Teacher Collaboration

In order to be a good teacher, I am going to have to collaborate with others.  I am going to collaborate with the other teachers so that we don't all give the students tests and projects at the same time.  Overload would inhibit their success.  I will also try to fit my curriculum with theirs where it is possible.  I will allow the parents to view the grades online so that they can stay informed and appropriately encourage their children to succeed.  If possible I believe it would be effective to collaborate with the community.  If there is a play that the theater is doing that goes along with a story we are reading then I will plan it so we could see the play on a field trip at the end of that unit. 

Maintaining Technology Learning and Effectiveness

As I have learned all of the educational forms of technology, I have wondered how I will be able to stay up to date as technology continues to advance.  An imperative part of this is staying informed with what is going on in education currently.  Through avenues like journal articles, conferences, seminars, and communication with other teachers I can know what is working for other teachers.  It is important to maintain control of the classroom.  I need to know the line where too much technology resides.  In order to accomplish this, I am going to try and find a mentor that I trust to ask these sort of questions.  I can evaluate their ideas and then make a decision to incorporate this into my own lesson plan. 

A Safe and Effective Learning Environment

Teachers spend 7-10 hours a day, five days a week with their students.  These students have not fully developed and learned how to make a high percentage of responsible decisions.  Teachers therefore, have the responsibility to keep the students safe during their time spent together.  Dangers come from others and from themselves.  Cyber bulling is one of the fastest growing negative trends in American schools.  My classroom will involve Big Campus which is a academic social network that allows kids to keep up with their homework and with each other.  It allows the teachers to keep up with the kids, and it allows students to report inappropriate comments such as insults or threats. 

Another danger to children is their self-esteem.  They are trying to figure out their identity and where they belong in this world.  A lot of times they get lost and become suicidal.  I will incorporate a blog into my curriculum.  They will allow me to get a peek into their thoughts, and hopefully I would better be able to recognize any red flags. 

Balance in the classroom is an issue that needs to be continually addressed.  As long as you have different students with different backgrounds and different learning styles then are you are going to have to bring different forms of teaching to the table.  The specific question addressed is "face to face" time and virtual environments.  Having virtual environments as an option is great as a resource for teachers today.  This is an advantage that educators have now that they have never had before.  However, people have been learning face to face for all of mankind's history so it obviously effective.  I think virtual environments can boost education since it allows us to tap into a nearly unlimited resource of information.  With videos and virtual field trips and simulations, students are not limited to the teacher's knowledge or the school's library.  I think that face to face time is vastly important to building a trusting relationship with the students.  They need teachers for a lot more than just learning.  Students learn a lot about how to behave and live life from their teachers and this cannot be as easily replaced through technology. As far as the balance between the two, I think it just depends on the class that you have and what needs must be met.

entry 2: We learned about the development of technology through recent years in class yesterday.  Tonight we are setting up symbaloos.  Symbaloo is a real convenience.  It allows you to view all of your favorite apps and websites as square links on the screen. 

I observed yesterday.  My assigned teacher, Mr. McQueen, just got his Masters in Instructional Technology which is perfect because he uses all kinds of technology in his classroom.  This give me some real life exposure to help me understand some of the things that I learn in this class

Week 1
This technology class is the second class this semester.  It should continue on through December which provides me with 8 weeks to learn about technology in the classroom.  I am excited to get caught up with the 21st century. I have always been a bit behind in technology. Case in point, this is my first blog post ever!

Our teacher seems to be very nice and friendly.  I also get the vibe that she wants each and every one of her students to succeed in her class and in the education career field.  She represents Faulkner University very well. 

I had a dream that my entire class took a field trip to the Alabama National Fair this week, and some of my study team got sick and threw up.  It was disgusting, but it didn't seem to bother anyone.  In the trip we took all the outdated technology in the rides and updated them to seem futuristic.