Classroom Technology Wish List: 101 Ways to Bring Technology into the Classroom

http://blog.classroomteacher.ca/26/101-ways-classroom-technology/

        I recently came across this website that lists 101 ways a teacher can incorporate technology in a classroom. my favorite part about this blog is that it just does not list 3 or 4 ways, but instead lists over a hundred! Some teachers use the excuse that they cannot use technology because the materials they are teaching do not permit them to use it. They also use excuses like they are unsure of how to incorporate technology, so they just stick to teaching without it. This website proves that you can incorporate technology in any lesson plan for any content area. Students today grow up using technology. I believe that it is so important to use it in the classroom because this keeps students interested and helps them learn in ways that they are familiar with. I also believe that technology is the future and for some students who do not have the privilege of using it in their homes, teaching with technology will help them learn skills that will benefit in the future.

Interactivity # 5

       The teacher that I interviewed is a 9-12 teacher in the Garfield public school district. While interviewing her I asked certain questions about how the school uses these standards with their students. The teacher's response was surprising in that she stated that the school has not used the standards. She said that she has heard of the standards before, but she was not very familiar with them. I asked her what she could tell me about the standards and she really could not recall much about them. I brought a copy of them to show her and when she read through them she was shocked at the fact that her school does not require the teachers to know about them. After reading the standards, she stated that she actually does use some of the standards in her classroom without knowing that they were standards. using technology in her classroom is very important to her especially because she is a foreign language teacher. She stated "computers are my students' best friends when it comes to helping them learn the language". She is able to use many programs to help her students record themselves speak and have them improve their speaking skills. She also uses the internet as a way for her students to research about the countries' culture and traditions as well as the geography and history. According to her this is the perfect way for a student to get a sense of a certain culture without actually traveling to the country.
         The teacher I interviewed believes that each teacher should use the NETS standards in their everyday teaching process. She asked if she can keep the copy that i brought with me so that she can use it as a reference for herself and also show it to her colleagues. Using the Nets standards is a great way to make sure that your students are getting the most out of what they are learning.
         As a future teacher, I plan to refer back to the NETS standards and implement them in my class. i believe that the students have a right to a great education and i want to make sure that I am able to provide one for them. I will not only follow these standards to help the students' learning process, but I will also make sure that other teachers are aware of them and help them find ways to incorporate them into their classroom as well.


https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AnTg-VjFaoUtdHNWZC1NRFVUM2xFem5ZbGZ0ZWg3WFE#gid=0