The End and the Beginning

At the end of these past 8 weeks I have learned that I am more tech savvy than I thought. This is my first online class and there were some times when I just wanted to be in a” brick and mortar” class to actually see my teacher and classmates. I have at times been over whelmed by all of the tools and how to integrate them into my teaching style and also into my district but I think just focusing on using one tool at a time is a great starting point.  I've surprised myself and my colleagues on the ideas I have brought back about going 1:1 and it is all because of this class.  Week 3 module: Moving mindsets was really a great unit for me.  I brought lots of ideas back to my schools technology committee and while I’m not sure how receptive they were, maybe it at least opened the door for discussion at a later date.

The SAMR model was probably the best tool for me to utilize when evaluating my use of technology. I have also tried new lessons this year with more technology. I used a web quest instead of a lecture and then we went back and discussed questions that they had or things they thought were cool. I tried a Photostory for evidence of evolution that did not go well and was very frustrating but I had another teacher try it with her students and it went better. I got the students feedback for improvements next year.

If blended classroom setting is the way of the future then I think we as educators have our work cut out for us, as well as other stakeholders in the community. Hopefully all parties involved will see that teaching critical thinking is not something that is new to education but rather something that has been sidelined because of the importance of standardized tests. One of my favorite quotes that I use now as my own professional vision statement is from Josef Albers, a professor of art and education, “Good teaching is more a giving of right questions than a giving of right answers.”