Diving Into Technology

So here begins my new adventure into the blogging community. My inspiration for starting this came from my summer grad classes. In one class we've been discussing class differences and all the elements that cause the gaps between the rich and the poor. One topic of discussion was that when our students leave school and return home they are inundated with so much negativity from the media. This made me think that if I want to try to do something about this then I have to explore more avenues of technology and media. Then in my next class the idea of blogs came up in discussion as a form of professional and personal development. What a great parallel! So here I am exploring technology while networking.

Speaking of media, I would just like to share a commercial that cracks me up and makes me smile. I have mentioned this commercial to some of my friends but they just haven't really caught on to the humor. I'd like you to take note at :16 (that is by far my favorite part) as well as the cow at :18.



On a more serious and productive note, one solution my professor gave to the dilemma of students receiving negativity from the media, he gave me a fantastic idea that my colleagues and I will be implementing in our curriculum next year. He said that if he were still teaching he would make every Friday a movie day where he would show a classic like "Schindler's List" or "To Kill a Mockingbird" and then have a discussion about the moral implications of the movie. As a middle school teacher this may be difficult to find appropriate movies content and age wise. I do feel that when this comes together we will be able to valuable discussions that not only teach morality but also will teach proper use and appreciation of media. If a curriculum is formally drawn up I would be happy to share it with others. I welcome suggestions for topics and movies, so please share if you have thoughts.