teaching the writing technology July 3, 2009

In this article it discusses the importance of teaching young children new technology. Since teachers spend alot of time with children they need to know what is out there. I enjoyed reading this article.

 

http://thenjournal.org/review/234/

It’s a sentiment Herrington and Moran give voice to in the opening chapter, when they explain that

[t]eachers, because they are working closely with young people, often see changes taking place in society before the rest of us. Though they may want to adapt their classroom practice to these changes, they may find adaptation difficult because of the nature of the school and classroom or because change is, for all of us, often difficult. Change may be particularly difficult for teachers who are still relative newcomers to the world of multimedia.

Written Spaces June 28, 2009

Debbie’s writing Spaces

1. Paper and Pen
2. Phone – Text
3. Computer – email, writing, social sites

Ways these writing spaces are unique.

The paper and pen is a very unique writing technology. Pen and Paper has been around for a long time. The cost of paper and pen/pencil is very minimal so that anyone can afford it. You can find pen/pencil and paper anywhere it is easily accessed and you don’t need electricity.

The cell phone texting is unique because it has developed its own language. Most words have been shortened to be able to fit a full sentence.

The computer has so many uses. If you have the internet you can go online and email, instant message and so much more. Even without the internet the uses are endless. You can draw, write, and create just about anything you want.

Ways some of the technologies have been remediated.

The pen/pencil and paper got it start way back in history. The first writing technology was the chisel and stone. This technology was the first way to record things with out passing it around by story telling. Eventually the chisel and stone turned into the paper and pen/pencil. This technology is amazing because it is still changing.

The computer has remediated itself in many ways. The very first computer took up a whole room and could not process very fast. When the computer first was made available to the public it was very expensive. Now they have laptops and desktops. The personal computer is relatively cheep and now can be found in just about every household.

Writing Spaces June 26, 2009

 My Writing Spaces

The writing spaces I use most frequently are:

-         Microsoft Word

-         Email / World Wide Web

-         Text Messages

-         Pen / Paper

 These writing spaces are all unique in their own way. Microsoft word is unique in that it is just like using a piece of paper and a pen, except everything you type can be corrected and changed in a second. Email and the World Wide Web provide me with the ability to contact other people within a second it also allows me to do research on whatever topic I want. Text messaging also allows instant connections with my friends and family without having to make a phone call. And of course, the pen and paper allow me to express myself with my thoughts right there in front of me. These writing spaces allow me to do many different things and ultimately connect with others.

 Remediation

I think the computer and the pen / paper remediate themselves. While the pen and paper came first, like the computer, it allows one to get whatever they want to say out on a writing space with the ability to change and mortify what they are saying. The computer remediates everything the pen / paper were set out to do.

Writing Spaces June 25, 2009

Writing Spaces and Remediation

Three writing spaces that I use frequently are:

Email: With using email as a writing space, I am able to use my many different writing techniques that I have acquired throughout my school career.  If I am writing to a friend, I can be informal and attach pictures or forward funny jokes that others have emailed to me.  I can also be more formal when writing to certain family members, professors, and potential employers.  When writing emails to the more formal group, I am able to attach important documents and I would not forward jokes or funny pictures to them.  What makes email so unique is the fact that I can select messages that I do not want to read and delete them without worrying about opening them.  I receive a lot of junk mail, via email and my post mailbox, and it is easier to get rid of junk email because the headline shows right away whether or not it is a message I want to read.  I also think that email is unique because it is a quick, easy, and inexpensive way to send messages and pictures to friends and family members.  Plus, emailing my professors with a quick question is easier for me than having to actually talk to them face to face or calling them on the phone.  I am slightly shy and awkward at times, so using email to communicate is a less stressful way for me to communicate. 

