MAC Wk 4 - All Good Things...

Well, here we are at the end of another course. I am feeling pretty relieved, but I guess maybe I will miss this program after it is over. I really have learned so much, and so much of it I can actually use (and I am using!) for my work and future. After I graduated from college, I felt like I had a worthless piece of paper in my hand, but now all of this hard work is already starting to pay off. I hope that my classmates have gotten as much out of this program as I have. Well, 11 down, 1 to go!

MAC Wk 4 - Comments to Karen

"I saw 3 of my students at the grocery store today and they said they couldn't wait for school to start.  I told them I've already been thinking of my lesson plans and I am going to start with spanking everyone and throwing them in the garbage can!  They all laughed and as they were hugging, they said, Yea, I love music class with you!  Not even such a silly remark could make them think I would really do such a thing to them!  They know what ever we do, they are going to love it.  They are so trusting.  I have a huge responsibility, of teaching these children the standards, and doing it with love and such enthusiasm and fun that they catch and keep that spirit."

I'm really sorry to hear all the stuff you have gone through with your computer. And what happened with that one professor. You'll have to tell me who it was! Just kidding.

It makes me happy to know that some kids are looking forward to school starting. I don't ever remember feeling that way as a kid, and it is hard for me to imagine kids feeling that way. I hope that once my kids at my new school get to know me, they will be looking forward to school starting too.

MAC Wk 4 - Comments to Kenya

"When we teach children to accept responsibility, we must be mindful that we, too, must do the same. Accountability is the name of the game. We must indeed be the board that the game of life is being played on for every move our player takes, is one that we have caused whether through knowledgeable desire or ignorant indifference. I don't know about you but I prefer to be the control behind the pieces rather than just a pawn."

I love what you said about how we must do what we are teaching our children to do. It's no wonder that kids are always trying to blame things on other people. They learn how to do that from the adults around them! Even though new laws say that everyone must be accountable, people always want to blame someone else when things go wrong. Administrators blame teachers, teachers blame administrators, and it goes on and on. We can't fix a problem if we keep chasing our tails.

MAC Wk 4 - Telling the WE Story

I admit, when I read this post, I could not think of a single person who I had helped to achieve their dreams, but I just got a facebook message from a close friend of mine who is starting her dream as I sit here and type this. She is on her way to London to participate in the Fulbright teacher exchange program and she couldn't be more excited. She has always wanted to go overseas and teach, and she says that I inspired her to do it. I don't really think that I did much, but she says when she heard of my experiences as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Bolivia, she wanted to do something similar. All I really did was be her friend for a few years, but she says I had something to do with her fulfilling her dream and going to London. I am very proud of her and I hope that she stays long enough for me to go and visit!

MAC Wk 4 - Lofty Goals

I guess I have some pretty high aspirations when it comes to places that I would like to present, but hey, I might as well aim high, right? I would like to do a national conference because I want to travel, is that so wrong? Well, most of the ones that would be likely are right here in Austin, TX so I would only get to travel up the road a ways. One is all the way down in San Antonio!

Seriously, I think the TABE conference or the TCEA conferences would both be good choices. Some of them, like the gaming conference, I might be able to do once I add in the information that I will be getting as I work in the Globaloria program in the upcoming year. Speaking of Globaloria, I will be going to the Globaloria summer workshop in two weeks, so while I am there, I will ask about presenting at the December workshop. They already know me, so they just might let me do it. Also, the Region XIII Education Service Center offers professional development for teachers here in Austin year round, so that is definitely another avenue I am exploring.

I did find something that was especially promising. On a website called WeAreTeachers is having a video contest with the prompt "What does 21st Century Readiness Mean to You?" They are looking for one minute videos addressing the prompt and the winner receives a trip to the National Summit on 21st Century Readiness in Washington, D.C. in October. I think I might just enter, if I ever finish all these blog posts.

MAC Wk 4 - Now Where Do I Go?

OK, so here are some ideas of where to present:

Texas Computer Education Association Conference (February 2011)
Texas Association of Bilingual Educators Conference (October 2010)
Texas Association for Alternative Education Conference (February 2011)
International Society for Technology in Education Conference (June 2011)
National Middle School Association Conference (November 2010)
Texas Charter Schools Conference
National Charter Schools Conference
Texas Council for Teachers of English Language Arts (January 2011)
National Council of Teachers of English (November 2010)
Teachers Teaching With Technology International Conference (February 2011 - San Antonio)
National Science Teachers Association National Conference (March 2011)
Austin Women in Technology Conference (February 2010)
Games for Change Festival
Cyber Summit on 21st Century Readiness

MAC Wk 4 - To Publish or Not to Publish?

That is the question. Well, that's not really the question. The question is: To Publish or to Present?

Well, I really don't like giving presentations. I get really bad stage fright. Even sitting here typing this post is kind of making me nervous. Yet, despite all this, I would rather present my work than publish it. I would really like the personal connection that I won't be able to get if I simply publish my work. If I were to present it, I might make a connection with an educator that wouldn't necessarily have time to read certain publications. I can tell stories, I can make it more personal, I can make it real. When you publish this type of academic work, you don't necessarily get that opportunity.

So, where should I present? I would like it to be somewhere with some regular, everyday teachers. I might consider presenting also at some type of technology teachers association, but technology teachers probably already have an idea about using social networking sites in education, and I would like to reach some teachers that perhaps may have never thought about it before. Since I prefer small groups, it would be even nicer if it was a small venue, or even a panel situation. I went to the National Science Teachers Association convention last year, and it was a very well-organized conference with lots of rooms and a great variety of topics being presented. I think that might be kind of a big goal, and I don't know if this really qualifies as science, but I would like to go back to a conference like that.