New Media and Other Stuff

    So I feel that this might be a rather short blog today, just because of that behemoth I posted on Tuesday night, but I could be wrong...  Also, I haven't really been exposed to much literary excellence recently, and I walked out of class early yesterday because I wasn't feeling well, so this might be a tad strained.  Bare with me...it's been a long week.

    What I DO have is my totals for the Pinterest Challenge, which I finished yesterday.  For 30 days worth of action, I still have 10 boards, pinned 342 pins and gained 35 followers, (36 as of today), for a total of 175.  Not exactly an even number, but I can live with it.  Thanks for everyone who participated with me and had fun with it.  I had fun too, but I'm glad I don't HAVE to do it every day anymore.  It can go back to being a leisurely activity, when I'm bored.
    As far as school news goes, I'm getting ready to pick my last two classes...ever.  My internship starts next fall, (if all goes well), and I need just one English class and one Education class to round out my Masters of Arts in Teaching.  However, all the classes I want/need to take are at the same time...  Apparently Tuesdays between 3 and 6 are prime time class time for both departments.  So I'm in a mild dilemma that will decide what direction I want to take my future...no big deal.  Hopefully I can get it together before registration starts.  Any advice would be appreciated.

    As I said in my previous post, in my Digital Literacies class we're discussing social media and new media literacies as an emerging issue in education.  Students are using social media more and more every generation and adults are mostly against this source of "distraction."  Educators seem to be torn between focusing on their curriculum and trying to integrate new media into their curriculum somehow.  As of right now I'm not sure where I stand on this, solely because I'm still not sure how I would integrate new media into the classroom...  We discussed the issue a little bit, but I don't think anyone came up with a good enough answer to warrant action.  Hopefully, someday, teachers will be able to take control of social media for their classroom activities, and more than just making a fake Facebook profile for some character in [insert name of popular Shakespearean play here].

    Other than that, that's all I have for education and literacy discussion.  Also, I now have two huge projects to do for the end of the semester: one is that YouTube study that I'm trying to do and the other is a unit plan on something that's writing-intensive.  I decided to do a unit plan instead of a lesson plan in order to make it more extravagant and time-consuming, which will probably be my downfall, however I'm still optimistic that I can make it work.  I'm hoping something will come to me in the next few days so I have something to email my professor about, but who knows?

   This weekend my husband and I are driving down to Rhode Island to go to the Rhode Island Comic Con, which will feature a few important reunions and special appearances, including most of the original Power Rangers, (which is why I'm excited about going).  I can't wait to vlog that experience and take loads of pictures!  You can find out more information about the comic con here.  I'm still working on editing the St. Louis video, (I KNOW, I'm sorry...).  But it looks like it WILL be up by the end of the week.  When given the problematic choice between over 200 pages of reading and uploading a video of a fun weekend away, I kinda have to choose the reading.  I'm still trying to figure out how I'm going to get my laundry done and grab some groceries.  If you guys have any suggestions on what I can post for next week in the education or literacy category, let me know.  I'm THIS CLOSE to finishing the first book in Game of Thrones, so I might do a review of that, but we'll see.  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.

Revelations of a Stress Monkey

    As usual, I'm utilizing my time before/during Grammar to get a post up.  Unfortunately it's starting to reflect in my grades, (got a D on my midterm...UGH).  Did I mention I HAVE to get a B- or better in ALL my classes to complete Graduate school?...NBD.
    In other news, at work I've noticed that our customers have turned into complete assholes overnight.  It seems that the "Christmas Spirit" acts a lot like a deadly, zombie-like virus, spreading violently until everybody is furious at even the slightest price discrepancy or coupon debacle.  Oh, did I mention we completely skipped Halloween altogether?  Besides some shitty candy we have at the customer service desk, there's not even a remnant of Halloween having ever existed in our store.  Fortunately, I'm not the Halloween type, so that's all well and good, but when you put Christmas music right in front of me at the beginning of October, I am NOT a happy person.  I will feel Christmas-y after Thanksgiving, like everyone is supposed to.  And Black Friday, which I am now dreading because people are ALREADY Christmas shopping...crazies...