Pen, Pencil, and Paper:  I use a pen and paper or pencil and paper daily.  I write out “to-do” lists everyday for myself and my husband.  I have a running grocery list that my husband and I add items to everyday until we go to the grocery store, which is once a week.  Whenever I have a written assignment to do, I always write everything out by hand first and then I type the final drafts on the computer.  I also write out a few checks, for the mortgage and doctors’ appointments, even though most of my bills are paid online.  I think that using a pen, pencil, and paper is a unique writing space because I find that I think more about whatever I am writing compared to typing something out.  I have tried typing my “to-do” lists and grocery lists, but it just seems easier to write things out.  I do not have to wait for my computer to turn on, I do not have to have a specific file to save the running lists, and it is easier to grab the pen and write “toilet paper” than it is to wait to type the two words.  I also believe that writing out my papers first helps to get my ideas flowing.  I have a hard time figuring out what to write about when I turn the computer on and stare at the glossy screen.  If I write out my work first, I am able to cross out and rewrite, which helps me to see my progress.  When I type all of my work right away, I can just delete it and forget where I started. 

Typing Using the Computer:  Even though I prefer to write out my work first, I use my computer on a regular basis.  Since I am in school full-time, I think I am on the computer everyday writing emails, papers, essays, and letters.  I did give some of the disadvantages that I felt using the computer had compared to handwriting, but I think there are some unique factors about computers.  With a computer, I can choose to email my paper or print it out to have a hard copy.  Apparently, there are ways to show revised work using the computer; I just haven’t figured that out yet.  I can add different backgrounds to my work and create fun cover pages, where when I write out my papers, the audience is just stuck with my handwriting.  I can also save all of my work on the hard drive or place it on a disk and carry it around with me.  If I have handwritten documents, I have a lot of papers floating around somewhere and my system of filing is not as organized as a computer’s system.  I also think it’s unique that computers count your words as you go along.  This makes it much easier for me than counting each and every word myself, especially if the teacher requires a certain number of words for a certain paper.  Plus, spell and grammar check are great tools that the computer offers.  They save time and act as an extra editor when I am reviewing my papers.

Remediation of computers and handwritten material:

            I believe that both computers and handwriting remediate each other.  When writing by hand, you have to go back and check your work for grammar and spelling mistakes.  You also ask others to check over your work to make sure that it is okay.  Computers aid in the editing process because they have programs that put little squiggly lines underneath words or phrases that do not register correctly with the program.  Even though the computer is not always right, it makes you go back to check your work to make sure that what you typed is what you want on your final product.  Though, writing out your work before hand helps to weed out all of the errors before you type them onto the screen.  For example, if I hand write a paper, as I am typing the semi-final piece onto my computer, I will sometimes notice small mistakes that I make sure to leave out before I type.  I think that doing both helps in the editing process and the thinking process of the writer.  I also believe that computers remediate handwritten material because you can have a calendar on your computer.  Handwritten calendars are nice to have for the “gotta write it down now” moments, but computers help in keeping all of the important dates in order.  Handwritten calendars are very visual if they are hanging on your wall, but you have to actually look at the calendar to see that you have something to do on that particular day.  With a computer calendar, you can set an alarm to let you know that there is something important that you need to remember.  I think both writing spaces are important to have and use daily.

My Writing Spaces June 23, 2009

 

The three writing spaces that I use most frequently are Microsoft word, World Wide Web, and forums. What makes Microsoft Word unique is that it looks like a piece of notebook paper and we are use to that. Also spell check, and the backspace key when we make a mistake. The WWW is unique because we no longer have to use books we can look up all of our research online and get any kind of information we need. Final forums are unique because we can ask people questions and get there response all on the Internet. We can interact with people from miles away. According to Bolter, remediation is “in the sense that a newer medium takes the place of an older one, borrowing and reorganizing the characteristics of writing in the older medium and reforming its cultural space”(23). When word processing first came out on computers it was just a white screen to type on. Now in Microsoft word it looks like an actual paper you are writing on. This is remediation because it is taking the old version and making it look more realistic. When the World Wide Web was first introduced it only had a few search engines that would come up. Now if you type in something you will get pages and pages of that search. This is remediation because it is taking something that already existed and making it better.