MACUL

Yesterday was the MACUL conference and we all headed down to Cobo to check out the newest tech-related teaching issues and ideas. As someone who isn't as enthusiastic about technology as others, I was surprised to find myself really enjoying the presentations and I walked away with a lot of new information! The first session that I attended discussed the dangers of the internet and safety measures that can be taken to help our kids avoid falling into these traps. It's incredible to me that 16 yr. old kids know how to hack through filters and access sites that they shouldn't be seeing, but apparently this is not uncommon. As teachers, it's imperative that we educate ourselves and our students on the dangers of the internet and help them understand how it can affect them in the longterm. The man who presented offered examples of classrooms that were participating in activities that allowed students to see first-hand how the internet can be detrimental to their future, which I felt was a great idea. Kids would create resumes or portfolios and then post them on the internet with the idea that they would perform a search of themselves and see what turns up. I thought that this was a great way of showing them that you really have to careful what you post on the web.

The second session seemed interesting at first, but it turned out to be a little bit strange. The idea behind this presentation was designing lessons that incorporate the five senses. The speaker provided research and examples of this teaching strategy as well as an activity for the audience to try. I liked the idea of using music to stimulate student's senses and get their creative juices flowing, but some of the exercises were a little bit out there. While it was certainly interesting, I'm not sure if I'd use these strategies on my own students.

The third session that I attended was the most interesting to me, which is funny, because it was all about learning how to use Web 2.o tools. As I said above, I'm not a big tech person, but this session made me want to be!! First of all, the presenter was insanely enthusiastic and did a great job of showing off these tools. Second, the tools that she did present were so neat and I would really like to use them in the future. Some of the tools that were discussed included Tripit, Yelp, Remember the Milk, Ustream, and Jott. My tech knowledge is really limited, so these may not be anything really new and exciting, but I definitely enjoyed learning about them and hope to use a couple in the future. I think the hardest part for me is that I feel so behind in the world of technology and it can be overwhelming sometimes when you think about everything that's out there. However, these tools seem pretty easy to use and I think that the more I use them, the more comfortable I will become with all this tech stuff. Overall, it was a nice way to spend a Friday and I was definitely able to take some new ideas and info away from the conference!