Well, cyber-world, I have come to the end of my blog-trial period and I must say I have really enjoyed journaling my thoughts with you! I started this journey to fulfill a requirement for my technology class, but have realized that this experiment was quite fun! I find it relaxing yet exhilarating at the same time; I am able to share my thoughts yet must be careful because there are thousands of people out there able to read and query my opinions at any given time.
Here's the question...have YOU learned anything along MY journey???
Throughout this particular technology class I have learned and played around with a variety of tech-savvy mediums, including: blogs, wikis, social media forums, podcasts, personal webpages, webquests, virtual fieldtrips, and many ways to integrate all of this technology into a lesson plan. Some of these systems I was familiar with, some I had never heard of. I would say I most enjoyed building the webquest – I had heard of a webquest prior, but had no idea how to create, utilize or integrate such into a lesson plan. Not only did I enjoy researching and finding webquests that would be appropriate for my classroom, but also it was quite fun designing one that I know will be useful in my current curriculum.
I truly believe the MOST important lesson learned throughout any technology class is not a particular skill, but the notion that we CAN do it! Technology is not something to be feared or pushed aside, as teachers it is most important for us to take the time, utilize resources, and learn new ideas – for the sake of our 21st century students.
So…go out there, dive into a new medium of technology, and most importantly...FEAR NOT, you ARE a tech-savvy teacher!
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Does Professional Development Still Exist Out There???
Hi teacher friends! In this blog post I want to discuss professional development – particularly in the technology realm. Does your school offer any sort of ongoing professional development for different technology medias? Tell me about the things your staff does!
At my school, we have NO professional development money these days, it is so sad! What’s even worse, I would say about 85% of our staff is made up of those we would call digital immigrants. We NEED technology help!
This particular course I am currently taking has really inspired me to be a leader in the field of technology for my colleagues. At my school, one other teacher and I make up the “technology committee.” This committee was formed for some sort of grant approval; I don’t think either of us has ever been asked to do anything. Recently talking with her we made a plan; every other week, at our primary level staff meetings, we will be taking turns sharing a quick 15-20 minute tutorial on some form of technology integration. I would LOVE some ideas – what kind of ideas should I present?
I feel the need to start with the basics. Just this month, all of the teachers got a new desktop computer; of course it was equipped with the new Windows and Microsoft 10 programs. As I previously mentioned, many teachers had a panic attack. Therefore, at our last meeting, I used my Smart Board to showcase a quick “how-to” of things.
I also plan on introducing things I’ve learned from this class: easy ways to create a WebPage, WebQuests, Blogs, and how to take Virtual Field Trips. I want to show teachers how to integrate their Smart Boards and classroom computers into every day lessons as well.
Mainly my plan is to let the other teachers guide me; I think their questions/interests will set the focus of things. I would love to hear other ideas!!!
At my school, we have NO professional development money these days, it is so sad! What’s even worse, I would say about 85% of our staff is made up of those we would call digital immigrants. We NEED technology help!
This particular course I am currently taking has really inspired me to be a leader in the field of technology for my colleagues. At my school, one other teacher and I make up the “technology committee.” This committee was formed for some sort of grant approval; I don’t think either of us has ever been asked to do anything. Recently talking with her we made a plan; every other week, at our primary level staff meetings, we will be taking turns sharing a quick 15-20 minute tutorial on some form of technology integration. I would LOVE some ideas – what kind of ideas should I present?
I feel the need to start with the basics. Just this month, all of the teachers got a new desktop computer; of course it was equipped with the new Windows and Microsoft 10 programs. As I previously mentioned, many teachers had a panic attack. Therefore, at our last meeting, I used my Smart Board to showcase a quick “how-to” of things.
I also plan on introducing things I’ve learned from this class: easy ways to create a WebPage, WebQuests, Blogs, and how to take Virtual Field Trips. I want to show teachers how to integrate their Smart Boards and classroom computers into every day lessons as well.
