I plan to cover at least half of my college expenses with either scholarships or loans. I don't think I've done enough yet, but I'll keep applying until I do. I haven't applied to FAFSA just yet but I will soon.
I agree with President Obama's initiative to get more colleges to be more transparent with college costs and employment after graduating. An article on The Reporter talked about how students with loans are graduating with an average of $25,000 in debt. On top of that, unemployment still remains high. The cost of college is so much that a fifth of the students don't return for a second year.
I really liked how Obama also said, “Higher education can’t be a luxury— it’s an economic imperative that every family in America should be able to afford.” I think this is very true. Everyone should be able to afford an education that will later on ensure a job that's worth while. The secret to a successful nation is its higher education.
What exactly is creativity? Sir Ken Robinson explains his point of view in his video Do schools kill creativity?
Creativity is the ability to use your imagination and to come up with your own valuable and original ideas. Picasso once said, "All children are born artists, the problem is to remain an artist as we grow up."
Creativity is very important in education because it brings out new and innovative ideas that make things interesting and exciting. If there wasn't any creativity, then everything would be the same and there would never be any progress. Creativity in education helps children find themselves and to think outside the box.
I see creativity the most when I'm out at my site school. When my first graders write a story or draw a picture, you can see their imagination working and creating. It's truly fascinating what little kids of that age can do. Rather than "killing" their different and spontaneous way of thinking, it should be encouraged.
Reading an article that talked about interview techniques made me think about my own weaknesses and strengths in an interview situation.
Some of my weaknesses might be:
1. Not elaborating enough on my answers because I am too nervous and therefore looking disinterested.
2. Arriving late to my appointment.
Some of my strengths would be:
1. Looking at the person in the eyes. I was taught since I was little to look at people in the eye when talking to them, specially with an adult.
2. Being nice and attentive.
I could overcome my weaknesses by trying to calm myself down, keeping a smile on my face, and copying their body language to hide how nervous I actually am. To arrive on time, I would need to start getting ready extra early and maybe even getting there five minutes before.
I could accentuate my strengths by keeping a warm position and an open posture.
I've never applied for a job before but I will soon and I certainly hope that this will help!
A digital tool I could use in my site school for first grade can be Movie Maker | Xtranormal.
All you have to do is sign up with your email address, username, and password and you can use it for free. After that you can start creating as many animations as you want and publish them.
- I think the students would really enjoy it if I could make up an animated story that goes along with what they are learning and make it part of my lesson plan. After watching it, I would ask questions about what they learned and discuss it.
-or-
- I could make a movie of what I would say to them but have the characters in the movie teach them rather than me doing the explaining.
On Digital Learning Day on February 1st, most of my teachers didn't really try to incorporate digital learning in their lessons. All that a few did was use the overhead projector to show us power points but that was pretty much it.
There are so many creative and fun to use web tools to help teach classrooms that I was surprised to see how very little some teachers actually use!
