Blog Post 1

Technology can be a useful tool in the classroom and is an essential tool for today's students to learn to be better prepared for modern day life. Teaching students the basic functions of technology ensures that they can succeed in life outside of the classroom. Today, technology is used for communication, administrative tasks, presentations, lesson planning, etc.; however, technology can also have some setbacks. Finances are something to keep in mind when incorporating technology into the classroom. Not every student will have the resources to use this technology at home to practice and not every school can afford to buy various technologies. It is also time consuming to teach and integrate technology into an already established school environment. These are just some setbacks to consider when deciding if technology should be integrated and used in schools.

The ISTE standards are the technical skills and information that students, teachers, and people need to have and use to be successful and thrive in modern society. It makes me happy that the standard "Facilitate and inspire student learning and creativity"  is included because creativity is often lost in many school assignments. It is important for teachers to help students creatively problem solve using digital means. "Design and develop digital age learning experiences and assessments" is one standard that is outside of my current skill set. I am able to use basic functions of programs and technology as a whole; however, I am not confident enough in my skills to come up with effective activities to promote learning and assessment.

I agree with calling today's youth "digital natives." This term means that they just assume technology as a basic part of life and do not generally remember a life without it. I have seen many of my teachers (digital immigrants) struggle to use advanced technology and I have even seen them be taught how to use said technology by their students. Digital natives tend to pick up how to use new technology faster than digital immigrants and in my experience are much more exited and willing to use new technology when it is released. This has made my learning experience less technology based. When we were assigned an assignment regarding the use of technology it was often not helpful to go to our teachers with questions. Due to this, much of my learning was "old school" book and paper learning. I believe that my future students, having grown up with such advanced technology as well as having parents and teachers who are also well versed in technology will be even more comfortable with advanced technology and use it more frequently than previous generations.