Technology Inquiry Wiki Reflection

       For my technology inquiry wiki, I exerted a lot of effort in making sure I developed my own wiki page to the best of my ability. I spent multiple hours on creating my own wiki page. In those hours I made sure that I was presenting myself in a professional manner through the proper use of grammar as well as making sure I passed the “yes test”.
      The value of completing this assignment was very beneficial. Even though this assignment required a lot of effort and work, I was able to learn a lot from doing this assignment. Through this assignment I was able to have a better understanding of how to operate my own wiki. I was even granted the opportunity to learn more about wikis due to the fact that my inquiry question was related to wikis and the classroom. Through researching my inquiry question, I came upon many ways to use a wiki in my future classroom. Throughout this class, I always wondered how all this technology could play out in the lower elementary grades, especially wikis. However, through my research I was able to determine multiple ways of including wikis in lower elementary grades. All in all the value of completing this course task allowed me to understand multiple ways in incorporating wikis into my future classrooms.
       Completing this task impacts my future, but more specifically my student's future. Prior to this assignment I wasnt going to incorporate wikis into my classrooms mainly because I did not know how to use a wiki. However, my views on wikis were completely altered do the research I conducted. Now, my students will have the opportunity to explore a classroom wiki and even more technology that I have learned through out this course.

Exit slip 12/9/10

Today's class I was able to regather all of the ideas we have learned throughout the Education 331, which was beneficial for me to recall how I can integrate technology into my future classroom.

How will I teach?

Three different ways I am going to integrate technology into my future classroom:

• Interactive White Board: through using an interactive White Board my students will be able to engage in all my lessons. Allowing my students to engage in my lessons will allow my students to retain the information presented to them better because my students will be actively engaged in the material.
• Classroom Wiki pages: Using wiki pages into my classroom allows me to communicate with my students' parents. The wiki page will be a classroom wiki in which I organize what I did through the day in order for the parents to know what their child has learned. I will also supply additional resources for the students' parents to engage in. In the classroom wiki I will display my students progress by putting their work on the wiki page in order for the students' parents to see their work. This classroom wiki will also allow my students to reflect on their day in my classroom. In a way, the students will sort of be able to discuss what has happened and what he or she learned.
• Show Beyond: I will use show beyond to "spice" up my literature corner. Show beyond will allow my students to put together their own story. My students will draw their pictures of their story and then I will let them take pictures of their pictures andupload it to the classroom computer. The students will be able to narrate their own story, as well as provide image text, which would enhance the student's writing skills.

Class responses for integrating technology into our future classrooms:

• IWB
• Video streaming
• blogging
• Scratch
• Epals
• Simulations
• online whiteboarding
• course website
• podcasting 1:1 initiative
• screencasting
• audio mechanisms

My thinking and role of teaching technology over this semester has changed dramatically. My idea of incorporating technology was something really simple like a PowerPoint, however this class has brought better technology into my teaching style. First, I thought technology was a way of taking away that actual teaching in the classroom, however now I know technology to be beneficial in the students' learning as well as improving my teaching. So, this class has left my on the positive spectrum of technology. I will engage students in technology through incorporating multiple technologies.

Exit Slip 12/2/10

Today in class we watched a video based on the integration of technology within a teacher’s classroom. I took away multiple things from this video, which will aide me in integrating technology into my future classroom. The first way of integrating technology into my classroom would be to have an interactive white board. Integrating an interactive white board into a classroom allows for cooperative learning, and engagement and participation among the students. Cooperative learning includes the making of groups, in which the students can come to the board as a group and participate in that particular interactive white board lesson. Another way of integrating technology within my future classroom that I took away from this short video clip is through online collaborative projects. With online collaborative projects, I as a future teacher, could integrate pen pals or in this case E-pals into my classroom. Another way of integrating technology I took away involves blogging. Using blogging as a teacher is a good way to keep a daily document of what went on throughout the day in your classroom. Having students use blogs will allow the students to express their opinion on current events as well as classroom activities. Through identifying these ways of integrating technology, we developed “lens” in which we were able to realize what we could do before, what we could do without technology, and what is made better with technology. Doing this lens activity was a great way to see how technology has bettered education.
Today’s class was a great way to discuss the brilliant aspects of technology as well as the mistakes of technology.


NOTES:
How she integrates technology into her classroom:
•Using a daily blog (open classroom: document what is going on within the classroom, it’s a way to document what went on throughout the day.)
•Interactive white board (cooperative learning: groups working at the Smart Board, engagement and participation: motivating, students are curious)
•Online collaborative projects (work with other students throughout the word) (epals)
•Student blogs about current events and classroom activities: state their opinion.
•Laptops (mobile labs)