Jen talked about how using technology helps students remember topics in the classroom, which I think is the reason why technology can be considered a motivational tool. I am going to focus on the other roles technology plays in a mathematics classroom: as a management tool, a communication tool, an evaluation tool and a cognitive tool.
Technology can be used as a management tool because it helps teachers and students work together. Some examples of using technology as a management tool include internet home pages including activities, review, and lesson plans. Other resources include grade-book programs, spreadsheets, and databases intended to help teachers organize and prepare daily activities.
Next, technology can be used as a communication tool because it allows teachers to share ideas with one another. In the last chapter we learned that there are podcasts set up in which teachers can share lesson plans with each other. This is one way technology can be a communication tool. Also, teachers can communicate with parents and students at home through web pages (like the wikis we are creating).
Technology can also be used as an evaluation tool because teachers can use video observations or grading software to give their students feedback on assignments. Personally, I don't know if I would make video observations for each of my students, but you never know.
Lastly, technology can be used as a cognitive tool. Technology, if used correctly, can provide ways for students to understand mathematical concepts more clearly. Technology usually lends itself to hands-on-activities, which is a great way for students to fully understand "mathematical algorithms, procedures, concepts, and problem-solving situations" (280).
Who would have thought that technology could play so many roles in a mathematics classroom? As a management, communication, evaluation, motivation, and cognitive tool, it is clear that technology is a must have in the classroom.
2 comments:
Jess, I think you did a great job summarizing all the uses of technology. We have not really touched on all the ways that we are going to use technology as a management tool, but it's great that you included them. Grade-book programs, spreadsheets, and databases for teachers will all be our survival tools when it comes to organizing our schedules. It's important that we learn about these forms of technology now so that we can learn how they can all work together and how we can use them when teaching.
I agree with you that I probably won't use video observations as an evaluation tool, but there are other ways not mentioned in the chapter that may be useful. For example, using online quizzes give students the opportunity to be tested under different conditions while allowing teachers to assess students' understanding. Similar to this are the quizzes we made on Excel.
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