Confusion Reigns Supreme

[Wendy Farkas]

So many things are going through my head today. I made the mistake of looking at my credit card bill online last night - $75 gas, $25 Easypass, $76 gas, $25 Easypass, etc., etc. The stipend will barely cover it all, not to mention the wear and tear on me and my car. I hate driving up to the Bronx every day. I never know how bad the traffic will be, how long the bridge will be backed up, whether there will be an accident. . . I've enjoyed this class tremendously, and I've learned so much, but I will not do it again. On top of the expense, both financially and emotionally, I don't feel like I'm going to have a summer. Usually I've been to the beach half a dozen times by now, and I'm pretty tan. Friday was the first time I've been to the beach all summer! On top of that, we've planned a two week vacation at the end of the summer and as much as I enjoy vacations, they are not very relaxing the way my family does them. And as soon as we return, I have three days, then back to work.

I'm nervous about going back to work for some reason. I'd really like to use some of this technology in my classroom, including Ning and Hypertextopia, but without access to computers, I'm afraid I will have wasted my time this summer (adding to the emotional wear and tear), and I'll forget how to use some of this stuff. All in all, I guess the major emotion I'm feeling right now is frustration. I feel as though my school is so nonsupporting when it come to technology - yet there is so much in the building.

Added to all this is the idea of coming up with a research topic for this week. I'm feeling overwhelmed with figuring out not only if I can use this technology in my classroom, but how I can use it. Now I have to come up with a research topic about all this technology. I still have some questions about some of the things we've been using, such as Twitter; I still don't get it, but maybe my students will. I like Voicethread, but how many of my students will have headsets with a microphone that they can use? So far, Ning and Hypertextopia seem to be the most viable websites, so maybe my research will involve integrating them into a unit plan. I'll have to run that by Paul and see what he says.

[Julie]

I'm sorry that right now you're bogged down with time and expense. I understand -- we're living on a shoestring ourselves, and every time gas goes up, I blanch. I truly hope that in the long run, you'll find this work to have been worth everything you put into it. Tomorrow you'll get some support in finding a topic. You won't be left all alone to do it. I imagine that our students feel just as frustrated and overwhelmed at times -- this summer is our opportunity to think together about how we find the support to get what we need in teaching, and how we support our students as well.

[Sonali]

I, too, completely dislike commuting to the Bronx everyday! It is not so much a financial strain as it is a strain on my back. The 4 train doesn't have the seats that jerk my body foward and backward but it has the long stip seat that make me move side to side! Ouch! The class is worth the cost, but like you, I won't do it again.