Technology Integration

Since I am a graduate student working towards a goal of teaching elementary education, I am learning but not currently teaching. In the last two months I have learned what technology integration is, how it is used in the classroom, and the importance of its use.

At the beginning of my Technology Integration class good points were made about the world that we live in. We are advancing at a rapid pace in technology and the effects are quickly spreaking down to young children. Children learn at an early age how to use and navigate the computer, hand held games, MP3 players and cell phones with text and internet access. These technologies are consuming the everyday lives of kids. This is what they know, how they communicate and how they fit in with their peers. So good points were again expressed, why not integrate technology more in the classroom to meet the needs of the children and their interests.

It is time to step away from the tradition classroom setting of writing on the chalkboard and lecturing about what is in the book. As an adult I know how boring it could get to sit for a length of time listening to the teacher and trying to retain their point. Not all children learn in the same manner or at the same pace. Everyone has their own learning styles. I agree with the push to integrate the technology in the curriculum that is being taught. This is the 21st century so why not have 21st century ways of teaching?

I have learned many different ideas of integrating technology in the last 2 months. These ideas included Webquests, homeade videos, voicethread, blogging, interactive whiteboard, hand held technology, and more. Using these tools allow the students to open their minds and create while they learn. They are able to teach their peers what research they had done through the use of technology. In turn their peers are able to learn in a non traditional way from what others are presenting to them. This can really help students to work with each other in a group setting, learn and use technology and research through the internet all while the underlying point is to give them the tools to learn.

The early elementary grades are where my teaching interests are. At this young age not all kids may have had much experience on the computer. So with this in mind, basic computer use with simple tasks or leaning websites is one way to integrate technology. At this young age kids enjoy the interactive learning games on the computer and time on the classroom computer can really benefit their development. Since children so young have short attention spans an interactive white board with visuals would be helpful in showing examples and help the children understand what you are teaching.

In conclusion my learning experience in technology integration has been very positive and an eye opener. I will continue to learn, for there is much more out there and much more to come. I plan on keeping touch with PLN's for my continued learning and hope when my time comes to integrate technology I will be well prepared.

My Thoughts About PLN's

Currently, I use PLN's such as Facebook for socializing, not professional development other than class. PLN's are new to me on a professional learning aspect. I think they are a great resource for finding current news, issues, techniques and resources that other users have shared. Using PLN's through my graduate studies will help me understand what is going on in the education field, find resourses for my own papers and projects and prepare me better for when I am in the field as a teacher.
I am still learning the PLN's and where to find them, and which ones may be better than others. Organizing my PLN's is also going to be important once I have many that are established for access. Researching and trying out the PLN's is my involvement so far. As I move forward I know they will be a useful tool and appreciate that we have such a tool to share with others.
On one last thought about PLN's, I do think there should be a separation between social networks and professional networks. If someone setup a network for sharing professional ideas and resources then the posting should be professionallly relevant while sharing.

Providing Equal Access To The Digital World

How can students be given equal access to technology in the classroom?
Classes are made up of students that vary in socioeconomic status. The differences in students means that there are those who do not have access to computers at home. To provide equal access to all students means that administrators, policy makers, teachers and the community needs to get involved.
Stategies that can provided equal access to students include having students allowed a certain amount of time on the computer or access to computer lab. The students can be allowed to come in before or after school and during lunch. Teachers should be using technology in many of their subjects and having a variety of tools available to the students. Using more technology will benefit groups that may not have had interest in one particular subject area using a single technology lesson.
A support system needs to be in place for the technology access to exist. Making sure the school has adequate up to date connections to the Inernet, technical support, training programs for the teachers on software and how to incorporate technology.
Finally, the funding needs to be available to the school for adequate equipment. There may be grants available for the school and also the need for community support.

Websites Visited
www.ed.gov/pubs/EdReformStudies/Edtech/index.html
www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/methods/technlgy/te400.htm

Teachers Evaluating Websites

Should teachers have to evaluate websites before their students view them? Yes, teachers should be evaluating websites. You wouldn't teach content of a book without reading the book, so why recommend a website to students without evaluating its content.
The reasons it is important for teachers to evalutate website content include validity, currency of information, point of view, authenication and relevant content. If the students have to research through websites, teachers would want to make sure the information that the students need is located on the website. It would be a waste of time to send the students on a scavenger hunt through wasteful websites. Give them the sites you know they would benefit from.
Teachers should make sure the information on the website is not only from a valid author or group, but that it is also up to date. Websites should be evaluated for point of view. Is this author being too biased? Is there enough information for the student to form his or her own opinion about a matter? Is there going to be offensive content in the webpages that are not appropriate for the students to view?
These are important reasons why teachers should be viewing all websites they use during their lessons.

CNN Video: Can American Schools Compete?

I watched a clip posted to CNN on June 13, 2009. CNN's T.J. Holmes interviewed Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan on his thoughts about America's teachers. Interesting video to watch and listen to. Arne Duncan spoke of how children's education relies heavily on great role models such as teachers, mentors and parents to help children succeed in education. Arne Duncan also stated there would be about 1 million teachers that would be of retirement age in the next 5 to 6 years and it is crucial for the teachers coming in to the field to be great. The idea is the better the teachers can be, coming into the field, the better the education the students will be recieving in the upcoming years.
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/politics/2009/06/13/holmes.duncan.school.cnn?iref=videosearch
Follow the link to watch the video.
It will be interesting to see if and how education will be changing over the next decade with younger generations taking a huge portion of teaching jobs from the baby boomers that are retiring.

Welcome

Welcome to Flowering Roots blog site!! My name is Charissa Woodrow, student at Southern New Hampshire University. I have created a blog site geared around issues in education that I have learned through websearches, news, webcasts and other blog sites. Feel free to leave your thoughts and comments or other useful material that will help others as well as myself!
Happy blogging!