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Homework-My thoughts regarding Online Conferences
These new online speeches for K12 Online 2007 Conference speakers in education filed are outstanding idea and worthwhile experience. It is very convenient and allows for time flexibility. This online conference attendance requires a computer with internet browser capability. It is something new and exciting for me because I can listen to these speeches in this conference at my own pace and select among several speakers. I chose to listen to some speakers that speak in American slang languages but some other speakers have different accents for that were difficult for me to follow.

I made my choices for speakers after listening to several speeches. My choices are as follows: First Strand: Classroom 2.0 Keynote, Clarence Fisher, Second Strand: New Tools “Cell Phones as Classroom Learning Tools”, Liz Kolb, Third Strand: Obstacles to Opportunities “Me blog? No way!!!” by John Pearce and Fourth Strand: Professional Learning Networks “Building Online Communities for Youth” by Lee Baber, Paul Allison, Susan Ettenheim and Chris Sloan.

First Strand: Classroom 2.0 Keynote, Clarence Fisher, I was attracted to Clarence Fisher because he seems sincere in his vision for change among teachers, administrators, classrooms, and societies. He called for change to teach using new methods that have worked for him in the past, and in the present.

Clarence Fisher, as a knowledgeable teacher with new methods of technology got caught up with various research methods to redefine literacy that could fit the technology needs in the classrooms, to handle our advanced society. He seems to be down to earth and dedicated teacher in his community, where he lives and works. He wanted to make a new mark on education in order to handle the new trend of technological changes.
Clarence Fisher focused on the need to change curriculum in the classrooms to suit new changes in the technology field; he focused on our relationships to information which could be emphasized by exchanging information among our society and communities that would help with teaching. He also called on improving teaching methods that enhance collaboration in classrooms. Clarence Fisher’s speech indicated his dedication to easily achieve technology and learning in classrooms.

Second Strand: New Tools “Cell Phones as Classroom Learning Tools” ,
Liz Kolb , I really liked Liz Kolb’s production regarding “Cell Phones as Classroom Learning Tools” because it represents the new learning wave that could help many high school kids whom they are always carrying cellular telephones. The High school students could really benefit by using cellular telephone recording abilities for classroom podcasts feature. The students could use other suitable websites along with their cellular telephones for podcast recording options such as Gabcast http://gabcast.com/

I also noticed that Liz Kolb bio has several years experience as a social studies teacher for high school students, technology coordinator and integration specialist which it gave her this great idea of using available cheap technology devices such as cellular telephones, which are always carried by the students to be utilized in the classrooms as a alternative learning tools to encourage students, to concentrate on learning, and get some kind of motivation and productivity via their skills with using cellular telephones and its text messages.

Third Strand: Obstacles to Opportunities “Me blog? No way!!!” by the Australian elementary school teacher, John Pearce, whom he had posted this funny video that has started with a funny old man character, with a very low faded voice that was resistant to blogging things, talking animation and technology. John Pearce used Voki online software to present many supporting cartoon characters for his video.
John Pearce emphasized that traditional literacy way called for pencils and papers efforts for old fashioned learning methods but the new change needs different learning methods for literacy.
John Pearce stated that there are new literacy waves coming that involve participation and that are not through traditional ways, but through evolving ways to help literacy via computer media methods to enrich literacy, using audio and video. If the teachers fail to evolve with the literacy wave they will risk becoming teachers of literacy history instead of literacy of the future.

He also considered email as a slow method of communication. The communication of the future will be evolved literacy and teachers must be ready to be participants with new technological literacy ways.
According to John Pearce’s bio, he used blogs successfully and other web 2.0 tools with his students during classes.

Fourth Strand: Professional Learning Networks “Building Online Communities for Youth” by Lee Baber, Paul Allison, Susan Ettenheim and Chris Sloan. These four teachers created successful collaborative efforts among teachers using available technological software and hardware in their schools and other free internet tools to help their students share their collaborative outputs results via the internet and web blogs.

These teachers and their students learned to share their notes, thoughts and writings with each other and loved the ideas of finding other comments from other students who are not physically located at their schools. These students learned to interact together on line.

These successful four teachers helped their students to understand and learn more about global awareness through modern technological educational that involved blogs and web site building and hosting. The students performed online writing, inserted images with their stories documents. The students learned to organize their stories in Google web sites, and learned to use voice threads; they also used webcast and podcast to share their thoughts and learning expertise.
The students used collaboration partnerships between classrooms, new technological tools and communications such as Skype, Twitter, IM to stay connected with each others. I considered this fourth Strand: Professional Learning Networks “Building Online Communities for Youth” by Lee Baber, Paul Allison, Susan Ettenheim and Chris Sloan, to be a very successful and practical model to follow to teach students using the internet and other available technological Medias in the classrooms.