Summer is a wonderful time. I am so used to working 12 months a year (being required to anyway) that a two month summer "vacation" seems weird. Got a call from my new assistant principal today with the some questions and she apologized for calling me on my "summer vacation." Wow, I forgot I was on vacation :-)
Social network mania is underway with the new Technology in Lutheran Schools Ning site. So far we have a total of 14 users and hope the numbers climb as our "vacation" continues!
At NECC this we all came to the realization that our own professional development doesn't happen at workshops or 2-hour in-service sessions. It is on-going, poignant, and just in time.
As an aside, I heard from a podcast--don't remember where--that teaching is on of the only professions where teachers aren't required to know how to use basic productivity soft wares. Look at how many point-click workshops there are in your district conferences and the like. Will there be a day when teachers will get beyond the "how do I make columns in Word?" type questions...but I digress.
Unless you are large Lutheran school, many educators are the only grade level teacher in the building and can feel very isolated when it comes to sharing the profession with a colleague. Social networks can give those teachers the out-reach that they crave and the ear of as many teachers and professionals as possible! A more philosophical approach to this would be a blog entry by Lynne Wolters from the Classroom 2.0 Ning about her experiences in the use of digital cameras with 4-6 year olds. 7 different colleagues have commented on her observations. You can tell that the comments left by the others gave Lynne time to full process her experience.
AND THAT....is exactly why I blog---although it would be great to have more people comment.
OR MAYBE YOU SHOULD WRITE ABOUT SOMETHING WORTHY OF A COMMENT!--touché :-)
Social networks---it's not just teenagers and MySpace anymore! Join one today!
Reading in the 21st Century
Notes for sectional by Dr. Abbie Brown, Dr. Heidi Blair, and Dr. Kenneth Lutherback (Present in research only) from East Carolina University.
PODCAST: Reading in the 21st Century: The Challenges of Modern Media
PPT of Presentation
I'm going to do something I picked up from Wes Fryer. Everything in caps will be my thoughts about the sectional. Sorry for any misspellings or typos. This was typed in session, so speed was of the essence.
**The accompanying podcast was taken with permission from both presenters**
Challenges for readers:
Reading different types of web formatting
Busy webpages with many movable graphics (marketing) draws attention away from the reading.
Type font size and face differences
Pages may not look the same when a student returns to the a site.
WHAT I'M HEARING IS DISTRACTIBILITY AND NEW PARADIGM IN SHIFT FROM LINEAR READING PRESENTATION.
Is there a greater straing to reading hypertext?Yes--according to research
reading from a monitor, scrolling verticle is like turing a page, but horizontal scrolling is odd for readers.
?resolution of the monitor?
Difficult to annotate (NOT WITH GOOGLE NOTEBOOK THOUGH :-)
Distracting--have to cognitively assess the information instead of focusing on the reading itself
What to do??**create websites that don't need horizontal scrolling
**encourage goal setting--what to click on, what not to click on
**Read more hypertext
**Inform
Is hypertext more appropriate for learners at a certain age?
No current information
Does the use of animations cause reading fatigue
People track(1st) and scan(2nd), but animations cause a change in tracking. Our eye/mind can shift but it causes greater fatigue.
What to do?
**Avoid placing recurring animations near static text
**Use animations to gain the reader's attention. Have a beginning and ending though
What are the more readable Color/font styles combinations for reading?
wavelengths of light to reader--pale orange in background, black forground(pigments)
Dark Blue background, yellow text (light projection) High contrast, low saturation
What to do?
**use black/white when possible
**use blue/yellow to add visual interest while maintaining legibility
In terms of fatigue from sustained reading, what is the difference between print and computer screen media?