    What is wrong with you people?!  I know you would love to get a head start on all your shopping needs for all two of the people you have in your life, but really?  Before Columbus Day?  It's not ok.  Retail associates cringe at the thought of Christmas, Black Friday and the onslaught of what we affectionately call "shopping hell," where we go to die.  No one likes it, the crowds are ridiculous and so are the people.  Every little thing is a constant struggle and no one plays fair, so you have to literally grin and bare it until the day is over for you and you can go home, just to come back and do it all again the next day.  If you know someone who absolutely HATES the holiday season and you can't figure out why they're such a Grinch, it's because they work in a retail environment.  I send my love out to all my fellow customer service brothers and sisters as we make our way to the inferno of doom.  Stay strong and classy my friends.

    After that melodramatic speech, let's refocus onto something a little more upbeat!  How about reminiscing?  For my Digital Literacies class, we're reading about new media technologies and how students, (mainly teens), interact with each other through these technologies and how they're used in every day occurrences, (possibly more on that topic on Thursday when I do my educational bit).  This reading caused me to look into my own practices as a 15-year-old rebel teen full of angst and anxiety and how I used to use social media, mainly in the sense of intimate relationships and how social media fueled them further and/or into ruin.
    In order to engage more with the reading, I decided I needed to delve deeper into my own past and research how and when I used social media, what I used it for and which technologies I used the most when dealing with personal relationships.  There were some things I already knew: that I met my first serious boyfriend through Instant Messenger, (and the casual suggestion of a mutual friend), and that's how we communicated for over a year before finally meeting in person.  Even after we met in person, we used MySpace, AIM, Facebook, LiveJournal and cell phones to keep in contact with each other.  Finding both of my old LiveJournal accounts, (and his), was not only embarrassing, but eye-opening.  Unbeknownst to me, both LiveJournal and Facebook kept track of exact dates and time frames for when things happened during my personal relationships, (like when I got sick and had my first real flare since my hospitalization in 8th grade).  It was interesting to see and remember how and when certain events in my life happened from my own point of view, and his.

    It was also interesting to see how absolutely love-struck I was at that age.  The beginning stages of high school are formative years for character and personal development, and love is one of the strongest emotions for teens.  Apparently I felt it, and I can honestly say that it was real.  Seeing how vulnerable I was then, now that I know how all of that panned out, made me realize how naive I was.  I'm not saying I was wrong because the way I felt was natural and at the time I didn't know the future.  I was perfectly happy staying in the unknown and playing things out for what they were, and I'd say we had a good run.  Today I'm very much the opposite in the sense that I need to know everything and nothing can be unknown, which is a little sad at times.  I miss the care-free side of me that I've lost over the years, but hopefully it's not too hard to retrieve.  I'm thinking I haven't changed all that much; I just became a little more enlightened and fell in love with someone else again, this time for good.

    Lastly, my friend Christin, (who also happens to be that mutual friend from above who introduced me to my past boyfriend), has been in town for a few weeks and is leaving on Friday to go back to Colorado.  I only got to see her twice because of my work and school schedule, but I'm glad I got to see her.  We were talking tonight, before I said goodbye, and I realized we've been best friends for 12 years.  That's a long time to be friends with someone, and I'm really glad that she's mine because I don't know what I'd do without her.  I went through a separation period with her for awhile and it wasn't fun, and now we're doing it again because she lives so far away.  But when she's home, (because HERE is really home), it's like she never left, and we can go back to being our goofy selves:)  I love her so much and sometimes I wish we talked more, but I'm thankful for whatever time I do get with her.

(courtesy of Freshman year us)

    Alright, that's enough of that.  I'm tired and still have reading to accomplish last minute, so I'll get right on that.  I promise the St. Louis video will be up by the end of the week, but I've just been so behind on homework that I've had other priorities...  I will let everyone know when I finally do post it.  Now I have a date with the soft side of a pillow...  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.
   

