Journal #2

I decided to join the AZ Teacher Stuff affinity group. I love this forum and have browsed it often over the years, especially when I was preparing for my CSET exams. I never actually made it a point to join and start sharing some of what I know with other members. Now that I have a number of years of teaching experience and have went through the process, I believe I can add some insight to a number of the discussions. The site doesn’t focus on test prep exclusively, but on almost any topic you can think of in the realm of education. It is a great site filled with support for educators.

I was browsing the forums and found a post from a teacher disappointed with her students not studying for her class. This is something I currently have problems with as well; seeing other teachers with similar problems made me feel like, at the very least, I wasn’t the only one. Furthermore, comments with tips and suggestions were listed from other educators, which provided me with inspiration to try a few of them and determine if they could in fact be successful for my students. One teacher mentioned something that I had not really considered; some of my students may not study because they do not know how. With this information I plan to start showing the students the best ways to study for my class, which might get some of them to start putting in a little more study time. Overall I hope to gain more insight into my teaching practice.

I personally do not like the DIGG reader. I am becoming more “mobile” and having to open up a browser on a desktop to look at the information is not feasible for me. I prefer mobile apps like FlipBoard. Unfortunately, the “boards” on this app are very general and there isn’t one that focuses on education. Nevertheless, finding the news you are interested in is easier. I think using an RSS reader for mobile phones might work better for me as I would be able to open it on my phone when I’m bored and browse. Mobile devices really are taking over for me.

11.    How can you participate and be an active member in the affinity group?

I believe taking the time to post a few comments every week will make me an active member of the group. I hope to be able to share some insight with other educators from my own experiences as a teacher. I believe this is a great way to actually collaborate with educators that are not at my school site.

22.    Is there a way to make RSS available for people who prefer mobile platforms vs. traditional desktops?

I have found a number of apps available for mobile platforms but have not had an opportunity to try them yet. I believe it would be much easier for me to actually use the RSS feeder if it was a simple app on my phone. I use FlipBoard a lot when I am bored, this would provide me with a similar way to burn some time and get some information.

Affinity Group Link: http://forums.atozteacherstuff.com/