument this school district has spend an immense amount of money on these computers for every student in their school district. If I had bought all of these computers I would want to have a strategy on how to get them back if they were taken.

This school has taken the right action in deactivating these computers of this program as of now and said that they will make sure to have consent from here on out. I feel that this is the right step, they needed to admit that they made a mistake and take proper precautions so that this cannot happen again. Although suing the school is not the best option. These schools are here for these children's best interest and to punish them for trying to do a positive thing in their school district is a terrible decision.

Teen Second Life

While watching the video, Digital Youth Portrait I learned about after school activities that are oriented around technology. In this after school program, called Global Kids, they create an Avatar and participate in Second Life, in this program they can learn about other areas and interact with people from all over the world. Second life is a form of Machinima. Through these activities the kids develop confidence, leadership, and a better understanding of the world outside of their own community. I believe that this is a really cool idea for an after school group. It gives children who might not have an outlet through sports or other school related activities learn to be leaders and how to work with other people. They also learn of new ways to educate others like with the program on the genocide in Darfur. All types of kids need a way of how to become a leader and something they can be passionate about, I think that this program is a great example of going outside the box to come up with a fantastic new idea.

Times Are a Changing

After watching the video Did You Know on YouTube, it is impossible to not see how much the internet has become an every day part of our lives. Everything from how we get our news, buy things, entertainment, and communication are influenced by the internet. I never would have guessed that YouTube and Myspace were so much more used than NBC, ABC, and CBS. It will be very interesting to see how younger generations grow up and the relationship skills that they develop with all of the technology that is available to them. With texting, Facebook, and Skype, people are not required to be face to face to interact. This has causes bullying especially to become more and more of a serious problem. With every generation new ideas and technology is introduced. Older generations may see web interacting as intimidating but it is the way of the future and everyone is going to have to learn to adjust.

Digital Youth Portrait

Exploring Through Technology

After reading the article, Shifting Ground by Chris Lehmann, I am now even more excited about this class. This article proves that they are infinite possibilities of how to use the internet and other new technologies in the classroom. I believe that one of the most beneficial ways to use technology to engage and empower our students is to allow the students to interact with communities that are not in their own backyard. It enables students to see their impact in the world and also to interact and learn about other cultures and beliefs first hand. With this class I hope to learn about new ideas of how to use technology in the classroom and to open myself to learning about new ideas as they come out in the future.

Hi my name is Rae Baerlocher and I am in the education department at The University of Montana in Missoula, Montana. Along with receiving my Bachelors in Elementary Education I plan on getting a minor in reading.