I had a bit of a play around on www.befunky.com and edited a picture I had on my computer. I found that it was really simple to use and it had lots of cool effects you could add to your picture. 

PMI:

P:

• Fun
• Easy to use
• Interesting
• You can resize and image to make it easier to upload

M:

• Might need to update computer to be able to use program
• Could spend to much time editing images instead of doing other work

I:

• You can enhance the quality of the image greatly
• There are loads of editing options to use

Children's Safety on the net

How safe is it?

In my opinion the internet can be a fun, interactive, educational place for students to share, talk, research and play. However, it can also be dangerous and damaging if students aren't taught how to safely use the internet. 

The internet has changed so much since I first remember starting to use it (and that wasn't really that long ago!). There are loads more chat sites, forums, social media websites and other forms of communication out there which kids these days visit frequently. To judge how safe they are really depends on how well informed the kids are to the dangers and scams that are out there.

Some of the dangers kids face when using the internet are; accessing inappropriate material, talking to dangerous people on chat sites, scammers and cyber bullying to name a few.

It only takes mistyping in a website and a child could be on a website that is not appropriate for them to be viewing, sure there are internet filters out there but they can't stop 100% of the sites you don't want your kids seeing. 

Chat sites are a great place for kids to share ideas, find new hobbies and talk to new people in like-minded groups. It is also unfortunately a place where stalkers and pedophiles go to meet and lure in venerable children. The government has a website which has plenty of ideas on how to safe guard your child against situations when talking to someone that they don't know. http://www.cybersmart.gov.au 

I believe that for children to safely use the internet they need to be informed about the dangers of the internet, what to do in situations when they don't feel comfortable or safe on the internet, have rules and guidelines about how long they can use the internet for and what they can view and have their internet use monitored by a parent or teacher. 

Positives and Negatives about blogs and wikis

One of the tasks from last week was to reflect on some of the positives and negatives about blogs and wikis being used for school work. Below is a list of what I think are some of the pros and cons.

Positive:

• Work on assignments from home
• Interactive 
• Online diary
• Students can collaborate in an interactive way from home
• Encourages shy students to voice their opinions

Negative:

• Students can edit others wikis
• Some students may not have the internet at home
• Could encourage sloppy grammer
• May disadvantage students with poor computer skills
• Confidentiality 

Wikispace activity

Mobile Phones: Should they be used in the classroom?

So I was a bit late on doing the wiki about mobile phones in the classroom using De Bono's 6 thinking hats but better late then never!

I have used De Bono's 6 thinking hats last term in POUL and found it to be quite a good tool to use. I believe it would be good to use in the classroom as it breaks your thoughts, feelings, emotions and facts into categorised sections. By focusing on just one hat at a time it directs your thinking solely on one topic ensuring a more accurate analysis. Leaving you to be able to view and asses a topic simply.

My view on mobile phones and using them in the classroom was negative. I believe that having mobile phones in the classroom would cause more problems than creating better learning opportunities. You can view my response as well as every other students responses by clicking on the link to the wiki  

 http://fahe11001noosa.wikispaces.com/Mobile+Phones+Wiki

Image sourced from http://villainsoutshopping.blogspot.com.au/2012/07/lovehate-edward-de-bonos-cunning-party.html

My Learning Style

My Learning Style

After completing the Learning Styles test by Felder and Soloman I found that I rated very high as an active and visual learner. I rated relatively high as a sensing learner but I was rated fairly well balanced as a sequential leaner. 

I fully agree with these results as I know that I learn best if I am physically doing an activity. Being a visual learner is something that I already know as I have trouble remembering information if I just get told. I find it much easier to remember information if I am shown either by pictures, graphs or demonstrations. When learning a new topic I struggle to comprehend what is being taught if I am not given enough of a reference as to how the new information relates to the real world, with that in mind it is clear as to why I rated so high as a sensing leaner. I guess I rated fairly average as a sequential/global learner as sometimes I find myself performing a task in a sequential way when other times I find it easier if I just do the task randomly. I guess it all depends on the task to which way I prefer to complete it.

Introduction

This is my first ever blog and I am writing it for my E-Learning course at uni. I am in my second semester of my first year studying a Bachelor of Learning Management (secondary).  My two discipline subjects are ITD and HPE. I am hoping this subject will benefit me greatly in the classroom.