Week 4 Leadership Project

For my leadership project I have chosen to create a presentation, of my capstone project,  that I would like to give at the Fall CUE conference later this year in Napa Valley. I would very much like to share what I have found using Web 2.0 tools to further engage my students in studying academic language, and improve overall reading comprehension.

 Previous Posts

Leadership Project Week1

Leadership Project Week 2

Leadership Project Week 3 

 

Also Please find below a link to download my keynote presentation, from my dropbox,  that I created for my CBR capstone project.  http://db.tt/nEqRtFbP

Applying to submit at the QUE conference.

Well, I submitted my application to present my CBR project at the fall CUE conference in Napa Valley California. I hope I get chosen I would really like to share my project. It has changed the way I teach reading in my classroom.

Week 4 Response Jessica

I know that I have said this a million times, along with others in this class, but I can’t help feeling it again. Chapter 9 starts out with lighting a spark and all I can think about is being a Christian. Being an example to others and sparking that light in them with everything that we do. We are called to be generous, like the 50 cents story. I really do enjoy this book but also find it funny that it portrays a lot of the same characteristics that we should be living already. I wonder how many people read this book and never make that connection. I have found that lighting this spark in my students, or letting them light a spark in my life makes all of the difference between an average class and breaking through to some real connections being made.

In chapter 10 the author talks about being the board. But what it really sounds like is learning how to forgive and have grace. In the example of the driver, the druken driver will get consequences according to the law, but as the victim, getting upset and blaming them completely also hurts yourself. If you dwell on it then you lose control of your own emotions, reactions, and mind. It is better to forgive and learn how to move forward with accepting the here and now, as mentioned in an earlier chapter. I think that this is a good idea for teachers. There are many times where a student has known exactly what buttons to push in order to get me to my limit. While what they are doing is wrong, if I react in pointing fingers and blaming them for the situation, I am only giving them what they want, a reaction. It is better for me to remember that they are students and in this preconceived notion, sometimes the teacher is the enemy and their teenage emotions get the best of them. One thing that I am not sure the author makes extremely clear is that this does not mean that they are not to receive consequences; it is more a conscious choice on how to react and deal with emotions. This also goes in line with Rule number 6, don’t take yourself so seriously. As a teacher I can’t get so worked up if a kid doesn’t listen to me, I can’t freak out. Or according to the bible, don’t throw your pearls before swine. If they aren’t in a place to receive instruction then I am just wasting energy and emotions freaking out about it.

This story of the teacher shaving her head in order to help the girl with cancer reminded me of Adam Sandler peeing his pants to make the elementary school student feel ok in Billy Madison. Changing the framework takes courage and belief that you are doing it in order to better the mindset of others and change their framework as well. I really like that one of the steps for this is to figure out what is on track and what is off track. Too often people have great dreams and then they don’t focus on them when they start executing them. At my school district this happens often and there comes a point where people stop believing in the ideas even if they are good because they never get completed. A vision with specific goals is so important to this cause.

Chapter 12 really brings together a lot of different aspects of this book. The biggest thing is to overcome the fear that is constructed in our minds so that we can tell the WE story together. Teaching in a school that is very racially diverse I deal with this issue often. I can’t count how many times I have had to mediate issues that have to do with different races. The fact that the issues have nothing to do with specific people never seems to dawn on them until after a fight or argument has broken out. The examples that the author gives about the marriage and the job raise are perfect examples of how to change into a WE story. This is a technique I often have to use with my students especially when it comes to their grades or lack of homework. I have to remind them that I want them to pass as well and together we can come up with goals for US to get them to pass. I want them to know that it is a team effort. This is definitely not one of the easiest stories or conversations to have, so it is important to not spiral downward.

This is my Response:

Jess,
Just want to say that you did a great job summarizing this book. I can see that you really considered all of the takes in too. Nice Job. I agree that teaching takes tons of grace and forgiveness. I find that my kids forgive me all of the time. I can remember the teachers that I had that were forgiving. They were the ones that made the biggest impressions on me.

