Blog Post 3

Peer Editing

I think the main thing that I gathered when watching the peer editing instructional, was that you should edit with respect. I know that when I get my papers peer edited, if they don't give some sort of complement I automatically discredit what they have to say. So when I watched the instructional on how to peer edit having the first step, as complementing definitely seemed right. The second step of the process is suggesting. I like the fact that the video has this second because once again it allows you to gain the trust of whom you are editing. If you want someone to listen to your suggestions then you have to gain their trust that’s why the last step is corrections. The first two things you do in editing are make the person you edit trust your judgment, by complementing, and then suggesting how to make it better. Then after they trust you, and you haven't been a mean Margaret, you give your suggestions in a nice and helpful way.  

I also realized while watching these videos that I tend to be either a whatever William or a defensive Dave. Sometimes when peers edit my paper I tend to discredit them because they are the same age as me and I turn in to a whatever William, and stop listening. Even though these videos made me realize that if peers can see my mistakes then the teacher will definitely be able to see them as well. I also turn into a defensive Dave; I have the feeling that I worked really hard on my paper and that my peers read it in five minutes and try to change everything. I need to realize that my peers are only trying to help, and that I shouldn't get caught up with all of the changes but look for the opportunity to grow. So all in all these videos taught me the importance of peer editing and how to do it properly. 

Assistive Technologies

The Mountbatten is a tool that allows blind students to type in brail hear the letter they are typing and allow them to save their assignments on to a computer. The Mountbatten also allows teachers who can't read brail to be able to read the text because the writing also pops up on a computer screen. Honestly I think this tool is beyond fantastic! Not only can it allow blind students to be able to work effectively in regular classrooms, but it can also allow teachers who don't know brail to be able to read their assignments. If I had a blind student I would definitely use a Mountbatten because it would allow the blind person to write not only for me, the teacher, but for the other students as well. It would also allow blind students to be able to create portfolios on a computer and keep a record of everything they have produced. 

In the "Teaching Math to the Blind" a professor from the University of San Francisco brings up the valid point on how tough it is for blind students to learn math. In regular brail blind students read the problem in a horizontal fashion instead of the much easier vertical fashion. So the professor created a grid with brail numbers and visual numbers, which is good if a teacher doesn't know brail, to allow students to place the problems out vertically. The grid also has a voice so it tells the student exactly what problem is set up. The grid is actually very neat; the student sets up the problem and is able to read it one line at a time instead of having one line of a bunch of numbers. With this invention the professor claims that blind students will now be able to learn basic math all the way up to simple algebra. With this invention it will help blind students learn the fundamentals of math and ultimately give them a better chance of receiving a steady job. If I had a blind student in my class I would definitely want this grid not only to make teaching easier for me, but make learning easier for the students as well.

Also in the videos it showed how voice over on the Ipad allows blind people to still be able to use technology and grow just as everyone else does. The thing that I thought was most interesting about the Ipad is that it allows blind people to be able to read regular books. With the IBook application a blind person is able to chose what book the want to read and also have all the images in the book described to them. The only thing about the voice over that I have negative to say is that it looks like it is extremely difficult to use. In both videos the user has problems getting the Ipad to do exactly what they want, but once the kinks are worked out then I definitely think that this will be revolutionary for blind people. 

Digital Smarts

In the "Digital Smarts" video Mrs. Davis explains how she is teaching not only her students, but her self to be more digitally smart as well. In her classroom she allows her students to learn through doing activities that they enjoy, such as twitter and virtual reality. She has her students learn how to use podcasts, blogs, and other virtual experiences to allow them to get the most out of their education. She won the award for having the best blog in the United States, because of this strategy. One cool thing about Mrs. Davis's classroom is that she takes this small town city in rural Georgia, and is broadening their horizons, allowing them to connect with people all over the world.

I think Mrs. Davis's system and Dr. Strange's system is a lot alike. Both teachers recognize that they only way a student will learn something are if they want to do it, or if they do it themselves. In the video Mrs. Davis talks about how she does not need to explain herself if she says a word that someone doesn't know, because it's just like Dr. Strange says, if I don't know let's find out. I think Mr. Davis uses a very effective way to teach and, apparently, if she is winning best blog awards other people do as well.