Reflection on Project

I really enjoyed the challenge of trying to create a lesson that could use technology. I just did not want to create a lesson where the technology came first, but rather my goal was to develop a lesson and think of ways in which technology could be used to support the lesson. As a result of this guiding principle, I thought showing the Web quest would not meet my goal.

I also think that 15-20 minutes is a short amount of time and I did not want to pack too much in, but rather have this be a slow paced lesson and go from there. Overall, I think I met my goals for this lesson. The lesson came first and technology was simply used to support the lesson without being the center of attention. I also attempted a lesson that required class participation because my other goal was to have the opportunity to teach. The only other class that I have taken that has required us to create lessons and deliver them ended up not having us deliver the lesson, but rather talk about how we would deliver them. I really welcomed the opportunity to practice my delivery since I don't have the opportunity to present in my current life as I had in my past life.

However, I chose not to use this opportunity to teach math because I could not figure out an easy way to use the technology with math without having to do lots of explanation. If I were to do this project again, I would have spent more time thinking about how I could have taught specifically a math lesson. I may have been weak on content, but I did not want to do too much with the short time we had.

I really enjoyed using Wiki spaces and I see how this can be a very useful and accessible tool for any classroom. I think it was the right choice for my presentation even thought it can be a challenge for having 20 people trying to edit the same document simultaneously.

Thank you for the opportunity and I am exciting about future opportunities for determining when to use technology and how to use it in the classroom.

Technology Standards

In my first review of the NETS standards for teachers and students, I found them to be quite broad and general in nature. I was expecting more specific guidance on what technology skills students and teachers should have. Maybe, it would have been more useful for NETS to focus on specific grade levels and the unique technology needs found in elementary vs. secondary education. There were also no differentiation among subject areas which would have been quite useful, expecially the technology needs of English vs. Math or Social Studies teachers is quite different. However, on further thought, it makes more sense for NETS to provide ideas and thoughts on broad topics and technology. Each school is so different and there are significant different in the resources available that it is better for national organizations to be more general than specific. Teachers also have their own ideas on how they plan on using technology in the classroom and if it makes sense for their students. As a future teacher, I do think, technology opens up new possibilites for teacher-parent communication, expecially since so many families have computers and use e-mail on a daily basis. I also like the idea of developing ways of increasing creativity through technology and allowing students to work with video, photo and music tools that allow them to have fun and be creative. Thank you NETS for providing these general and broad ideas rather than being too specific which is a problem with so many of today's educational standards.

Technology Tools and Mathematics

Before enrolling in this class, I had no idea there were so many different types of technological applications available for the classroom. As a future math teacher, I could see myself incorporating each of the different types of tools in my classroom- drilling, student-directed and teacher-directed instruction.

Before incorporating these technologies in the classroom, I would want to know more about the mathematical skills of my students and then based on their individual skill levels determine which technology would be the most advantageous for them. If there are students that are in need of basic mathematical skills, the drilling and teacher-led learning approaches would be quite useful. I could also see using both the teacher and student-led approaches for collaborative learning when I divide the classroom into pairs of students. Therefore, students would have a specific task to work on, learn from each other and have fun while using the computer.

I am excited about the opportunities these technologies present to allow students to work on improving basic skills while having the opportunity to have fun with mathematics.

Time for Change in How Teacher's Use Popular Media in the Classroom

At first glance, I was surprised by the Kaiser Family Foundation’s finding in their newly published report, “Generation M2 : Media in the Lives of 8-to-18 Year Olds,” that our children are spending over seven hours a day in front of media. However, after further reviewing the study and understanding their definition of media to include not only television, video games and computers, but also music, cell phone and print, the 7.38 daily hours is not as shocking of a number. This study, however, will spark more questions about today’s youth.

For instance, I wonder what our children are missing out on because they are spending 1/3 of their day engrossed in media? When is their time to play outside? What about extracurricular activities? Sports? Family time and sit down meals? Is there a direct correlation between childhood obescity and media because our children are not active?

As parents and educators, our challenge is to find way to encourage our children to be active, to play outside and to try new things. Teachers have this responsibility because they spend so much time with children. Many parents are in need of society’s help in guiding their kids in the right direction and providing kids with encouragement and stimulating their minds with new ideas. And teachers by definition, even though it is not part of their formal job description, should understand that they have this important and challenging role once they step into the classroom.

As teachers, we face the challenge of wanting to connect with our students and thus we often use their language and mention popular tv programs or video games in our lesson plans. Math books used by Chicago Public Schools often use video game characters to teach new concepts and increase student’s interest in the subject. I wonder what message these materials are sending and how can we create lesson plans that are not encouraging media usage, but also are engaging and stimulate student’s interest in the subject matter.
Our challenge is to limit these media driven references and to develop lesson plans so they reflect the values that we desire to install in future generations. It is essential to find new ways to connect with our students to encourage them to reconnect with nature and their friends and family. This is no easy task, but the stakes are too high for failure. As teachers, we need to confront this topic in our teaching and work together to develop strategies and creative methods to demonstrate that there are other things in the world outside of media. If not, the number of hours per day our children spend with media will only increase.

Technology and Education

During my observation of middle school classes last semester, I had the opportunity to see how technology is used in 2009. Prior to this field observation, it had been a long time since I had ventured into a K-12 school. In one of the classes I observed, the teacher spent almost 10 minutes of precious class time trying to re-arrange furniture so that his Smart Board would project for all students to see. In another classroom, students were so excited that today was the day that they were going to use laptops. I was surprised by the excitement that students demonstrated towards the laptops, but then again this was a CPS school in a low-income neighborhood in which most of the families do not have computers at home. I wonder what the reaction would be if I was in a wealthy neighborhood observing students that have numerous computers in their household.

As a future math teacher, I understand the importance and value of technology in the classroom. And I desire to use technology that will allow me to reach my students and increase their excitement for a subject that is often thought of with so much negativity and fear. On the other hand, I am also concerned about the overuse and inappropriate use of technology in the classroom. The challenge is to find the right balance that works to improve the skills of our students.