Week 4 Response Drew

Drew Fulton talks about the last chapters of The Art Of Possibilites.  Here is his take.

The practice that really hit home for me in these last few chapters was “Creating Frameworks of Possibility.”  To me, one of the biggest things that holds each of us back is the assumptions we knowingly or unknowingly make about future decisions.  I feel like we often make choices and decisions based off a certain list of criteria that we are conscious of but we often are unaware that we have also taken other things into consideration.
For example, I can’t tell you how many projects I have dreamed up that have never seen the light of day because I assume that the timing would never work, the funding wouldn’t exist, or that it simply isn’t possible.  Then, a few months later, I see someone doing something similar where clearly all those things actually worked out.  They had the guts to throw out those assumptions and go for it by creating a framework for possibility.
The three steps that are outlined are a pretty good way to get started and I am doing just that now.  A close friend and I are in the process of forming a new production company and I am doing everything I can to rethink most of my assumptions on what a production company is, what they do, and what sort of projects we can take on.  That’s step one.  Step two is to get started and get into it.  We are working on that now, finding projects, talking with people that might be interested in engaging with the project by pulling out their wallet and finding ways to get our media in front of the public.  As we go through all of this, we will be careful to figure out what is helping us and what is hurting us and focus just on what is helping us.  I can’t say these are easy steps, but I think they will help us to create a company that fits us and helps us to choose projects that we are passionate about.

My Response. 

Drew,
There have been so many times that I should have pulled the trigger on an idea. Like yourself, I find that someone has done my idea and been successful with it. I guess it just boils down to being willing to take the chance and believing in yourself that it can happen. I look forward towards seeing your project come to fruition. Nice Post.

Week 4 The Art Of Possibilites

You know when I first started reading this book I was a little skeptical. Now that I have finished it. I must say, It was AWESOME. At the risk of sounding a little flaky I identified so much with what this author had to say.  There are many points that Ben made, but the one that jumped out at me the most is chapter nine. In that chapter Ben talked about lighting the spark.

This chapter brought me back to when I first started teaching. The nation wide accountability and assessment movement happened during my second year of teaching.   I remember it being one of the most exciting times of my entire career. During that year I took my fourth graders on an overnight campout, taught them how to pan for gold, learned how to teach effective word study, and presented a full production of James and the Giant Peach with my class.  It was exciting because I was excited about teaching everyday, and worked hard to make the most of it. I remember that my students were fully on board with what we were doing.  

Since then, I began to buy into the teaching culture. As I look back I can see how my spark began to go out.  I still love teaching, but can see my enthusiasm for the profession has greatly diminished. This happened mostly because I bought into the notion that I needed to teach in a specific way, rather than teach from the heart. I began to let the culture dictate how I did my job, rather than allow my desire for my students to me happy motivate what happened in my classroom.

In the book The Art of Possibilities, Benjamin Zander talked about how back in the day people would walk around with ember boxes so that their spark would not go out, and they would not lose the ability to have fire.  As I look my attitude towards teaching, and how it has been and what I have lost, I can safely say that my spark has almost gone out.

I remember taking real risks when I first started teaching. I haven't taken.   Those risks for a while. After reading this book, I feel it is time to start taking a few more risks in class again. For that I am thankful.

Leadership Project Week 3

Now that my EMDT program is coming to a close, I have been looking around at various conferences where I would like to present my findings.  My first thoughts were to try to present locally, however, there are a lot of great ideas happening around the country. I feel as if I would like to become plugged in.

Plan A

My first choice is to present at a fall 2012 CUE conference in Napa California. This is a conference sponsored by computer using educators and is attended by most many teachers throughout the region. The conference is accepting applications until May 4^th. Also, it is close to my home.

Plan B

My second choice to present my project is with the ITSE conference in San Diego on June 24^th through the 27^th, 2012. This would also be an ideal place for me to present because it is also within a day’s drive from my home.

I plan on also applying to present at next years ETC conference here in  Modesto. It is sponsored every year by my district and is always great.

