EDLD 5364 Week 5 Reflection

As I reflect this week upon this class, I am reminded of how technology use in education is vital for student success. Throughout this course, I have added tools to assist me in incorporating technology into my classroom. In the Howard Garner video, he speaks of the changing times we are experiencing these days. He speaks of how easy the of retrieving information from a website is for anyone with internet access. Instead of looking up words in paperback dictionaries, you can find the dictionaries on line now. As teachers we need to prepare our classrooms for the digital age and equip our learners to continue to make strides in it. Vision for technology in the Classroom speaks of the challenges we face with having the available technology. We have to make a change at home and school when it comes to technology. Technology is creating a new division between people. Those who have access to technology, and those that do not. We must make sure that are students continue to find new and exciting ways to incorporate technology into their lives. This will ensure that they will not be left behind in the digital age.

EDLD 5364 Week 4 Reflection

This week has been trying at times, and fun at others. I have tried to make sure that I am completing all of my assignments and getting them in on time. Last week was such a struggle that I feel that I am forgetting something this week. Using technology to teach students is something that I enjoy doing. Our group has been using ePals as a tool to connect different students from different countries to share experiences in the classroom. I am going to use this in my classroom this school year. I feel that students can learn so much by interacting with different people and learning from them. I believe that allowing students a variety of ways to demonstrate their learning benefits the student and the teacher. As I went through the readings and watch the videos this week, this belief was intensified. I want to have my students use different mediums to express themselves and what they have learned. I really enjoyed watching the videos about project based learning. I love the idea however, how can this work in a high stakes testing environment? This is the questions that prevents me from moving into this type of teaching.

EDLD 5364 Week 3 Reflection

Reflecting upon this weeks assignments, reading, and videos this week has been busy to say the least. I enjoyed using the UDL builder for my lesson plan. I also enjoyed using the book builder to create my eBook. I can see me using the book builder tool in my classroom with my students. My favorite videos were the ones that the kids were talking about using technology in their lives. This showed me that I must make sure that I am as up to date with technology as I can be. I want to make sure that I am able to assist my students with their use of technology as a tool.

EDLD 5364 Week 2 Reflection

This week, I have been reminded of just how important the use of technology can be to student success. Our students are "digital natives" and are in need of digital learning to impact them in the classroom. Students come to class with different abilities and needs each year. Teaching with technology can be used to bridge these differences to help all students learn. Using assistive technology with our special needs learners will help them become a very important part of the education process. I am always looking for new and exciting ways to incorporate technology into my classroom. I am currently setting up My Big Campus for my students to access videos, lectures, articles, podcasts, and much more information that we use in our classroom. My classes really enjoy using technology to enhance their learning. I have found that using technological tools increase my students retention of information.

EDLD 5364 Week 1 Reflection

As I reflect on the information that I have obtained this week, I feel that I have gained additional knowledge that will assist me in my classroom. I have heard about the constructivism view point of education for a long time. I was introduced to it while completing my undergraduate studies. I have felt that if I know what the students already know, I can build from that. I was quite interested by the new views of constructivism with regards to the use of technology. I enjoy seeking new opportunities to use technology to enhance my students learning. The article "If I Teach This Way, Am I Doing My Job: Constructivism in the Classroom," gave me a sense of affirmation. I chose to do this type of teaching in the classroom with an even heavier focus on technology integration. Connectivism is a new term for me. I can also see how I use this model in my classroom at certain times. I feel that it is important for students to work together to achieve their learning goals. I strive to create a safe learning environment for them to accomplish this. We work together to set the boundaries, and they work with each other in those boundaries to learn, and to help each other learn as well. Students need to learn that their education is not always just about them. Others have a hand in the process as well. A community of learners is essential for students to succeed. Cyborg sounds like something from the future to me. I have heard of this term while playing video games, but had not seen the information that was presented about this topic until now. I feel that the cyborg concept is interesting however, it is also disturbing at the same time. If we use technology to gain experiences instead of actively seeking them out, how will we know if those "downloaded" experience are offering true feelings? Experiences must be a whole body event, not just created in the mind. Being able to connect to others through the nervous system was quite interesting. I am not sure that connecting to others in this way would benefit us greatly in the educational world.