"Blogs, wikis, and podcasts--oh my!"...

These were the words that first popped into my head when I received my textbook for this course and looked at the syllabus.  This course has been a whirlwind of information.  At first, I was intimidated by the title, “Understanding the Impact of Technology on Education, Work, and Society.”  It seemed like such a broad title that I felt like there was no way I could possibly grasp everything in one class.  I was trying to put everything into a box, but this course has helped me to open the box and allow it to explode with a new knowledge-base I have never experienced before.  It has opened my eyes to a whole new perspective on teaching that is student-centered.  While I still feel there is so much more I need to learn, this class has excited me and reinforced why I decided to choose integrating technology into the classroom as the emphasis for my master’s degree.

Before this course, I do not think I understood what a wiki was and how it was different than blogging.  In addition, I had heard about podcasting, but not realized how easy it was to create a podcast.  I definitely feel more confident in my ability to use all of these tools as well as how incorporate them in meaningful ways into the classroom.  In addition, RSS feeds have helped me organize information from current resources to stay up to date on latest trends in technology.  This is a practice I plan to continue throughout my teaching career and even beyond.

What a powerful tool just having the internet in the classroom!  Teachers can use the resources available on the internet to make what they are trying to teach students come alive.  “Technology provides many resources for use, holds students’ attention, and keeps them from misbehaving” (Associated Press, 2008).  A picture can quickly be accessed to use as visual representation for learning.  A virtual experiment can be used to help tactile learners gain deeper understanding.  The possibilities are truly endless. “With fast processors, advanced software, and powerful networks, we all have the opportunity to enter new informational worlds where the computer and its network connections can act as a tool for augmenting our minds as we strive to create understanding from a global deluge of faceless data and information (Thornburg, 2004).

Although I feel like I am just now starting to rethink my long-term goals, one of the goals I have set for myself is to incorporate at least one collaborative assignment using technology every month.  Because I have students that are constantly entering and exiting the program, I feel like monthly would be an excellent goal.  If I transition back to a regular classroom in the next two years, my goal would change from monthly to every unit.  I need to start small, so I would rather start out by just working on getting one together building up to once a month or every unit.  For example, to start I would focus on doing one every two months since most students are in the program for that length of time.  Once again, I have an institutional obstacle to overcome as I am bound by the curriculum handed to me by a corporate office.  However, I feel like I could use these tools to enhance student learning and prove to others that they have value in the classroom.

Another goal I have set for myself is to conduct a workshop for other teachers about ways technology can be used to achieve academic standards and promoting 21st century skills.  This would involve staying current in research and best practices in addition to incorporating the technology into my own classroom and teaching practices to learn from experience.  This is not something I feel prepared to do in the immediate future, but could see happening within the next two years, especially as I finish my master’s degree.  It would not only help transform my classroom, but the classroom of others, and maybe even an entire school or district.

Looking at the checklist from when we started, I feel like I have grown a lot.  At the beginning of this course, many of the practices I checked “sometimes” with a few checked “rarely.”  Now, I am in more of a mindset to move toward implementing many of the practices so that I would be able check “often.”    One of the practices I feel like I have grown the most in is helping students take control of their own learning by providing necessary tools and skills.  I also feel like I have grown a lot in incorporating technology in purposeful learning experiences by selecting appropritate tools to meet the goals determined for the lesson.  For example, I would never have thought about using blogs or wikis in the past for assignments with the students, but I see how both can be valuable tools to promote self-directed learning, collaboration, and other 21st century skills that will go a long way toward helping students beyond the classroom walls.

As far as developing technology skills for the school and workplace, I had never attempted a podcast before this class.  I was surprised at how easy it was to create a podcast.  Although time consuming at first, I think with more practice, I will become proficient enough to create them more quickly and be able to show my students how to create them as well.  As I look back on the checklist, I feel like I have grown in my ability to talk about the importance of using technology to support learning in the classroom.  In my current teaching situation, we use iPads to deliver instruction in both reading and math.  This is just a small step toward integrating technology across the curriculum; however, I still have parents that question why technology needs to be used.  They want to see the teacher interaction, which I have to show them is there and necessary.  The computer is not replacing the teacher (Laureate, 2008).  “Technology is not a substitute for good instruction; effective teachers should provide intellectually powerful and technology rich environments for students without undermining sound pedagogical practices” (Keengwe, Onchwari, & Wachira, 2008).  The teacher’s role has just changed from being the source of knowledge to helping students evaluate, synthesize, and utilize that knowledge (Laureate, 2008).

I am excited to see what the future holds as I further my education.  What was glowing embers has grown into a blaze of passion for taking my students to the next level by teaching them skills that will have an impact beyond the classroom one day.  One day, I want to be able to look back at my teaching, reflect, and know that I helped my students become productive digital citizens in society.

References

Associated Press. (2008, May 9). Technology-rich classrooms render textbooks useless. Teacher Magazine.

Keengwe, j., Onchwari, G., & Wachira, P. (2008). The use of computer tools to support
meaningful learning. AACE Journal, 16(1), 77-92.

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

Thornburg, D. (2004). Technology and education: Expectations, not options. (Executive Briefing No. 401). Retrieved from http://www.tcpdpodcast.org/briefings/expectations.pdf

Podcasting Demopgraphic Profile

This is my first podcasting experience, ever!  I must say, I am proud of my work, although I know it is not perfect.  That is part of the beauty of podcasting.  I have also realized how much I hate hearing the sound of my voice recorded.  I used Audacity, a free audio editing tool, to put all of the pieces together.  The tool was every easy to use.  It is intuitive in the design, and I was able to watch a couple YouTube videos to figure out how to use some other extended features of the program.  My biggest problem was getting the audio to have enough volume even with using the amplify tool in the program.  I appologize now if it seems like some parts you have to turn your volume up to hear and other parts you have to turn down. 

Through this experience, I also learned a lot about the hardware used to record audio.  For the students, I started out using my iPhone, but I had trouble getting the audio to sync to my computer.  Then, I used a mic that plugged into my computer to record the interviews with the students.  This worked well until the mic stopped working, so I had to start using the internal mic in the computer.  The moral of that story is to always have a backup plan.  I am looking forward to using this piece of technology with my students in the future.  I would love to hear about any experiences you have had podcasting.  What did you have trouble with?  How did you troubleshoot or overcome any of the problems you had?  Have you used podcasting with your students?