Week 3 Blog Responce #2

Image from Microsoft Clip art

Here is an interesting take on a the middle chapters of The Art of Possibilities, over at Jessica Kellogg’s Blog.

This week’s reading talked about leading from any chair. I really enjoyed this chapter because I think that as a teacher it is important to understand where a student is coming from also. It is vital that we get their feedback so that we can ensure that we are teaching and they are learning to their full potential. At the end of every quarter I give surveys about the class and I ask them anonymously to give as much specific feedback as possible. This takes some level of maturity because at the high school level I get things like: we want naptime, we should have no homework, school should be optional and what about smoke breaks? Once I get past that crap, I really get to hear what they like to see in the classroom, what helps them and what I can improve for their behalf.

Last year at the end of the year instead of reviewing all of the semester myself, the students each had to pick a chapter to teach. I got to sit back and as a “student” visualize what works in the classroom, what doesn’t keep my attention, and what new things to try. It was an awesome experience and every single group admitted that teaching was harder than they thought it would be. Some students were mad that they had to keep quieting down everyone; that was the funniest part of the experience.

The calculating self is my worst enemy. I definitely need to lighten up and I love the rule number 6. I think that it is very easy to be your own worst critic. I know that one of my biggest faults is being a perfectionist. I think that nothing humbles a person like being a teacher. I learn new things from my students all of the time and they call me out daily. It is the best remedy for the disease.  I love the story about June. As a Christian it makes me think about what my mom used to tell me about praying. Don’t pray to change that man, pray that our heart would change towards that man. We can’t change everything and everyone else around us, but we can change how we react, deal, and live with things around us.

I really like the author’s point of view about dealing with the here and now. I think that it is really important to acknowledge what is happening before you can deal with it. I think of my students that whine and complain about every little thing and then are incapable of completing anything. We are not promised tomorrow, so we need to live in the present and deal with it realistically. This includes bad things and mistakes. These shape us as much as anything else and we must accept them in order to learn from them.

I LOVE the two steps to giving way to passion. I think of two things when I think of living with passion. The first way is living for God. This is something that you have to let take hold of you and you have to be willing to be shaped into whatever He would use you for. The other thing I think about is singing. When I step on stage, the lights hit me, and the rhythm guitar starts, I have to give myself completely to the music and get out of my head. Some of my best performances were when I was signing with all of my heart, not all of the notes were perfect, but the passion came through in the music. It moved people. This is how we should live our lives with everything that we do. This is the reason that my husband opened his own store, passion. This is the reason that I teach, passion. Without passion in our lives and work it would be easy to get bogged down and get complacent.

Great post Jess, I think the things that you are doing with your class captures what the author is talking about. Having students do the teaching, and your ideas on self reflection definatly are what we need to be doing to make our teaching/learning environments come alive for our students.  I probably would have enjoyed high school, well the going to class part, if I had a teacher like you. Great Job!

Responce to week 3

There is a great discussion going on over at Drew Fulton’s Blog about the Art of Possibilities. There drew commented on the 8^th practice of Giving ways to Passion.

Drew Wrote:
My favorite part of this week’s reading from The Art of Possibility was the 8th practice, “Giving Way to Passion.”  My life is dominated by my passions and I strive to follow those passions.  It is my passion for photography and the natural world that has led me to where I am today and it is my passion for education that has brought me to the EMDT program at Full Sail.  As I mentioned in one of my commenting posts last week, it isn’t the easiest path and often there is no path, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.  For me, it is the passion that I have for my work that allows me to push the boundaries with visual storytelling.
It is also the passion (some might call it obsession) that enables me to get through the really tough times when things don’t go well, projects fall through, and money is tight.  It is the passion that gets me out of bed each morning excited about the opportunities that are out there.  There is a constant battle between the fear (as mentioned last week) and my passion.  Most days passion the passion wins but it is a daily challenge.  I must say, the good days are worth fighting through the bad days though…  Let go of your fear and give way to your passion!