Digital Literacies and the New Media Movement

    Ok, so it's been a long day already and I'm about to start class, so I'll try to get through this as academically correct and professional as I possibly can...  Also, I know the video isn't up yet, but I will hopefully have it up by the end of this weekend, (if anyone cares).  I just didn't have the time to upload/edit it on Tuesday.  I need coffee stat...  Anyway, on to the literacy discussion!
    One of my courses is called "Digital Literacies" and we're currently talking about technology in/outside the classroom and how it either hinders or improves students' skills over time based on each individual level of competency.  Depending on the view of the researcher, you could say a lot about this subject as it pertains to current educational standards and requirements.

    In our discussion, we focused mainly on technology as a means to gain knowledge rather than a distraction.  Most teachers and parents will probably tell you that gaming and social media is rotting our young adults' minds to the point where they can't pay attention to anything else.  But what if I told you that there are educational researchers dedicated to proving that isn't the case at all?  That in fact the opposite is taking place, and students are learning just as much from social media sites and online gaming as they do in the classroom; possibly even more.

    We read an article titled Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media Education for the 21st Century in which the authors talk about new media technologies and the benefits of peer-to-peer learning through online communities.  I found this article fascinating because of all the potential that these technologies bring and yet not a lot of people have seen it, or understand it enough to make these connections.  Many successful individuals, such as the 14-year-old founder of FireFox, found the necessary skills and knowledge they needed to generate results through participation in informal online learning communities as opposed to a classroom.  Some kids are able to do this on their own because it comes naturally to them, while others may need a little more guidance in the form of an instructor.

    As you know, I'm doing a case study on YouTube as a participatory culture as well as an online learning community.  I've since found many articles and journals demonstrating these ideas about social networking as a tool for knowledge rather than pleasure.  It's extremely reassuring to know that at least a few educational experts are taking new media technologies seriously.  Sadly, most schools still see social media and other online technologies as a distracting and unnecessary tool working against learning.  In fact, most schools have special security blocks on sites popular with students so that they can't access them during school hours.

    I can understand the motives behind this; unfortunately, we can't give students the benefit of the doubt all the time.  There are some students that would abuse the privilege of having full access to the Internet solely because they don't know how to use it properly as a learning tool.  Those students who do understand the complexities of Internet communities can and will gain knowledge from access and are thus being deprived of improving their existing skills.  Nowadays I don't think we trust students enough to let them think for themselves and have their own way of doing things.  We have to keep them in this rigid state and government-mandated system that doesn't allow them to use their best assets as a part of the curriculum.  Although, some teachers are starting to branch out and allow some creativity to seep through into their lessons.  Eventually I hope that schools will trust us enough, (as teachers), to promote positive usage of new media literacy in our classrooms and utilize the tools that students already have a good grasp on in order to prepare them for a technologically savvy world.
   

    I found a really cool article about Pokemon while I was actually doing some research for my YouTube project.  The article is called What Pokemon Can Teach Us About Learning and Literacy and focuses on the author's nephew Curtis and his differentiated levels of learning with the Pokemon card game.  If you get a chance, I highly recommend reading it.  The bad news is that I can't use this article for my YouTube project because there's no real way for me to connect the two together in an academic way....but the good news is that I can do a completely different study, (on my own time), pertaining to Pokemon and literacy, which are two things that I've been passionate about for a long time.  Not to mention I've been looking for an excuse to start playing video games again...so what the hell?

    There are a lot of new technological advances in education, hopefully meaning new advances in legislature to make things happen.  I'd love to be able to work in a school someday where kids were trusted and could adapt to learning something from aspects of social media and online learning communities.  We live in a world that values tech savvy almost above all else, so we have to get our kids to a point where they can at least understand what they do outside of school is important and could potentially get them a job somewhere someday.

    I'm super pumped to be taking this class.  It's given me a lot of material to make me reconsider some things I thought I already knew about media literacy and also ideas for my own future classroom.  Now I have to stay focused and stay on track with my YouTube research so I can actually get something tangible out if this.  If you guys have any suggestions, interjections or topics to discuss for next week, let me know in the comments or on any of my social media links to the right.  I'll be back again to post on Tuesday, so I hope everyone has an awesome weekend!  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.