Mainly my plan is to let the other teachers guide me; I think their questions/interests will set the focus of things. I would love to hear other ideas!!!
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Tech-Concerns!
Hey Tech-Savvy teachers, do you ever get concerned about integrating and applying various technologies into your daily lessons? Do you worry about things now working out correctly, internet being down, or if you are doing it “right?”
I love technology and I am all about integrating as much as I can for today’s 21st century learners, but I have four main concerns: Knowledge, Equipment, Time, and Internet problems. Let’s dig a little deeper…
First, Knowledge. I don’t know about you all, but most of my tech-savvy skills have come from my own computer background; things I learned in high school tech classes, college courses, or by basically “figuring it out.”
I feel as if a lot of teachers are fearful of different forms of technology because they simply haven’t been shown or taught. We could alleviate this by holding monthly in-services on a wide variety of tech-related topics or by attending more professional development opportunities. For example, just yesterday each teacher in our building received a new “teacher” computer. Our technology director came around to each room and installed it for us, but never said a word that we were going to log on and WHAM, find Windows 10. HELLO, it is a whole new world! I played around during my lunch hour and was able to mostly figure things out, but after school I ran into several other teachers having a mental breakdown. I heard, “I can’t find ANYthing!” and “I can’t even log on!” The worst, “The button to turn it on isn’t in the same spot, I don’t know what to do!” Wow, talk about some distress! Hence, the more we are able to learn, the easier it will be to integrate technology into your daily life.
My next concern is Equipment. Well, I previously stated that our whole staff received a new computer yesterday, but don’t jump out of your pants, our old teacher computer was at least EIGHT years old! We were LONG overdue! Schools everywhere just don’t have an abundant amount of updated equipment. In my classroom I have two student computers; neither have internet hook-up. They are both dinosaurs and can barely carry out an old Garfield math game I installed years ago. Our computer lab consists of 20 (yes, not even enough for a whole class to use at once) computers and all are composed of mismatched parts and various Windows versions. They do have internet connection, but boy if you want to surf the web, I hope you have some time! The only thing I can think to improve this problem is if the school had a larger technology budget (I know, I’m dreaming right?!). Administrators are going to have to see sooner or later that this is not just the direction in which we are already heading, but where we should already be! However, teachers should not give up, they need to try and work with what they have. Even if they start slow by merely integrating an internet/technology based project once a semester or so.
Time is a HUGE concern for everybody involved. Teachers are feeling like they are getting more and more responsibilities piled on every day, with less time to get things done. We are constantly testing, providing interventions, testing again, remediating, testing again, etc. When is there time to let the kids have “fun?” Not to mention, we have to take TIME to seek new ideas and learn about different forms of technology. Again, my suggestion for teachers is to start slow. When I got my Smart board I was a little overwhelmed at first, so I set a goal to use it once a day, even if it was just an interactive game at the end of the day. Slowly, I have started incorporating the board into everyday lessons. I think teachers should sit down and decide what kind of technology ideas they would like to incorporate: blogs, podcasts, a class webpage, an online newsletter, Webquests, etc. Then they should set a goal to do one of those things each week/month/grading period or whatever they feel comfortable with. What are your ideas? How do you all incorporate the Internet or other technology into your classroom?
My final concern is the availability and quality of Internet that is out there for students and staff. I work in a very rural, poverty-stricken area and Internet is not widely available or even a top priority to families. Staff in our corporation must be very careful about assigning internet-based homework that cannot be done at school. Like I said before, at our elementary level we only have a lab of about 20 computers that have the Internet; this is not enough for a whole class to go in and do a project together. However, this goes back to the equipment problem, and I have complained enough about that! My final thought on this is the quality of internet we have; VERY slow. The only solution I can come up with, is when I do take a group of students to the lab, I can’t let them just surf around on their own – it will take forever! I need to make sure I am directing them to the websites I want them to research or look at so we can get our project started right away. Any other ideas?
