It's been a great semester. I'm looking forward to two more years of coursework in this format to finish up my degree. For my faithful (and sometimes anonymous) readers out there, thanks for keeping up on my progress over the past few months. I don't really know the fate of this blog, so I wanted to give thank you before I lost my privilege to do so!

We'll see what sort of 'aha' moments this summer's class brings...

If it's not working, change it. "One of the things we believe very strongly is that if something isn't working, change it," says Julie Young, president and CEO of the Florida Virtual School.

Time and time again, the article quotes those in the field of virtual education and the need for flexibility. I admit that one of my weaknesses as a teacher is that my logical and math-minded personality does not always give me as much flexibility as I would like. I tend to 'come up with a plan' and go for it. The more I teach, the more I realize the need to be flexible on a daily basis. I've seen this come into play this semester with CI505 as well. Ann asked for pros and cons of 505 around midterm with the plan of making changes if need be. Similarly, she had to change the way our software reviews were to be done due to the weather canceling our second face to face meeting. Kudos to everyone involved with this semester's class, my peers, Ann and Clyciane for doing such a great job at being flexible. Until next time...

We will also briefly be discussing our final papers. I think I have a pretty good start on mine. I had a solid outline and have a lot of my thoughts on paper. I just need to finalize the 'meat' of the paper. I'm currently installing Geometer's Sketchpad on my home computer so that I can tweak a few thoughts that have been running through my mind. For being a logical-thinking math teacher, I sure do seem scatter-brained sometimes when it comes to these big-picture projects and papers. Ann, our CI505 professor, mentioned in an email or her weekly movie (I can't remember which) that sometimes writing bigger papers from afar can be a challenge. Motivation doesn't seem to be an issue for our cohort, but sometimes I sense that not all of us are on the same page as far as expectations go. We usually end up emailing each other or asking questions on the discussion boards to clarify our thoughts on what the final should look like. Ann asked if I would lead a discussion this coming week focusing in on everyone's progress on the final paper. I think it will be interesting to see where everyone is at. I imagine some will be close to done while others won't have started yet. Based on the initial topic proposals a few weeks ago, some of my colleagues had lots of thinking to do between then and now!

Enough of my ramblings. My wife should be getting home soon. She has been busy this week with her job. This evening, it gave me some time to work on my paper. I'd better take advantage of the time I have left!

Until the next edition of T3...

I submitted my online software review (see last entry) and it seemed to go over fairly well. I received a little bit of feedback, but I was expecting more. The interesting part about doing this software review online is that I can look back and re-read others' responses. Had I done this review at our face-to-face meeting, I could only attempt to remember the verbal feedback and questions, if indeed there was any. Looking back, I shouldn't have really expected a lot of feedback. There are two other math teachers, but even they did not seem to be as excited about it as I was. Admittedly, I spent quite a bit of time on this software review, because I didn't know what the true expectations were. I went as far as surveying students' perceptions of using the software - other students in the class simply described their software without much elaboration. I'm not trying to put myself up on a pedestal or anything (or put down others), but simply pointing out that in the virtual environment there is often a level of ambiguity. One doesn't always know if/when he/she is going over the top, as I feel I did for this last assignment. Enough rambling about that. It's done and over and I look forward to a (hopefully) positive grade from the instructor.

On a more positive note, there are only a few more weeks left in the semester. Our last face to face meeting will be on April 28th. I'm really looking forward to seeing everyone. It's crazy to think back to our first meeting back in January. We've all communicated so much online, but when we meet together as a group it seems like a bunch of old friends meeting up. Clyciane will be there (I know you're reading this!) to help us with the logistical side of things for our program; Keith will be there with pictures of his little one; Diana will be there and talk about her kids, too.

Our final project is to write an article about the use of technology within our discipline. It can be a new idea or a practical use of technology within a specific lesson or unit of study. The intended audience is a practitioner's journal or magazine. I've decided to discuss using Geometer's Sketchpad to teach properties of parallelograms. I've taught this concept several times before in a more of a constructivist approach (allowing students to 'discover' their own properties using compass and protractor) so I'm looking forward to applying these same ideas to Sketchpad. Honestly, it seems like a great fit. It might even be too easy! If all goes as planned, I hope to submit my article to the Iowa Council of Teachers of Mathematics journal for possible publication. I'm not really the type of person that just wants to see my name in print, but if I'm going to all of this work for an assignment, I might as well follow through and find out out if my work is worth something in the 'real world.'

As I prepare for the 'home stretch' both at my teaching job (36 more school days!) and for this semester, I thing I'm going to miss CI505. It has (by far) been the most enjoyable class I've taken so far at ISU. The projects we've done have, for the most part, been easily applied to my classroom. In fact, I have taken several existing ideas (like my final project idea) and extended them a bit for use in 505. I don't know what to think about this summer's class "Contemporary Curriculum Theory and Principles." I guess being in the "home stretch" allows me to focus on today rather than what's ahead. Until next time....

Check out my software review and let me know what you think...