Reading=Nearwork (make your eye muscles work and changes lens shape)
ECC already using screen media. Introducing nearwork earlier in development
Eye fatigue--NITM (nearwork induced transient myopia), aching/sore eyes, black/white tinged with color, sensitivity to light
implications decreased reading speed, decrease in comprehension, impacts readers ability to attend to the content, genesis of myopia related to the nearwork-induced transient mypia...mom was right; your eyes might get stuck like that!
non-academic time screen time can also be considered nearwork
TEACHERS SHOULD MIX MEDIA TO DECREASE EYE FATIGUE
Does relativeley low screen resolution affect legibility?
PODCAST: Reading in the 21st Century: The Challenges of Modern Media
PPT of Presentation
I'm going to do something I picked up from Wes Fryer. Everything in caps will be my thoughts about the sectional. Sorry for any misspellings or typos. This was typed in session, so speed was of the essence.
**The accompanying podcast was taken with permission from both presenters**
Challenges for readers:
Reading different types of web formatting
Busy webpages with many movable graphics (marketing) draws attention away from the reading.
Type font size and face differences
Pages may not look the same when a student returns to the a site.
WHAT I'M HEARING IS DISTRACTIBILITY AND NEW PARADIGM IN SHIFT FROM LINEAR READING PRESENTATION.
Is there a greater straing to reading hypertext?Yes--according to research
reading from a monitor, scrolling verticle is like turing a page, but horizontal scrolling is odd for readers.
?resolution of the monitor?
Difficult to annotate (NOT WITH GOOGLE NOTEBOOK THOUGH :-)
Distracting--have to cognitively assess the information instead of focusing on the reading itself
What to do??**create websites that don't need horizontal scrolling
**encourage goal setting--what to click on, what not to click on
**Read more hypertext
**Inform
Is hypertext more appropriate for learners at a certain age?
No current information
Does the use of animations cause reading fatigue
People track(1st) and scan(2nd), but animations cause a change in tracking. Our eye/mind can shift but it causes greater fatigue.
What to do?
**Avoid placing recurring animations near static text
**Use animations to gain the reader's attention. Have a beginning and ending though
What are the more readable Color/font styles combinations for reading?
wavelengths of light to reader--pale orange in background, black forground(pigments)
Dark Blue background, yellow text (light projection) High contrast, low saturation
What to do?
**use black/white when possible
**use blue/yellow to add visual interest while maintaining legibility
In terms of fatigue from sustained reading, what is the difference between print and computer screen media?
Reading=Nearwork (make your eye muscles work and changes lens shape)
ECC already using screen media. Introducing nearwork earlier in development
Eye fatigue--NITM (nearwork induced transient myopia), aching/sore eyes, black/white tinged with color, sensitivity to light
implications decreased reading speed, decrease in comprehension, impacts readers ability to attend to the content, genesis of myopia related to the nearwork-induced transient mypia...mom was right; your eyes might get stuck like that!
non-academic time screen time can also be considered nearwork
TEACHERS SHOULD MIX MEDIA TO DECREASE EYE FATIGUE
Does relativeley low screen resolution affect legibility?
Thanks for your patients(patience)
Thanks everyone for patience. After much discussion with my wife we have decided to put our home on the market and move closer to my new school! Suffice it to say, my attention has increasingly been drawn to home improvement.
I could have had the podcasts and blogs from NECC done by now if you don't do that whole sleep thing! :-)
My goal is to release one a day, starting late tonight. Thanks again for your patients.
Another tide bit. Dave Black and I have been talking about the role of conversation, so I decided to take matters into my own hands and start a social network for this conversation to happen in! http://techls.ning.com If your not familiar with Ning, I suggest you check it out!
Join up and start the conversation! Invite as many people as possible!
I could have had the podcasts and blogs from NECC done by now if you don't do that whole sleep thing! :-)
My goal is to release one a day, starting late tonight. Thanks again for your patients.
Another tide bit. Dave Black and I have been talking about the role of conversation, so I decided to take matters into my own hands and start a social network for this conversation to happen in! http://techls.ning.com If your not familiar with Ning, I suggest you check it out!
Join up and start the conversation! Invite as many people as possible!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