These are my technology concerns, now it’s your turn! I’d love to know how other teachers are feeling; take some time and share YOUR fears, horror stories, or solutions to the technology crisis!
I love technology and I am all about integrating as much as I can for today’s 21st century learners, but I have four main concerns: Knowledge, Equipment, Time, and Internet problems. Let’s dig a little deeper…
First, Knowledge. I don’t know about you all, but most of my tech-savvy skills have come from my own computer background; things I learned in high school tech classes, college courses, or by basically “figuring it out.”
I feel as if a lot of teachers are fearful of different forms of technology because they simply haven’t been shown or taught. We could alleviate this by holding monthly in-services on a wide variety of tech-related topics or by attending more professional development opportunities. For example, just yesterday each teacher in our building received a new “teacher” computer. Our technology director came around to each room and installed it for us, but never said a word that we were going to log on and WHAM, find Windows 10. HELLO, it is a whole new world! I played around during my lunch hour and was able to mostly figure things out, but after school I ran into several other teachers having a mental breakdown. I heard, “I can’t find ANYthing!” and “I can’t even log on!” The worst, “The button to turn it on isn’t in the same spot, I don’t know what to do!” Wow, talk about some distress! Hence, the more we are able to learn, the easier it will be to integrate technology into your daily life.
My next concern is Equipment. Well, I previously stated that our whole staff received a new computer yesterday, but don’t jump out of your pants, our old teacher computer was at least EIGHT years old! We were LONG overdue! Schools everywhere just don’t have an abundant amount of updated equipment. In my classroom I have two student computers; neither have internet hook-up. They are both dinosaurs and can barely carry out an old Garfield math game I installed years ago. Our computer lab consists of 20 (yes, not even enough for a whole class to use at once) computers and all are composed of mismatched parts and various Windows versions. They do have internet connection, but boy if you want to surf the web, I hope you have some time! The only thing I can think to improve this problem is if the school had a larger technology budget (I know, I’m dreaming right?!). Administrators are going to have to see sooner or later that this is not just the direction in which we are already heading, but where we should already be! However, teachers should not give up, they need to try and work with what they have. Even if they start slow by merely integrating an internet/technology based project once a semester or so.
Time is a HUGE concern for everybody involved. Teachers are feeling like they are getting more and more responsibilities piled on every day, with less time to get things done. We are constantly testing, providing interventions, testing again, remediating, testing again, etc. When is there time to let the kids have “fun?” Not to mention, we have to take TIME to seek new ideas and learn about different forms of technology. Again, my suggestion for teachers is to start slow. When I got my Smart board I was a little overwhelmed at first, so I set a goal to use it once a day, even if it was just an interactive game at the end of the day. Slowly, I have started incorporating the board into everyday lessons. I think teachers should sit down and decide what kind of technology ideas they would like to incorporate: blogs, podcasts, a class webpage, an online newsletter, Webquests, etc. Then they should set a goal to do one of those things each week/month/grading period or whatever they feel comfortable with. What are your ideas? How do you all incorporate the Internet or other technology into your classroom?
My final concern is the availability and quality of Internet that is out there for students and staff. I work in a very rural, poverty-stricken area and Internet is not widely available or even a top priority to families. Staff in our corporation must be very careful about assigning internet-based homework that cannot be done at school. Like I said before, at our elementary level we only have a lab of about 20 computers that have the Internet; this is not enough for a whole class to go in and do a project together. However, this goes back to the equipment problem, and I have complained enough about that! My final thought on this is the quality of internet we have; VERY slow. The only solution I can come up with, is when I do take a group of students to the lab, I can’t let them just surf around on their own – it will take forever! I need to make sure I am directing them to the websites I want them to research or look at so we can get our project started right away. Any other ideas?
These are my technology concerns, now it’s your turn! I’d love to know how other teachers are feeling; take some time and share YOUR fears, horror stories, or solutions to the technology crisis!
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