Course Reflection

This course has helped me to develop my own technology skills by introducing me to the tools I need to implement into my lessons. Along with the introductions, came the assignments to use the tools, allowing me to explore and become familiar with the capabilities these tools allow for. I am now able to create blogs, wikis, and podcasts. I know how to use RSS feeds and to subscribe to various feeds that I can use as resources staying abreast of new advances in technology or sharing lessons with other teachers.

Social networking has deepened my knowledge of the teaching and learning process. “Social constructivism extends constructivism into social settings, wherein groups construct knowledge for one another, collaboratively creating a small culture of shared artifacts with shared meanings. When one is immersed within a culture like this one, one is learning all the time about how to be a part of that culture, on many levels” (Philosophy-MoodleDocs).

Reflecting back on these experiences, I felt frustrated, overwhelmed, anxious, but most importantly, excited. I looked forward to trying everything I was learning, including the audio podcast. I teach American Sign Language, so the last thing I want is for my students to use their voices. Yet, I could challenge my first year students to research various elements of Deaf culture and create a podcast to present a mini-report to the class, thereby using technology to present the information. Students can create personal diaries by making vodcasts of themselves signing as they complete each unit in our courses. They can download these into their iPods or mp3 players.The class will be more learner centered by allowing students to use creative ways of displaying their skills. Dr. David Thornburg, in his interview with Hall Davidson, stated that teachers have told him that technology has allowed them to move from a didactic teacher driven world to a more query driven project based world and that it has restored the joy of teaching for them. This is what this course has done for me.

By collaborating with other educators who use technology as a tool for teaching and learning, I will be able to continue learning, teaching, and leading with technology with the aim of increasing student achievement. Also, by allowing students to use their mp3 players as tools in their education, my goal is to capture their interest and engage them in their own learning. As teacher Randy Kolset stated, “let them explore, and pretty soon you have the kids making a connection with the school, the curriculum, and their ideas” (Laureate Education, Inc., 2008)

I have set two-long term goals for incorporating technology into my classroom. The first goal I have already started by creating a classroom website for my students to use blogs and wikis. It is still in the early stages of me learning how to navigate through it and set it up for the students to start working on it. I had to go to my principal and technology director to get approval and have the account created. The second goal is to incorporate the use of vodcasts in our activities. By allowing students to create videos of themselves, they would be producing an ongoing video journal or portfolio that they can use as a resource to display their growth and continuing skills in our class. They could also upload their videos to YouTube.com or to their mp3 players. We could invite administrators and colleagues into our classrooms to observe students presenting their work created on vodcasts to illustrate their learning both in the curriculum and in the use of technology as an educational tool.

References:
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2008). Understanding the impact of technology on education, work, and society. Baltimore: Author.

Philosophy. MoodlesDoc. Retrieved from http://docs.moodle.org/en/Philosophy. October 29, 2009.