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Saturday, September 15, 2007

Picking the Tool...

I know right now we are doing many tutorials having to do with expanding our use of technology in the classroom, however I find it really difficult having the tool and then picking a subject mattter in the curriculum that we can use with that tool. For example, I found it difficult applying a subject matter to the use of spreadsheet just because we had the tool, but we hadn't been studying anything in context with the tool. It was hard to pick a subject matter to fit the tool design. I think it will be much easier and beneficial when you know the subject you wish to teach then you can find the best form of technology that will really enhance the lesson.

However, learning about all these forms of Word is beneficial because knowing and understanding the product, you can then decide which program will benefit what you wish to teach. I had never really used Excel before and I enjoyed the interactive choices to have students involved in the lesson. I don't know if I was the only one, but it had been a while since I had learned anything about Excel and it is always nice to have a refreshing view of programs.

I was talking to my mom about my friend student teaching right now. My friend mentioned that many of the teachers she went to high school with didn't enjoy student teachers. My mom was shocked (being a fellow educator) and said that she loved having student teachers in her classroom because it is refreshing and keeps lessons from becoming stagnant. She especially looks forward to learning new ways to incorporate technology because it has advanced so much at universities compared to public high schools. I didn't really ever think that the tools we learn in college not only benefit our ability to incorporate technology in the classroom but maybe help teach new uses of technology to our cooperating teachers in the field. With such a rapid increase in the use of technical based projects, it is good to always be refreshed in the field.