Focus Question: What siz key issues should a teacher consider when looking to integrate technology?
The six key issues are; 1)Using technology in teaching, 2) motivational factors, 3) barriers in technology, 4) plans for the type of technology in classroom, 5) teaching methods/goals, 6) students and technology.
Relating to 1) using technology in teaching, I find myself on realting to the side of "old school" teaching methods. I seem to understand the logic of incorporating new technology in todays schools, but I have a long way to go to better understanding the proper ways to incorporate advanced technology in the classroom. However, I am motivated to do so. My reasoning being, relating to my students to better educate them is my number one priority. I believe if we are able to incorporate advanced technologies in the classrooom in a safe matter, then students and teachers will be able to connect at a different educational level while also motivating the students to want to learn.
Unfortuantly, there are several barriers that block teachers from using technology in their classrooms. Internet access has been absent and or limited to K-12 schools at one point. While technology access has dramatically increased, a constant pull between expanding technological capabilities and the declining operational budgets has forced schools to put a halt to their technology goals. Computers are out of date, software is limited, and software and harware are often uncompatible due to differences in computer memory and operating system requirements.
As a future educator, I am hoping to be able to incorporate new technology advancements in my classroom. I would like to be able to use an online website/app that the students are required to check in weekly to complete homework and bonus question. I believe this will benefit the students by making homework more accessable while motivating them to actually do the homework!
Tech Tool Link :http://www.educause.edu/research-and-publications/7-things-you-should-know-about/7-things-you-should-know-about-learning-technology-topics
I enjoyed exploring this website, I found it to be easily nagivated-which is crucial. There are several links labeled "7 things you should know about.." each link has 7 topics you should know about, such as; " 7 things you should know about group texting", "7things you should know about social content curation", "7 different things you should know about the evolution of the textbook" and so on. I found this website to be resourceful, unique, and relatable among students and teachers.
Chapter Summary & Connection: I found this chapter to be very imformative for the first chapter in the textbook! It was loaded with useful information and ideas about schools and technology. I learned about the effects of digital divide, the importance of student-centered teaching, computer-based technologies, and many more. I was most intrigued about the digital divide among the students and the schools.The digital divide affects mainly low income and rural communities. 30 million households do not have a computer.Many students only access to a computer is at school or a library. As a future educator this may be a huge road block to the technological advancements I was hoping to incorporate in my lesson plans.
