Reflective Post

After taking the course eme2040, I have a completely different view on technology and what it has to offer. When I first started this class I think I may have been a bit too confident, I figured I knew everything there was to know about technology and I didn't have any plans on bringing it into my classroom. Turns out I was completely wrong about both or those statements I actually knew very little about technology and now I find it to be useful. Although a lot of the assignments I had some trouble in the end became very exciting and I ended up really enjoying this course.

Although I was never a big fan of using the textbook we did a lot of our assignments using the text book including each blog post we had but it didn't contain useful information. I wont lie I dreaded the blog posts but the fact that we had to incorporate some kind of picture or slideshow made it a bit more interesting and fun. I'm sure a lot of students complained about the book but I do think its a good idea to keep this going it almost forces the students to actually learn about the chapter in depth.

I would have to say the discussions were my favorite by far. I loved the fact that it got the whole class to talk to each other and voice their opinion about the topic of discussion. I enjoyed getting the opportunity to farther my knowledge on technology for example when we were assigned a discussion that we had to select three specific best practices or resources that include the use of educational technology. This was a great opportunity for students to really understand what we can use in out classroom and what is and isn't just a distraction.

One assignment/activity I really enjoyed was the collaborative lesson plan I did not think I was going to enjoy it but it turned out great my partners were very helpful, I had the chance to create a real lesson plan which was very exciting and I experimented with teaching high school instead of elementary. One project we did that I found to be very helpful and really let us use and experiment with technology was our collaborative wiki page, at first I was very nervous and felt like I didn't know much but it turned out great and I think the fact that we couldn't talk to each other made it even better it also made it fair. When I first heard that we were going to do so many group projects I was a bit discouraged but it turned out great and I am so glad that we required to do that because not only did I learn a few things I made a view friends.

In the end I really enjoyed this class and all it had to offer, I'm actually very happy that I was required to take it. I left this course with an abundance of information and class activities that I can use in my future classroom. With or without technology this class still taught me a lot of useful information and completely changed my mindset, I now believe that technology plays a huge roll in the classroom and I think its a great thing.

Digital Blog post L

After reading chapter 12 I came across 3 concepts I found very interesting concepts, "inclusion and infusion of technology" was the first and the other two were "technology integration issues" and "automate and informate". The first concept I picked was inclusion and infusion of technology, inclusion means that computers and information technologies are used mainly for transferring information and practicing skills. Infusion means that computers and other information technologies are ongoing features of teaching and learning all academic subjects at all grades levels. In this paragraph it states that schools tend to follow one of the two. In my opinion I think the best way for schools to go is infusion. Technology provides endless opportunities for students and teachers, you have so much information just at the tip of your fingers. One extremely important factor to consider is time, technology is quick and easy to use giving students and teachers both extra time.

The second concept was technology integration issues, this paragraph focused on the six issues that occur for classroom teachers that directly affect their efforts to integrate technology into teaching. The six issues are administrative support and teaching style, unwillingness to change favorite lesson plans, reluctance to use technology is new lesson plans, use of technology as a reward or punishment, use of technology as an add-on to other activities, and use of technology to separate students by ability groups. Out of these six issues unwillingness to change favorite lesson plans is the one that really stuck out to me. Although technology is a key learning tool now teachers do have lesson plans that do not involve technology that they have been doing for years, I find this important because teachers do know what they are doing and these plans have probably worked very well for their class. I would of never imagined that it would be such a hassle to incorporate technology. I do understand that it may be over whelming for teachers to begin bringing in technology into their class because this is new to them but I also think they need to be open to knew things and they just might be surprised at how much it may help.

The last concept was automate and informate at the beginning of this paragraph it states that Alan November distinguished between people using technology to automate or informate. Automate is when a new technology pretty much recreates exciting practices. Informating signifies a different a different process, where a technology changes an activity by fundamentally redesigning and refining it. I thought both of these were very interesting but at first I had a hard time understanding the difference between the two. After reading I think I realize the difference and I believe in this day and age automate occurs way more than informate because on a regular basis their is something technology oriented that almost takes the place of something that is not technology involved. For example going to a library to check out a book has been replaced with the app "book" on your smart phone where you can buy books and read books at your convenience.

