Technology is a daunting idea for me. Not that I'm technologically challenged, or anything, but I was so unsure about how to approach it in regards to teaching. I have taken the education class about technology, (EDUC 295), where they taught us how to use internet games in the students' downtime or smartboard for the average third grader. (I do feel that every single education class here is geared towards el ed students...I have yet to learn anything about dealing with high school juniors.) This chapter really allowed me to understand some of the finer points of using more advanced technology in the classroom, and there might not even need to be a smart board (GASP!) available in the classroom for me to utilize technology.
I guess why I struggled with this idea of technology in the classroom was because as a high-school student, we didn't really use technology. The technologies we did use, like PowerPoint, and Twitter in my senior AP English class to discuss Tale of Two Cities was generally hated by everyone that used it. But my teachers were not allowing us creative solutions to discussing literature. As the textbook points out, my teachers boxed us in with these technologies, and nothing extraordinary was being accomplished, other than the fact that we could more effectively cyber-stalk each other. The textbook gives some really great examples and inspiration for teaching with technology in an actually effective way.
I have a personal blog on Tumblr,where I can post things that I love with very few restrictions. This blog is a site that allows me to be creative in the way that I find comfortable, while at the same time, I am able to connect with other people that live in Singapore, England, France, and Australia. I love the universality of this site, and would love to use it as a teaching tool at some point. Perhaps I could have students create an account and they could post their thoughts on class, or connect their own interests with the literature in class.
Similarly, one of my favorite ideas in the text was the making of the book trailer. Kids know how to use these technologies, and why shouldn't their teachers let them? In this way, kids can be creative while still utilizing their deeper understanding of the literature and critical thinking skills in new ways. Their own interpretation should serve as the base board to get all kinds of interesting feedback about the book or story shared in class.
After reading this chapter, I feel much better about using technologies in the classroom, especially ones that I feel comfortable using myself. Technology isn't going anywhere, and as educators, we really need to be aware of what is out there and how to use it to our students' advantage, so that they might actually succeed in the world.
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