Blog #10: March 31st, 2022

 Interactive PowerPoint

    For assignment 5, I was tasked to create an interactive PowerPoint that could be used in instruction. I decided to make a Jeopardy-style trivia game for the Star Wars franchise, which is one of my favorites! I really enjoyed this project. At first I thought it might be difficult and overwhelming, but after I got the hang of using the tools necessary, such as hyperlinks and "buttons," it was very easy and allowed me to have a lot of creativity. I also didn't need to use any outside sources, since my Star Wars knowledge is (almost embarrassingly) so vast! This was definitely one of my favorite things I've done so far in the class, and I will hope to use this kind of skill again in the future, whether it be for my potential students, or just for fun. 

Below I've included a couple screenshots of my presentation!

Using Data Collection

    As a teacher, I will try to take full advantage of survey software in order to cater best to my students and gauge interest. An example of an ideal time to use this would be at the beginning of the schoolyear. I could send out a survey to ask students about themselves and the way that they learn best, as well as ask them what they'd like to learn and improve upon in the coming year. As a high school teacher in the literature and theatre fields, I think that discussion would be a huge part of my classroom, so asking students how they'd like discussions to go would be an important part of a survey as well. I could also do a sort of exit survey at the end of the year to see how much students learned and enjoyed my classes. 

Reviewing Blogs

When looking at my classmates' blogs, I think the most interesting thing to see is the different perspectives that we all have on the topics that we post about. I like seeing what kind of things people struggled with or enjoyed about certain assignments, and compare those experiences to my own. Oftentimes, they end up being similar! I also enjoy seeing how people set up their own blogs and what kind of formats they use. Some use lots of pictures, some take advantage of fancy fonts, and some keep it simple. Each of them reflect us, which is neat to see!

Digital Badges and Tech-Flex

    Digital badges have been a great way to learn new little skills in this class, and to keep track of my own rewards. I always like when I can have a little token of my success, even if it's just digital! These tech-flex tasks have also allowed me to learn new things as well as do things I'm already familiar with. One example is the various meme-making tech-flex challenges, which were by far my favorite. I always love when I can make a funny joke, especially when it connects to relevant material! 

Here's all the badges I've earned in this class! 

Tech Skills I'd Like to Learn

    There are two tech-related skills I'd like to learn, and both apply to my involvement in my on-campus comedy group. I'd like to learn graphic design/photoshop as well as video editing. Both are skills that can be learned on your own, as well as through the help of online tutorials and videos. If I learned better how to do graphic design, I could create everything from advertisements to merchandise to video thumbnails for the club, as well as a multitude of things for my own use outside of the club. Video editing would allow me to edit the sketches that my club creates, as well as videos for my own use. To learn both of these, I think I could sit down in the summer and learn some basics, as well as ask some of my friends who are already skilled in those areas. Overall, these are skills that I'll just have to build upon and get hands-on to develop!