Picktochart created by Katelyn Richards

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

Digital Blog Post K

After reading chapter 4 "Designing Lessons and Developing Curriculum with Technology" there a few concepts I ran across that really stuck out to me. The first concept I found was "Learning Assessments (Knowing What Students Have Learned), which occurs before, during, and after teaching lessons and enable teachers to evaluate student knowledge, understanding, and performance. In this section of the chapter 4 it lists many things that can help teachers keep track of all of this for example grade keeping software, online surveys etc. In my opinion grade keeping is the best thing that schools use, this gives students, teachers, and parents the access to the grades and to keep track of how that student is doing in school. I really feel like grade book for example was very helpful through out my middle school and high school years, it gave me a chance to understand why my grade was great or poor, I found it very helpful.

The second concept I found was "Student Learning Objectives" student learning objectives are what the students will know or be able to do by the end of the lesson being taught. I think learning objectives are a very important part of teaching it gives not only the students but also the teacher a chance to really focus on what the outcome of their lesson is. In my high school my teachers would leave the learning objective in the corner of the board and it gave me a chance to guide myself and stay on track during the lesson. The idea of this is not to write the lesson itself but the outcome as stated in the book.

The last concept I found was "Using Technology in Lesson Planning" this caught my eye because we are now focusing on how to incorporate technology into our lessons for example the lesson plan we just made in our groups. In the text it says that their are apps that have lesson-planning templates for teachers, it also listed a few websites. This would come in handy I can imagine just because technology has become such a huge part of everyday life. I think this would be great for teachers who are just starting also because they are new to lesson planning and new to bringing technology into their lesson plan.

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

Digital Blog Post J

After reading chapter 11 I came across 3 concepts that really stuck out to me, "Involving students in learning and assessment", "Digital Portfolios", "Reasons for Teaching with Clickers". The first concept was "Involving students in learning and assessment" this concept seemed to stick out to me because I don't know about you but when I think assessment I seem to only think about teachers. The only reasons students should be involved is because they are the ones be assessed. The first sentence of this paragraph was the exact opposite of what I was thinking it says "if learning is to be successful, assessment must be participated not only teachers but also by students". I really agree with this paragraph after reading it because if I had the choice of what or how I was learning something I would definitely be more interested in finishing my assignments just like it says in the paragraph.

The second concept I found was "Digital Portfolios" I think this goes with the fact that slowly but surely technology is becoming a huge thing in education. A digital portfolio is everything that is in a paper portfolio just in an online portfolio. It states that this becomes a personal and public piece of writing. I do think that an online portfolio is a huge advantage not only because anyone can see it but in this day and age its easier for students to edit it. I feel like one bad thing would be that it could easily be deleted or lost just because it is online. In the text there is a list of things that are a disadvantage for an online portfolio.

The last concept I found was "Reasons for Teaching with Clickers" I really love this paragraph because I agree with it 100%. A clicker really does give students an advantage by letting get involved with learning instead of just sitting and listening to a teacher lecture. I enjoyed using clickers and playing games during my high school career. It gives a way to get actively involved in the classroom and it can also be competitive for students. I like the fact that it mentions in the text that it allows students to give teacher immediate feed back on their knowledge, allowing teachers to know what certain students are struggling with.


Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc. Prezi by Katelyn Richards

Digital Blog Post I

While reading chapter 6 the three concepts that stuck out to me were "Taking virtual field trips", "Interective Videoconferencing" and "Online learning and virtual schools". The first concept is taking virtual field trips; this is self explanatory. In the text it says that you can take your students all over the world with out ever leaving the classroom. It mentioned a website "Scholastic.com" where students took a field trip to Ellis Island. I think this is great, this gives teachers a chance to really broaden their lesson by taking students anywhere they want. This also gives students a chance to learn new and exciting things, this is a way to keep students interested in their lesson.

The next concept was interective Videoconferencing; this is something I'm familiar with. In my church we sometimes have guest speaker that talk to us over video chat or if our pastor is out of town he will have a video conference with us. This is great because this gives students a chance to talk to people in places they aren't able to visit. I feel like this could be an effective way to have visitors come to the class without really coming to your classroom whether it be a writer, an artist, etc.

