When I was told that I had to take a technology class I was scared out of my wits. The reason I was so scared is because I did not know the difference between download and upload. I was not feeling confident taking an online class about technology. I thought to myself, if I don’t understand technology then how in the world will learn it online! I have never been one for anything to do with technology. I felt if I had made it this far without knowing then it would not hurt me to make it the rest of my life. This class has proven me wrong, it has taught me that you can teach an old dog new tricks.
There were so many things that I have learned this semester, it has really been a useful class. The first assignment of the year was to set up a blog on blogger.com. I had no idea what a blog truly was. So apprehensively I created an account and attempted to make my page visually appealing. I introduced myself and realized how easy it was to blog. I really thought it was a unique way of keeping up with each other’s work. The blog was a productive way to learn a lot of knowledge quickly. Reading and commenting on each others’ discussions on the assigned questions was helpful because it allowed each person to reinforce their knowledge on that particular chapter. I believe blogging is a great way to share information, build relationships between others who may not necessarily ever meet face to face, and at the same time learn basic technology skills. It is definitely a tool that I would use in the classroom. I hope to find a job teaching middle school or high school social studies, speech communication, or drama. I think for drama it would be a great way for students to share ideas about upcoming productions and keep in constant contact. It is a great way for students to stay motivated to work on the assignments.
Threaded discussion is also a great way for students to share information. A threaded discussion is very helpful because it allows a more focused discussion. The threaded discussion allows the student to get feedback and give feedback. I really like the idea of using threaded discussion in my classroom. I like the idea of students discussing topics and feel that is would be a very good way to incorporate technology into the classroom. In the social studies classroom I could post a topic, for example “what is your thought on the civil rights movement”? The threaded discussion could be a great way to introduce a topic before it is taught in the classroom. The students could then read what others think it is and discuss what they think it is. Then it would allow for the students to come to a common ground before the chapter is taught in the classroom.
I had never viewed a podcast before this class. I thought the idea behind the podcast was awesome. It is definitely a way to reinforce the material being taught. One of the first chapters that we read discussed the needs of students. All students learn differently and technology is an assistive way to incorporate different techniques into the classroom. Some students have to hear something to understand it. A podcast is a great tool for the students who like to hear the material. I definitely am going to use podcast in my classroom. My idea is to make the podcast available on the classroom website so that whenever the student needs to go back and review the lessons they will be available to them. I think there are several ways you could treat podcasts, you could have them as the whole lecture or just reviewing the key points.
The video clips were also a very useful tool, one of my personal favorites. The students’ variety of learning needs is always going to be priority in the classroom. Every teacher should make sure they are incorporating as many different learning techniques into the classroom. This technique now combines auditory and visual learning. This would also be a great tool to make available through the class website so the students could access it anytime they needed to. The reason this tool was one of my personal favorites is because I love to see it and hear it, that is what really helps me learn the information. That is one of the reasons that I was so apprehensive about taking an online class. I like to see the teacher, hear the teacher and be able to interact with the rest of the class. I thought that would not be possible in an online class. However, you have done an incredible job meeting all the students’ needs to learn. You made sure that there was interaction between students; the blog, threaded discussion, and email, then you made many different techniques available to us to learn the information; the book, podcasts, blog, video clips, and most importantly were available to lend assistance during your office hours, or any time through email. This class became a wonderful learning experience for me.
List serv is awesome, I have been using this tool for a while. So, I guess that I had been introduced into a little technology before this class. Mind you, not very much because I really did struggle through some of the assignments. Now the list serv is a very useful tool because it allows grouping of email contacts. I think that it would be very useful in a classroom for the students and the parents. The students could create a list serv for a group project. Then they would have a way to email back and forth between just that group without having to add every single email address each time. It is also a great way for parents to keep up with what is going on in the classroom. The teacher and parents could stay in communication easily with a list serv. It would allow the teacher to send out the syllabus or a reminder of different school functions and much more. I will definitely use list serv in my classroom both for students and parents. For students I will have many group projects. Each different project I will have students create a list serv for that particular group. I believe incorporating technology for practical reasons is a fantastic way for students to learn its importance.
