Final Reflection

I have learned a lot about integrating technology through this course. Here are my final reflections based on the following standards:

• Standard 1: Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity
• Standard 2: Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments
• Standard 3: Model Digital-Age Work and Learning
• Standard 4: Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility

How did my understanding of the standards change based on my experiences teaching and designing lessons and assessing student artifacts?

- Designing lessons using Taskstream made me realize how important each and every step is in a lesson. I have to be careful to incorporate different styles of learning, even those I am not personally familiar with. I need to teach in a way that sparks student interest.For this class I was also very aware of how to give students new technological experiences that were appropriate to the lesson. In my planets lesson I modeled how to use a glog, a new educational tool, to my students. In my earthquakes lesson students learned the concept first and then transferred it to an online game. Unfortunately, my lessons did not incorporate a section on digital citizenship. This was for two reasons - one, the activities involved did not include interaction with others and two, I was teaching college students who already had a good idea of responsible digital interactions. I should, however, take a moment anytime in my future classroom to discuss responsible use of technology before it is used.

- In teaching lessons I discovered that the teacher's enthusiasm is super important in sparking a student's interest and creativity within a subject. I discovered that I need to be deliberate with my use of technology and that I need to spend adequate amount of time modeling its use. I should never assume foreknowledge associated with technology. Thankfully, my students/peers had no problem using technology in a responsible way without instruction.

- From assessing my student's artifacts I discovered multiple things. I discovered that glogs are a great way for students to creatively present information. I should have, however, given them more time to do this so that they would have had sufficient time to complete the project. Assessing these projects also hinted at my need to spend more time demonstrating the use of unfamiliar technology.

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What did I learn about preparation and teaching from my peers through lessons and feedback?

My strengths are: Addressing individual needs, creating interactive, engaging lessons and using technology purposefully with in a lesson.

Things I need to work on: Explaining how to use new technology, planning more time for explanation and modeling, allowing more time for activities, especially those involving technology.

What this means: I feel that I learned a lot about being flexible through feedback and through teaching these lessons. My lessons were engaging and exciting and incorporated technology, but they weren't properly paced for the best success of my students. When writing lessons in the future I should over-estimate time needed and then just have backup activities if needed.

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How my experiences might impact my future teaching experiences?

I now have a better idea of how to spark student interest in a subject. Engaging, hands-on activity, purposeful technology and a great attitude are all important ways to achieve this. Through these lessons, as well as research done at the beginning of the semester, I discovered that it is important to use technology purposefully in a classroom. There are many great ways to discover new technologies available to teachers and students. Talk to peers, mentors, other teachers, your students or simply search the internet for different technologies that may be useful in your classroom. It is important to model technology before it is used - even if it seems to take too much time, it will be worth it in the long run! Students cannot succeed by using technology they don't understand. Lastly, I need to take time during my modeling to promote digital citizenship and responsibility. It is my teaching today that can affect the environment of the internet tomorrow.

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