Course Reflection

When I began this course, I thought I was up to date on the technology.  I quickly learned I was wrong and that I had a lot to learn just to keep up with my students.  This course has introduced me to so many new tools available online.  I am not proficient in any of these tools but over time this will change.  Eventually this information will help me be a better teacher to my students, as I will be able to allow them to create assignments with different online tools and be able to effectively assess them.

The two projects that I found most beneficial and something I can use immediately are the spreadsheet and the webquest.  The spreadsheet is not only useful for tracking grades but also as a tool to help student learn about graphing data.  I really enjoyed creating the webquest, once I was free to utilize any web 2.0 technology, and I probably will use this in my classroom especially as a substitute lesson plan.  How often is the substitute lesson plan is just busy work for the student and a lost day of effective instruction?  A webquest has the ability to offers effective instruction with little to no instruction from the substitute.

Looking forward to improving not only my skill but also knowledge of web tools.   

Course Reflection

This course has really shown me how technology can be integrated into lessons.  I enjoyed learning about pod casting and discover that it is not that difficult.  However, I am  realist and have to admit that I probably will not use it in my lesson during my first year of teaching.  I would eventually integrate it into some of my lesson especially a lesson for when a substitute has to watch the classroom.  I can see how pod casting really beneficial for students that are not able to attend school on a regular bases due to a illness.  Even though I may not be a master of pod casting, however I feel I now know enough that I could allow my student to use it as a medium to demonstrate their mastery of a concept. 

I am also doing my field experience this semester and I have not seen a lot of the technology discussed in this course use regularly in the classroom.  I wonder if this it due that teachers are not aware of all this technology or they just do not have time to integrate it into their lessons.  I think it is the latter teachers do not have enough time to create lesson and to create pod cast to integrate into the lessons.  There is a learning curve in understand the working of pod casting and for that fact any of these other programs discussed in this course so far.  Hopefully we as teachers catch up with our students that see to know and understand how to use this technology from birth.

Signing off to work on the next assignment, webquest.