Week 4..We are halfway there.Whohoo!!

We are halfway there! Does this really make any of us feel any better? Um...Not really. Ask again at Week 8.

I feel a lot better today. Still sad, but I have to continue moving forward. Time waits for no man.

In all honesty, is it just me -- or is the summer semester going by sloooow? Like a 90 year old driving in the fast lane.

Since I am complaining -- lets talk about the heat....Is it just me? It is HOT! If this is God's warning to me what hell will be like, God -- I am sorry for all my sins. I promise, I will do better because there is no way I would last one hour in this type of heat. I cannot think straight.

Dr. Wang -- is there something in the student handbook called a "heat clause" that we can use as an excuse for not completing assignments this summer? Like can we get a doctor's excuse that says, "Sonya will not be able to turn in any assignments until the temperature is below 100 degrees - she is having problems with her thermastat -- it is permanently stuck on one degree from hell."

Okay -- enough of my rant. Lets talk about Week 4. Group one discussed, reviewed and tested a number of asynchronous and synchronous applications. I learned quite a bit because I was not familiar any of them except Skype.

Skype is a synchronous application that can be used as a chat, IM or telephone. It is free Skype-to-Skype; it is not free if you call someone who does not have Skype.

One disadvantage -- firewalls at various organizations. For instance, my group member, Kala, could not download or access Skype at her job.

I use Skype in the classroom by using instant messenger as a tool for office hours. I also have a Skype voice mail. Students can leave messages asychronously versus calling my home or cell number. I can also use Skype to call students anonymously.

My group member Kandi introduced us to Wikispace, a asychronous application. What a wonderful interactive tool! She gave us an activity to add information to her space. At first, group members could not complete the activity because Kandi had to give us permission first. After permission, we were able to complete the activity.

My group member, Kala, introduced us to Twitter for Teachers, an asychronous application. Without Kala's instructions, I would have been totally lost. It is similar to a discussion listserv.

My group member, Madelon, introduced us to Chatzy, a sychronous application. I really enjoyed Chatzy. Chatzy is a great tool to use for group chats. It is easy to set up. The cool thing about this feature is that there is registration or download. The moderator sets up a chat, sends invitations to each member and that's it versus Gmail -- the moderator can send an invitation for group chat; however, each group member will need to setup Gmail first.

Overall, I enjoyed using the above-mentioned sychronous and asychronous applications and will try to incorporate these applications in future courses.

Oh -- I just reviewed the directions for the NVU - the teacher website. Um....I'm lost -- like a prostitute on the wrong street corner. Is it just me??? Help!

Have a great weekend!

Sonya

Sad.....

Okay - tonight is not a good night for me guys.... My Mom is ill, my close friend's Mom passed away....And....

Michael Jackson died today...I know this has absolutely ziltch to do with this course, but I cannot think straight right now. I just can't. I grew up with Michael Jackson. Despite the bad press he has received over the years.

So I blew the dust off my old MJ CDs and I am sitting here reminiscing -- wishing I had a cigarette and I don't even smoke! :) I remember more good things about MJ that outweighed bad. I remember the family cookouts with his music and the drunk uncle who didn't know the lyrics or dance steps (but thought he did -- lol). I remember learning how to do the Moon Walk and anticipating the debut of "The Thriller" video. So many memories.

I am also sitting here remembering my close friend's Mom. It is sad when your parents leave this earth. I cannot imagine. I just can't. I mean -- I know we are not supposed to be here forever, right? But who prepares us when our love ones are gone? I am still not ready. I worry about my Mom. She is not doing too well..Especially today. Mom -- I am sorry you are not well right now. I love you and I will be home soon.

Okay...I am getting misty-eyed. Such a sad time right now. My grandmother used to say, death happens in 3s. Has anyone else ever heard of this? This week three to four deaths -- Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett and now MJ, and my friend's mother.

I will log back in tomorrow and try to type something about the course so that I can get credit from Dr. Wang. Right now, I am too sad....

Michael Jackson video:

Don't stop til you get enough.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_hz2am90Hk&feature=channel

Week 3? Already?

Can you believe it? It is already Wednesday! Whew!

On another note, it is often difficult to stay motivated in a graduate program. I have a friend, Lady Lee, who will often give me "tough love" and/or motivation when I feel overwhelmed with school. Lady Lee completed her Ph.D. ten years ago. What an accomplishment! She is a wondeful mentor and friend. Here's a wonderful quote by Dr. Lady Lee about her experience in graduate school:

It was like being in a black tunnel,and you see the light at the end of the tunnel, and you run fast toward that light at the end of the tunnel, knowing that it was the end of the road... only to find out that that light at the end of the tunnel was the headlight of a fast-moving train...-heading fast toward you, so it could mow you down and KILL you!

