Reflection

In order to be a successful educator I feel that it is important to be a life-long learner and continue professional growth.  Part of doing so means keeping up with changes in society and staying on top of advances in technology.  This course has helped me to develop my own technology skills as a professional teacher and incorporate forms of technology into my classroom that I had never thought of before.  I am now more confident when it comes to using technology and willing to take on the challenges and obstacles that come along with technology.  Teaching first grade is a challenge within itself.  Adding technology into the mix and teaching students how to use technology adds more challenges.  However, this course has taught me how to use technology and implement it into the classroom to be a successful learning tool.

I now have a deeper understanding of the teaching and learning process.  Teaching and learning are connected and they need to change together.  Learning changes as society and technology changes.  They way students learn and what they learn is always changing and in turn teaching must change as well.  This course has taught me that society and technology have a huge influence on learning.  Students are surrounded by a variety of digital stimulation out of school.  We need to incorporate the same digital stimulation into our teaching process in order to keep students interested, engaged, and motivated.  If they come to school and are suddenly “disconnected” they will be board and lack enthusiasm and motivation to learn.  In order to avoid the lack of motivation and enthusiasm teachers must keep up with the changes in society and technology and keep up with their changing students.  Teachers need to be creative in their teaching processes and provide students with stimulating and interesting learning experiences.  I understand, more than ever, how much teaching and learning are connected.

I feel that I have always developed my instruction to be learner-centered.  However, now I use more strategies and resources to reach all learners successfully.  I give my students more choices when it comes to completing assignments.  For example, they can illustrate their response, write their response, or verbalize their response.  Of course, I don’t use this strategy in all subject areas or on tests where a written response is required; however, during a daily lesson or discussion I find that the students answer more thoroughly and successfully when given the choice of how to answer.  I let my students know that we are all in school to learn and have fun, they are going to learn from me and one another, and I am going to learn from all of them.  Learning is an interactive experience and requires collaboration among teachers, students, parents, and other community memebers.   I encourage my students to share information with one another and collaborate within their learning community; which could be their group, our class, or the school depending on the activity.  Even though I am “in charge” of the classroom and I am the authority figure, it is not “my” classroom.  My students and I are equal and I let them know that they are entitled to their own opinions and suggestions in our classroom.  I want them to be a part of creating our classroom environment.  I feel that students learn better and achieve more when they are a part of the teaching and learning process.

I plan to continue my knowledge of learning, teaching, and leading with technology with the aim of increasing student achievement.  I plan to do so by attending workshops that teach us how to incorporate technology into the classroom in new and innovative ways.  I will also listen to my students and take time to learn about what types of technology they are interested in and what they use at home.  I will then try to implement these technologies into my classroom and teach my students with these technologies.  My hope is that this will keep them interested and engaged and provide them with the stimulation they need to be successful students.