Meredith M.
EME 2040 Introduction to Technology for Educators
January 11, 2016
Three concepts that really stood out to me more than the others during Chapter One: Becoming a 21st Century Teacher fell under today's students and technology, technology based offices for instructors, as well as a teachers identity. Although, some thoughts that came to mind while reading this chapter were a bit far out compared to the topic; however, they were at the top of my mind and seemed rather important.
As far as today's students and technology goes it's a lot more advanced than when I was younger. Although I'm only nineteen, today's youth have a much more advanced education of our technology than I did. I do remember having a leap frog reading device when I was younger and it helped immensely but is nothing compared to the technology young students are using today. Even being involved in technology based learning environments like this class is a huge stepping stone for education. Now a days it is a requirement in high school to take an online course. These online learning environments are crucial to some students learning process because it allows them to work on their own time and at their own pace. For instance, two of my classes in high school were through Florida Virtual School which allowed me to take other courses in school as well as two extra courses. Even Canvas applies to this subject because it allows students to take some of the workload home with them which is absolutely incredible. Teachers and students are able to communicate with each other about academic content without having to be in the classroom. Because of today's technology our education system has become so much more efficient in certain areas.
The second concept that really interested me was the technology based office for instructors. The text refers to teachers desks now more as desktops where everything is digital as opposed to paper and pen. A teacher's work is never complete and for this reason these 'desktops' now allow educators to do their work from wherever they currently are. It also keeps these teachers organized and it's a lot more difficult to lose a digital document than a physical one. Not only that, but teachers also have access to the internet which allows them to share their lesson plans and ideas with others. This is so important and spreads great ideas all over the country. Although I definitely tend to prefer working with pen and paper, not everyone shares those feelings. However, I also agree that having a portable laptop is much more convenient then lugging around large books and stacks of papers, I still believe that there's room for both in today's teaching field.
Furthermore, I also really enjoyed the digital identity concept for educators. As far as education goes today, teacher's most have more than just the basic knowledge in order to truly flourish in the classroom. The teachers that do have extensive knowledge and are keeping up with technological innovations are much more effective than those that do not. Even though an educators knowledge is what is being referred to when discussing digital identity. The main idea that popped into my mind was more along the lines of a teacher's social media on the internet. Because the internet is not a place to keep private information and other important things, it is crucial that teachers maintain their anonymity as far as the social media world. In this day and age when Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other social media platforms are such a large part of people's daily lives it is difficult to ensure that a teacher's private life stays private. For this reason I think it is crucial that teachers in modern society should work to keep their private lives low key in terms of social networking.
All in all, I do think that technology in the classroom can be beneficial if instituted in the correct way. I also agree with Mrs. Woolley Wilson and her ideas on blended learning which you will learn about in the video I have embedded. I reiterate, I do believe technology is both beneficial for the student and the teacher but I do believe there will be some trial in error in doing so.
Hyperlink: http://blog.tophat.com/6-pros-cons-using-technology-classroom/
Resources:
Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.
