End of Semester One

            With the end of semester one my view of technology in the classroom has changed immensely.  Initially I viewed the use of technology in education as something separate and removed from learning.  It had the possibility to help with homework and in the conveyance of messages to my students.  Now I see it as morally unacceptable to not use technology directly in my classroom on a daily basis.  It is almost frightening to think that I have only now just begun to be involved in technology and that for the rest of my career it is imperative that I stay on the cutting edge of what the web has to offer.  It is a task that I look forward to with a certain amount of self-doubt, as I have never been very “techy” before.  However, I am optimistic that my students will know more about it than me and together we can create a high-tech environment for all of us.

       There were some things that I learned this year that I don’t know if I will use and there are others that are already now a part of my classroom plans for jobs I don’t yet have.  Voki’s are fun.  I think that the work I did in class with them was not appropriate for a middle school setting but I have applied them into my wiki in a way that was.  I loved making my wiki.  I will never have a class without them.  There are so many possibilities that are opened by them.  I especially like the idea of a “Parents Page.”  I know that in many cases a parent may not remember the material being presented to their children.  I feel like posting material in a way that an adult can learn it will be beneficial to the parents as they increase their own learning in a way without the fluff that a child may need.  Together, involved parents and their children can work together to increase their learning.

       Glogster seemed to me to be the least useful part of the class but I have not written it off completely.  Everything deserves a chance.  I have included it as an extra credit assignment on my wiki.  Who am I to determine what children will find useful and informative?

       Looking to the future I feel like I am ready to learn new ways of incorporating technology into my classroom.  I know my limitations of knowledge and ability, and I am aware of my comfort zone.  These limitations have been pushed over the last six weeks much further than I had imagined they would be. 

       There was a terrific video in GNA’s class of a woman using technology in her classroom.  There was a terraforming function of the program that she knew nothing about.  Her students took the lead, learning the program and then teaching her.  I feel like this is the kind of learning I would like to see in my classroom.  That is not to say that I will wait for students to teach me how to do everything, but there is merit in allowing them to freely choose and apply creatively a variety of software that I may not be familiar with. 

       In the end I feel very comfortable with technology (including the MacBook that I wanted to destroy 6 weeks ago).  I can’t wait to design a wiki page for my own classroom and to challenge my students to create dynamic multimedia artifacts of learning.