Assignment #2: Technology Integration

Technology integration in education is the use of technology in the classroom to facilitate teaching and learning. More and more teachers are using technology to present information to students; a classic example is a power point presentation. Presenting information or curriculum using technology, such as power point,

adds another dimension to the typical lecture where a teacher writes on the board or uses overheads. Technology can make learning new material more interesting simply by adding some color and design to it to help grasp and hold the students’ attention. However, teachers must be careful not to use too much color or visual effects or students will be overloaded and unable to focus on the information being presented.

Technology is so important is society and every child should have access to and be educated in using it. Students can use computers to write papers, create presentations, organize information, research topics and much more. The world wide web is a great tool for students. As the first article suggested the internet can be used to connect students and their immediate surroundings to the rest of their city, province or country and even to the rest of the world. The web can be a very affective tool for broadening students’ understanding of a concept or topic.

Teachers should use technology not only to teach but also to learn. Along with broadening their students’ knowledge they can broaden their own knowledge, which may help them to be more effective teachers. Educational web sites can be great places for teachers to get new ideas on how to present information, or to find useful activities for their students.

There seems to be no end to the ways technology can be integrated into the classroom. However, it can be difficult for teachers to use technology in class because there are not always computers in every classroom. Many schools have one computer room which is shared by the entire school so students do not get much time to work with computers.

Assignment #1: Intro to Blogging in Education

Wow, my first blog, how exciting.

As you should know by now my name is Kory Parker. I was born and raised in the great city of Calgary, Alberta with my two older sisters. Some of my favorite things include bright sunny days, being outside, spending time with friends and family, and listening to music anytime, anywhere.

I can remember thinking I wanted to be a teacher in grade 5 because of my teacher Mr. Lemon. Early on I wasn’t interested in school or learning, but when I got to Mr. Lemon’s class that changed pretty quickly. He was the type of teacher who makes a good lasting impression on many of his students. He encouraged me to try harder, he challenged me like no one had ever done, and he made learning fun. Mr. Lemon saw potential in me that had previously gone unnoticed and he helped me to realize my abilities. I am so thankful to have had such a wonderful teacher because without him I don’t know if I would have ever gone to college or university, and I’m not sure if I would be here in PS1 today. I am very excited to be part of the faculty of Education and am greatly looking forward to teaching in the future.

Blogging in Education:

Before last week I had never seen a blog and had very little idea what one entailed. Now that I have read-up on the subject I am amazed. I had no clue that blogs could be used in so many productive ways, not just in education, but in general.

As a math major my first impression of blogs in education was: “These blog things are interesting and I see how they would be useful in an English or Social Studies course, but I want to be a math teacher, I’ll never use them.” After reading more however, I began to realize that any teacher, no matter the subject or grade, could put this tool to good use in the classroom. I can absolutely see myself using a blog to post homework assignments, test dates, and other important information for my students and their parents. This seems like such an obvious and practical application of technology in education, yet I probably would never have thought of it. I think using a blog in this way would be a great method of keeping even the busiest parent involved in their child’s education, and it would also be helpful to students who have many classes and may have a hard time remembering which assignments are due when. Of course, there are dangers involved in blogging and students must be taught proper safety procedures for internet use like, no full names. Overall I’m quite impressed with what I’ve learned about blogging in education and I think blogs could be extremely useful to teachers, students, and parents.