In my Digital Learning class I have learned more than I thought I would and its only a few weeks in! There are so many new ways to educate children and to engage them. We as teachers are branching out into a world where the child knows more than we do.
It's not as scary as it seems though. We are learning new things about the way children think. We are finding out how to engage them with things that normally we would not even allow in the schools before. Cell phones, tablets and computers are making their way into our classrooms and it is a glorious thing. With websites like khanacademy and IXL the posibilities are limited.
In this blog on TedTalks, Jessica Gross talks about how classrooms are evolving. She lists some of the technological tools being introduced in the classroom such as Smart Boards (an interactive white board), ereaders replacing books and Power School which involves technology going home and involving the student and the parent actively in the progress of the student through technology. The blog is more focused on college education but it can be applied to elementary and high schools as it is spreading throughout all grades and ages.
In this class we had to create a website for our "classroom". I have to admit it was pretty intimidating. It was also very exciting. It taught me so much about different ways to use Google which I have always looked at as a search engine. Just with that single assignment, I became so excited about helping a child learn with technology the way I did and feeling and hearing their excitement. I am actually really excited to learn more about how I can incorporate technology into my future classroom. It feels like a better and even more effective and awesome ways to reach our evolving students; to be more on their level and in a comfortable spot that puts them at ease but also interests and educates them. I hope more schools and educational leaders embrace technology in the classroom and see it for the benefit it really is.
I'm Kellie :) This blog is for my digital learning class. I'm hoping to learn lots of things on here and maybe even teach people a few things! :)
