Blogs Being Used Internationally by Schools and Teachers

This blog belongs to Menengai High School located in the Rift Valley Province in Kenya. The school is located in Nakuru Town and has a student population of about 1600 students. The school does a number of subjects such as mathematics, languages, humanities, arts, etc..
The site restricts usage to members, but I was glad to know that these kids are being exposed to modern technology and the resources it provides.

Located in Bali, Indonesia the Green School at the campus of Kul-Kul, serves more than 100 students from preschool through year eight. Their curriculum combines demanding academic content taught through a holistic approach that aims to inspire and enhance all of a child's capacities. Their goal is to "foster a spirit of inquiry and love of learning that prepares children to thrive in the challenging, complex 21st century world". Each classroom has it's own blog. For instance if you wanted to look at the blog page for preschool or year1-2, they are accessible from the homepage. Another very impressive blog.

Schools and Teachers in the U.S. Using Blogs

In my search for a school are teacher using blogs in K-12th grade, I came across the Class blog for an AP Biology class at Appleton High School in Appleton, Wisconsin. The instructor, Elissa Hoffman, wanted her students to "become fluent in online learning and discussion". She and her students have posted articles, research, photos and videos. Ms. Hoffman invites anyone that has an area of expertise, research or a career associated with Biology, to share their thoughts with her students.

This next blog belongs to Marian County Day School, located in San Francisco, California. MCDS is an independent K-8th coed day school enrolling around 540 students on its 35 acre campus. The school's mission "asks children to become skilled learners and ethical human beings, motivated to make a difference in the world". This is one of the best, if not the best, blog I've seen in reference to a school. To say I was impressed in an "understatement". There is a stories section,you can also listen to African American Folk Tales told by students. You're sure to enjoy this school's blog.

Finchbowl/Did you know

For some reason I thought the movie was going to be some silly cartoon. Was I totally wrong. I could not take my eyes off the screen. Finchbowl/Did you know was totally awesome. The simple graphics were very powerful. In today's society, the "computer" has become as common and important as the automobile. A computer is more of a necessity rather than a luxury. As important, if not more, is the use of the computer to access the "World Wide Web" commonly known as the web, which "is a system of interlinked hypertext documents accessed via the internet."
The movie was very informative in that it offered facts, figures and statistics on topics such as education, labor, language and the "internet". The movie often refers to ratios in contrast with the United States, China and India. My perception of the movie was that the main point they were emphasizing, was the importance of telecommunication is in via the internet, via the computer. The learning possibilities are not even imaginable. Sharing and receiving information in any known subject, whether large or small, academic or pleasurable from anywhere around the world, at any given time, from any given location is phenomenal. If kids (especially in poor countries) had access to computers, as those in the United States and China do, think of the empowerment they would receive with the enrichment that would come along with the knowledge and resources they would have available. I would recommend that any and everyone watch this movie.

ACCESS

ACCESS (Alabama Connecting Classrooms, Educators, & Students Statewide) is a learning initiative that provides high quality classroom courses and teachers via technology. Full implementation of ACCESS in the Fall of 2006, ensured that Alabama students, especially those in smaller, rural schools, would have the ability to take advanced level courses and electives that might not otherwise be available to them."
"Delivering web-based courses with multimedia content, interactive videoconferencing (IVC) courses with two-way audio and video, blended courses with both web-based and IVC components, ACCESS provides a distance learning option that is opening doors for Alabama students."
As with ALEX I was very impressed with this program also. As stated earlier, every child is given a chance and opportunity to take courses that otherwise would not be offered to them. This program gives new meaning to the statement "no child left behind."

ALEX

ALEX (Alabama Learning Exchange) was created by teachers, for teachers, and consist of information which they've contributed in subjects(basic and new) taught in the Alabama School System in grades K-12th. Information about subjects is obtainable via courses of study, web links, lesson plans and by search, which allows the user to specify the subject and specific area of study in which they require information on or about. English Language Arts, Science, Physical Education, Technology Education, Foreign Languages as well as professional development opportunities, teaching and learning tools are just a few of the subjects and topics the site offers information on.
The site is very simple to use. For example, a second grade teacher is preparing to teach her students how to count money beginning with coins. She's interested in seeing how other teachers may have presented this information and the resources they used. From "Search", she would proceed to "Lesson Plans and Resources" which at this point she is able to check the box for "Mathematics" as well as the box for "2"(the grade she teaches) and in the box labeled "Keywords" she could put "count money" or "coins" and click "Display Results". A page displays giving information such as the subjects which these lesson plans apply, the title and an overview. After clicking on the hyperlink for the title, the teacher is then taken to the actual lesson plans of a teacher(name, school system, and name of school is listed)who has posted her lesson plan(s) which will teach students to count and identify money. The detailed plan contains an overview, content standards(both local and national), primary learning objective, duration of the lesson, materials and equipments used, technology resources, just to name a few.
As a future educator, I was excited as well as impressed with the site. It gives teachers a way to post their ideas as well as see and incorporate the ideas of others. Other techniques and teaching tools were available, making this a superb, informative site.

In all honestly,I must admit that I was very nervous about returning back to school after such a long absence. Would I be able to keep up with the work load and even more, would I be able to comprehend the material? Well the answer was quite obvious. I prayed and asked God to give me a second chance to go to college and receive a degree in Elementary Education. He has answered by prayer, and I will not let him down. Nothing or no-one will deter me from my goal. I shall succeed.