Digital Blog #D

Digital Blog C

This week's reading dealt with the reality that the digital learning environment is much different that that of our predecessors.  We as educators should not be intimidated by this, on the contrary, we will capitalize on technology in order to more effectively reach our students.

The following presentation, Just the tip of the ice burg., is a summary of my interpretation regarding three of the topics covered in the reading. It covers three topics I found of particular interest. Teacher vs. Student centered learning, Communicating and Collaborating, and Developing Digital Citizens.

Digital Blog Post #B

1.       Identifying innovation and technological readiness is where I chose to start this week’s blog.  I found this of particular importance for several multi-tiered reasons.  As educators we need to identify where we stand with regard to technology in order to find our weaknesses.  It is only after we find and acknowledge our shortcomings that we can address and work to improve them.  It is very important to identify the capabilities of your students.  Pushing technology that is over the heads of your students is detrimental to their confidence and their overall education experience.  The flip side is that if they aren't challenged then they may lose interest and become complacent. I remember a colleague of mine once stated that staying on the cutting edge can sometimes leave you bloody. 

  

2.      The second topic that is often overlooked is barriers to technology.  Not every school has the funding needed to fully implement technology into the curriculum.  The classes that have the resources available are utilizing them and those that do not can’t.  I moved to Florida a year ago from Oregon.  My children had very limited computer time due to the amount of computers available.  As a result they did not utilize technology much at all.  Flash forward to their current classroom environment and the situation is similar in that there are not computers in each classroom; however, they have work to do from home online.  My kids are thriving in this environment.  For those students that do not have access to a computer at home the teacher provides a printout of the assignment for them to complete.  I also believe that they have had anonymous donors provide computers to those in need. 

3.      Third is the section on Methods for Teaching with Technology, Your Teaching Philosophy.  I personally feel that the student centered method is the approach that best suits me.  From a student’s perspective the classrooms that involved the students in the teaching process were by far the most effective.  If you can express what you have learned to your peers in such a way that they understand it then you have committed that knowledge to memory.  I have witnessed this in my kid’s classrooms.  The teachers do not just stand at the board and work from the book in front of the class, they challenge the kids to think about it and work through it with them.  The class is far more engaged than the classrooms from my youth.  Much more energy and enthusiasm in the classroom.

Resources

 Maloy, R., O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S., & Woolf, B. (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.    

Digital Badge A-Chapter 1

    First, from the onset of the reading it explains how important technology is to life today, in particular the children growing up in the digital age.  Technology is integrated into every facet of our daily lives and the children of today come of age with these digital portals to cyberspace in hand.  I have a unique perspective with respect to this topic as I am an adult student that grew up with chalk boards when computers were still kind of a novelty in schools.  Now I am attending college via the internet, utilizing many different digital tools to accomplish this as I am physically disabled.  I am a father of two, an eleven year old and a six year old.  They cannot imagine life without cell phones, tablets, and computers.  I am pleased to see how integrated technology is in their curriculum.  Both of my children use a tablet and or laptop for school work and their teachers utilize apps like Edmodo, https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/edmodo/id378352300?mt=8 and websites to keep us up to date on their progress.  As a parent I try to limit the exposure my children have to the wide open internet.  We utilize apps that monitor their activity and activate timers to shut down any applications that are not for reading or education.  Let’s face it, these devices are always within arm’s reach so as educators we should capitalize on that.  Look back into your own school experiences and evaluate the effectiveness of your professors how tech savvy they were or weren’t.  Keeping up with advances in technology will also help to stay connected to your students as well as gain their respect.

    Second, I found the section describing the must have technology for teachers.  I was astonished at the numbers in the samples provided.  We as future educators should really take note of this.  After reading this section I decided to just take a moment and write down the most prominent tools that assist me.  I came up with roughly 30 in just a few seconds.  The list encompasses everything from my iPhone to my Dragon Naturally Speaking program/app.

                                    

I am quite certain that if I took more time the list would be exponentially longer.  As a person with my physical challenges I anticipate that I will be leaning very heavily on technology to conduct my lessons.  With limited use of my arms and hands the white board will probably be used on a limited fashion.  I absolutely do not see this as an obstacle, it is most definitely an opportunity.

    Third, I would like to touch on the section on the importance of a digital identity.  “Your digital identity as a teacher refers to your technology talents and competencies-what you know how to do instructionally and professionally with computers and other new inter-active technologies.”(Maloy, et al, 2013, p. 15)  I think this is of particular importance to every one of us and unfortunately there are some aspects that are often overlooked.  The text explains the value of a polished and detailed digital identity with regard to both colleagues and students for networking in the business/school environment; however, we need to remember that everything that goes out onto the web is there forever.  As educators we will be held to a much higher standard than the general public and rightfully so.  This may be covered at a later date with in this course but I felt it needed mentioning.

I have to admit that after reading this chapter I now have a greater understanding of the tools at our disposal.  The reading stressed the importance of technology in today’s digital society and I could not agree more.  In order for the really prepare students for the future we as educators have a responsibility to stay abreast of these advances in order to stay relevant.   

Resources

 Maloy, R., O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S., & Woolf, B. (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.  

Nuance Dragon.(2014, July 22). Dragon Naturally Speaking 13 In Action. Retrieved September 2, 2015, from  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ImlKOA1MhlI 

Edmodo.[mobile application version 5.4.1].Edmodo Inc.