Reflection Assessment #4 

1. What was the big idea of the course?

The big idea for this course is that we are living in an increasingly computer-driven
world. With each passing year, students graduating high school and college are going to
be asked to have more complex skills with technology, regardless of the field they go
into. If we want our students to be competitive employment candidates, teachers need
to incorporate technology into the classroom to prepare them. Luckily, lots of school
districts are investing in technology which will help students become more
technologically literate and will adapt to the educational needs of each student.

2. What were some of the big Ah Ha moments for you?

A big moment for me was realizing how flexible Google Slides is in terms of creating
worksheets and assignments. Last semester when I was working at the middle school, I
mainly used Google Docs to create worksheets for my students and became frustrated
with the limitations that came with it. Learning how to make an 8.5x11 worksheet using
Slides changed how I think about making worksheets.

Another Ah Ha moment I had was when we were discussing the importance of teaching
internet safety to students. Growing up, it was my parents’ jobs to teach me how to use
the internet correctly. Now, because technology is becoming an integral part of the
public school experience, teachers are taking part in making sure students learn how to
protect themselves online. This makes me nervous because it feels like a huge,
important responsibility. Failing to teach this properly can have lasting consequences; if
I don’t teach comma placement correctly, it won’t have lasting effects on their identity
like failing to teach internet safety does.

Being assigned to Special Education next year makes me think a lot about people who
learn differently. I had an Ah Ha moment when I thought about how I could use
technology to present material in different ways. For visual learners, I could assess their
learning by having them create infographics on the course material; for auditory
learners, I could give them a podcast to listen to; for students who struggle to
concentrate on one activity, I could create a Deck Toys activity to break it up into
smaller parts. These are activities which, given choices, will give students more
autonomy and ownership of their work as well as give them the opportunity to express
their knowledge/learn in ways that best appeal to their style of learning.

3. What assignments/experiences helped you understand technology in the

classroom?
  

Studying for and completing the Google Educator Exam was really helpful in helping me
understand technology in the classroom. I was a bit annoyed at all the work I had to do
to prepare properly, but it ended up being worth it because the study material contained
so many ideas from other teachers on how to creatively use Google Apps in the
classroom.

Reading the article and then creating a lesson plan based on a 21st century classroom
was also helpful. Being raised in an “old fashioned” classroom makes teaching like a
21st century teacher difficult. My reflex it to create lectures, worksheets, and follow it all
up with a written exam. It was helpful to have a 21st century lesson plan to base a
lesson off of. I am going to hold onto that lesson plan format for next year when I am
teaching my own classes.

4. How have you grown over this course?

My point of view on this class changed significantly. I was pretty skeptical about taking
this class because technology is always changing; the new stuff today could be the old
stuff of tomorrow. Given this, I didn’t really understand what the point of taking a class
that would be outdated in a year. However, along with growing in my knowledge of
technology and resources available to teachers, I also learned how to stay up to date
with technology. I can use the blogs and Twitter accounts you recommended to us to
stay up to date on the newest and greatest resources for classrooms. This made me
feel like my time was well spent in the class.

I have also grown in my perspective on technology in the classroom. I am pretty

pessimistic about the effects of iPads on the mental health of children. I worry about
what the instant gratification and over stimulation is doing to their attention spans.
However, despite these remaining worries, I am excited about utilizing technology in the
classroom. I understand now that technology in the classroom ought to be different than
the technology children may be using at home. While children may be pacifying
themselves at home by playing mindless games such as Candy Crush (which I too, am
guilty of enjoying), children in school will be actively engaged in the learning process by
completing interactive projects on their iPads/computers.

I am also better at using the Google suite. As I mentioned above, the possibilities for
creating activities on Google Slides is endless. From collecting and organizing data on
Google Sheets to creating self-grading quizzes on Google Forms, I feel confident in
manipulating these tools to fit the needs of my classroom.

5. What will you include and not include in your classroom?

  

Provided I have the correct technology, I will for sure use Hyperdocs and interactive
Google Slides in my classroom to enhance student learning. I am a bit creative so I am
very much looking forward to creating my own and possibly share them with other
teachers. I think these are great resources for student-directed learning as well as a
good backup in case I need a substitute one day.

I am also looking forward to using communication apps such as Remind to

communicate with parents and students. Next year, I am working in an environment in
which the parent education levels are relatively low. Many of these parents also work
multiple jobs and may not be available to help their students with their homework. For
this reason, it is important for teachers to make themselves available to their students
for homework help after school (within reason).

I don’t think I am going to include apps like Classroom Dojo to track student behavior, at
least not at first. While it seems useful and fun for the students, it is also very tedious
and possibly distracting to me. With the time I spend inputting behavioral data, I could
be walking around the classroom, helping students stay on task and assisting them with
their questions.

I don’t anticipate using Kahoot as much as I am initially inclined to. While it is an

engaging test-prep tool, I don’t want to overuse it. I want to find other equally engaging
ways to prepare my students for tests/review material. This way, I can push myself to
have a more diverse toolbox for test prep, and when I do use Kahoot, it will be
especially exciting for my students.

6. What questions do you still have?

Given the troubles I had with making sure students were on topic when using their
iPads last year, I am still worried about how to manage a class where the students’
screens aren’t always visible. Depending on my classroom, it might not be possible for
me to arrange it so I can see everyone’s screens at once. I definitely need to do more
research on how other teachers have handled this problem.

Reflection Assessment #4 Rubric

Elements Self
Check

Takeaways: ​The big idea of the course was mentioned and explained.

Journey: ​The story of how the student changed over the course, gained insight and
what the big Ah Ha moments were explained.
  

Future Classroom:​ Ideas of what to and not to include in his/her future classroom
was discussed.