Well, by this point we have turned in our electronic portfolios, and we need to finish out the course with our last blog entry. I can honestly say that I have personally made serious strides in my technology journey. I think the biggest thing that I've learned is that classroom technology isn't as hard as I thought it would be. It turns out that all you need is a little effort and a few tutorials to figure out just about any tech available. I think that before this class, everything seemed to be so pretty and neat that I had assumed that you had to be an expert to create such things. Until a few weeks ago, I thought my buddy was really tech savvy because he could use Google Docs. Well, now I know that I could have figured this stuff out if I had put forth some effort. This class has instilled in me a sense of confidence with computers that I did not have before. Even at the school I work at, I've been using the smart board and a few of the web sites that I found using this class to work with the kids. They love it, and ask to do it all of the time.
One of my worries about becoming a teacher was that I wouldn't have enough ideas to keep the kids interested. This course has shown me a whole new way to approach things. I'm not saying that I'll be using technology in every thing I do, but it does give me another teaching tool to use. In my efforts to become an educator who can reach as many students as possible, this class has given me a wider range to work with, and I am grateful. It is my hope that I will continue on this avenue of exploration on my own, so that I can continue to grow. New resources are being made available all of the time, and as I've said before, it is my responsibility as an educator to keep up with those resources to the best of my ability. I hope that others have found this class to be as insightful as I have and have grown in the same regard.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Blog 3: 21st Century Skills
21st century skills consists of communication, collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking. These skill sets are highly sought after by today's employers. Therefore it is our duty as educators to help our students develop these skills. Technology is also a large part of today's work environment, and information accumulates at incredible speeds. It seems that technology will continue to become more and more part of our daily lives. As a teacher it is our responsibility to incorporate this into our students lives as much as possible.
It seems that combining 21st century skills and technology can easily go hand in hand. Many of the projects that we have worked on in our 505 class allow for this to happen. The interactive posters on Glogster for example depend on creativity. An individual must be able to create a visually stimulating board in order to keep their audience interested. Blogging is an excellent way for students to work on their communication skills. It allows them to develop ideas through conversations with their peers and instructors who can provide insightful feedback. Useful websites such as Cacoo allow for collaboration to happen on a grand scale. Students will need to work together to develop effective projects. Other sites such as Kidspiration help children with their critical thinking, by allowing them to put their information in a format that they can see and use.
I am glad that I took this course early in my journey towards a teaching license. As I continue taking classes, each time I learn new teaching methods and techniques in a variety of subjects, I will be able to formulate different ways that I can use technology to capitalize on the information. Before this class I was unaware of all of the resources that I had at my disposal. I feel that my classes would have been hindered by my lack on technological insight. I hope that those taking this course will carry with them, what they have learned. If an educator in training doesn't realize it now, they will soon realize that you need all of the help and resources you can get.
It seems that combining 21st century skills and technology can easily go hand in hand. Many of the projects that we have worked on in our 505 class allow for this to happen. The interactive posters on Glogster for example depend on creativity. An individual must be able to create a visually stimulating board in order to keep their audience interested. Blogging is an excellent way for students to work on their communication skills. It allows them to develop ideas through conversations with their peers and instructors who can provide insightful feedback. Useful websites such as Cacoo allow for collaboration to happen on a grand scale. Students will need to work together to develop effective projects. Other sites such as Kidspiration help children with their critical thinking, by allowing them to put their information in a format that they can see and use.
I am glad that I took this course early in my journey towards a teaching license. As I continue taking classes, each time I learn new teaching methods and techniques in a variety of subjects, I will be able to formulate different ways that I can use technology to capitalize on the information. Before this class I was unaware of all of the resources that I had at my disposal. I feel that my classes would have been hindered by my lack on technological insight. I hope that those taking this course will carry with them, what they have learned. If an educator in training doesn't realize it now, they will soon realize that you need all of the help and resources you can get.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)