OLPC - my assessment of my project

I realize that many of you may have stopped reading blogs in light of the semester coming to an end, but I wanted to post about my project nonetheless. First, I must say that in the end it was much easier than I thought it would be. I tend to complicate things unnecessarily, and in my head, manuevering my way through powerpoint seemed to be much more of a task than it actually was. But I am so grateful that I decided to do it. Actually, I am very pleased with most of my project - the idea, the research, the entire process and the outcome. Of course, I felt a bit silly that I did not have anything directly classroom related, such as some of those wonderfully done webquests, BUT I knew that I would benefit tremendously from my project and that learning a new application (though I should have probably been more familiar with it already) was precisely what I needed to immerse myself in.

I was pleased to see/hear so many of my classmates being so interested in my topic, because the content is obviously what drew me to it. I have to give Alex credit, because he was the one who mentioned this topic to me one day in Karen's office when I was desperate for some assistance in nailing down a project idea. Since the One Laptop Per Child initiative is still very much a work in progress, I intend on following up with it and watching as the progress develops. As far as something more I would like to learn -- I realize there are endless extras involved in creating an interesting and engaging powerpoint presentation. Now that I am comfortable with the basics, I will probably experiment with some of the additional features, especially sound. If I were to add to this project I would also include more photos and if there were more time allotted (not that I am at all complaining), I would have included discussion questions to involve the audience. It also would have been interesting to focus more on the laptop initiatives that have taken place here in the states. Overall, though, I am pleased with the outcome of my research and I enjoyed the entire process since the topic was so appealing to me.

wrap up

I want to take this opportunity to commend everyone whose projects I witnessed the unveiling of in the Mac lab. They were all superb. While I may end up being ambitious enough to post individually on all of your blogs, just in case I wanted to make sure I got it out on cyberspace somehow! Each one was motivating and enlightening in a different way. I am incredibly impressed with the accomplishments we've all made throughout the course of this semester, as well as the new-found confidence many of us have established in terms of technological applications.

In addition, I also want to thank those of you who have been so encouraging and supportive in terms of everyday class issues and especially this little African venture I am hoping to plan. If it were not for this class I would certainly never think to say these following words -- I am sure that when and if I get to some country over there, I will more than likely find some way to set up a website documenting my experiences. It is wonderful now to have so many resources and contacts which enable me to feel much more comfortable in using 'advanced' (to me!) technology in my future projects, both in and outside of the classroom. So thank you all for aiding in broadening my horizon!

Interesting NYTimes article

This is an interesting article pertaining to the presence and existence of a superintendent in their schools. I am curious to hear what those of you whom are already teaching have to say about your superintendent -- do you even know him/her? Do they seem to allow your principal full reigns and decision-making, or do you think that more freedom on the part of the principal would produce benefits?
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/04/nyregion/04schools.html

Throwing around free laptops: The debate over which countries should develop plans to provide their students with free laptops

This project is turning out to be much more interesting than I ever imagined it could be, due to the fact that I am able to incorporate my newest interest (the continent of Africa) with a required assignment. I plan to present the information I have gathered on the $100 laptop initiatives which have been in the works for several years, intended to reach underprivileged students in many African countries. I will also discuss the fact that some of these projects are no longer just a dream here in the U.S. and have actually come to fruition in some states. I am planning to discuss some of the reasons this has already happened, while the idea to provide for students overseas is becoming quite prolonged. In addition, I hope to examine why the laptops are of such importance, rather than some of the more basic resources which could absolutely be of use to these students and their families. I am still trying to ensure that this project can be completed and properly saved here on my iMac, so for that reason I have not yet decided if it will be presented on a PC or Mac.

my website

here is the link to my very raw website . . . . Visit My Website

update

alright, so i feel incredibly out of the loop after missing an entire week of classes (not to mention my job, and everyday life!). i was sick for what seemed like ever, and i am excited to FINALLY be blogging about some progress i have made in terms of my final project. although i fear that my direction may not be completely clear until its moment of completion, for now i must repport that my plan has deviated a bit. while i am still planning on creating a powerpoint presentation (this entails first LEARNING how to do so) on the free laptops for students initiative, throughout the course of my research (i.e. articles on this topic), i've found that this idea seemed to originate a few years ago here in the u.s. i had no idea! please excuse me if others of you knew about this, but anyway as a result of this new information i have decided that my presentation will include the proposals as well as programs that have been created both for students in underprivileged countries as well as here in the u.s. the information i've sifted through so far has been really interesting and i found myself reading articles last night at 1:30 am when i probably should have been catching up on some much needed rest! but i am encouraged to see that this topic is much more relevant (to myself and other prospective educators right here in new york state) than i'd originally thought. I had presumed that i would be looking among articles which consisted only of proposals to present students in libya, nigeria and argentina (to name a few) with their own laptops. BUT, the fact that in some areas of our country this has already happened has also given me an additional direction in my search for information -- what is the basis behind choosing the countries to deliver laptops to children? should we be focusing on providing students in THIS country with complete technological availability, before then looking to do so abroad? are laptops really what students in underdeveloped countries need? * i hope not to make myself sound biased here, because i am not certain what i think about all of this. the articles/arguments i've read are pretty intriguing. my goal, though, is to attempt to play devil's advocate in presenting this interesting technological issue.

moment of enlightenment

as i am looking over the assignments jen donegan has given to her students i am having this realization about myself, about the way i have viewed english classrooms for a long time, maybe even forever. it is popping into my head that i have heard sarah mention in class several times that one of the best things about being able to teach english is that you can choose ANYTHING. i had never thought about that, but now i am finally coming around -- how true that statement is! i feel as though i have been straddling two completely different schools of thought and i was partially unaware of this. i am coming to grips with the fact that i am apparently much more of a traditionalist than i would have pegged myself in terms of what should be taught in the english classroom. you see for me, it was my passion with everything english that hooked me as an aspiring english teacher. i love the language, the use of words -- i love to read and write and spell. and yes, i am laughing at how ridiculously geeky i sound right now! but anyway, i was looking over these assignments and i had this epiphany -- NO MORE RESISTANCE. i am learning so much about myself - mainly that when i oppose something in a way that is intimidating for me to think about, i sometimes deny it entirely. to make myself more clear - i did not see just how frightened i've been about entering into an english classroom and realizing that it might never be what i had thought it would be. it might not be like some of the best experiences i had, because the appearance of an english classrom is changing completely, and the possibilities for what can be integrated are otherwise endless. and the best part of all is that this is a GOOD thing! but when i am unsure about something i somehow process it in a negative way. so, integrating technology into my classroom is scary to me because i do not consider myself comfortable with technology. and finally i am seeing how great that could be -- because i could learn things right along with the students. we could teach each other things, in a collaborative way, which is absolutely something i have always hoped to have in my classroom. so when i was a long-term sub two years ago, and i didn't see as much literature and 'traditional' english assignments planned, i completely panicked. and i am glad that now it is all making so much sense to me. it is ME who needs to make the change and to formulate a plan that will somehow allow me to still include some literature (be it YA or traditional, or god willing - both), as well as technology and other practical and useful assignments that pop up. so, back to how i started this whole ranting post -- i do see how powerful and exciting it is to know that my curriculum can change and update itself over the years, and that i can include so many elements of life into my classroom, none of which needs to be decided upon now. i've always hoped that i would learn how to create assignments that could be viewed simultaneously as fun and educational, and it seems that technology can be a potential answer to that. so anyway, it may seem odd that this long-winded rant has stemmed from my reading over jen donegan's assignments, but you just never know how something so small is going to affect you . . . . . and i can only hope that someday a student may say that about my class!