The hands-on-projects were definitely what I struggled through the most. Coming from a technology free background, everything was brand new for me! So it was a little harder to figure some of them out than it would have been having some prior knowledge. However, they were a great learning experience for me. Most of them were very interesting and when I started I actually really enjoyed figuring out how to do it. I also saw how practical they would be for the classroom and wanted to learn how so that I would be able to incorporate them into my teaching. Some of my favorites were the trackstar, puzzles, and movie maker. I had the most trouble with movie maker. It was hard to figure out how to get the narration to work and there were a lot of tricky steps when it came to saving all the files correctly so that it would work. As usual I tried to get ahead of myself and when I went back through the instructions it was perfectly explained step by step. So I was able to figure it out through the instructions. I think that movie maker would be such an interesting tool for the students. I plan on using it in my classroom because it will keep the students engaged and wanting to learn. Especially in the “Information Age” students are really enjoying technology. It has become a way of life for the students and should be incorporated into the classroom as much as possible. I believe if the students learn to use technology then it will increase their chances of finding a good job, being independent, and furthering their education. The puzzles were really cool, because they would be a good intro activity and also reinforcement of information. I could see using the puzzles as a bell ringer activity. The students would enjoy it because it’s a puzzle, and it would get their brain on track for the subject matter. The easy test maker is a great tool for the teacher and the students because it allows the teacher to make a test following simple steps. The tool is useful for the student because it presents them with a well-organized, easy to follow, and visually appealing test to take. I plan on incorporating all of the hands on projects into the classroom, there was not one that I did not find useful and practical. I am blessed to have had the opportunity to learn all of these tools and become confident enough to use them in the classroom.
I was a little apprehensive about the web page, because I was scared of how difficult I thought it was going to be. However, thank Google for Google! The simplicity of the all of the tools made available from Google is so helpful. I enjoyed learning more about what you can do through having a Google account. The first thing I actually used outside of class in my work place was Google Docs. I had a document the students and parents needed access to through the internet. I uploaded the document through Google Docs and then created a link for the document and posted the link on the school web page. It was so cool to see something I actually had only learned a couple of days prior solve a problem that I could have had a melt down over! Secondly, the web page was made very simple through Google. I applaud them for their well designed and easy to use programs. I thought the web page would be hard and it turned out to be very interesting. I also can see this being one of the most important uses of educational technology. The web page is where students and parents can have access to the class and assistance anytime they need it. The web page allows you to post the podcasts, video clips, activities, syllabus, and links to good websites. It allows the students and parents all the information they need to be successful in the class. It is a great tool for every educator to use for their classroom.
The electronic portfolio is also a wonderful idea. It is like when a caterpillar becomes a butterfly. Portfolios have been used as an assessment tool for ages. It is seems fit for it to grow into something more practical for the “Information Age”. I think the students would be interested in it and would have fun doing it. Students love to express their creativity and I think a blogfolio and electronic portfolio are great ways of letting the student make it their own. This type of activity could be used for all kinds of assignments, and its versatility is what makes it so useful.
I have to say that after this class I don’t feel that I have weak points, because I have learned how to swallow my pride and open myself up to new things. My weakness during the semester was being so apprehensive and scared of technology. My strength is that I learned technology was put here for a reason. It gives assistance in learning and makes everyday tasks a whole lot easier. So I would have to say the best thing I got out of this course is an appreciation for technology in education. I plan on incorporating technology into the curriculum whenever I have a chance. I plan to use it to reinforce knowledge, build knowledge, and teach the students to become comfortable with technology. I am so glad that I no longer have any weaknesses in technology and am a strong-minded, knowledge seeking individual. I plan to keep up-to-date with new technology so I can further enhance my instruction in the classroom. I also plan to take any workshops offered through professional development on technology and seek out ways to improve my skills.
Week 13 (Chapter 11 & 12)
16 years ago