My response:

In the current public school environment where teachers are tenured and a little set in their ways, it is easy to become complacent. However, it is the passion of doing new things, to turn kids on to learning that gets me motivated. I loved what you said about the balance between fear and excitement, passion, that gets you out of bed in the morning. I can’t help but think that a little fear, and excitement would really help to improve our educational system.

Week 3 Reading: The Art Of Possibilites: The White Sheet

As I read this weeks reading in The Art of Possibilities, I was struck by the reflective piece in the chapter called Leading From Any Chair. The author, Benjamin Zander, talks about how he relies on the reflections of others he is working with to help him become a better conductor.  I thought this idea was brilliant. I am always looking for ways to better reach my students.  In the book Zander puts a piece of blank white paper on the stand of each musician he is orchestrating.  After each rehearsal he asks his musicians to write down any suggestion they can think of that he could do to make their performance better. 

I liked this approach for two reasons. First, it makes him look at what he is doing with honest eyes. He has not relied on himself to try to find what it is that is needed so much as he has brought his community together. This has shown real leadership. Second, He gets feedback that he probably hadn’t even thought of.  He openly received feedback from the vary people he was relying on to make him look good. In a sense his success was based on their success to perform the best they could.

The thing that I love about this approach is that I can see it working in my class. There is no one in my life more honest those fourth graders. Well, except my wife.  My fourth graders however tell me when I am talking to much, have bad breath, need to take a break or when they have learned something in a meaningful way. I think putting a blank piece of white paper on my student’s desks is a great idea. I am going to try it tomorrow.

Week 2 Wimba

This weeks Wimba was a recap of copyright issues such as copyright, fair use, and creative commons. In general the discussion focused around copyright and how in order to use it you must get permission. However, there are a few accept-ions where material may be used in a limited scope under a fair use category. Fair use is not as described in week one is not a right to use copyrighted material, but it is a defensible position. The session also covered Creative Commons Lisencing, which I think is awesome. I think the whole idea of sharing is the foundation of communication anyway. Especially in this rapidly expanding age of technology.

Week 2 Leadership Blog Post Presentation at ETC

I am so excited about this activity I can hardly stand it. Each year my district puts on an Educational Technology Conference. Two years ago my friend Gregg Eilers and I attended the conference and listen to a speaker who just graduated from the EMDT program. He spoke about teaching math using technology in the junior high classroom. This year, my friend Gregg, who graduated last year will be presenting on Edmodo. He graduated last year from EMDT. His Action Research was based around Edmodo. He will be presenting on the 25th of February. I plan on applying to our regional county office of education to present at next years conference.

Week 2 Responce to Drew's Blog

Drews Take on the Art of Possibilities.

While reading through the first four practices in The Art of Possibility by Rosamund Stone Zander and Benjamin Zander, the above quote really struck me. To me, it is quite simple. The cliche is “we learn from our mistakes” but the reality is, we don’t let ourselves make mistakes. In education, mistakes have dire consequences. We lose points, we fail a paper, we don’t pass a course. In the real world, most mistakes are small and easily corrected and we learn from those mistakes. The big mistakes that aren’t easily corrected, well we learn from them even more, but there are often consequences that might be dire, but that is life.
Just yesterday, I sat down at my computer to edit a couple hundred photographs I had taken earlier in the day of a cute little Eastern Screech Owl sitting in a hollow tree branch. I had taken a hundred or so images over the course of 20 minutes or so and was pretty pleased with how they looked on the back of the camera. When I got home and pulled them up on my giant monitor, I realized that in the vast majority the bird wasn’t in focus. After spending a few minutes going through and picking out the good ones, I moved on and started to catalog the images. However, as I was frustrated by the small handful of images that were technically acceptable, I decided to go back and look at the soft images that I had deleted. Yes, they were soft and not sharp, but I wanted to know how and why they were sharp. Was the camera not functioning correctly and focusing on the wrong part? Was the camera and lens vibrating causing the image to be soft? Was I using bad technique? What was going wrong?
After careful examination of a handful of the bad images, I found that with the lens/teleconverter/camera combination I was using, the autofocus system was having a hard time reading the soft fuzzy feathers. Manual focus needed to be the answer. Next time I am in that same situation, I know, use manual focus and I’ll get acceptably sharp images. It is only by examining the mistakes, can we learn and see where we need to focus our attention to improve our performance.