LOL! Everytime I read this, I laugh because it rings true!

I am in a wonderful group! Our group is on the ball! It is truly refreshing because I have been in groups that I still have Friday the 13th nightmares about. I am serious. I know many of you are familiar with the "Group from Hell". Sorry for the bad word, but it is the truth. I will not waste my blog on group members from the corner of my mind (Barbara Streisand, look out girl!).

Okay -- lets chat about Week 3 a little. Did I say I was in a wonderful group? :) My group reviewed and investigated Gmail tools. To be honest, I do not think that Gmail is user-friendly. There are too many steps involved and often, I felt that I was on a scavenger-hunt searching for lost gold. For example, it took an act of Congress to get the group chat to work. Two group members could use group chat and a third group member could not access the group chat. Even if this could be considered "user-error", there is no simply way to access the group chat in Gmail. Again, there are too many steps.

We learned that only two people at a time can access the video chat at once. If someone has a different solution, please let me know.

We ended up using the live classroom for our meetings versus Gmail. We also had to purchase additional equipment (i.e., headsets and webcams) in order to use the video chat feature in Gmail and Liveclassroom in WebCT. Dr. Wang graciously volunteered her office if we needed to use a webcam. I live in Louisiana and it would be difficult for me to drive three hours to Dr. Wang's office to use the webcam. The cost of gas would cost more than the webcam. However, I do appreciate her offer (thanks Dr. Wang!).

Overall, although cumbersome, investigating and researching Gmail with my group was a great experience and I learned quite a bit. In fact, I am still learning more about Gmail. I do know that it could be integrated in a classroom -- especially if I wanted to use Gmail for one-on-one confernces with a student.

Until we meet again.....

Weekend Reflection...I'm a Procrasta-holic....

Do you ever have one of those weekends when you decide to sleep in late and regret it later? That's me today. I slept in until well until about 1:00 p.m. Let me back-track....I was up until 8:00 a.m. working on a class assignment (don't ask.... lol). Yep. (Silence.....Pregnant pause.....Can you hear the bird's chirping in the background?) . So, needless to say, I was pooped!

Why do we procrastinate? I have my good moments when I utilize time management to the 10th power and other moments when I have a relapse -- similar to someone having a relapse from alcohol or meth. I visualize a PA (Procrastination Anonymous) session. We are all sitting around in a circle and it is my turn to stand. I am looking around hoping and praying that I do not have to speak. The counselor says, "lets extend a warm welcome to......Sonya Ward...Sonya -- can you stand and tell us a little about yourself?"

I stand and say, "My name is Sonya and I'm a Procrasta-holic...." LOL

I continue by saying, "I was sober for a few months and just this week, I had a relapse. My power went out and it went downhil after that. I have been sober for all of 2 hours now."

They clap, others share, we all get a PA sponsor and I go home.

Hopefully, I will stay sober for a while and get a head start on my assignments for Week 3.

Thanks for reading....

Sonya
A Recovering Procrata-holic

Week 1 and 2 - Oh Joy!

Hello Friends!

I am back for another semester of graduate school. Oh joy. :)

It was wonderful to have a break to refresh, relax and rejuvenate. During school breaks, I can read and relax and not think of deadlines outside of work.

Week One

I have four courses this semester. Pray for me. In my IT-648 class, we were required during week 1 to introduce ourselves. Don't you just love when no one responds to your introduction? No one responded except Dr. Wang (thanks Dr. Wang!). One student responded to everyone except me. Did my picture scare everyone away? LOL. Who knows. It isn't a big deal, but in a fleeting moment, I felt like the new student in class that everyone else ignored. This thought quickly passed and I formed a wonderful group and moved on to my assignments and communication with my students. :)

Week Two

Okay -- I admit, this week got the best of me. It started out with a bang on Monday. Tuesday, I had a very productive online meeting with my wonderful group members (hi Kandi, Madelon and Kala! :)). However, it went all downhill by Wednesday evening. We had a terrible storm and tornado watch and we lost power that evening. How did we ever live without the Internet? I felt like a meth addict without money to buy meth (I guess a meth addict would panic, right?).

Needless to say, I am a bit behind and will spend the weekend catching up. I plan to get a head start on Week 3 to prepare for any type of future crises.

Goodnight!