Digital+Technology+Class

These are a few of the assignments that I completed in my educational technologies class. Some of the assignments required us to use software that I was completely unfamiliar with. It was a great way to learn new technology and start to think of creative ways to incorporate it into the classroom.

This is an interesting video about 21st century learners that my technology teacher showed us on the first day of class. It's only about 4 minutes long and if you haven't seen it before, I am sure you will be amazed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_A-ZVCjfWf8&feature=fvw

Can you believe 76% of teachers have never used Wikis or podcasts? To me this is crazy! This is my first ever wiki and I can see a huge benefit to a classroom teacher. They even have templates for teachers that already have the links created for 'this week in the classroom' and 'assignments.' If the homework and assignments were posted online, there wouldn't be any more 'my turtle ate my homework,' 'it was stolen on the way home from school,' or 'I accidentally dropped it in the snow and couldn't find it.' (I //have// actually heard all of these excuses. Although, how does a turtle ingest that much paper without dying? And, how did he get out of his aquarium?) With a wiki the homework is online and the student can access it from any computer with internet. Another benefit of this, is parents can see exactly what their child's homework is before they even leave work. Even parents that don't have a computer at their place of work, could access the Wiki from a cell phone with internet. Everyone can see what the children are working on in class. Grandparents can see their grandchildren's work even when they are in another state.

Can you believe that 63% of teachers never let their students create something using technology? Again, this is ridiculous. Students could be using technology to create presentation for class using digital story telling or podcasts. They would be learning the material and the technology. Technology is essential for them to learn //now// because it is only going to evolve and get more complicated by the time they join the work force. It won't matter where they work, waiting tables or marketing, they will need to understand the technology. Have you notice how complicated the cash registers are at Target or Arby's? What about checking out a book at the library?