Blog Post #4: Thoughts on ACCESS

ACCESS, or Alabama Connecting Classrooms, Educators, & Students Statewide, is a new technology that allows students to participate in online or distance learning classes that would not be offered to them otherwise. It has so many courses to choose from. From Economics to Mandarin Chinese, ACCESS has something to offer any student that wants, or needs one of these amazing classes. The classes can be web-based or video conferencing. It allows students the opportunity to learn at their own pace while interacting with students at different schools. It allows teachers to reach out to students all over the state that otherwise could never have the experience of some of these classes. ACCESS also allows teachers to work more closely with students on a one on one basis rather than in a normal classroom setting. It is a way for an individual student to have more control over their academic success. It also allows students to have more of a say in what they are taught and how they learn.
I am completely blown away by this new and innovative technology. I would love to be an "E-teacher!" It is probably one of the most valuable assets to education today. What a great way for students in low-income schools to get the best education Alabama has to offer by utilizing ACCESS. I hope that the Alabama Department of Education generates the funds to offer ACCESS to all Alabama schools very soon. I wish this type of "technical learning" was available to me when I was in high school. But, even though it was not, I am very happy to see that there are many, many children in Alabama that can experience such amazing advances in and out of the classroom. ACCESS will and has changed education forever.

Blog #3: Thoughts on ALEX (Alabama Learning Exchange)

ALEX, or Alabama Learning Exchange, is a web-based interactive resource tool that is utilized by teachers as well as students and parents. ALEX lists different courses of study from English to Physical Education to Driver and Traffic Safety. When you click on one of the subjects it then narrows the search to include a certain grade level of education, and lists specific subjects under the specified heading. For example, if you clicked on science, the grades and different subjects such as biology or zoology will be listed. ALEX also has many web-links to other areas that could be helpful to educators, parents, or students that include the Alabama Department of Education Initiatives, Special Education, and Library Media/Information Literacy. Not only does it offer lesson plans for educators in all subjects, it also allows the students and teachers to use distance learning in the instance that advanced classes and electives are limited at a certain institution of learning. This distance learning is called ACCESS, or Alabama Connecting Classrooms, Educators, and Students Statewide. You can learn much, much more about either of these programs and other ways to enhance you or your child's learning experience, or as an educator learn new and innovative ways to enhance your teaching skills.
I am very glad that I am aware of all the great options available to teachers through ALEX. It will be a great way to interact with different educators about lesson plans and a good way to make sure that you, as an educator, is on the same page with other teachers in the state. I hope to utilize the web-site and as manyof the options for learning and educating as pertains to my field.

My first "real" blog

Hello Everyone!!

Welcome to Brandy Wimberly's EDM 310 Blog. I am really excited about the class and this project. I have only been to two classes and I am already doing things on the computer that I never thought I had a reason to try or learn to do. As some of you might have guessed, my skills on the computer are limited. When I graduated high school (in the 20th century) none of this technology was even conceivable, now it is hard to imagine life without all the technical advances. As one can see by viewing my profile, I have already been to college once and now I am back for more. I would love to continue my education from a Bachelor's Degree to a Master's Degree.
I love to read, so naturally I really enjoy english and language arts. I want to be able to utilize the things I learn in this class in my own classroom. My goal is to not only make an A in this class, and every other class I have this semester, but to trully learn something that enriches my life as well as my career.

My First Post

This is just a test run to see if I can actually do this. Hopefully, this class will enable me to be more computer literate. Now to add a picture.