RSS

My understanding of RSS (Really Simple Syndication) readers are that they are a great way for someone to keep up on certain types of news without browsing all the time.  The news comes into your reader without you having to spend the time looking for it. (USA)

Even though I remember RSS readers being mentioned in the Foundations of Educational Technology class with Dr. Jurkowski, I had never used an RSS reader before this assignment.  As we were directed, I installed Blog Bridge on my school computer.  The installation was easy.  I just followed the directions, and it installed properly.  I then subscribed to the class blogs and to other blogs that were related to educational technology or just educational blogs.   Since I already had an iGoogle page, I looked around and found the reader and set it up and subscribed to all the class blogs and to other educational blogs.  
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Installing things on my school computer makes me nervous because everything of mine at school is usually installed by the tech person. I was pleasantly surprised to find that anyone (including me) that could click on the link provided by the instructor and could read and follow directions could easily install BlogBridge; therefore, I don't think students, teachers, or administrators would have problems setting up this RSS reader.

After the initial setup and trial of both readers, Google reader is definitely my preference.  I have had a Google page for over two years, and I like the consistency of using Google.  I keep my Google page open at school because I have links on my page that I use daily.  I like having everything together in one place, so that is the reason I will continue to use Google reader instead of Blog Bridge.  If someone wanted an RSS reader and did not want to use Google, I would suggest BlogBridge because it was easy to install and user friendly.

When it comes to the RSS reader in general, it reminds me of my business education discussion list.  I really like my discussion list; and I get a lot of information and resources, but I also get a lot of things that I don’t need or want.  At first I had to “wade” through all of it.  Now if there is a subject line that has nothing to do with me, I just delete it without taking the time to read it.

I have the same issue with the RSS readers.  With approximately eighteen classmates’ blogs and at least ten others, that means a lot that comes through that feed.  I have already found that I’ve added some blogs that are not what I had thought they were going to be; and I need to delete them.  I also noticed somewhere that I could do something with keywords, and that is something that I want to look into so that I can narrow the information.

It is wonderful that it is so easy to access information, but in today’s world of technology, I sometimes feel like we get overwhelmed by so much information.  It is so much better than having to go to the library and check out books and magazines to get resources that I need for class.  Of course, I had to carry all of them and “wade” through all of them, too.  Just like with anything else that is new to me, I need to keep using it and figure out how to use it to fit my needs.  I’m hoping that when I read my classmates’ papers that I’ll get some ideas to help me be more efficient in using these RSS readers, possibly starting with keywords.

Besides my business education discussion list, there are a few business teachers' websites that I browse or to specifically look for something, and I believe that is where I found Free Technology for Teachers (an edublog).  It is a great ed tech blog.  Another good education blog, even though it is not technology intense, was The Innovative Educator.  As I continue to reevaluate the blogs that I have set up to come into my reader, these are two blogs that I will probably keep.

As I was finishing up this RSS paper, I was looking for ideas of how to use RSS readers in education. I found a very effective SlideShare presentation about RSS readers.  One suggestion in the presentation was that an administrator could use RSS readers to stay informed on available grants.  I believe that teachers (as we are in this class) can use RSS readers to stay current on educational news and cutting edge technologies.  I require my General Business students to submit an article review every week.  They could subscribe to blogs having to do with topics that I've provided for them.  Even though they may not want to use the blog, the blogs usually lead to other articles or resources, which I find to be one of the most exciting features of the RSS reader.

In summary, I believe that I like the concept of using the RSS readers.  I just need to get more efficient in reviewing them and in subscribing only to the blogs that has the information that would be the most helpful to my teaching.

Open Source

My understanding of Open Source is that by making all of the source code available to everyone that through a collaborative effort the application will constantly be improved; therefore, everyone will benefit from a better application.

It is encouraged to use Open Source and for changes to be made to the source code to improve it.  The derivatives that result are beneficial to all.  A free open source license makes software free for inspection of its code, modification, and distribution.  There may be a few differences in licensing in some open source and some free applicationss, but for the most part they are similar.  Nearly all free software is open source, and nearly all open source applications are free.  Proprietary software is licensed giving exclusive legal right to the copyright holder. The licensee is given the right to use the software under certain conditions, but restricted from other uses, such as modification, further distribution, or reverse engineering.

Two Open Source applications that I find to be useful in education are Moodle and Linux. I have looked into using Moodle in my classroom to give students experience with a course management system (comparable to Blackboard) to prepare them for college.  Linux is a free operating system that our school uses in the library even though I don’t have any experience with it because I have my own computer lab with licensed operating systems.  Another option if I didn’t have Office 2007 would be Open Office, which is an open-source office software suite for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, and databases.

Introduction

Hi, my name is Karen Irvine, and I teach Business at Lafayette County C-1 in Higginsville. I love teaching business and technology all day long because I also learn new things. I obtained my Business Administration degree from CMSU.  I worked in insurance and real estate, and then chose to stay home and raise my two sons while doing books for our family businesses. As the boys got older, I went back and picked up the education classes that I needed to be certified to teach business (I'm also certified to teach MS Math and Elementary). I was on staff at Concordia for four years. I taught business at Crest Ridge for two years, and this is my fourth year at Higginsville, which is my hometown .The Educational Technology masters program was a very good decision for me because it is a great supplement to my Business Education certification.  I have already used several things in my classes and plan to implement more.  This semester I’m teaching Multimedia, which gives me a class that I like to share the newest technology with, so I’m expecting to pass along some things to my students as I learn them in this course.

I am definitely a lifelong learner.  I enjoy teaching, as well as learning.  It is stressful for me to take a class and teach at the same time because I spend a lot of my personal time working on both.  In fact, I've been told by my colleagues and friends that I spend too much time on both!  I spend a lot of time reading about technology and reading to figure out how to do something; therefore, I don’t have the time to read for pleasure like I did years ago.  I don’t remember the last book that I read, but the one that I will always remember is Hawaii by James Michener.  Even though it is fiction, it is based on how the islands and culture evolved.

 I picked up some used books last summer (including Hawaii) that when I finish my masters, I’d like to read for pleasure again.  I know that many of our students like to read and carry books to class to read if they finish their work earlier than the others.  I also have several friends that read for pleasure.  I would say yes, people still read.