Reflection

This course has helped me to develop my own technology skills as a professional and as a teacher simply by teaching me various kinds of technology available. Before this course, I didn’t even know what a wiki really was. I was also unaware of how to set up my own blog or how to audio record on a computer and compile a podcast. These are all extremely easy, yet intimidating tasks. After taking this course, I feel as though I have a basic and broader knowledge of technology. It has really opened my eyes to the possibilities out there.

I feel as though I have a better understanding of the 21st century learner and how their learning styles vary from previous years. By learning about the 21st century skills and learner, it has helped me to understand what they need to know and how they need to be taught. In most cases, the days of quite classrooms, notes, and test are becoming obsolete. These days, students need activities, projects and real world applications that keep them engaged.

I now realize that my students are very different than even I was eight years ago as a student in high school. Since I was in high school, things have changed dramatically. We didn’t all have cell phones, MP3 players, laptops, GPS, digital cameras, etc. All of these things have becoming common household items for many in very recent years. Because of these changes in society, our students have changed as well. They need to stay engaged in the lesson and are curious and more willing to try and figure things out for themselves. Therefore, our classrooms need to be less about the teacher teaching and more about the students learning. The teacher needs to be the guide on the side more now than ever before.

To continue learning, teaching and leading with technology I plan to first finish my masters in Technology in Education. This will give me valuable skills and knowledge on how to use technology in the classroom. It will also allow me to be a valuable resource to my colleagues should they every want to incorporate technology into their classroom. In addition, we often have professional development opportunities throughout the school year and summer teaching us how to use various technologies. I plan to take advantage of these opportunities.

One goal I have for my classroom environment is to help my students become more independent thinkers. Right now, my students are extremely unconfident in their abilities. They are constantly calling me to their desk to see if they did something right or want me right there while they do a problem. This makes for a very hectic classroom environment when I’m being pulled in thirty different directions all the time. I want to help them develop the confidence and thought process to figure things out for themselves. This is something I have to do from the very beginning of school so they get used to it and are comfortable with the process. In order to accomplish this goal I want to talk to veteran teachers to see what is working for them. I also want to research some ideas on the internet and see if anything is working for anyone else out there. Why reinvent the wheel when I can just adapt it.

Another goal I want is to have a more student run classroom where they have a team mentality. Rather than me always leading the class and taking care of everyday classroom procedures, I want the students to take ownership and feel invested in their classmates. One of my colleagues gives each hour points everyday based on how well they behave and how they are doing academically. At the end of each week, the class (team) with the most points earns the right to play a short game or gets a prize. I like this idea because the students feel invested and responsible for what happens. I also think it helps promote a positive atmosphere if all the students are going for the same goal. In addition, I hope it reduces the amount of classroom control I have to administer. If there is a reward in sight, other students will assist in keeping their classmates (teammates) on task.