I remember day one of this class. The first problem was logging on to the site. After a phone call and reading some online information, I was logged in and ready to go. It was nice having everything at my fingertips. My biggest concern was not necessarily about the course, but about the use of the internet and accessing the course. I have not had problems with internet access, but feared I would lose access for some reason or that my computer would crash. Nearing the end of this class, I can now put those fears aside. With that said, I was also overly cautious about sending/posting projects via email. I had to email the professor each time and ask for verification that the assignments had gone through. Just because I sent a file, doesn’t necessarily mean that it was picked up properly on the other end. Again, those fears were laid to rest as each of the assignments seemed to be delivered without much hassle.

The course format was something that took time to get use to. As a teacher I am more use to, and have preferred, a traditional face to face classroom. However, I enjoyed the online asynchronous style of learning. With that said, I don’t think it would work below the collegiate level. One must be highly motivated, organized, and disciplined to keep up with the discussions and online assignments. Of course, there would be exceptions, but I do not see this working at any K-12 level of student learning. Those students still need the stimulation of being in a classroom face to face with a teacher who can offer immediate help and feedback. In fact, I can imagine many college level students would still need the face to face interaction to succeed. As a graduate student who lives quite a distance from campus, I have especially found this online learning format valuable. I have saved time and money not having to drive the distance and I have been able to work at my own pace when I am most focused.

This is an ideal classroom set up; only via the world wide web. An important lesson for any person, young or old, is to be critical thinkers. A learner-centered process of learning allows for open line of communication and critical thinking. The instructor will always be important as far as setting guidelines and for assessment purposes. However, allowing the students to discuss and reply to various topics with little to no interference from an instructor allows for the building of background knowledge and questioning. This is evident as I read through each and every post, responded, and even posted my own thoughts and questions. Most discussions were completely related to the various topics, others were somewhat related, and a very few were not related at all. The important element of success here is that we, as learners, were not interrupted or questioned. We are not confined by time limits like we would be sitting in a classroom. Therefore, we have time to consider what we want to write and finally write it.

A great aspect of this course is that it is targeting educators and promoting the use of technology in the classroom. Therefore, it is appropriate that we take the course online. I have heard of a webquest and weblogs, but never a webliography. It seemed a little difficult not having the instructor, a real person in the room, to guide us along. However, I think that we benefitted from having to explore on our own. The examples of what the final outcome was suppose to be was quite beneficial. I am looking forward to developing more webquests and webliograhies for use in the classroom. A big problem continues to be cost involved and resources available at each school and/or district. I am still not convinced at how much I can use all of the technology discussed in the run of this course, but I can definitely implement it occasionally throughout the year.

All in all, I feel very comfortable using technology involved/discussed within this course. I enjoyed experimenting with various programs and researching particular related topics of interest. Time will be dedicated over the remainder of this summer to developing and learning more on how and what I can use in the classroom, technologically speaking. I am very happy to have finally created a weblog and plan on posting on a regular basis. Finally, all my fears have indeed been laid to rest. In fact, I wish I had taken online courses sooner than now. These courses are recommended for those who may be limited on time and travel, but whom are also highly disciplined and organized to stay on task and meet deadlines.

To access, use this shortcut:

http://mail.google.com/mail/?ui=2&ik=e6f4cecac5&realattid=f_fhcf1jx9&attid=0.1&disp=vah&view=att&th=11a797804b2134e2

The following list of sites can be utilized by teachers and students alike. As a Secondary ELA Teacher, I am often researching and reading new books/materials to help peek student interest. These sites are visited often by both myself and my teenage students. What is important for me is that I accomodate the needs of ALL students. As you will see below, I include sites that include multi-cultural literature. ENJOY!

Young Adult Library Services Association:

http://www.ala.org/yalsa/booklists/bbya/

This site is actually a part of the American Library Association, making it credible. This site has many links and includes a “Best Books for Young Adults” section. This best books list goes back to the year 1996. Furthermore, it is important to look at the links to the left of the page and check out other sites for young adults. Here you can find suggestions for:
YA films, audiobooks, paperbacks, graphic novels, and books for those young adult reluctant readers! Nominations for the 2009 Best Books are being taken, thus getting “real” people actively involved.

Alliance for the Study and Teaching of Adolescent Literature at Rhode Island College:

http://www.ric.edu/astal/multicultural/http://www.ric.edu/astal/multicultural/

This site looks rather boring at first glance. However, it includes an abundance of information when searching out Multi cultural Young Adult Literature. Be sure to scroll down upon opening the page and visiting one of the two available links. One link is s book list of Multi cultural literature and the second link is a list of teaching ideas activities to go along with selected pieces of YA literature.

