Here is a fun little image to represent our team name!
Thursday, June 20, 2013
Group Work????
What are your thoughts on group work? Do you dread it and avoid it like the plague? Or Do you embrace the opportunity to share the workload? I, for one, am a collaborator and enjoy working with others, but working with strangers in a partially online course??? Scary! However, after I signed up for my group, Mobile Devices and Apps, I ‘met’ in Cyberspace three amazing ladies. I cannot wait to meet them in person during our on campus portion of our course. I think we are going to do very well!
Here is a fun little image to represent our team name!
Here is a fun little image to represent our team name!
Fears, Reflections, and Challenges: Preparing for Class
Sometimes getting started is the hardest part!
As I prepare for a doctoral level technology course, the differences between RAM and ROM run through my head like a bad commercial lyric. Many would say I am “techy” and should have no fear entering this journey of “Technology Practice for Instructional Improvement.” However, the fear of the unknown is always a bit unsettling. My professor seems to have a good sense of humor, as he provided a comical scenario of what life during our class will be like and he is frequently “spamming” us with good reads that he admittedly knows we may not read (I will, of course!).
To me, technology is a game changer. It links our classrooms to the outside world in unconceivable ways. I began teaching ten years ago and was thankful to have three classroom computers. During my second year teaching, I “won” a district essay contest on how I would use a projector in the classroom. What a difference it made to have the ability to project my computer onto a standard whiteboard. Noting the improvements and increased interactions of my kindergarteners, my principal purchased a Promethean board for my classroom the next year. Using this experience, I now provide professional development on the use of interactive white boards to increase student learning.
With the development of mobile devices, like iPads and other tablets, learning has transformed. In my fourth grade classroom, the use of the devices helped provide immediate feedback, numerous connections to life outside of the classroom, and the ability to research the Web that once was limited to the coveted three classroom computers.
My concern is not the use and the implementation of technology, but the lack of use and implementation of technology. Staying current on the latest and greatest developments in technology is difficult for any busy teacher, and all too often school districts invest money in amazing technologies that end up sitting in a closet and collecting dust.
My goal as an educator is to inspire teachers to use the best tools available and prepare students to be successful life-long learners!
As a classroom teacher, what are your challenges with technology?
As I prepare for a doctoral level technology course, the differences between RAM and ROM run through my head like a bad commercial lyric. Many would say I am “techy” and should have no fear entering this journey of “Technology Practice for Instructional Improvement.” However, the fear of the unknown is always a bit unsettling. My professor seems to have a good sense of humor, as he provided a comical scenario of what life during our class will be like and he is frequently “spamming” us with good reads that he admittedly knows we may not read (I will, of course!).
To me, technology is a game changer. It links our classrooms to the outside world in unconceivable ways. I began teaching ten years ago and was thankful to have three classroom computers. During my second year teaching, I “won” a district essay contest on how I would use a projector in the classroom. What a difference it made to have the ability to project my computer onto a standard whiteboard. Noting the improvements and increased interactions of my kindergarteners, my principal purchased a Promethean board for my classroom the next year. Using this experience, I now provide professional development on the use of interactive white boards to increase student learning.
With the development of mobile devices, like iPads and other tablets, learning has transformed. In my fourth grade classroom, the use of the devices helped provide immediate feedback, numerous connections to life outside of the classroom, and the ability to research the Web that once was limited to the coveted three classroom computers.
My concern is not the use and the implementation of technology, but the lack of use and implementation of technology. Staying current on the latest and greatest developments in technology is difficult for any busy teacher, and all too often school districts invest money in amazing technologies that end up sitting in a closet and collecting dust.
My goal as an educator is to inspire teachers to use the best tools available and prepare students to be successful life-long learners!
As a classroom teacher, what are your challenges with technology?
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