Week 9 Reflections/IMessenger

MSN Messenger has served as a helpful tool for this course. In fact, it would be nice to have it availabe and as a requirement for other courses. It was helpful to see the faces of my classmates (some of which I have had shared many courses with before) because sometimes these online courses can be intimidating--seeing the face along with the posts helped realize that we are all human. During the chats, I learned about many resources and applications for class material and topics. A few times I was engaged in helpful discussions on how to use the Whiteboard of MSN Messenger; I believe Kristy showed me how to upload a file and draw on the Whiteboard. It was either Kristy or Meredith who upoaded a picture of one of her sons playing soccer. Shayne, and a few others and I once started a group chat; this was easier than I realized, but it reminded me of being in a conversation in which everyone is talking simultaneously--I found myself responding to or trying to keep up and respond to everyone's comment--which was fun. One student even shared some information on free web sites for teachers--Moodles was the one, which I had never heard of before then. I was even able to get information on how to set up and enhance a web log. Overall, the Instant Messenger by MSN Live was very helpful in that it allowed me to collaborate on various applications for these new technologies in which we have been studying and it has given me opportunities to learn from my peers. I was even able to catch Dr. Green on-line to ask him a question. The only thing I have not been able to do is engage in audio chat and that is because I cannot find the setup disc for installing my microphone. Using the IM has been a wonderful experience; one in which I intend to keep going and use it as a learning tool. The MSN Messenger would also be a wonderful tool for use in K-12 education as teachers, parents, and students would be able to communicate.

Reflections for this week: It has been interesting viewing the remaining multimedia presentations. Although there is no use crying over spilt milk, each time I view a presentation, I cringe at my own. Many are so captivating and professionally done that I feel so small. The good thing about all this is that I can take what I have learned from other presentations (e.g., design, style, information) and improve my skills.