Technology in the Classroom

I think it is extremely important to incorporate technology in the classroom.  We are now in a technologically implemented world that requires it's use in everyday activities.  Because of this children use and see technology being used daily, therefore as teachers it is our responsability to teach the proper use of these different tools.  Not to mention, how technology has only expanded our students learning and ability to learn new things in different ways.  This also gives students the ability to interact regularly with their work and make changes to things they may have gotten wrong in the past.  Technology gives students the tools to make themselves the best possible learners on daily basis because technology is always new and exciting to use.

As for myself, technology is the most efficiant way of keeping records of everything.  Students grades, teaching tools, lesson plans, parent teacher communication, student behavior, and many other things that need to kept track of.  I can also make easy edits to anything that I have learned from my teaching and change things around to make them work better in the classroom the next time I teach a piece of material.  This will help me grow as a teacher and as a person to help me interact with my students and their parents.

There will be challenges with technology regularly.  One of which is, as a teacher, knowning how to properly use it while in the classroom.  Anyone can take the time to learn how to use a software on their own time, but being prepared to use it on the spot in front of 25 young minds who are watching your every move.  When this is happening sometimes technology can fail in your time of need.  So it is important to always have a backup plan in case this happens and never get frustrated when this happens.  Not to mention how expensive some softwares are, a lot of schools out their can't afford to buy some of this stuff, so it is important as a teacher to make the most of the technology you do have and learn about the new technology you school may be getting ahead of time so you have a jump on the competition.

I have taken more from this class than I could have imagined.  I thought Ed Tech was all about smart board use and word documents, but in reality it is so much more.  I have never done a lot of the things that we have in class.  I hope to take everything that I've learned in class and use it at some point or another in every school year.  From photoshop and movie making to portfolio making and word documents.  I just hope I can be in a school district that has all of the technologies that we have seen in our class.