Monday, October 29, 2007

UNA Presentation

On Tuesday Anne Smith and I will be presenting at the University of North Alabama. This post is to link to the web page in support of that presentation for future reference, and as a place for UNA folks to provide feedback or ask questions in the comments.

8 comments:

  1. I wish I could be there. I love the things that your district is doing!

    good luck.

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  2. Thank you so much for your presentation. It was wonderfully informative. You really should consider a university-wide presentation as others across campus with different majors, such as English or the Computer Sciences could readily use this type of information as well. Thank you for coming to UNA!
    Ms. Gaylon-Marie Cooley
    Elementary Education Major--UNA

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  3. Karl and Anne,
    Thanks so much for coming to our campus today. You are truly change agents...or should I say "shift" stirrers? :)

    I'm so glad to have a face with a video now, and I'm glad to have you as part of my network. Maybe we can chat again at NECC.

    I'll be in touch. I'd love to get our classes together via Skype or something. I really need some elementary classrooms, as I teach the instructional technology classes for elementary ed majors. Do you guys have an elementary school close to you?

    Thanks again,
    Katie

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  4. Karl and Anne,
    Thank so much for sharing your knowledge and enthusiasm with our COE students and interns. The conversations you ignited with the presentation continued through my graduate education course last night and my email is still buzzing with Ed. Tech. students who are excited about using the technology tools and ideas you shared.
    I want to thank you for reinforcing the fact that we, as educators, cannot allow the lack of funding or the various perspectives of the "digital divide" to become a "cop out". We must also become agents of change or "shift stirrers" (as Dr. Kinney calls it).

    Thanks!
    Katrina

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  5. I want to reiterate what everyone else has posted. The presentation was wonderful. You have challenged me to be a lifetime learner/change agent. I showed your powerpoint again today for one of my classes. So now you have 10 million and 1 conversations :) about it.

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  6. I sent this to my daughter and son-in-law who are first year teachers in the Teach for America program in the Mississippi River Delta and who spent a semester last fall in China. Also, I showed the YouTube video to my UNA classes to demonstrate the relevance of studying World Literature. The one question everyone asks: HOW MANY hits did you say this video's racked up? The 'wildfire factor' is impressive.

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  7. I can't tell you what your presentation did for me. First, it confirmed my thoughts on what education really is...a conduit for learning. Students in today's classrooms are unengaged, unconcerned, and univolved in their own learning. As a student teacher in a school which is socio-economically challenged, I am finding that teachers are more concerned with simply getting through the day, than facing each day as a new opportunity to lead a student to learning.
    Secondly, it ignited a fire in me which I hope will never be extinguished. A practicing teacher at the school where I am interning said to me today that between IEP's, BBSST, 504, NCLB, ACT, and SAT, they still expected him to find time to teach. He said that when I (student teacher)began teaching, I would have to find a way to simply "survive." I told him I would not listen to that. I told him that I intend to flourish and find a way to help my students flourish.
    Thank you for helping me find a way to say what needs to be said. I can't wait to get into my own classroom. I hope I will be able to always keep my students involved in their own learning.

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  8. @everyone - Thanks for the nice comments - we're glad you found the presentation helpful. We were pretty darn nervous . . .

    @Katie - we have lots of elementary contacts. What exactly did you have in mind?

    @Katrina - glad we added more work for you!

    @Anita - That's great that your daughter and son-in-law are doing Teach for America in Mississippi. I think that most likely reflects on the great parenting they received! If they haven't already, they might want to read Michael Johnston's book In The Deep Heart's Core. Best guess on number of hits is at least 10 million - but it's really hard to tell because we can't track audiences it's shown to or direct downloads, so that might be a low number.

    @Dee - You're going to be a great teacher. There will be struggles along the way - and some days it will feel like just surviving - but as long as you keep that passion to do your best for your kids - and expect the best from them - you're going to be fine.

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