My response:

Drew great observations. A friend of mine who has been recording and playing music for a long time told me when I started recording music that we are our biggest critics. Many times when I create something, others will enjoy it, while at the same time I can see where it can be better.  It drives me crazy. This program has been very good for me because it has forced me to finish projects that have had  a deadline. Before EMDT, it would take weeks for me to settle on something  to publish, were as now it just takes minutes. The great thing about creating media is that it is a process, and as we practice we continually get better, but perfection is rarely achieved.

Week 2 Respond to Jessica's Blog

Original Post:

The beginning of this book starts with the story of the two businessmen who see differently the potential of a shoe company in Africa. I just imagine my students who approach math problems from left and right field. It is crazy to me that we all can interpret or invent things differently. The example of the nine-dot test is perfect. I myself fell into the same imaginary constraint of a box limit. I can only imagine what our students could achieve if we could get them to take away the imaginary constraints.

This notion of the world of measurement is very interesting to me. I know that as a math teacher I definitely look at my world through a very logical and some time ridiculous cut and dry lens. But, as a Christian I believe that looking at everybody through these world and measurement based lenses is wrong. It judges them and in a sense implies that I know them and that there is nothing that can surprise me or change. I clearly know this notion is wrong and therefore the inner battle of balance begins. I love that the author points out that we think that life is all about surviving and getting ahead. I can’t tell you how many times my students have talked like this. They care more about learning tricks to get ahead in life than learning to become more intelligent or well rounded. The Universe of Possibility that the author speaks about is a world without bounds where people are not always competing but achieving great things by thinking outside of the box. Some of my most successful students are the perfect example of this. They are not concerned with popularity, grades, or perfection, just working hard and being creative. Since we can’t control life it really is crazy that people stress themselves out and wear themselves thin to try and control life.

It is interesting that the author brings up grades. I find myself right now a little stressed about grades and then I think about what those grades really mean. I know that I did everything to the best of my ability and that I truly understand the material, so what does the grade tell me that I don’t already know? This is a thought that I would like to translate into my classroom. I am in the process of switching my classroom to a mastery classroom. I think that a lot of my students could receive an “A” if they were truly allowed to hone their skills in my class instead of race to a test every other week. While I like the story of giving every student an A, and I agree that it would be less stressful, I don’t think it would work in all classes. What would be an alternative in a remedial math class? I love that the author mentions that a disengaged student may be the best student but they don’t want to be disappointed. I often find that the “troublemakers” in my classes are usually the ones that are very bored and very intelligent. What strikes me the most is that giving an “A” has more to do with an attitude and mindset with the people around us, then grades in a traditional classroom. I feel as though I can completely relate to Roz when it comes to giving her father an A. I also had to rethink my relationship with a father who was never around and died suddenly before I could have a true relationship with him. After rethinking and reproaching our relationship I was able to see how my husband truly loved me. If think that if I had never done that, I would not be as happily married as I am now. As a perfectionist I can see a lot of barriers that I myself build that restrict my own life and teaching. Imagine what a world where everyone though this way. The true test is giving someone an A even when we don’t like them or they might seem like a jerk. 

 

My Responce:

 

Jess,

As far as a World of Possibilities, I couldn't agree with you more. I too am a Christian and struggled with the notion of seeing a world with worldly boundaries.  It can lead to all kinds of problems. When dealing with the idea of how to look at possibilities versus restraint of ideas I like to think of it as a sort of unavailing of truth instead of inventing ideas. I however, had a hard time identifying with the author. We do share some truths, whether we like it or not. I've always a better peace of mind trusting the Book rather than what I can make up. Nice Post! Good Thoughts.

