Caring for the iPad

Today we covered a wide selection of topics including how to care for the iPad which is very important as it is such an expensive item.  We also set up an account on the iPad and sent two emails successfully.  We also had to delete the account as the iPads we are using belong to the college and not to us personally.  If we were using our own iPad then we would not be deleting the account. 

 We also had to research the advantages and disadvantages of using an iPad.  For me the serious point would be the fact that they are new technology so we are still unsure as to how long they will survive before having to be replaced - only time will tell on this one.

We have covered a lot of information this week so I have to ensure that I practise all of the skills learned over the Easter break before I forget it!



Avoiding the Blogger's Block!

How to Write Effective Blogs



I have been looking at a lot of topics on the web with regards to blogging, particularly in education.  There is a whole raft of expertise available to help and guide learners to become effective bloggers.  There are a number of points I have picked up which seem to be very relevant to education including:

• Keep The Focus - this is one which I am afraid I find hard to do.  Using the blog for ILP is very good but I find so many other things I want to include so I have to guard against straying from the point completely.  It can become almost like a diary which, for ILPs, it is not intended to be.  I know that many students also struggle with this point. 
• Avoid Filler Content.   This point obviously links to the above one.  The main advice appears to be do not be putting in irrelevant information just to fill up the page - just write as much or as little as is needed for that particular post.



How to Pick a Daily Blog Topic

This is the most difficult part for me in some ways as it is important to contribute fresh content to the blog, and not to tackle the same tired subject repeatedly. The advice appears to be that if a blogger hits the 'writer's block' then there may be some strategies which might help overcome this:


Try the "what's new" approach - trying to keep up to date with what is current in education and to write it up.

Try to respond or expand upon a recent post which has proved to be interesting.

Take a popular idea or school of thought and explain it from another perspective - always good for critical writing development.

Finally, stop struggling and walk away from it for a little while to clear the head and re-energise.  This often helps and indeed can inspire.



Posting a comment

Tonight we covered a lot of information which included putting a comment on another blog which was a useful skill to have.  This involved sharing the blog spot address of someone else in the group and then logging on and reading the current post.  I posted a comment on Sheila's blog - she had found a lot of very useful information about iPads, a lot of which I wasn't aware of so have learnt a lot from Sheila tonight.  Thank you Sheila!  We also had a good discussion about the use of blogs and the vast range of different ones which are available.  From my own experience I know that blogging takes a long time to do it well, particularly if you are using photographs.  I read a lot of craft blogs and the variation in terms of quality is tremendous.  There are many decisions to make before starting a blog including what you are going to write about, how much of yourself/family you are going to share and how often you will be posting a comment.  Some of the blogs I have read will post comments several times a week so they do take up a vast amount of time, thought and preparation.
We also looked at the use of maps through the iPad.  I use this app a great deal and find it so useful.  It is a wonderful resource to have particularly when going somewhere new.  It can reduce stress levels significantly particularly when you only have a certain amount of time to get to a destination.  We had more practise using bookmarks whilst using the maps and again, this is so useful when you might be revisiting a destination later in the year.
Overall I have gained a lot of new information from this lesson, thank you Joy!  We are nearing the end of the course and I will be sorry to leave the group but hope that there will be a follow-on from this so I can maintain and increase my iPad/blogging skills.

What can students gain from blogging?

What blogging does for students

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 Diagram from www.googleimages.com  

I have been reading an interesting piece from the website www.supportblogging.com over the weekend which talks about the benefits of blogging for learners.  I have added a clip from the website below for consideration.  It is certainly giving me room for thought when thinking about the new cohorts next year, particularly around the ILPs which they do not like doing.


