This semester I have gained insight into the various positives and negatives of technology. I have been encouraged to get my hands dirty and really learn about different types of programs and technologies which will benefit me and my future students. More than anything this class has really "wowed" me with all the possibilities technology brings to the classroom. It works to get students more engaged in the learning process, it brings creativity and fun to the classroom, it changes the roles of the students as well as that of the teachers, and it is a huge part of our new age (so we should embrace it and use it to empower us). Some specific examples of things I have become much more familiar with are the Smartboar, Web 2.0 software, creating my own website, drop box, different types of blogs, podcasts, and many more.
In the beginning of the semester, I touched on some NETS for teachers standards that I really thought were important for me as a future ESL teacher. The standard that I felt were important to adhere to were Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity. This standard holds that teachers use their knowledge of subject matter, teaching and learning, and technology to facilitate experiences that advance student learning, creativity, and innovation in both face-to-face and virtual environments. This standard is important to me as a teacher because I want to be a teacher who is fun and keeps learning fun. I want to inspire my kids to use their imaginations and be creative with their learning. I feel like this is something that I should focus on because, as much as it is ideal, being creative and inspirational takes work and is something that a teacher needs to put time into. When I decided to focus on this standard, I outlined three ways that I would work on this standard this semester. the goals I set for myself were: being creative with developing my blog, exploring the different current events in the world (via the internet) and blogging about them, and finally by responding to the posts of my peers. I definitely did work with my blog a lot, exploring all it's amentities and on a simple (but very useful level) I became comfortable with using the blog. In reflecting on the benefits of using a blog this semester, I can go back through all the blogs I posted and see refresh myself on all the new material I learned this semester. Those articles, insights, and reflections are all documented and saved for me to be able to go back and refresh myself on their enlightening messages. The second goal I created for myself was to get involved with reading about the current events online and then blogging about them. I did stay intune with what was going on in the news, however I did not blog about them. That is something I could still work on (being that this blog is mine to keep forever)! The final goal I set for myself was to comment on my peers blogs, which keeps me interacting and informed on new stuff they they found through this class as well. I did do this through out the semester and found that they sometimes approached issues differently than I did, which gave me a better understanding of certain issues. Altogether, this class has provided me with the opportunity to set goals for myself (in line with the NETS for teachers), which will help me be a better teacher in the end, and I am thankful for that!
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