Blog 5: Technology Action Plan

Technology is an emerging force in education. Within this article, there were six aspects of technology usage that teachers can use to evaluate themselves. Of these aspects, I found three that I need to grow in and three and I am already seeing signs of competency in (although there is always room for growth!). The first area I need to grow in is being able to effectively utilize the countless types of productivity tools, such as Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. Next, I need to become familiar with troubleshooting. I am good at seeking technical assistance, but I can rarely find the source of a computer problem myself. I would also like to devote more time to the process of finding credible, informational, and fun web resources for my students to use. As I already mentioned, I find myself to be good at seeking technical assistance. I also am proficient in using effective search skills. Last, I have an interest and flexibility when it comes to technology. It is a goal of mine to continue seeking out sources that will contribute the effective teaching and learning in the classroom.

There are many ways to use technology outside the classroom to enhance dialogue with students in the classroom as described in this video by Jose Bowen. The first way to do this is to create a classroom twitter account. At first, I was skeptical of using social media in order to reach my students, however, I am beginning to see the benefits. If I, as a teacher, see something throughout my day that relates to what my students learned in the classroom, then I can tweet about it. It creates a discussion board of sorts for my student. Bowen describes the process as “modeling what it means to be a scholar” by making connections between what you are doing in class with what is happening in the world today. The students’ attitudes for learning shift positively when they are able to see that what they are learning has relevance. Another way to enhance dialogue is by assigning a podcast for students to listen to at home. This allows the students to come to class the next day already familiar a topic of study. It frees up class time to be used for more interactive opportunities. These ways of teaching students outside of the classroom setting change my teaching method by allowing for demonstration, discussion, and cooperative learning. I can demonstrate that what we are studying holds relevance today, promote discussion of why and how it holds relevance, and use class time as a place for cooperative learning instead of only lecturing.

When Bowen talks about “teaching naked” in the video, he means that if teachers have nothing new to say about a given topic, then they should use a podcast or video to engage the students in teaching the information. He encouraged teachers to play to their strengths! If lecturing is not a teacher’s strong suit, then they should leave the lecturing to someone else and focus on the way they can best teach information. This may include creating interactive lesson applications or organizing group collaboration projects to discuss what students learned in the lesson. When teachers “teach naked,” students should be interacting with both the teacher and the other students. During the learning process, they should be continually challenged to think about the real-world application of what they are learning. In addition, students will not just learn knowledge and content, but they will learn how to analyze knowledge and content.