Higher Learning

Well, hello there beloved bloggers of group 3.  My deepest and sincere apologizes for not blogging on time; please do not shun me from this delightful experience. I believe I owe answers to the following questions:

1)      How is your experience going to differ from the experiences your students will have?
2)      What will you want to know about the implementation of technology in your school division? 
3)      What challenges do you foresee? 

1) My experiences with computers throughout my schooling was average; meaning they were around me but not used to a great extent.  In elementary school, computer class was simple.  First everyone would start off with All The Right Type and eventually move unto the much-loved Number Munchers (anyone else have the pleasure of playing this game; selecting ‘prime numbers’ was the easiest).  In high school computers were used to complete written assignments and in the obvious classes, such as Info Pro.  I took two classes of Info Pro: one teacher simply worked on keyboarding skills throughout the course; whereas, the other teacher focused on web sites, databases, spreadsheets, etc (This shows that teachers themselves play a crucial role in demonstrating the endless possibilities and benefits of computers).  My students will have a much different experience with computers and technology as a whole.  In today’s world it is extremely difficult to turn your back and ignore technology because it is all around us.  Students need to become familiar with computers and worked with them, hands on, at an early age; therefore, my students will be exposed to them on a daily basis—not just Number Munchers, but there must be a great deal of prime number playing!

2) When I receive a job in a particular school division I would like to know the role technology plays in their system.  I assume that every school division understands the importance of technology in the classroom and places strong emphasis on this.  I know, from experience, that even remote schools in the North Lights District make use of computers and technology on a large scale in their daily routines.  In addition to this, I would like to know what things the individual schools within the division are doing with technology.  It is my goal to created and implement something original and unique when I become a teacher—school website, media production club, TEACHER BLOGS, etc.

3) The challenges I foresee are a lack of support, appropriateness, and originality.  Lack of support can appear in the form of not adequate equipment to conduct certain projects or by administration not realizing the necessity of technology in the classroom.  Appropriateness is a major issue because there is non-suitable material scattered throughout computers and the internet.  It is an intricate task to ensure all potential problems are being counteracted with a proactive approach rather than reactive.  Personally, when I teach I have this urge to create original, unique, and creative lessons and projects.  I do not always like searching through resources and simply using what has already been created.  For me, this will be a challenge because many things have been done when it comes to computers in one way or another.  However, I do realize that there is a seemingly endless amount of freedom with todays programs—Photoshop Elements, Windows Movie Maker, iPhoto, etc.

That is my weekly blog folks, hope it has been has enjoyable for you as it was for me.

Keep On Keepin’ On.

Kyle