Throughout the past seven weeks, I have been completing the
course Impact of Technology on Education,
Work, and Society for my master’s degree from Walden University. During
this course, we have explored various types of technology, learned about the 21st-century
skills that our students need to develop in order to be successful in their
futures, discussed how students today differ from students in the past, and reflected
on how these topics impact our teaching. It has been a highly beneficial course
because it has helped me to develop my technology skills, deepened my knowledge
of the teaching process, and has helped to reinforce the idea that
learner-centered teaching is highly effective.
The three main technological tools that we explored were
blogs, wikis, and podcasts. Before taking this course, I had little to no
experience with any of these tools. We started by making our own blogs. I had
read other people’s blogs in the past, but I had never created my own. We then
did an assignment where we created a wiki with other students from the class
which was completely new for me. Finally, we interviewed students and created a
podcast. I had never created a podcast before either. There was definitely some
trial and error working with each of the technologies, but through that trial
and error I was able to become more knowledgeable and confident working with
them. As a result of this class, I can say that I am much more technologically
savvy than I was before. I also know that I will utilize some, if not all, of
these tools in my classroom in the future.
Looking at how students learn, what they need to learn, and
how teachers can best teach students today were all big topics throughout this
course as well. The students that we find in our classrooms today are much
different than students found in classrooms in the past. This is largely due to
the media that they have access to from young ages (Laureate Education, Inc.,
2010c). It is also true that we teachers are preparing our students for a much
different work world today than teachers of earlier generations were. Our
students have to compete globally and against machines in today’s workplace
(Laureate Education, Inc., 2010b). Teachers need to be mindful of these ideas
and work to teach their students the proper 21st- century skills
that will best prepare students for their futures. This class really helped me
to see that one of the best ways to do this is to change the teacher-centered
mentality of the past to a learner-centered mentality. Many of the most
successful teachers today are facilitators of learning and guides to their
students rather than the ‘’source of all knowledge” (Laureate Education, Inc.,
2010a).
As a result of taking this class, I feel I have grown as an
educator. Exploring easy methods of incorporating technology in my classroom in
meaningful ways has increased my confidence in this area. I am planning on utilizing
blogs and wikis in my classroom right away during this school year because of
this. Also, the reflection I have done about student learning and the most
beneficial ways of teaching 21st-century learners will help me to be
a more effective teacher for my students. I am excited about becoming more of a
facilitator of learning rather than always being at the center of my students’
learning. I am confident that doing so will allow my students to prosper and
reach greater achievements than they have in the past.
With all the new knowledge and insights I have gained
throughout the past seven weeks, I am going to set two long-term goals for
transforming my classroom environment.
- My first goal is to have a 1-to-1 student to computer ratio for my ELL classes within two years. Not having the resources and/or money will be an obstacle that I will face in achieving this goal. Looking at the budget and strategically planning for the additional computers is one way to overcome this obstacle. My ELL classes are small, and, therefore, we will not need a large number of computers. I could also apply for grants and/or scholarships to obtain the resources to buy the computers.
- My second goal is to motivate the three colleagues that I do content/ELL collaboration classes with to become facilitators of learning rather than having teacher-centered classrooms within the next two years. This type of learning is excellent for all students, but especially for ELL students. This may be a tough sell for some teachers because of the fears and difficulties that come with making this change, but having the chance to collaborate with colleagues and incorporate activities where the teachers are facilitators will hopefully help others see the value of this type of teaching.
At the beginning of this course, we completed a self-evaluation
checklist relating to our skills with incorporating 21st-century
skills and technology into our classrooms. Before taking this class, my
incorporation of these important skills and tools was happening sometimes but
not always. During this upcoming school year, this incorporation is going to
jump from sometimes to almost always which I am sure will result in greater
student achievement overall.
References
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2010a). The changing role of the classroom teacher:
Part 2. [Video webcast]. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_2819318_1%26url%3D
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2010b). The changing work environment: Part 2. [Video
webcast]. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_2819318_1%26url%3D
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2010c). Today’s students. [Video webcast].
Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_2819318_1%26url%3D