   
   

Marvelous Magic

    At the moment, I'm attempting to get over 50 pages of reading done AND write a summary response.  So, naturally, I'm stalling...  Especially because no one else has posted anything and it's past the noon-time deadline, so I figured I could take a few minutes to myself.

    We just got back from St. Louis yesterday and let me tell you, it was awesome!  I can't even describe how it feels to be in the same place with over 5,000 like-minded people in great spirits.  It was so much fun, and definitely more fun than I thought it would be.  Who knew a conference would leave me feeling so enlightened and empowered?  There's some big things coming my way, and I can't wait to get to work on a new future!  I love my team and I'm so grateful for this opportunity.

    Unfortunately, because I was having so much fun in St. Louis, I neglected to keep up with my Pinterest challenge...(I don't even know what day I'm on, to be honest).  I have since started up again, but I understand that three days of nothing is hard to come back from.  I'll try to make up for it this week.  What I DID accomplish was to vlog most of the trip, so I got some great footage I will be editing this week to hopefully put up this weekend.  Stay tuned!

    In other news, I've been trying to get caught up on my TV time.  I have a few shows that I watch every week after they air, (because I don't have cable), and I missed almost all of last week because of homework and other commitments.  One of those shows is Once Upon a Time, which I can safely say is my new obsession.  I managed to watch the first two seasons in a little over two weeks!  The thing I like the most about it is the creativity behind all the character modifications; the twists and turns in character developments/personalities and the story line.  I feel a connection to it partially because I can appreciate a good plot as well as the traditional characters they've altered or manipulated into something completely different.  All of this works really well within the plot line and I can't wait to get caught up with the third season.
    So that pretty much sums up the last few days for me.  It's back to reality now, but this time reality seems more hopefully and welcoming:)  Now I'm going to finish my reading, upload my vlog and plan my next post for Thursday.  As always, if you have any ideas or questions, please feel free to leave them in the comments below or contact me by my links to the right.  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.
   

The Way Things Are

    I had intended to post a random blog about various happenings on Tuesday, but unfortunately time got the better of me and I wasn't able to do it.  So, now that I've successfully completed all of my assignments for the week, (GO ME!), I can post today.  Yippee!
    Like I said, time hasn't been my friend this week.  As usual, I left my reading assignments until Monday, had a doctor's appointment that day before work, then had to substitute on Tuesday, (I managed to get some stuff done because of NECAP testing, poor kiddos...), and now it's Wednesday already!  I skimmed the last chapter of reading and probably botched my grammar midterm, but everything is DONE and I can leave tomorrow satisfied that I can relax this weekend.
    I don't know why I even bother telling myself that I'm going to try to get at least some reading done on Thursdays because it NEVER happens.  Regardless, I will continue to tell myself to try harder, but I don't think I'm listening...not much I can do about that.  I'll have to give myself a stern talking to, (hopefully in a private place, like my apartment...), in the hopes that I'll shape up eventually.  I guess I can't even be optimistic about my apparent schizophrenia...
    In other news, I'm off to St. Louis tomorrow for an Elite Academy conference with my husband!  Very excited, but very stressed at the same time.  I've come to the conclusion that before any big trip I usually become more neurotic than usual, so I'm probably driving my husband crazy, but I HATE flying...  Now that all my school work is done, I have to turn my focus to packing, checking in for our flight and making sure everything is in order before we leave.  I've never been to St. Louis before, (I've also never had a connecting flight, so we'll see how that goes...), but I'm excited about what we would like to do during our free time and hopefully everything goes according to plan.
    Sorry this hasn't been a very eventful post, but I literally haven't had any time to devote to this week, (hence why I was able to pull off reading 3 chapters in under 24 hours).  I will be vlogging my trip to St. Louis and our adventures there between meetings, so be on the lookout for that video.  I will also try revamping a few things here in the coming weeks and maybe adding a few things.  I've been researching "linky parties" and other tips on how to become more involved in the blogosphere, so hopefully I can get somewhere.  I'm trying to decide what to post on Tuesdays, (seeing as Thursday is my dedicated educational/literary post of the week), so if anyone has any suggestions or ideas about a theme I could use, let me know in the comments!  Until further notice, it will be a vent for randomosity.
    Still in the midst of the Pinterest Challenge, so to those of you who have joined me, keep it up!  I've found that it's hard sometimes to make time for it each day, but I'm learning a lot and have found some great people and pins to add to my network!  All my links are on the right of this page, so if you want to stay in touch and see how I'm doing, there you go!
    Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.
   