How ironic! In my last entry, I wrote about the ice storm that hit Iowa and how it wasn't going to keep me from doing my school work. Well, I received an email last night that our face-to-face meeting which was scheduled for tomorrow is now canceled. Schools across Iowa canceled classes today due to the blizzard-like conditions. News reports tell me that some parts of Iowa may have received upwards of 20" of snow. Here in Cedar Rapids, the snow keeps blowing. While we may have only received two or three inches, the visibility caused by blowing snow continues to create lackluster road conditions. The red roads in the picture above indicate 'travel not advised'; pink means the road is 'completely covered'; orange 'mostly covered' and yellow 'partially covered.' I think Ann made the right move by canceling tomorrow's class. I was really looking forward to seeing everyone, but I would have dreaded the drive.
There you have it, class has officially been 'canceled' and arrangements must be made to somehow hand-in our digital stories (postal mail) and present our software reviews (video tape?!?) as well as review for our midterm exam (WebCT discussion). Flexibility is the name of the game here in the distance education world. Until next time....

The bad news first...travel is "not advised" in much of Eastern Iowa today due to the sleet and rain we've been getting throughout the day. The picture above was taken from inside my house looking across the street and vividly illustrates the ice that's been accumulating here in Cedar Rapids. Because of the weather conditions, the 5k race my wife and I were hoping to run today was postponed, a family get-together was canceled and most likely church will be canceled, too. If today would have been a school day, my school district would have surely canceled classes.

The good news...I can still work on my grad school! This is the wonderful aspect of being a virtual student. If I feel like staying up late to post on the discussion board, I can. If I have a few extra minutes at the public library, I can work on it there, too. The possibilities are really endless with distance education.

While colleges like Kirkwood CC and Hawkeye CC are shutting down for the weekend, the distance ed. program at ISU lives on. That is, as long as the power doesn't go out...

Okay, back to the real reason for this post - Parent/Teacher Conferences. P/T Conferences happen at Solon High School four times per year. Because we are on a block schedule, students can potentially change classes every nine weeks, although most changes classes every eighteen weeks. Conferences gives Parents and Teachers an opportunity to talk about the students' performance in the classroom, upcoming tests and future course planning. The father of the student who is currently earning a 99% A in my Geometry class came to conferences. I've met his wife before, but never the father. I began by telling the parent how great it was to have the student in class and how he was grasping the Geometry concepts very easily. The father stopped me shortly into my rants and asked how his son was doing socially in the class - was he asking questions, getting along with others, working in groups when given the opportunity? I was absolutely shocked! So many times, I see parents too concerned about the grade and less so on their student's behavior. This was a pleasant surprise for me on what otherwise is a long Thursday evening.

I have been managing to keep up on my graduate work, too...

Greetings from Eastern Iowa! My name is Matt Townsley and I teach high school math in Solon. My wife and I met at our undergraduate alma mater and have made Cedar Rapids our home for the past two years. When we both walked across the stage for graduation at Wartburg College in May of 2004, I had a hunch my education wasn't quite finished. It's not surprising to my family and friends that I am currently enrolled in the Master of Education at a distance program through the Department of Curriculum and Instruction. Technology has always been a 'hobby' of mine so learning how to better use it in the classroom seemed like a perfect fit. I'm really excited to be taking my third semester of classes in the program for two reasons. First, I truly have an interest in educational
technology trends. Since reading my first issue of T.H.E. (Technology Horizons in Education) Journal, I can't stop thinking about ways to integrate technology into my classroom to motivate students. Second, I believe this degree will better prepare me to become a leader in the field of curriculum and instructional technology at the K-12 or higher education level. So far, my coursework parallels these career aspirations!

Speaking of courses, I've had to make a few adjustments to my schedule in order to find success in this program. Most recently, I learned that 'planning my pace' at the beginning of the semester is an extremely good idea. Between
church activites and holding down a full-time teaching job, there don't seem to be many hours left in the day! Just like anything else in life, I've decided to establish a routine for working on my distance coursework. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings worked well for me last semester. Sunday afternoon served as a great 'catch-up' time during the few weeks that I had extra commitments. Getting to know my colleagues has been easier than I first imagined. My program is a 'blended cohort' program which means that eleven of us are all taking the same program of study and we meet two or three times per semester on campus. Even though I missed the very first on-campus meeting this summer due to my sister's wedding, I felt like I could relate to my classmates at our ICN session
in mid-July. Meeting them face-to-face for the first time in September was a real treat! Keith and I still chat once in a while online. Diana and Ann are always posting funny comments on the discussion boards, which makes them seem like old friends. Most recently, our CI505 class met on Saturday, January 6th in the basement of Lago. Everyone in the cohort was itching to find out if Keith's wife had her baby. The real laugh of the day was Dr. Thompson constantly making reference to Diana's upcoming trip to Las Vegas. Who knew a room full of educators from across Iowa could have so much fun?! Taking distance courses hasn't always been easy. Last semester, WebCT Gold had a few technical glitches that threw our class for a few loops. The server ended up being reset every morning to compensate for the high volume during the evening hours. Uploading large files on my not-so-fast high speed internet has taken some patience, too. Thankfully, my classmates have been helpful in navigating WebCT Gold and my professors have been flexible when technical difficulties arise.

I have so much more to write, but my first assignment for CI505 is calling my name! Until next time...