Throughout the past several weeks I have been expanding my technology know-how. It has been a great experience. I have learned more about blogs, the ins of Wiki's, what RSS stands for and does, podcasting, and moving this technology into the classoom. As educators we need to be more open to technology in our classrooms, these students are the future, and they have a wealth of knowledge that we need to let them share.
As a professional teacher, I plan to embrace technology (the good and the bad). I like to learn new things and I grew up as a digital native, maybe not as much as today's students are, but I did have to insert those large floppy disks to play or type in a program for the sake of playing a computer game. I love the fact the students have information in seconds, not days or weeks. I will be sure to teach them both ways of researching (old and new), I still love the feel of a book in my hand.
The biggest thing that I walk away with is the interesting side of podcasting. That was the one thing that I knew the littlest about. While I couldn't get mine to work, trying to get it to upload following the recording session was great. Students can really take learning anywhere with them. I thought to myself, 'This would be great for those students that are on vacations with parents during the school year." So many of them travel with laptops, each day I could post the lesson for the day. The student would have access and still be current with his/her classmates learning. The possibilities are endless!
My teaching philosophy has pretty much always been student-centered, so moving over to learner-centered is not that big of a jump. I learn something new from students everyday and I think that is wonderful. Research has proven time and time again that students learn best from each other, and I agree with that. I don't ever see myself stopping the learning process. I love each and every new gadget that comes out, it is hard not to run out and grab it. I am always checking out new websites and programs, that is how progress moves forward.
My goals for the next two years is to allow students to set-up a blog, a Wiki, and record their own podcasts, while in the elementary setting. If I was in the high school setting, this would not be a goal as they should already be doing it. It is different in the elementary setting, there is a lot to worry about when putting students on the web and parents need to be educated along the way. I can't wait for the day when Kindergarten students come to school having their own website, that will be great! Students will not only have their own computers, but tablets and cell phones. I look forward to working towards this goal, it will be an adventurous journey.;
