I am a very digital person. I have an iPod, and Android phone, 2 computers at home, and a T.V. I usually start my day off waking up to an alarm on my phone, after which I open up my Weather App. to check for the temperature for the day. I then switch to my Facebook App. and my E-mail where I check up updates and notifications. I might then turn on my computer to print off/read any assignments that might be online. As I head to school I put my earbuds in and listen to the music I have downloaded on my phone. Later that day I might to research for school online, check my bank account online, watch a show on Netflix or Hulu and maybe watch a DVD on the TV when my husband gets home. All of this without forgetting that I carry my phone around with me, texting my mom, my sister, my husband, and my friends and randomly opening the web on my phone to look things up for class or when I am bored. I follow a few blogs and a few funny websites such as averagewizard.com to keep in touch with friends, to have good laugh, to learn new recipes or sewing ideas, and to take a break from studying/homework/housework. As I type this it seems like ALOT of digital time everyday and I am sure the students who I will be working with will be the same way if not more so.
When I am a teacher I think it would be great to have a class blog! I think it would be a great way for students to share ideas, contact each other for homework, print things off that they missed in class, see examples from previous students and to gain access to extra help if needed. I have also heard of having texting quizzes. Like an i-clicker this might be a fun way to take role and to participate in certain things in class.
As for resources online, there are countless resources online for any content area! In FCS there are cooking and sewing blogs, there are banks that provide videos and lectures on Debt and Interest, and the list could go on forever. Teachers could direct students to find their own resources or simply add them to a lecture.
I think a lot of students will be familiar with computers by the time they reach High School but it would probably be a good idea to visit the schools computer lab anyways. The computer lab instructors could help students who are unfamiliar with the technology while everyone is working in the computer lab.
The only reason I would hesitate using technology outside of the classroom (or even inside with the text quiz idea) is the chance that someone in your class doesn't have access to a computer to use the blog or doesn't own a cell phone.
I think technology and online resources are things that could be used in the classroom. There is so much information out there that isn't outlines exactly like a textbook, or the text you are using in the class. Searching for different resources is a less expensive way of accessing more texts that might show students different insights, a different side of the story, a different opinion, and entertaining but educational material.
You understand the balance between technology opportunities and technology necessities. It's good to give our students opportunity, but not at the cost of learning...if you can balance this and incorporate and integrate it as part of their learning, you will greatly benefit them.
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