EDUC 6715 Reflection

The immediate effort I will be making to my plans of week 6 and 7 is to get involved with the grant writing team at my school. With my knowledge of emerging technologies, I can provided ideas that some other teachers might not have. If I joined this team, I could focus on the whole school getting technology grants instead of just myself. Gerding and Mackellar (2006), in their article Wishing won’t work: 10 things you need to know and do when applying for technology grants, say “The fastest way to grant funding is actually by taking the time to plan. A technology plan is not simply a list of what technology should be purchased and when it should be upgraded. It is a method to prioritize and to budget for the technology tools that are most important” (pg. 8). As a member on the grant team, I can coordinate with the technology team, other teachers, and the principal to help make a technology plan for my school. Once that plan is created I can then begin to write different grants to help fill our needs.

On the other end of the spectrum, once the technology is in our school, I would love to help teachers create lessons using the new technologies. If I have spent all this time writing grants and making a plan, I will want to see that is done right. I will help teachers create lessons and show them how to use each specific technology. This way, teachers will feel more comfortable using technology in their class and the money spent will go to good use. During this process I can get the help from the technology team and other teachers who are well adept in using technology. With a team of grant writers and a technology integration team, technology can become an even bigger part of my school and assist the 21st century learners that are the students of Sweetwater Middle.

Spotlight on Emerging Technology: Online Learning in K-12 Schools

http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/6339571

Differentiation Station Assignment Week 7

The social network that was developed by my group on Ning.com was very helpful. Ning gave us a great forum to share ideas and discuss different aspects of our assignments. This resource can be very useful in my classes. I can set up an account for all four of my classes and use it as a forum to share ideas and discuss topics covered in class. Students can develop their classroom relationships at home in a forum where the teacher can monitor their work to make sure it is appropriate. Social networking is not only limited to the classroom anymore. With a website like Ning, teaching and learning can happen at any time or any day of the week.

Technology provides ALL students with opportunities for learning. By letting students use different types of technology in my class I can make sure that all different types of learners reach their potential. With the technology of the 21st century available, teachers can modify lessons to reach individual student by differentiating instruction. For instance, giving students many different choices on completing an assignment will more students enjoy and get involved with their work. If a student loves to write songs and sing, teachers can give them the option of writing and recording a song about the topics covered in class instead of making a presentation. By giving students choices teachers can differentiate instruction and give the students a feeling of choice that students often feel is missing from their work.