Reflection

When taking a course called “Teaching with Technology”, one would assume it focuses solely on integrating technology into the classroom. This course offers much more. It prepares its students to become leaders in technology. Having the opportunity to collaborate with other professionals that share the same interests was an experience that, essentially, allowed our success in building a solution for the scenario-based project. The ultimate goal was to learn about technology strategies that positively affect diverse students. Tools such as Google docs, sites, talk, and blogs, made communicating with team members effortless. We discussed, planned, shared, and learned from one another when creating learning activities that met the needs of each student. Professional development resources, tools, and practices are available in assisting teachers on how to use web 2.0 tools. When teachers are trained to integrate technology effectively, authentic assessments that integrate technology tools can then be used to measure student achievement. As a Bilingual Support Teacher I have the opportunity to work with a diverse group of teachers and students. Communicating new information with teachers is, many times, more time-consuming and difficult than teaching students. The videos on how to create a Google doc and site, for example, are all I needed to create my own account. After exploring the site, I was able to navigate and make changes easily. Some teachers need more assistance. Through e-mails, Google Talk, and text messages, I was able to guide a couple of my team members is loading documents to the site. In other occasions, modeling how to use technology has been a successful means in teaching other educators about technology strategies and Web 2.0 tools. The book Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works contains many uses for Web 2.0 tools, as well as specific web addresses that teachers can access to successfully integrate technology into the classroom. Google is an excellent search engine, but when it comes to its wikis and sites, I still feel uneasy using these tools for communicating with other teachers, whether for planning or professional development. When working on the site with the group, it was not clear who did what. Wikispaces has a history page that clearly shows who has contributed to the plan. When I have more time, I may explore the different options Google has to offer. I find wikispaces is a better tool for discussions and distributing roles since each page offers its own discussion page. My team and I turned to e-mails, text messages, and chat rooms to discuss and plan our solution. I believe the purpose of the project was to use the site and doc to communicate. Perhaps with more practice and by viewing other videos on how these tools work, I will attempt to use them again. I was very fortunate to work with three teammates that share my same work habits. Initially, I was not excited to know we would be working in cooperative groups. Many times the workload is uneven when working in groups. Fortunately, each member of the team contributed equally in solving the scenario-based group project. Communicating to ensure that every member contributed in a timely matter was not an issue. We established a trusting professional learning community that allowed us to easily distribute the workload and accomplish our goals. We did have a difficult time completing all assignments by Sunday night, perhaps because the course went through the Thanksgiving break and the busy Holiday season. I also had an issue submitting one of my wiki assignments on a Tuesday night. It is discouraging to see a low grade when the work was completed on time. The issue is yet to be resolved. Using technology for technology’s sake is not going to improve student achievement. When planning for instruction, content comes first, technology second. Teaching with technology requires a lot of time and planning. Web 2.0 tools, such as wikis, podcasts, and blogs facilitate planning and collaborating with other educators. UDL is a resource that can help when creating lesson plans that meet the needs of diverse learners. Teaching with technology requires much thought and effort. There are many technology programs and online tools available that can be integrated into the curriculum. Those same tools can be utilized when teaching a variety of strategies. I enjoyed the readings and being able to share what I had read with the Instructional Technology Specialist. I also enjoyed planning lessons with teachers using ideas, sites, and tools mentioned in the books we read. The videos, especially those from Edutopia, were ever inspiring. I even downloaded a few on itunes.