Technology-where do I start?

When I first started this class I was overwhelmed by the amount of technology we were going to be using. We had to open several accounts-gmail, Tapped In, Elluminate, and WiZiQ. Then we had to start our own blogs, personal websites, and wikis. Oh man, what's a girl to do. Anyway, I tackled one thing at a time and seem to be getting the hang of things, but I'm still not sure what a wiki is and what it does. As a member of group 2, the Teck Trekies, we started meeting online through WiZiQ. Although it took a little getting used to, we found that we enjoyed the meetings and almost look forward to the next one. Technology in schools seems to be sorely lacking. After watching the LoTi video and discussing the levels of technology in schools that we either work in or have observed, our group has come to the conclusion that most schools are either lacking the technology or the training to use it. The two schools that I have observed to this point did not have anything but a handful of computers and they were not used when I was there. To date I do not have any experience in a classroom other than observation. After watching the LoTi powerpoint I would say my skills are either a one or two. When I get settled in my own classroom I hope to reach a level six, but we all know that time and curriculum do not necessarily give this opportunity. It will be interesting to try and achieve the highest level of LoTi possible though. I hope to take with me from this course the knowledge of how to incorporate technology in my classroom and to get my students and their parents involved. This may perhaps include a blog, website or something else. There are so many other technologies that we have yet to discover. I am still overwhelmed by all that there is and look forward to learning more.

So much to do...so little time

There is so much to do and what seems like so little time. As one who joined the class later I did not get to meet with my group, the Tech Treckies, at the introductory meeting and as a result missed the first few group meetings online. Our group is an amazing group of five women who do their best to help each other to be sure that we reach our goals, whether they are individual for the class or together as a group. I am so happy to be part of such a wonderful and supportive group. Since I have never used Moodle for a class before it has been interesting learning all of the different nooks and crannies. Just when I think I have figured most or all of them out there is always another surprise. This week my group put together our PowerPoint for chapters 4 and 7. Although it was pretty well put together before I joined the meetings I was happy that I was still able to contribute something to the presentation. I think it came out pretty darn good. After watching the Learning to Change video I was shocked by what I heard. Education ranks #55 well BELOW coal mining in IT intensiveness. How can this be? It was also interesting to think of technology in schools as "the death of education, but the dawn of learning".

Who am I as an educator

Before taking this class I never gave any thought to the different perspectives and philosophies of education. In fact, I didn't know anything about them. After taking the self-assessment test and reading a brief description of these different philosophies I found that I agree with the results-I follow the Humanistic approach. I agree that there is always room to grow especially in education and that each person should strive to be so much more than they think they can be. Each one of us should learn to take responsibility for our thoughts and actions and want to create a better world. If we as teachers provide a nourishing environment for our students we can only hope that this will encourage them to grow and learn. Students need to learn responsibility, choice, to achieve higher levels of knowledge, interact with others, and learn control of their own destinies. This is a philosophy that I will grow with and learn more about as I continue my education and hope to pass on to my students.

Why did I create a blog?

I created this blog for my Literacy and Technology class at Mount Saint Mary College. Technology is an important feature to be used in today's classrooms. There are so many options available that I hope to learn about as many as possible in this class and to incorporate them into my future classroom. This will be a bumpy ride, but it should be fun.