So many things!

For this week's blog assignment we were supposed to write about something that we've learned about technology in the classroom (I think). Well I'd say that this has been a pretty productive week for me. I got through our first Google site assignment without any major hiccups, I started an RSS feed and posted some of the blogs I'm following here, and I redesigned my page. I'm feeling pretty accomplished! On top of that, I presented the third chapter of Dr. Curtis Bonk's book with my group using Prezi. Although I have used Prezi a few times before, I have never used it for group collaboration and I think it worked really well. Prezi Meeting is available with the free subscription and allows multiple people to work in the space at the same time. The only downside is that the free subscription means that all of your Prezis are public, so you have to be careful of what you're putting out there. Otherwise, I think that it's a great tool for us, since we all have such hectic schedules, but it also has potential in the classroom.

On another note, with all of us working on our infographics, I wanted to share a few things I've found. I read about http://www.everystockphoto.com/ on the Free Technology for Teachers blog and I think it would be a great resource. It's a search engine for public domain and Creative Commons pictures and it pulls images from a bunch of web sources when you search. When you click on an image, you are taken to a larger version of it, complete with a link to the source and the requirements for using that picture. I also stumbled upon http://infogr.am/ which is a free infographic creation tool!

Yikes

I knew that I was behind when it came to technology, but until tonight I was blissfully unaware of just how much of an understatement that is. I have read exactly one blog before starting this venture. And while I am wordy enough to write things, I am sorely lacking in creativity and import skills. Luckily, you, my wonderful classmates, are much quicker on the uptake than I am and I have been able to follow some of you and get ideas. So, with any luck, I will soon be able to sit down and really personalize this thing. Thanks for your patience!

Here goes...

     After reading the excerpts from Bonk and reviewing the 21st century skills, TPACK, and NETS for students and teachers, I am beginning to feel uneasy about going into the classroom. I'm seeing that technology is becoming more and more important in schools and to student learning and I know that I am not prepared for that. Hopefully, this class will help me feel more secure in that arena.
     I acknowledge that the world is becoming smaller and that we all have the ability to access information on the spot, which is what Curtis Bonk talks a lot about in his materials. However, as we discussed in class on Monday, one has to wonder if that is really a great idea when it comes to the classroom. We may be training students to become global citizens, but I fear that we are also training them to dismiss critical thinking. I wonder if teachers are still teaching very basic skills, like using a dictionary and finding books in the library. Of course, we have the technology to do those things digitally, but are we losing something by allowing students to take those shortcuts?
     When I reviewed the NETS for students and for teachers, I felt like most of them were quite reasonable. We have been learning, and I quite agree, that teachers need to customize learning experiences, provide appropriate assessments, and model collaborative learning and constructive thinking. I just wonder how much we are supposed to be integrating technology into those lessons. The standards make it seem like we should be using digital resources throughout every school day. I would like to find a way to do that without sacrificing basic skills and critical thinking.