Autistic Liberation Front

The Autistic Liberation Front is what people with Autism call themselves through an online program called Second Life they can be whoever they want to be and there are many members which they can all communicate with each other. People with Autism should have the right to be accepted into society the way they are. Amanda the girl from video has Autism and can only communicate through the use of a computer and is a member of the Second Life program online and she says, "that she wouldn't want to be anything other then herself and that she is proud of being autistic." Amanda also goes on saying that, "Autism is a way of being rather then a disorder to be treated or cured and that they (Autism people) should not have to change for others benefits." I agree with Amanda and i also agree with a young boy from the video that describes a disability as a "difference of abilities" instead of a disability, which i strongly agree with him. To see the video and learn more about Amanda and others click on the link, "Second Life with Autism." Watching this video made conform even more in my beliefs that people should be accepted regardless. Amanda who can only communicate through the use of her computer is amazing. She has special programs in her computer that help her achieve what she wants, she has the freedom through the use of her computer with out it she wouldn't be able to communicate nor express herself. Many people should become more aware of the Second Life program and the different technologies offered in school and out of school to help those of "difference in abilities" to make their lives a lot easier. Technology has helped millions of people in this word with all the new voice activated, touch screen computers/ T.V and the built in computer in a wheelchair. Believe it or not many people would be lost without the help and use of technologie and divices. Even though Amanda cannot communicate in person but does so through the use of her computer and is Autistic does not mean that she is disabled and should have to change her ways to please others that are not Autistic and I strongly think that people with "difference of abilities" should be accepted the way they are.



Image site: iCLIPART for schools

Did You Know?

21 century skills and technologies need to be better understood, appreciated and infused in the plannings for the learning of students. Its very important to understand why infusing technology in a classroom is so important. Students are becoming more and more dependent on technology to find out the latest news and its a major why to communicate with others and find out interesting facts about the world or a topic. I can relate to this because i am a student and I use e-mail to communicate with friends and family and spend most of my time on the computer either researching information on a specific topic for homework, listening to music, watching a video and viewing/ editing some of my pages like facebook and on my blog. I strongly think that it is very important to have students work more with the different technologies so that they can be better prepared for the future. More and more jods require computer skills and or the use of other technology's so the more we use them and learn about them the better we will be off in the future with a job or as a teacher as I plan on being. I plan on introducing the use of technology in my classroom so i can better prepare my students. I also strongly think that teachers should infuse more technologies in their classroom for their students and they themselves should also become more familiar with technology. There are so many statistics that will blow your mind after you watch the video to the right called, "Did You Know 3.0," which gives you some amazing statistics of the 21st century and what we can expect in life and future which refers to the use of technology a lot and also compares it with past statistics. To learn more about this video and other interesting questions/ facts to ask yourself after watching this video click on, "shifthappens." Life is changing and we the people need to change and how we perceive technology especially for teachers to better prepare their students for the 21 century.



Video site from YouTube: Created by Karl Fish and modified by Scott Mcleod and posted/ uploaded by buenoscaminos, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpEnFwiqdx8

Assistive teachnology

Assisting technologies are of great importance in our society today. There are many people in this world that have some sort of disability that can benefit profoundly from the different assisting devices. Many may not even be aware of all the different devices that are out there. There are voice-activated software, computer programs and the voice activated devices can be put in a computer that can be installed in a wheelchair for those individuals that cant walk nor talk which they will be able to move their heads in a certain way to communicate with others through their devices in their wheel chairs or in their computers. These devices give people the opportunity to communicate and learn in a easier way. Many of these devices schools can buy and provide to better help students achieves their goals and succeed in life. Its very important that students with disabilities get introduced to the different devices offered to see which ones will help them. The earlier student's with a disability are introduced and become familiar with assisting devices the faster he/ she will master those devices. Introducing all the different devices to those students that need them will better prepare them for the future and make schooling and life so much easier for them. I also strongly think and know that teachers and school's should better understand the assisting devices and bring some in to their schools to better assist their students that really need them which can make a great difference. It really is amazing what these devices can do and how they can help people with disabilities. There is a video called, "Assistive-Technology: Enabling Dreams," click on the heading which will explain and give you a better idea of the different assisting devices and the devices that some schools have and how they work. Also talks about how these devices have helped their students to succeed in school and out of school and how the teachers had to prepare for the new devices. People with disabilities in and out of school benefit tremendously from assisting devices and should get more informed on these assisting devices so they can be able to succeed and go to college and have the opportunity to do the things they love to do.



Image site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/nooccar/3220672607/ by nooccar's images

Better Understanting of Digital Natives and Digital Immigrants

In this new generation that we are living in people need to have a better understanding of the differences of Digital Natives and Digital Immigrants. In an article called "Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants," by Marc Prensky describes the differences in learning process, views of the different generations and the affects they are having on students. Prensky defines Digital Natives as students of this new generation who have spent their entire life's surrounded by computers, video games, cell phones and many more digital gadgets. Most of this new generation will spend less time watching T.V and spend most of their time on their cell phones, computers and video games. As we (Net Millennium generation) have grown up experiencing different kinds of experiences that is what leads to different brain structures. As for Digital Immigrants defined by Marc Prensky, "those who were not born into the digital world but have, at some point in our lives, became fascinated by and adapted many or most aspects of the new technology are, and always will be compared to them." The biggest problem with Digital Immigrants to Digital Natives is education. There are many Digital Immigrants that are teachers and have not adapted to the Digital Natives as one students in kindergarten talks about how he has to wine down everyday at school click on the highlighted text to learn more on that story. Many of the Digital Immigrants are still stuck on their old ways of teaching with long lectures, writing down notes, printing to edit instead of editing on the computer and not much interaction which is affecting students of today. Digital Immigrants are struggling to teach to a population that speaks an entirely new language as described by Prensky. Students of these days need to get involved more and love to multitasks which they are able to do so. Being able to use computers more in the class or to take notes and research a topic while in class would be a great help for students. I have been a whiteness of this issue, as a college student i have had professors don't allow laptops and require you to take notes by hand. To most students i think its much easier to take notes on laptops and can have access to the Internet and look up a topic that's being taught in class to further your understanding on it. Understanding the ability of multitasking of students I think is the hardest task for Digital Immigrants to understand because many cant understand that students can learn by watching T.V, listening to music, texting and writing a paper all at the same time but they can because i have. Digital Natives need to understand that things have changed and that students don't learn the same as before and should try harder to understand Digital Natives and their different learning needs and appreciate the digital world/ gadgets a little more if they want their students to enjoy their class and teaching to make learning a lot better for students.



Image site: my personal collection