Week 2: The Art of Possibilities

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“It’s all invented anyway, so we might as well invent a story of a framework of meaning that enhances our quality of life and the life of those around us “, Michael Gazzaniga, The Social Brain

As I began to engage myself in the first four chapters of the Art of Possibility, by Rosamund Stone Zander and Benjamin Zander, this particular quote struck my world view that quite frankly gave me a little pause. Being a Christian and reading this book I found myself having a hard time allowing my imagination to loosen the binds of what my faith tells me is real.

Eight years ago I began a great journey in believing in what Jesus, whom is called Messiah, said and did as it is written in the Book. Before that, I let the wilds of my own imagination run with every whim of the wind that would take it. I must say, at that time, life was not easy. Since coming to believe what the scriptures say as being true, my life has taken on a sort of peace that passes my understanding. Things just make sense now, simple and true.

That is not to say, that I don’t have trials and struggles in this life. because I do.  But by the putting of my faith in what the Bible tells me is real, gives me hope, and a sense of security that can’t be shaken away.  There are promises there that I have come to trust, and that have pretty much allowed love, joy, peace, and patience to become manifested in what has before been a very chaotic life.

When the authors pointed to the notion that it is an evolved structure of the brain that constructs our perceptions, and that our constructs have little to do with the world, I just flat out disagreed. We all share the same fate. We live, breath, feel, hope, and die. We all want to belong, and be loved.  We all share some pretty strong realities. The cold hard fact of the matter is, death has a perfect track record, that we all share.

I used to think that putting my belief and pointing my worldview towards something more concrete than my imagination would have limited the experiences of life. However, just the opposite is true. Now, things make sense, and are born out in my reality, and I no longer have to make excuses for my shortcomings. Fear is gone.

There is part of Gazzanga’s quote,”It’s all invented anyway”, that I will agree with. However, I like to think of it being said in a different way.

“Let there be light”.

Week One- Leadership Reflection

Without opening up a debate about theology, faith or what I believe, I would just like to say, I love the bible. I love the stories, proverbs, and how the overall message impacts who I am and how I live my life.

Much of my love of the bible can be attributed to a man I have never met, except on the Internet.  His name is Zola Levitt.  He was someone who had a bible show on TV that taught about the history, and stories of the bible. I watch his old shows on Zola Levitt Presents. Zola, when he was alive,  had a way of bringing the stories to life. He often would dress up on location to make his point or to tell the story in an entertaining way. His delivery seldom seemed scripted. He just talked from experience.  He was very personable.

As I think of the next steps after Full Sail, and what I would like to do, I can envision creating media for teaching.  I would like to begin to look at what my students need, and create programs that they can access at any time. Not something that is over produced, but something simple and down to earth. I think that would be fun. For example, math could be taught with real life student created problems on screen before the algorithm is taught. 

To me leadership is just setting a good example. I think Zola set a good example of how to teach complex ed ideas in an entertaining way. He made it look easy. 

Creating student-centered media and programing would be fun, and engaging for students. I am definitely looking forward towards the season after EMDT. I can’t wait.

Week One- Resonding to Jessica Kellogg's Post about Copyright

Week 1 Reading: Copyright Issues

Photo from OpenDemocracy at Flickr Creative Commons

So… copyright…wow!!!! I would like to start by saying that even though we were told about copyright when we started this program, it would have been really beneficial and inspiring to hear this stuff at the beginning of the program.

Intro:

I found it very interesting that copyright was an issue when the printing press came out. This makes sense because things could be copied much easier, but I always assumed that it was going to be started with artwork instead. The most interesting idea through this week’s readings is this notion that today’s culture is so media saturated that the rules are much harder to define. It is crazy to me that copyright length is so long since it will outlive the author or even the length of a company. I can see how this would make it much harder to “re-mix” this material. The ten (eleven) myths of copyright were interesting because they were some of the myths that I too believed in. As I have never had anything copyrighted before this program, I had never looked into my rights as an “author” of creative material.

