Reflection 8

Lets' see what were my aha moments. I would have to say that one of my aha moments was finding out what a wiki actually was. I have been in numerous conversations with people where they start talking in "computer lingo" and I get totally lost. It was nice to actually know what they were talking about.

Another of my aha moments was learning the difference between a site that was real and one that was not. You take for granted that everything that you look up on the web is real. I know that I have many times. I am just lucky that I never used any information that wasn't true. It is scary to know that there are people out there that would take some of that information that is not correct and believe it. It would just be horrendous if someone actually taught it to their students.

I have really enjoyed this class even though I have complained to my family numerous times that I can't wait until it is over. I hope that everyone got as much out of this class as I did.I know now what I need to work on. I am going to try very hard to use what I have learned in this class in the job that I have now. Even though I am not currently teaching I can use this information now so when I do get that interview that I know will come one day I will have the right answers.

Reflection 7

I chose to do my lesson plan using Google Earth and the reason that I did was because I love it! It is a technology that I loved to learn because it was something that was very interesting to me. I know that that is one of the major keys when it comes to learning. You have to make it fun and exciting. If you can find something that catches your attention enough that you want to explore and learn more about it, it makes learning fun and not a chore.

I know that I would be able to use this in the classroom. I believe that by using this tool you could teach many different lessons and make them mean something to the student. You know what happens when you make it meaningful. That's right, they might actually remember what they learned!!!! By teaching the use of this technology I hope that it would inspire the student to go home and tell all their family members what they learned and then if they have a computer at home be able to show their family what they learned.

reflection 6

The implications that technology will have on teaching will be great . It will change the way we present material . Students will learn using computers with webcams from home instead of in the classroom. One thing stopping this is funds for getting computers for each child. If I could change how schools received there money to be based on need instead of location I would .

Now that I am not running to the bathroom to throw up any more I will elaborate on this reflection.

I know that in many of my assignments I have commented on money and I know that some may think that it might be in excess but I know that it makes the world go round. As much as I would like to think that if teachers were paid more and there was a limitless supply closet that the children would learn more would not be true then I wish it was. There are a lot of people now days that are leaving the coporate world and comming to the teaching world. Many of them think that teaching is easy and it would much less stressful to teach then be in business meetings. Well they are wrong. The downside to them coming is that the people who really want to teach and can't because somebody else knew the right words to say in the interview get the job.
Sorry got a little personal there.

week 5

The purpose that I had in mind for my wiki is to help me get connected with the vice president of our company and to get organized. I am going to use it to let him know how things are being managed. He always wants updates and to give advice on certain things going on in the business. I have not had the opportunity to implement this idea yet but I am going to start using in the following weeks.

The advantages of using this wiki is I can have all of the information right there for any member of our company to look at and give me ideas on what needs to be improved or be handled different. The disadvantage to using a wiki is that some people will not know the technology to use it. I will probably have to have a conference with everyone and show them how to access and use the wiki. It probably will not be hard for most but some have trouble using the fax machine.

I think that using a wiki for the digital natives would be good. They might see it as to simple though. I really enjoyed starting my wiki. I am actually looking forward to adding to it and using it at my job.

Reflection week 4

I chose to use the principle that stated for effective planning and teaching and learning. I think that this principle is very important because if you don't have a plan then how are you going to teach. The potential for portfolio assessment is huge. I think that if you are able to use this form of assessment then the overall achievements that would be displayed would be better than just going by a grade scale that was an average of test scores.
Some students due better on some days than others. If you were able to just focus on the best of the best then you wouldn't have the problem of having to use every test score that was given. The only downfall of a portfolio assessment that I can see is that we are taught to go by what the test score is. Many districts have rules and regulations that have to be followed and I haven't seen any that have used a portfolio assessment as a tool. It can be a lot of work. Teachers have so many laws that have to be obeyed that I can see where you would not be able to use this assessment tool.
I have a hard time envisioning how my e-portfolio will help me but I do think that it might help me with planning for a job interview. I would have all of my best work at my finger tips and many districts like to see the use of technology when you are interviewing. If I could give them my site address it might be a little impressive.

Reflection week #3

This exercise really opened my eyes. I never really thought about how true the information was that I was researching on the web. I just took for granted that if it was on here that it was accurate. I am amazed on how you can check the validity of the web page that you looking at. I am hoping that all of the information that I have used in the past was from credible websites.Every time that I do research now I am going to make sure and check to make sure the resources that I am using are true. I usually use wikipedia or the library resources on the A&M site. I know that every class I have taken has said make sure not to plagiarize. But it never said how to check to make sure the information that you are using is true.

We need to make sure that the students we are teaching today know this information. There are so many things on the Internet that are not true. Most kids would say that if they saw it on TV it is true so it would be the same for the Internet I am sure. I know that using Delicious can be useful. I found it hard to use and that is probably because I am not confident at learning new things using the computer unless I have someone here showing me what to push and where to go. I like my Favorites tab on Internet Explorer. It is convenient and easy for me to use. Being able to catalog websites though can be very useful especially if you are networking with others. It would be easier for others to find what they were looking for on your sites if they were listed in a certain order.

I know that once I start to use it I will learn how to tag and bookmark better. I can see this being useful in sharing documents and information that I have found for assignments. All this technology and my brain is on overload!!!!!

educational technology

I have learned that educational technology is the study and ethical practice of facilitating learning and improving performance by creating, using and managing appropriate technological processes and resources. Which in my mind says that as a teacher you need to be integrating in your curriculum the necessary tools that your students will need to survive in this new world of technology. The concept of using podcasts and cell phones in the classroom setting is scary to me. I want to say the reason is because I don't feel like you should be able to have a cell phone at school but the real reason is because I don't fully know how to use all of the technology. This class has already opened my eyes with the little bit we have done already.
I think that my philosophy is on track with the information that I have found out so far. I know that the coming years are going to be very hard for some school districts though. I would like to know where they are going to get the money to fund all of the technology that is going to be necessary for the learning of this generation. I also would like to know what is going to happen to all of the teachers who don't know all of this information? Will they have the opportunity to learn and be capable to teach the new technologies.Will their pay grade suffer for all of the expenses that will incur due to this new technology? Also what will happen to the tax payers? Will the taxes go up to fund this? I know it sounds that I am against all of this but these are just questions that I have. It was staggering to find out how much tv and video game use you use by the time you graduate. 10,000 to 20,000 hours!
I have this last comment: I cant wait to see in the following years what happens to the way our kids are taught. I believe that paper books will soon not exist in schools.