Father's Day

Well, another Father's Day has come. This is the 2nd one for me with Alexander. He is truly a gem in my life. It has taken me a long time to accept his presence in my life...for a variety of reasons which I will not go into in this forum. But, my feelings have crossed over, and I truly love him.

The hardest part about Father's Day for me is that my father is no longer with us. It has been 14 years since he passed, but that does not make it any easier considering our estranged relationship when he died. As time moves on, it makes you appreciate what you had a little more. You wish for time back so you can do things differently. My wish is that my wife and son could have known my father. I think he would have been a positive influence on them. Unfortunately, that is not (and will never be) the case.

I guess the only thing to do is to be the best father and husband that I can be...learn from my past behaviors, and hope that I don't repeat the negative things that have happened.

Happy Father's Day everyone.

Walden EDUC 6715 Final Reflection

As this long and eventful time in my life comes to a close, I have to wonder where I will go from here. The state of education is such that nobody's job is safe. Will this degree help me stay employed in the coming years? Based on what I have learned and seen for the future of technology and its need in education, I would have to say yes.



The application for weeks six and seven were truly eye-opening...in fact, the whole process from September, 2008 until now has opened my eyes to the potential of technology in education. The application helped guide my teaching in a new direction, away from the traditional paper and pencil classroom setting. It also showed me the possibilities of grants being used for any content area. Find the grant that meets your needs and is most beneficial to your students. I have already begun the implementation of web-based learning for my music students. There has been a positive response already with the first day of usage. The next few weeks will give me a better idea of how the students like this new way to learn music. If my music computer lab ever gets powered up, I will be able to spend as much time as I need in the computer lab with my students.



The one adjustment to my attitude and thoughts about teaching is that the job does not end during summer. That is clear to me now. I had lost that concept several years ago. I will be spending a lot of time this summer exploring and applying for technology grants that will not only benefit music, but benefits other needs at school. All subjects are important for learning. With technology integrated into the curriculum, the students will want to learn because they will be engaged. The teachers will be able to connect with the students in ways that they enjoy.



Ray Rust

EDUC 6715 Application 4

EDUC 6714 Final Thoughts

I have truly enjoyed the last eight weeks. As I have been progressing through my Master's degree, I have been catching myself at times wondering "why do we have to do this class?" I know that there is a method to the madness, but now I understand why we have been taking these particular classes. We first have to learn the processes, then learn about the tools that can be utilized, then put everything into practice. This creates better teachers which in turn develops more well-rounded and prepared students.

When social networking first started I did not really believe in using it, or even subscribing to it for that matter. I thought it was a big waste of time. But over time, I have slowly gotten more involved in social networking, almost to the point of ignoring other things or even loved ones. I have learned that using a social network needs to be used in moderation and some sort of focal point in order to be the most effective. The collaboration network created on Ning for this class was a great way to gather information for sharing with the colleagues in our class. The only problem that I saw with the "differentiation station" is that people using it were all from different subject areas. I know that there is no guarantee that I can be in a class of all music people, just like there is no chance of having a class consisting of all math, science, social studies, or English teachers. This degree is about integrating technology. Speaking about my own preferences of course, I would much rather have a class with all of my cohort from the same subject area. I think that the usefulness of the shared information would be greater. All feelings aside however, I learned a lot from my fellow Ning network partners. Some of the websites found by other people can be used by me in my music classes, especially with the push in my district to address all subjects in all classes. After exploring the different websites and resources that my classmates provided, I have discovered many different ways to do the things that I have already been doing in class. With this new information, I am able to "update" the way I present my curriculum.

I have already started using some of what I have learned to add technology into my lectures/discussions and class assignments. My music classes have been going to the computer lab and performing research on composers, and my history classes have been utilizing the curriculum presentations and the interactive whiteboard to learn their material. I will also be taking them to the lab soon to complete their own research assignments. My history classes are finishing up their current chapters, and I will be taking them to the lab to also complete on online test to show understanding. Most of my students have reacted well to using the labs.

It seems that my students are enjoying learning more, and I am definitely enjoying going to work more. Before this class started, I was pretty burned out and counting the days until the school year ended. Utilizing the information that I have learned here and putting it into practice has given me a new lease on this school year.