Creates enthusiasm for writing and communications
It is not expected that all students will take to blogging (just as not all students enjoy writing), but it is believed that blogging has a unique ability to create enthusiasm for writing and the communication of ideas.
‍Engages students in conversation and learning
Educational Blogging is more than just being about writing, just like writing is more than just writing business correspondence or a lab report for Chemistry class.Unlike traditional forms of publication that are one-way, when the work is done at the end of the publication process, students can be engaged in ongoing conversations about their ideas and thoughts. This can be threatening for some administrators afraid of endangering children, yet, it brings a reality to the classroom that was not previously possible.
Provides an opportunity to teach about responsible journalism
Because students who are posting blogs reach an audience with their posts, whereas a personal diary can be kept private, students have the opportunity in blogging to learn about the power of the published word. Whereas they might be tempted to criticise or make fun of someone in private conversation or in a diary, they can be taught about responsible journalism, and that the consequences of these kinds of remarks in the new world of the read/write web can be serious and long-lasting.
Empowers students
Student blogging is incredibly empowering in the following ways:

1) Instead of writing as a mechanized approach to empowerment where we learn to write well enough for school and work, we learn to write for life-long learning purposes.

2) Writing and blogging and life are intertwined as difficult issues are exposed and dealt with in a transparent community of voices. Although this type of writing entails risk and trust, growth and teamwork naturally result.

3) Writing and blogging encourage students' initiative to write, to be engaged at more than just the head level. It involves writing from head and heart. Children often have not learned to do more than live from the heart, while adults have concentrated their efforts on more cerebral approaches. This means adults and children can bridge the gap that exists by writing together, creating a community of writers in their classrooms where there is no pseudo-community, only community where humans write.

Blogging in Education

The benefits of blogging in education

Richardson (2005) has identified a number of potential benefits of using blogging in the classroom.  Such benefits include the promotion of critical and analytical skills, encouraging creative thinking and enabling learners to have a combination of both solitary and social interactive opportunities.  Adult learners coming back into education often find that they worry about their ability to adapt and cope with academia and blogging could be a possible way of helping them to overcome such concerns. This is certainly an area I wish to explore further for the next cohort of the Access Health and Caring groups in September 2013.  I have realised, through my own learning journey on my blogging course that it is a wonderful way of charting my own development within a given area.  The blogging course has really unlocked many ideas about how to adapt the skills I have developed so they can be embedded in some form next September.  Thank you Joy for encouraging me and helping me to see the huge potential of blogging.   

Ref:

Richardson, W. (2005) RSS:A quick start guide for educators. http//static.hcrhs.k12.nj.us/gems/tech.RSSFAQ4.pdf

Accessed 4th March 2013

Organising My Life!

Tonight we looked at two very interesting Apps - the BBC News app which had separate sections for different parts of the UK therefore enabling the user to locate the appropriate information for their part of the world.  I was able to find two news stories from Wales which were very interesting and informative. 

We then progressed on to the contacts and reminder apps which I enjoyed using.  I had a little knowledge about these as they are the same as on my iPhone and I use them regularly.  However, I hadn't really thought of utilising them on my iPad, something which I will do from now on.  In the past I have always used a paper diary and would have been lost without it, however I am trying to wean myself off this habit and utilise the technology I have to hand.  It is much more convenient and saves on the inconvenience of always having to carry around a fairly large diary with me wherever I go.

 The iPad has revolutionised life today - I can email my class representative with any information which needs to be given to the whole group - this message is picked up via the rep's iPhone and she then puts the message from to me on the class Facebook which everyone is then asked to read.  Wonderful!  In the past I would have had to email each person individually or tried to contact them by phone - very time consuming and expensive.  The downside, and there is a negative to everything in life - is that technology is just wonderful until it all goes wrong and then we have to revert back to the 'good old ways!'.

I really enjoyed the session tonight.  Being away for one week had really had an effect upon my learning and I can now really understand why learners find it so difficult to re-engage with their studies if they have been away from lessons for a while.  I am back now and ready to re-engage with my blogging studies.  My short term aim is now to complete the course successfully and my long term aims are to  progress onto the next course and eventually start my own blog.  We shall see.....................................

4th March 2013

I have been very remiss with my Blog as I have not written anything for a while - I had planned to add more posts but was unable to last week.  I did go to the Catholic Church and have recorded a short piece about the history of it which I have put on my own iPad at home.  For this week I intend to catch up with any work I have missed since last week and write three new blogs.