Dystopian Education

    So last week I had submitted a lesson plan as part of my midterm project assignment for one of my grad courses.  We had to include an aspect of reading comprehension, including before, during and after reading activities culminating into a 3-5 part unit.  I chose to use Divergent, which is a book not a lot of teachers use in their English classes, not because they don't want to, but because they probably can't.  Honestly, the book is just too new to have any sort of concrete lesson plan attached to it.
    For my own lesson plan, I focused on three non-consecutive sections featuring one before, during and after reading activity for each section.  Students would be reading the entire book over the course of a few weeks, so they obviously wouldn't be expected to finish in three days.  Although I did well on my unit plan, (A!), I'm always looking for new things to add or enhance my own lessons as I finish up my graduate work.

    I've done a lot of research into dystopian literature and I find it fascinating.  Students seem to enjoy this sub genre as well.  Due to the large cult following of The Hunger Games, (there is now a trilogy in the making), more authors are pumping out dystopian or apocalyptic novels for teens and young adults.  Where did all of this literature come from?  Why now, and why do teens seem to relate more to characters in an alternative universe in comparison to our own?
    I believe teachers should start to focus less on the classics in the classroom and more outside the box.  Due to the high demand and obvious desire for new and exciting material in English and Language Arts classes, I think it's time to move along with the times and let kids decide what they read in school.  I understand that sometimes letting kids choose isn't the right thing to do; giving them a false sense of power would undermine the authority of the teacher and everything will implode from there and so-on...  However, I don't think there's any harm in letting the students have at least SOME say in what books they are required to read through core standards.  As long as the books follow the curriculum requirements, I see no problem with them picking their own books.
    Being a substitute teacher, I like to ask students their opinions about school, especially in English classes.  I'd like to know what they think and how they would run a class if they were given the opportunity.  You'd be surprised at how many students actually have good ideas and would relinquish the ability to abuse the privilege of being an educator.  They all look out for each other as students, and I think educators should look out for them as well by taking their interests and thoughts into consideration.  That being said, I think dystopian literature is a great choice because it's an up-and-coming sub genre in school systems.  With the popularity of The Hunger Games, some teachers have caught on to the hype and have started implementing these lesson plans geared towards students' interests and less towards the interests of the administration.

    I think dystopian literature has both great common themes as well as independent themes depending on the type of book.  Some themes that are present in The Hunger Games are also present in books like Divergent, Gulliver's Travels, The Giver, and Animal Farm.  Dystopian literature dates back to the 18th century and has evolved over time.  The 21st century saw a significant increase in dystopian literature, including popular books like the Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld, The Maze Runner by James Dashner, and The Passage by Justin Cronin.  There is literally a book for every age group, every reading level and every interest.  They appeal to males as well as females and command attention where ever they are found.  Kids are starting to become more adventurous with their reading material outside of the classroom and it's given them a chance to see that it can be fun to read.
    This is why I can't wait to be an English teacher.  I get excited about the possibilities that books give us.  I'm happy about students enjoying their reading experience and giving books the amount of attention they deserve, (and haven't seen much of since Harry Potter).  I'm eager to introduce my kids to a book they might have never heard of before, but I know they'll love.  I can't wait to write about our experiences with books together.  I can't wait to have my own classroom!  I'm just really looking forward to the teaching experience and I can't believe I'm almost there, finally.  The internship is right around the corner, and I'm so ready!

