What am I doing?

As you can see from the header, this blog will document my learning about and through computers, with a particular emphasis on how these experiences inform my classroom practice. Specifically, I will write about what happens over the next several weeks as I complete my projects for IT 521 (Computer Applications in Education), a course I am taking at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville.

The projects I have chosen to undertake include:

• develop a "computer disaster recovery plan," in which I wipe my hard drive clean and re-install the operating system (a worthy undertaking, as these days disaster seems imminent just about every time I turn on my computer)
• install and run an Ubuntu operating system on my tired, old laptop
• develop, design, and create a classroom homepage using NVu and/or Moodle (an open source course management program)
• develop an online list of searchable, browsable URL's using Webliographer, and link this list to the project site I am building in IT 578 (intro to web design)
• create a Wiki
• use strictly web-based and open source applications for the remainder of the semester