Reflective Entries #1-6

Reflection #6
As I was working on a paper for another class the other day I was very thankful for a new(ish) aspect of technology: ebooks. For my biblical interpretation class I was able to access commentaries online! This was extremely helpful as it was late and the library was closed. Also, most commentaries are in the reference section which means they can't be checked out. I was grateful to be able to access the material from my desk. Not only have I used ebooks, but online journal articles have been a huge help in paper writing. I love the way information is available on the internet and that libraries are supporting this--because, as we all know, not all the information is reliable. But when we gain our source from a output such as the library we can know we are in good hands. Thank you technology!

Reflection #5
Reading Yajaira's post on podcasts spurred me to realize that I know nothing about podcasts in the teaching profession. I listen to sermons on podcasts when I work out, and I knew that there were podcasts for almost anything, but I guess it never crossed my mind to use them in teaching. So...I took a look on my itunes for the podcasts available relevant to teaching. I found podcasts providing lesson plans, language learning, and music lessons even! The coolest thing I found however was this: the sites we could use to get videos for our students (like discovery, BBC, PBS, and TED) have podcasts! Just another feature we could incorporate into lessons. I can just imagine a secondary teacher assigning a project to review a certain amount of podcasts on from one of these providers on a certain topic. My horizons of possibilities with technology keep expanding.

Reflection #4
I was driving into my church the other Sunday and a sign I had never seen before met me at the entrance of the long driveway. It said something like this: "We welcome you to Overlake Christain Church. Tune your radio to 89.9 for more information." I was in awe! So, of course, I turned my radio to 89.9 and listened as our head pastor welcomed everyone to church and gave resources for children, main service times, and even available cofffee. To me this was a perfect example of integrating technology on a professional level to the benefit of many people. I immediately felt welcome (even though I wasn't new) and knew that the church cared for me and it's other attendees. What an awesome and effective idea. Just thought I would share.

Reflection #3
I have realized that a lot of creativity goes into making technology integration work in a classroom. And this really excites me. I love being creative, artistic, and visual. I think these things will help me adapt certain tools into my teaching. I can't wait to get to my own classroom and use the things I have learned so far.

Reflection #2:
Sitting in class a few days ago, I was thinking about the adjectives we use to describe different forms of technology and how it affects a student's perception of the material. In this class the teacher had prepared visuals and helpful tools for us on the computer which wasn't working. So she told us we would be using the "archaic" overhead projector. Now even in a college level class we automatically think of the overhead being "old" and it slightly turns us off to the information being presented. I assume this would be the same way with an elementary class. Students like to use new things!! When I was in elementary school I loved being called up to write something on an overhead because it was a new thing. But, as with anything, things get better and we, kids especially, aren't satisfied with our old stuff. Keeping ahead with our use of technology is consequently and important aspect to the attractiveness of a lesson. It may make or break the attention you get from your students. Just a thought:)

Reflection #1:
I was thinking about how technology makes learning effective in the classroom and my mind wandered to the classes I have taken at Northwest so far. The class I would say was most efficient in integrating technology and using devices to connect with students was Professor Kowalski's Christian Thought class. He is very knowledgeable about technology--so it is no surprise he would use it to further his teaching ability. It was easy to follow the material with the information Kowalski would put on the screen. He would also access passages of scripture online with different resources right in front of us. My favorite use of technology however was used at the beginning of class. He would have a music video playing as everyone entered relating to the material for the day. This was the perfect tool to get his audience of young adults engaged and interested right away. All this to say, I applaud his creative use of technology to drive home educational points.