Web English Teacher (Young Adult Literature):

http://www.webenglishteacher.com/ya.html

This is a phenomenal site for teachers who are looking for additional information on YA authors and literature. The site provides an A-Z alphabetical list of information and lesson plans arranged by author. I have personally used this site on multiple occasions and have found it to be easy to navigate. I have found it to include most styles of YA literature as well. Don’t forget to check out the links to the left for further resources.

Young Adult Literature Social Network:

http://yaliterature.ning.com/

I would recommend this site to mainly teachers. It is not a very informative site, but it does allow those of us who are interested, to speak with other people of the same interest. The purpose of this site is to bring together people who share an interest in YA literature. I think it is important to get input from other people when reading particular books. Although I have not used this site too often, I have found a few other teachers who teach the same grade as I. We have been able to discuss our experiences and offer suggestions of activities and other companion books.

Young Adult Literature and Multimedia Resources:

http://www.mcelmeel.com/curriculum/yalit/

This is not a flashy site and probably not one students would want to visit. However, it offers great resources for educators. In fact, the best information I have found include various book talks. I have mainly used this site as an “idea getter”.

Young Adult Poetry:

http://mingo.info-science.uiowa.edu/~fu/YAPoetryPathfinder/YAPP.htm

For some reason, people often leave poetry out when discussing literature. I have come to appreciate this site because it includes poetry that young adults can relate to and comprehend. There are lists of hard copy sources and a link for online sources. One of my favorite sections of this site would include a list of poems written by young adults.

Asian American Literature for Young Adults- A Bibliography:

http://falcon.jmu.edu/~ramseyil/asian.htm

As mentioned, I try to include all of my students in the classroom. I have a fairly decent Asian population in my class and searched for literature that they may identify with. My search brought me to this site. What I really like about this site is that it is broken down into further sections. These sections include: Media Selection Aids, Fiction and Short Stories, Nonfiction, Criticism, Biography, and Poetry.

GLBTQ-Young Adult Literature:

http://www.glbtq.com/literature/young_adult_lit.html

I came across this site a while back when searching for books I could recommend to an “Out” student of mine. This site provides an article that mentions various issues people in the gay community face. The subtitles include: “The Persistence of Stereotypes”, “The Threat of Physical Danger and Death”, “The Threat of Loneliness and Unhappiness”, “Community Distrust of Gays and Lesbians as Role Models”, “Depicting Homosexuality as a Problem”, “Aids in Young Adult Literature”, “The Lack of Diversity in Young Adult Fiction”, and “Some Positive and Constructive Young Adult Fiction.” The extraordinary part of this site is that books are recommended along with each of the subtitles sections. Be sure to catch the related entries and bibliography after the article for more resources.

Great Gay Teen Books:

http://www.alexsanchez.com/gay_teen_books.htm

This was the first site I ever came across while searching out books for LGBTQ students. Alex Sanchez is a well known author who is also gay and a counselor. On his site, Sanchez of course offers information about his own LGBT books with LGBT issues and characters. However, he also includes an updated list of other books and authors with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and/or transgender content. Sanchez includes a brief synopsis and recommends books that seem to be age appropriate.
The best part of this site is that Alex Sanchez offers multiple resources and links for people to utilize. To the left you will see links to see “What’s new” with his site, he offers information about himself, places to buy books, general youth resources for coming out, advice for writing, spirituality, a banned books list, and finally the best part is that Sanchez offers his email so anyone can email him with questions and/or comments.

Children’s and Young Adult Literature and Culture Links:

http://staff.missouriwestern.edu/users/cadden/

The site itself is an amazing resource for all! There are links provided for abundant sources of information. Information is separated into sections. These sections include: Young Adult Literature, The History of, Genre, Folklore and Mythology, Book Awards, Literature Journals, Literature Organizations, Censorship, Multiculturalism and International, Themes and Subjects, Authors/Illustrators, Research Tools, and Internet Information.

To Conclude:

Working in a city school, I have quite a diverse group of students. Each of the sites I have included happen to be sites I use on a fairly regular basis. I like to provide opportunities for all of my students to be themselves. I believe that it is important for students to be interested in what they read. At this stage of life, it can be argued that the most important thing to them is just that, themselves. A goal of mine is to increase the books my students read. This is done by providing books that they can relate to. Each of the sites provided act as important resources when I try to add Literature to my personal library collection at home and work. I have witnessed first hand the power of a book that a student can identify with and these electronic resources help me help them.