My first concept is Internet challenges and responses. Seeing as how the internet has abundant amounts of information some of itis bound to be incorrect. Some sites are not necessarily "incorrect" they just provide "misinformation", meaning they leave out some information. Others have information that is completely false. n example of a site that has a lot of misinformation is Wikipedia. Wikipedia allows anyone to write their own page, so many times the articles are missing facts, or are just created by people who do not know the information at all. With students having access to the internet they can come across almost anything. With allowing the students to use the internet teachers and parents both need to monitor the children's searches so that they do not come across any inappropriate information, or misinformation. Ultimately it is very important to teach the students the correct ways to use the internet and recommend them against using sites like Wikipedia that may give them incorrect information.
The second concept I would like to address is Cyberbullying. With students added access to the internet, they can also communicate with classmates, friends, and even strangers. This is an extremely important topic for teachers to go over with their students.Cyber bullying can take place using any form of social media, texting, IM-ing, really any form of technology that allows students to communicate with one another. Bullying is unacceptable in any capacity but since access to technology has increased so exponentially it has made it where students can now bully others outside of school using the internet. A friend of mine went through a cyber bullying situation in middle school. He said it was worse than normal bullying because he could never escape it. Teachers need to pay a lot of attention to their students to try and keep this from happening. So far my post has been mainly about the negative forms of technology so for my last concept I would like to include some positives! Just being in college has taught me many important attributes of technology. One of my favorite tools are E-books. These allow you to access text books, normal books, really any kind of written information you may need right from your laptops. It is incredibly beneficial being a student because before you would have to lug around all of your textbooks from class to class. Now all you need is your laptop. I can access my math course and text book from the same site. After math when I go into my history class I can just pull up that text book. As stressful as it is to be a student, E-books sure do make things a lot easier. References: Maloy, R. (2011). Transforming learning with new technologies. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon.
With society having evolved into one based on technology, it is imperative that as teachers we are comfortable using technology to access the tools it provides to us. Technology in the classroom is highly debated because not all parties agree with its place in the classroom. In order for a technologically based class to work all parties need to be on board. I found this site which made very good points about why technology in the classroom is beneficial.Technology integration. The three topics from the chapter that stood out to me the most were, A.) Identifying technology readiness. B.) Personal teaching philosophies. Lastly C.) Barriers to technology. A.) Technological Readiness One common complaint formed against the use of technology in the classroom is whether the technology used is too difficult for the students, and even if the teacher can fully grasp how to use it properly. It is important that while using technology in the classroom you be sure that as the teacher you are completely comfortable with using it prior to introducing it to your students. It is also important to use technology that your students are either previously familiar with, or is easy to learn so that it is both beneficial to you and the student. Technology use in the classroom is great so long as all parties involved are clear and ready to use it.
B.) Personal Teaching Philosophies The two most popular teaching philosophies are teacher based, and student based teaching. Teacher based teaching to me seems the least beneficial to the students. As a teacher I hope to be very hands on with my students. I would like to engage them in the lessons, ask them questions, see what they like and don't like about the lessons and hopefully by doing that I can create a learning environment that is beneficial to both the students and I. This can be applied to technology because I can get feedback from my students after we use tablets or computers in the classroom to see if it seemed to benefit them at all.
C.) Technological Barriers Technology in the classroom is great for those that live in areas where the school district can afford to supply the classes with it. There are many school districts however that simply do not have the funding to put computers in every classroom. Also not every student will have internet access from their homes. In cases such as these I believe that the teacher will be able to benefit the students by having printouts of the assignments available for students who cannot access them online, or allowing them access to the school's computers during class time so that they have an opportunity to complete their research during class.
In today's day in age, technology plays a vital roll in our everyday lives. Chances are that regardless of your age, young or old you use some form of technology every day. It is estimated that children between the ages of 8-18 use the internet in one of its many forms for a total of one third of their day. Technology has become so influential that most kids know how to use an I pad or play games on a phone at a very early age. Due to this increase in technological proficiency the age group of 8-18 has become known as the igeneration. With this sudden increase in the use f technology in everyday life it is n wonder that teachers are finding the need to incorporate technology into the classroom setting. "Most 8 to 18 year-olds are using technology, experiencing a "digital childhood" and becoming an iGeneration of technology users in their teens." (Pg.17, Maloy, 2014.) Throughout my last few years in college I have had numerous experiences in the classroom setting. One in particular was very eye opening and relates well to this chapter in our text. I was observing a sixth grade American government class that had spent the last few days in a lecture about the branches of government and how the US government works. As soon as the students came into the class on this particular day they were given a short five question quiz asking basic questions on the US government. Most of the students failed this quiz. Next each student was allowed twenty minutes on the computer to play an interactive game in which they ran their own government. After the twenty minutes was up they were given the same quiz again, this time the majority of the students were able to pass. I thought this was a very neat exercise, and a great example on ways to incorporate technology into the classroom. By adding the game into the lesson plan the students were able to have a fun and enticing lesson in which they also retained the lesson that was being taught to them. Using technology in the classroom is not only beneficial to the students but also the teachers. I have had many teachers tell me how much easier it is to plan a lesson now that they can use their laptops to find ideas for lesson plans and share their lesson plans with other teachers across the country. A great site for this is Sharemylesson.com. Teachers also can use technology to help students in and out of the classroom, and to stay in contact with the parents. Many classrooms now have Smart boards in them which I think are an amazing asset to any classroom. They allow the teacher to display information from the internet, any worksheets they want to use, and even allows them to interact with what they display by writing on the screen. Integrating technology into the classroom has had a positive effect on both students and teachers.
Throughout this course I hope to be able to build my "digital identity" and learn new concepts that I will be able to integrate into my future classroom. I really like the idea of the class being able to interact with each other through a clicker system (as my video shows). I also would like o be able to create a fun and easy game/review session to help my students study for tests, which can be done through power point or other various sites. In conclusion we live in a technological age, and in order for the teachers to engage the students they have to adapt to the times. When I become a teacher I will recognize the importance of using technology in the classroom. This will be beneficial to both the students and myself, and hopefully it will lead to a thriving, fun and educational classroom environment! References: Maloy, R. (n.d.). Transforming learning with new technologies (2nd ed.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYowyQ-o4oQ http://www.sharemylesson.com/home.aspx