Fair Use:

As a teacher I know that there are plenty of times that I have thought “fair use” as I am doing something in the classroom. As a student I can also think of many times where my teachers showed movie clips or gave us copies of material. Now when I think back on them, I don’t know if they would really be covered by fair use. I absolutely loved the Fair(y) Use Tale. It was a perfect and ironic explanation of copyright issues and fair use. I think that the graphic design teacher at my school could show it in her class as well. I found the notion of private censorship very interesting and I agree that history should not be lost because it is simply “protected” or hidden from the culture and nation that created it. This is where I love the idea of re-mix culture. In fact, some of the most creative masterpieces that my students have come up with involve remixing or reusing modern culture icons and media. As a teacher, I do find it helpful to think of the common notion that Mr. Professor mentioned: “If you can teach without copyrighted material, then it probably does not fall under fair use.”

Solution:

As a Full Sail student I feel as though I have become very aware of copyright laws to the point of being nervous of accidently breaking a law and going to jail… ok maybe not that bad. But Creative Commons has really been a great solution and has adjusted to our lightening fast society that is full of new media every second. It also makes me feel good to give back some of my work as Creative Commons licensed work.  My favorite video of all three sessions was definitely the TED talks video at the end of session three. The best things really are saved for last. The three stories really hit home all of the points that were made and it makes you question how this generation is going to grow and change with copyright laws, remixing and mashups. All I know is that if Glee is allowed to show these mashups, why shouldn’t our students be able to create something just as entertaining on YouTube? As was said in the video, “…they produce for the love and not the money…”

I still have one more question:

What about taking a screen shot or picture of something such as a picture of a dance or a screenshot of Facebook? How does this fall under copyright?

Posted by Jessica Kellogg at 5:43 PM

This is my response.

Jess,

Love the copyright whoopee cushion. I also agree with you. This info would have been much better talked about at the very beginning. That would have given us more practice using Creative Commons (CC)’d material.

Also, I think it is interesting that a few licencing clearing houses have popped up with the advent of youtue. There are simple proceedures that artists can take to get permission and release material owned by someone else. It usually costs a little bit of money. Actually 9 cents per download to release copyrighted songs. I believe this price is set by congress .

 

Week One- Resonding to Cricket Johnson's Post about Copyright

The following is Cricket's post on copyright.

This is my response to her post. Hey Cricket! I am with you. At first I was scared to death of using anyone else’ s material. Especially for music. However, Creative Commons has really open the doors as far as being able to share idea’s and post other artists stuff. I think the whole issue is like a looking at a beautiful pool without knowing how to swim. It would be a disaster to just jump in without knowing anything about it. However, if we get involved slowly, we will become more familiar with how to swim.

Week One- The Evolution of Copyright

This weeks reading dealt entirely with copyright, fair use and Creative Commons licensing. The first section of videos and lessons dealt with the explanation of copyright low and how it works. The lesson I took away from this section is that in order to use copyrighted material for publishing or sharing I must get permission from the copyright holder. It is their intellectual property. It is there prerogative how it is used.

            The second section of this weeks reading dealt with the concept of Fair Use.  Fair Use policy is not a low but a defendable position. The idea of fair use tries to balance  the rights of the copyright holder with the need of society to preserve cultural information. Fair Use application has a very limited outline in how material can be used in other publications without getting copyright holders permission. I can see myself choosing to use this type of rational in a very limited way to help me further explain what it is I am trying to teach my students. That is if I can’t find another way.

            The third section of this weeks reading explain Creative Commons licensing.  Frankly, I love Creative Commons. Creative Commons licensing opens content for people to share under 4 different type of licensing. Without going into the details of the 4 type I would like to say that I have used Creative Commons licensing Quite a bit in the EMDT program as well as media I create for my classroom. As a matter of fact we talk about creative commons licensing in my fourth grade class. My students look at it as people who share, versus people who don’t.

One more thing. In my opinion this class, or at least information, should be offered more towards the front of the program, instead of Month 11.  Just Sayin!