Sunday, December 27, 2009

Reflecting...

At the close of this class I see the skills and knowledge that I have acquired and I am given renewed energy in revamping my classroom to support a more technologically saavy group of future citizens.


This course has opened my eyes to the versatility of technology. Students are capable of so much withing the forum of computers, more so than they would be utilizing traditional educational equipment such as textbooks and notepads. I have become very interested in the logistics involved with wikis and blogs and how they work in the classroom. I have seen from fellow teachers the advantages of recordings, group collaborating on the internet, and various other techniques of technology.


I believe the best way to acquire further knowledge is by experimenting with these skills we have learned about in our classes. I also believe that in order to stay current in this field of knowledge, we as teachers must constantly peruse new techniques and programs. This would be especially easy in the form of conferences and symposiums.


I hope to successfully incorporate a long-term blog system in my classroom (and possibly the school) to promote a positive learning envirnment where students may voice concerns, stressors, and constructive advice to one another under guided supervision. I also hope to incoporate a wiki to put our existing "math journals" on the internet which may also serve as a study guide. Both of these projects will take quite a bit of time to set up and edit via trial and error.

The blog will be quickest to incorporate and will involve the guidance counselor and administration. I will use my homeroom class as the jumping off point where I can develop rubrics, discuss responsiblities and etiquette, as well as judge the effectiveness of the assignments.


The wikis will need careful planning as is always required for a collaborative effort. These, too, will require rubrics, thoughtful dissection of duties, and example work.


Overall, the initial care and effort required for these projects will be outweighed by the potential for true interactive learning.