    In other news, I'm proctoring a testing session at my local middle/high school, (boring...), and spending the day in the music/band room, where I'll be learning how to play the guitar.  Jealous?
    My YouTube research has been slow, but steady.  I'm still trying to figure out if I want to be serious about my channel or turn it over to the project and be done with it.  To be honest, I'm not that great in front of the camera and I haven't had time to really film anything significant.  So far the last video I made I wasn't even happy with, so I understand why it only have about 6 views as of today.  But I do plan on vlogging my trip to St. Louis next week and probably a few more small events here and there.  I realize I didn't have a lot going on until now, so I guess it's finally a good time to start filming things.  I'll try to keep you as posted as possible on any new videos I have up on my channel.

    I've also been knee-deep in this Pinterest 30-Day Challenge.  It's a lot harder than it looks to stay focused and remember to do it each day, (not to mention finding people to follow when you're already following everyone you know is difficult...).  I'm having fun with it though, and I'm doing pretty well gaining fellow Pinners as followers, so if you want to start now, you can find the link to my Pinterest boards on the right near the top of my page.  In fact, all my links are now on display in a pretty lilac color up at the top of my page, which took me over three hours to put into my layout, (I'm not very HTML code savvy unfortunately...took me back to my Neopets days...good God, was that horrible).  So check them out!

    That's all I have for now.  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.

   
   
   

It starts...

  So I have until next Wednesday to work out a project proposal for my YouTube case study.  I'm still not entirely sure how to organize my thoughts, but I'm sure I'll figure something out.  I've already tried to make contact with one of the YouTubers I'm following and I've done some research on possible journal articles and other resources I could use to help the process along.  I'm still pretty pumped about this, so I'll let you know how the proposal goes, but my spirits are high:)
  In health-related news, my hand has been acting up again, so I need to go back to the hospital for an x-ray tomorrow to make sure it's not my joints eroding.  If not all of you are aware, I have Lupus, which is a chronic autoimmune disease in which my antibodies attack anything that moves, (including the healthy, good stuff).  This usually results in me being routinely sore, tired and sick a lot of the time.  It's not fun, and for some reason over the last few months I've been having some serious flares.  I see a rheumatologist pretty often and we're trying to figure out where all of this is coming from, (stress, getting older, body changes, etc.) and how to stop it.  I've been in remission for so long I forgot what it felt like to be in serious pain, but it's all coming back to me now....  This is an on-going development in my personal life, which I will try to keep you updated on as much as possible.
  Other than that, I don't have a whole lot going on.  I have plans to attend the Powder keg Beer and Chili Festival on Saturday in Exeter, NH, so I will be vlogging that, (follow my budding YouTube channel here), and hopefully coming out with a win in my Fantasy Football match up against the Touchdownton Abbeys.  Wish me luck!  I'll also be writing another blog sometime soon, either this weekend or after next Wednesday about a topic in literature and education, so be on the lookout for that!
  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.
PS: It's October 3rd.  Just incase you weren't aware...  (cue Mean Girls movie night)

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The Pinterest Challenge

    I recently stumbled upon a blog post about a challenge regarding Pinterest.  Now, if you haven't heard of Pinterest, then I think you're in for a treat.  I've become very invested in my Pinterest boards, although I only have 10 boards, 1,060 pins and 139 followers.  It's become a very useful tool for me in looking up recipes, classroom lesson plans and interior decorating ideas, among other things.  The challenge is being hosted by this blog here.  She is awesome and has great ideas and tips for married 20-somethings, ranging from how to pay back your student loans to how to buy your first home to crafting ideas.  The rules are very simple: 10 pins a day and 3 people to follow for 30 days.  Since it's the start of a new month, I'll be starting today, (already done!).  My goal is just to get an even number of followers, because I'm terribly OCD...  Not expecting anything special, but it should be a fun time!  If you'd like to join me in this challenge, let me know by following me on Pinterest here.

  I'll be posting another blog later this week as part of my usual schedule, but I just wanted to give all my friends the opportunity to check this out.  If you have any questions or want to talk about cool pins you've found, you can contact me at the links below, or in the comments.  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.  Happy pinning everyone!

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