EDCI 5825 Week 6 In-Class

Since the beginning of the semester I have learned that there are a great deal of tools and resources on the internet which can be used to help when teaching. When I first entered the course, I had no idea on how to create or use wikis, and didn't even know things such as Google Docs, Voki, Glogster, etc. even existed. Since this time, I have not only become familiar with the tools but also have become comfortable with using them in my future classroom. I also have learned about how a Mac operates and many of the applications that are available. For instance, I now understand how to use iMovie, Garageband, and run most of the Microsoft applications. I feel that all these resources can be used to plan lessons that are more interactive and lively for my students. I can incorporate new learning experiences using this technology which bring many sources of videos, documents, web resources, and any other instructional technology together to create a lesson which is fun, exciting, but most importantly investigates a topic much more in-depth and builds a deeper understanding for students.

The quality and appropriateness of what you have learned/created this semester.
I feel that the quality of what I have learned was good and the tools we learned about are definitely relevant. While there is not much time in these short semesters to really investigate a topic in-depth and pull all the information out of a program, we did explore many of the key aspects that we can then use to explore the programs on our own in the future. All of the resources that we have learned about can really help to teach our students and provide them with the optimal learning experience. I will be able to incorporate most of the tools that we learned about directly into my curriculum. I would have liked more time to understand some of the projects before we began using them, but as I worked on the assignment I started to understand them better and grew more confident.

Evaluation of your comfort moving forward with technology.
After this course, I feel much more confident moving forward with technology. I began thinking I was proficient with the computer but realize I didn't understand most of the applications. I am now about 80% confident in using my Mac, but realize there are many more programs to explore. Within the programs that I have learned I feel about 85% confident in using them, but 100% confident in that I can learn to use them at their full potential if I just keep practicing.