Virtual High Schools

Pro's for virtual high schools:
Students are able to work at their own pace.

Teachers are able to work with students that are more internally motivated.

There will be a smaller carbon foot print.

There is an increased use of technology

Teachers get paid a lot more

Con's for virtual high schools:
There is not tutoring and mentoring in the teacher student relationship.

Students are not receiving social interaction that is prevalent in schools.

Students can easily get left behind.

Formative assessment is more difficult.

Teachers have less contact with students.


Virtual High Schools are very enticing. To teach in any place I want, and get paid much more than working in a traditional school is exciting. However, there is a lack of contact with students which is why I am choosing to become a teacher. I hope to impact students in a positive way. To help them through difficult times in their lives, and give them something to shoot for. Virtual school seem to hinder teachers ability to be more to students than just a teacher. I do see good things that can come of virtual education. I just hope that it will not make teachers focus on money more than on the students.

Blogs and Wikis in Education

Education is based on sharing information and growing from others knowledge. Blogs and Wikis are great tools for this type of education. With blogs, students have the chance to read, respond and create ideas on specific topics. For example, within the classroom, the topic may be World War II, students could use blogs to research and read the ideas of others to find why WWII started. For that same topic, students could respond using their blogs about why they feel WWII started (this could be a summative assessment). With a wiki students could collaborate with each other through a creative project.

If I had my students keep blogs,I could use a RSS reader to keep me up to date as to when they post something new on their blog. The students could use the RSS reader to be able to see when I as the teacher updated the class website.

Blogs and wikis are quite helpful within the classroom. Blogs and wikis help students develop their own thoughts and beliefs about specific topics. These technologies also help the teacher assess student learning on deeper level. However, if there is a lot of misinformation out on the internet and especially on blogs. If students are not equipped to analyze media they may struggle if given an assignment to go out and research a topic through blogs. Even when these type of disadvantages to blogs and wikis, these technologies can have a great positive impact on education.

Teacher Web Project Critique

There are many great aspects to having a class web site. A class web site can help student learning by incorporating technology into student learning. Technology helps with varying learning styles and interests. A class web site can excite students to take control of their own learning. Another great aspect of the website can keep the teacher in consistent content with students and parents outside of the classroom. For example, students and parents can email the teacher directly from the site. Furthermore, parents are able to see what the teacher is doing in the classroom through the web site. The site has a calendar and class agendas that will help parents to stay in contact with their children and the teacher.

One of the major advantages to using a class web site in concordance with classroom assignments and projects is that students will be able to access details to the assignment out of class. Many times throughout my education I have forgotten many of the details to the assignment and have therefore missed points due to this miscommunication. I feel that a class web site can counter this problem for students. Another advantage to a class web site is that the site allows students to interact with each other. Student can coordinate and brainstorm ideas through the web site. This is a major advantage because it encourages students’ autonomy in their learning.

However, there is a major disadvantage to using a class site. The teacher may rely on the site and refrain from assigning projects in class. This can confuse students and hinder students that have a lack of technology in the home. It is imperative for teachers to be aware of their students’ home life and understanding of technology and the internet.

Concept Mapping Your Mind

Concept mapping reminds me of the grand old days of logic. I could see myself using this in my classroom in many situations. One of the major problems students have with mathematics is understanding the thought process and logic that goes with solving problems. I could use concept mapping to help my students hammer out logical processes.

Not only could I have my students map the steps for solving problems, but I could have them map the connections to other subject areas and other ideas within mathematics. There is a great number of ideas that transfer throughout subject matters. My students could show that through concept mapping.

Having my students use concept mapping to represent problem solving, connections to other subjects areas, and other ideas within mathematics has a great impact on student learning. Students have such a wide range of learning styles and preferences that this would allow for students that are more visual and tactile learners to learn.

Criteria for whether of not Concept Mapping activities would be part of a lesson would be include having the lesson have specific steps for learning. For examples, a Concept Map for solving word problems would be a good choice. Students would be able to walk through important steps. Another good lesson would be simplifying trigonometric equations.

You Think You Know... You Have No IDEA.

To whom it may concern,

Besides having to write this for class, I have been curious about what to write for my blog posts. I believe I have finally found something that has made me angry enough to write about. There is a great misunderstanding with people that must be cleared up.

If you think you know me "too well" or "pretty well" you are wrong. There have been some rumors flying around and people talking about me behind my back. Most of these people seem to feel that they know me rather well. Well you obviously don't know me well enough to know, I hate people talking behind my back. You should stop.

There are very few people in this world that can say they know me well, and they would never say they know me "too well" or "pretty well." These people are some of my very close friends, my family and my amazing girlfriend. Everyone else, you are wrong. Do you not know me well and you should stop talking about me like you do, otherwise you will look like an idiot.

Don't feel like I dislike you simply because you don't know me as well as some. Just feel privileged that I am not calling you out by name. For those of you that I have only know for a year or so, I am not talking about you. I am talking to those of you that feel because you have known my name for 3-4, you have a complete understanding of who I am as a person.

I will fill you in. What you don't know is my utter dislike for the use of names, year in school, job, major, to define a person. I am much more complex than a simple one word answer. Furthermore, YOU have not been by my side when terrible things happen. YOU have not had a conversation with me about what I am most passionate about. YOU don't know my background and how that has shaped my present. Before you go telling people about how great of friends we are, you should perhaps get to know a couple of these things.

I will call you out for your mistakes in the future. Take this as a warning.

A word of advice from someone that does know me well. "Eric, you either love someone or hate them from the get-go." Try not to be the latter.

I would like to make one thing clear. I understand I am being somewhat immature with my decision to post this on a blog and not talk to the culprits in person. But I feel that this can be good information for all of you that may feel you know me or any other person for that matter, "pretty well." I implore you, do your research before you make grandiose accusations about a relationship you have with a person. If not for my sake, for the sake of all the good hearted well-intentioned people that don't like to hear from someone else about how you feel they are only a good person if you barely know them. "I must know him too well" is an insult and you need to recognize that.

I apologize to those of you that are not arrogant and have not offended me. You suffered through one of my rants. I rarely speak out, I rather dislike conflict. However, sometimes one must enter into conflict in order to prevent inner turmoil.

The rest of my posts will hopefully be much more dull and have much less drama.

Thank you for reading. Come again... Please

Multiply Intelligence

I have done many MI tests over the course of being in the Education department here at WSU. I find them rather inaccurate as I do with personality tests as well. It seems to me after taking these types of tests that the results are never to my expectations. As with this MI test, I found that I was mostly a visual, intrapersonal learner. However, I find once I read something or someone tells me something, I am not swift to forget that bit of information.

Thus, I find Multiply Intelligence testing can be useful, it is nothing to rely upon. Using MI tests in the classroom can be helpful. In a classroom setting, the teacher must know and understand how to teach to a diverse population of learners. Recognizing the differences and similarities between student learner styles is very important. The teacher must use a wide variety of teaching styles when educating their students. That is why I hope to use MI tests in my classroom. I know that I will need as much information about my students as possible. Therefore, know my students' MI test results are a huge step in the right direction to effect teaching strategies.

Welcome to my blog.