The Diary That Hugs

 For my future career, I plan to be a novelist, not a teacher. Nevertheless, I could still use data collection tools like survey platforms to gain information on what my readers, or just everyday readers all over the world are looking for when browsing for their books. Do they want more fantastical elements or relatable heroes in a small town? What about a women-of-color main character that looks like them? Using these tools will help me connect better to the literary world as I can get an idea of what is being liked right now. Of course, I should never write for what people want rather than what I want, but it would be a survey based on things I plan to write about.  

 Open educational resources (OER) are usually free, online websites that house pages and pages of information relating to educational content. An OER I have experience with is Khan Academy. When I was in high school, my teachers assigned us extra homework on this site. By doing the assignments there, I was able to gain extra practice on whatever lesson we were doing in a fun and interactive manner. You had to complete about ten or so questions on a particular math section, and they would give you hints along the way. Over time, you would win badges and trophies to commemorate your educational journey. https://www.khanacademy.org/  A new skill I learned from working on Assignment 2 was doing the Record Slide Show feature. I had never done it before and it was a bit nerve-wracking to do a timed presentation when every minute counts, but it worked out in the end. Additionally, we had to make the file two different ones which was a lot to do. Only one of my PowerPoint files h...

 https://msrampersad.weebly.com/  The AI tool I use frequently in my day-to-day has to be Google Image Search. I learned that it is powered by AI recently, and it is truly such a useful tool when you want to know the name/learn more information about something, and all you need to do is take a photo of it. Usually, thousands of results show up that pertain to the exact item, or ones that look like it. It's extremely helpful and takes so much weight and time off my plate that would have been spent searching.  I have not used ChatGPT yet, surprisingly enough. I have heard both good and bad things about it, but mostly it has been quite helpful in gathering information. In one of my classes, a classmate used it to act as a flashcard device that helped her study for an upcoming test. I would like to try it out of the days so I should look more into that. I definitely think that AI tools can enhance productivity. If used right and more as an add-on for help or information, it c...

 I visited my old high school's website, Wellington High School. The site is basically a subset of the overall county school district's domain: Palm Beach School District. Overall, there is no incredibly personal information regarding the teacher staff on the site. Under the heading Students and Parents, there are only sections regarding academic programs the school has. The only staff that is shown under the School Info tab is the principal herself, Ms. Cara Hayden, and the names of the assistant principals. I feel like this allows privacy and security for the students and faculty because if you do need to contact a teacher, you have to call the school itself or you have to be the parent/guardian of the student and they should know the way to contact the teacher. https://www.palmbeachschools.org/domain/1778  A way that I would use technology productively to accomplish my professional teacher tools would be time management, for one. It has helped me a lot in academic settings ...

 I find Diigo to be quite glitchy and outdated. This goes hand-in-hand with being non-aesthetically pleasing, additionally. Because the site feels like it was created in the early 2000s and then never updated for a modern and interactive image, it's hard for me to want to voluntarily go on there and interact with my classmates as it's not incredibly engaging. I think it is cool that these types of sites though are still running, and now I know a new Web 2.0 Tool (Diigo) since I've never heard about it before.  Since I've had to do blogs for this class, I've started to enjoy it a lot more. It's nice to write down your thoughts about things in an open manner. I do wish we could make these blogs here more creative, add images, and more elements like interactive icons through coding. That is one of my main gripes about the blogs. Something I've learned so far through the blogging process is that it can actually be a stress reliever--to just expend whatever you...

I have been using Instagram for my Personal Learning Network as a way to connect with other teachers/educators. By creating an account on these platforms, I'm able to interact with other people who share enlightening teaching plans as well as advice I might have regarding my classroom. Additionally, I'm able to form connections with other teachers or personnel who could inform me of other opportunities, teaching or something else, that could benefit my career by gaining new experience somewhere else. Overall, I have met a lot of interesting and good-natured people with similar mindsets to myself.  The digital divide is a result of systematic inequalities regarding technology among students in the classroom, which is often a result of what is the norm at home for the students. It can affect students by some being extremely comfortable with technology and excelling in assignments that encourage the use of that, while others have not been or have not been able to be exposed to tec...