The third concept is online learning and virtual schools and this is the delivery of educational experiences through computers and other technologies. I am a huge fan of virtual schools, it gives students the ability to go above and beyond. Online classes play a huge role in schools now a days, it gives students the chance to take extra classes that they may not be able to take because of their schedule. It also gives students the opportunity to work on their work wherever and whenever, outside of a classroom which is a huge benefit. A majority of people own technology and it is a main focus for a lot of people and I think this gives teachers more of a chance to keep student engaged. Even a lot of the assignments you do in school are online based whether it be tests, projects, or even notes your taking for class.

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.


Emaze credits to Katelyn Richards

Digital Blog H

After reading chapter 9 I came across three concepts that really stuck out to me, the first concept was "podcasts and vodcasts as tools for teaching" this concept stuck out to me because I hadn't heard of podcasts before this class. A podcast is an audio recording distributed online and accessed on computers or portable media players using free software such as iTunes. I think this is great especially for students who have a harder time is certain subjects and need time to look back over or hear what was said once again. A vodcast is a form of podcast but in which it has not only audio but but video. In my opinion this gives an even better opportunity for kids to have a chance to look back at notes or maybe if they work better seeing pictures while also hearing the lecture. This would be a great way to tutor someone create a podcast for the student which the student can access at any time on a cell phone, laptop, etc.

The second concept I came across was "use images to generate class discussion" I think this concept was stated very clear and self explanatory. Images are an amazing way to get kids to keep their focus on a discussion rather its age 2 to age 18. In this paragraph it lists an example about maybe you're teaching a history class and explaining an event on the screen it would be helpful to put pictures of this event and getting the kids to interact.

The third concept was "Next-Generation Web 2.0 Presentation Tools" this concept I like because I've heard of these in class. A presentation tool is a tool that uses multimedia to expand the ways that information is shared in classrooms. For example prezi, animoto, and glogster are listed in the book. My personal favorite is prezi its similar to a powerpoint and gives teachers and students a simple way to access key points and review information. I believe prezi is an easy way to present information and I have used it a few times in my classes. Another tool is animoto this tool gives teachers a chance to use video clips, pictures and sounds to expand how they present information, this is something that students can use to present videos also. This is a great way for students to get involved in their personal work by making a video to go along with their work is a great way to let students use their imagination. Also its helpful for teachers because it gives them a chance to catch the students eyes by using images and keep them focused by incorporating music.

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

Digital Blog Post G

While reading chapter 10 I came across three concepts I found interesting the first concept is "Adaptations For Classroom Learning With Technology" the second was "Assistive Technology to Reach Diverse Learners" and the last concept was "Process Approaches to Writing". My first concept which was adaptations for classroom learning with technology was all about 3 levels of accommodations, low-tech, mid-tech, and high-tech. Low-tech accommodations refer to changes that are made easily, inexpensively, and without applying digital materials. Mid-tech accommodations involve substantive shifts in organization and delivery of curriculum that may include the use of digital materials. The last one is high-tech accommodations introduce changes associated with the integration of computers and other specialized information technologies in the classroom. These are all three are ways to help you as a teacher differentiate instruction of universal design for learning. It goes on to say that technology offers two main routes for designing the classroom.

The second concept I found was assitive technology to reach diverse learners. Assistive technologies apply the concept of technological convergence to the ways that information technologies enable teachers to differentiate instruction and pursue universal design. It goes on to say that these kind of tools help people with disabilities be able to do things that normally can't do. Later on it the paragraph it list things that are important ideas for teachers to consider when using active technologies in the classroom. 

The last concept was process approaches to writing which is self explanatory. It list the writing process the steps is prewriting/brain storming, drafting, revising, editing, publishing. To go more into detail prewriting/brainstorming is when the writer begins by ferreting, conversing with others, listening to read-clouds, webbing ideas etc. Drafting is when the writer focuses on creating a draft of writing, allowing ideas to flow forth without stopping or making large changes to the text. Revising is when the writer reviews and revises the writing to change it ways to better the writing. Editing is when the writer makes additions and deletions or changes that clarifying the meaning of the text. Publishing is when the writer shares with others a complete text using different formats, from a read-aloud, to a performance, to a display of the writing in a public place, with the goal of making the writing available for audiences to read and to hear. 

Wordle created by Katelyn Richards Henderson

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.