Final Reflection

I signed up for this class to meet a requirement to go from a temporary teaching certificate to a professional certificate.  I hadn’t taken a college course in nine years.  Technology sounded more interesting to me than Ethics; those were the only two classes I had to choose from this semester.  I also thought a Tech class would be easy.  I was wrong!  I thought I was pretty tech savvy, but I was wrong again!

Every week, this class has challenged me to do things that I didn’t even know existed.  At times it was stressful trying to complete all of the tasks in such a short amount of time.  It was also frustrating to work on collaborative projects with people who didn’t have the same schedule as me or didn’t seem very motivated.  Despite all that, I persevered and got the job done. 

The digital badges seemed a little repetitive, but I did like how you wanted us to explore a different Web 2.0 tool each time.  Had that not been a requirement, I wouldn’t have learned about Emaze, Storybird, Canva, and the others I used.  I have already shared these sites with friends and colleagues.  A good friend of mine will be teaching a high school technology class this year for the first time.  He was thrilled when I told him about the Web 2.0 tools we were using in this class.  He was familiar with some, but others were new to him as well.

I’m looking forward to teaching a science unit on animal habitats so I can put my Webquest to use.  I think my students are going to love it and I know the other teachers on my grade level will too.

For the last two years I have said I was going to create a class website, but have never found the time.  This class has enabled me to do that, as well as, create an ePortfolio.  It will be easy to maintain and add to the site now that it has been started.  For that, I am thankful.

I think the following photograph sums up this class very well.  I will be able to use everything I have learned in the years to come with my students.  Thank you for making my return to college an enjoyable experience!

Photo credit to Curtis Palmer.

Maloy, R. W., Verock-O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S. A., & Woolf, B. P. (2011). Transforming learning with new technologies. 1st Edition. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon.

Digital Badge #8

Chapter 11 - Created with Haiku Deck, presentation software that inspires

  Maloy, R. W., Verock-O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S. A., & Woolf, B. P. (2011). Transforming learning with new technologies. 1st Edition. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon.

Digital Badge #7

 

Maloy, R. W., Verock-O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S. A., & Woolf, B. P. (2011). Transforming learning with new technologies. 1st Edition. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon.

Digital Badge #6

Chapter 9: Creating and Sharing Information with Multimedia Technologies

Chapter nine summarizes what we have been doing throughout this course: creating and sharing information.  I used Emaze for this posting.  I love how it is similar to PowerPoint, but it can be accessed via the internet on any computer.  That sort of technology makes things so much easier and can streamline the presentation process.




Maloy, R. W., Verock-O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S. A., & Woolf, B. P. (2011). Transforming learning with new technologies. 1st Edition. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon.

Digital Badge #5

Chapter 4: Integrating Technology and Creating Change

Created on Canva.com

The thing that stuck out most to me in chapter four was that it is the teachers that are responsible for the impact technology has on the classroom.  There are a wealth of technological resources available for teachers to use to enhance their classrooms, yet many teachers don't take advantage of them.  I've seen it first hand at my school, a school that has SmartBoards and student computers in each classroom. There are new teachers that are excited about technology and implement it in their classrooms and there are teachers that have been teaching for many years and are reluctant to change, especially change involving technology.  In many instances, the technology infused classrooms have more engaged learners. Tech Tool 4.1 offers resources for online technology integration that are good for not only new teachers, but teachers that are weary of technology.

Maloy, R. W., Verock-O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S. A., & Woolf, B. P. (2011). Transforming learning with new technologies. 1st Edition. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon.

Digital Badge #4

Chapter 6: Teaching with Educational Websites and Other Online Resources


Every week, I get more and more excited with the new tools I am learning about.  I can't believe I have never heard of WebQuests before and I can't wait to take my students on a virtual field trip this year!  Also, Storybird is such an amazing site!  I look forward to exploring it more.









Maloy, R. W., Verock-O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S. A., & Woolf, B. P. (2011). Transforming learning with new technologies. 1st Edition. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon.

Digital Badge #3

Chapter 8: Communicating and Networking with Websites, Blogs, Wikis, and More




Chapter 8 discusses ways teachers can communication with colleagues and students via websites, wikis, and email as well as some other things.  Tech Tool 8.1 offers resources for teacher websites and blogs.  I have enjoyed learning about and using wikis and blogs over the past few weeks.  The more I learn I'm trying to come up with a way use them in my classroom this coming school year.  I'm afraid that it will become a burden.  I don't want to take on a project that I can't keep up with.

Maloy, R. W., Verock-O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S. A., & Woolf, B. P. (2011). Transforming learning with new technologies. 1st Edition. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon.