Blog Post #6

The Networked Student by Wendy Drexler:
This podcast was all about students using networking communication in the 21st century. This video is very informative about what the student that created this blog uses, in particular. What he uses (his PLN) can also easily be shared among other classmates by using a networking system. This networking approach is the same one that also allows him to contact the teacher if he has any questions, and other students can also share what they have discovered.
The question is asked, "Why does the network even need a teacher?". I am sure that many people who have watched the video were also curious of this before he approached the topic. The answers to this question were many. Basically, the teacher is there to, first of all, introduce how to go about learning in a network. If there are any questions about a topic or if the student needs help in the subject the teacher is there for the student to call and ask for help. The teacher is more of a guide and moderator with networking if there is any trouble or confusion.
I definitely think that if the middle school students could do this. They would need a step-by-step guide, somewhere to go for questions, and a thorough lesson on how to network during this "class." But, I think it is surely possible. It might be frustrating and confusing for them at first and their teacher will probably be getting a lot of phone calls, but if they hang in there and are not afraid to ask questions they will be able to do it.
A 7th Grader's Personal Learning Environment (or PLN)
The 7th grader's PLE seems very similar to our PLN. As far as I understand, she uses her PLE for both school and whatever else she likes to do, such as listen to music. I like how she had all of her Learning Environment objects on the same page and she was able to organize them the way she wanted to.
 The Machine is Changing Us
I enjoyed Dr. Wesch's video. He was very interesting to listen to and he provided a lot of funny video clips.He talks a lot about certain words, such as "whatever," that have been used over the years. He also talks about how to engage students, because now they seem disengaged in class. He talked about the project that he and his students did and also much about Youtube.He was showing that Youtube now gets people involved in letting things know in video form and expressing themselves that way. He also shows it as a valuable tool. In the end, he speaks of going back to "whatever," but in a way that says, "I care. I will do WHATEVER it takes." This video makes me want to find ways to engage my students in learning, and it makes me think that to engage them we must first find what they are interested in and run with it.