Thing 9

I'm amazed at how much teaching and learning has and continues to change as a result of Web 2.0. While this year will be my 17th year of teaching, I haven't been a classroom teacher for the last 10 years. (Wow - hard to believe!) When I was in the classroom, computers were used for typing and for games. The latest and greatest that I had in the classrooms were the AlphaSmarts. This allowed my students to use technology to type their stories and such. When I think about how technology is used in the classrooms today, I am both excited and amazed. Teachers are using sites such as You Tube and Discovery Education to make real-life connections and make learning come alive for students. As I have been exposed to the first "things" in this course, I can imagine how the use of blogs can be used in Language Arts classrooms especially. While I am no longer in the classroom, I do teach a graduate level math class for those who wish to become teachers. Last year, I modified my course to include the use of the SmartBoard. I'm already thinking that I will need to modify more to include new opportunities with technology - ones that have been new to me through this course.

While I believe that teaching has greatly changed, I'm beginning to realize that it must change even more than it is. In many conversations with Terri B., she stresses how important it is for us, as educators, to utilize the learning styles of our students. The kids we are teaching spend much of their free time interacting with technology, whether it be video games, You Tube or Facebook. Unfortunately (for them), many students require the stimulation that comes from these forms of technology to motivate them to learn. Most teachers will admit to complaining that students lack the motivation to learn. I believe, now more than ever, that we have to find what motivates them to learn - much of what we are learning through this course may be the answer. As I see it, we are pretty fortunate. For the most part, we do have the technology available in Newington to provide these opportunities to students. However, I doubt that many teachers are truly aware of all that is available to us at our fingertips - I know I wasn't. While I still have a ways to go with this course, I feel it is essential for all educators. I hope that you continue to make it available to others in the district. That is one way for change to happen.

As for the ethical use of interactive resources, I feel that most educators don't truly understand enough about ethical use. I thought I knew about it, but found myself learning a great deal more from the information in this "thing." I know I'll definitely refer back to it when I have future questions. I believe that just as we have to watch a blood-born pathogens video each year to refresh our understanding, we should also have to go through a review of copyright for both print and electronic media. I know that I am not as diligent about either as I need to be. Once this is done, I believe that all education must begin in Kindergarten. I must say that I am not familiar with the library/media standards, but library/media specialists and technology teachers shouldn't be solely responsible for imparting knowledge of ethical use since they won't be the ones that use all of the resources with students on a daily basis. I don't know how it should or could be incorporated into our existing curricula, but it is necessary. As students progress through the grades they will have greater need to utilize these interactive resources and must be taught to use them responsibly!

Wow! While this was not the most exciting of the "things" so far, it sure gave me a lot to think (and write) about!