Final+Thoughts,+2

Chris B. I think this class has changed my opinion on technology in the classroom because before I did not think it was a big deal. I thought since the times have been changing that everyone is adapting and getting used to the new technology advancements. I was not aware that it had such a big influence on teaching and how to help diverse learners not to mention other learners. This changed the way I think about technology in the classroom because now I can use it for the future to make my classroom a better and more controlled environment. I want my students to come to class and have fun. I don’t want the classroom to have that dreadful feeling and by using technology kids will like coming to class. I was taught in this class to use all different types of technology. I can use power point, smart boards, and even glogs for future use as a student and even a teacher. This class was very useful and I think I can use this prior knowledge to get me through future classes and to help those who are having trouble learning. I want to use technology as much as I can to help those who have trouble because ive been where those students are and I want to change the way they learn. I want to make class fun and have the students be ready to come to class and learn.

Rebecca Sims

This class has been very informative and influential. I always believed that using technology in the classroom is effective but this class, the keystone presentations, and assignments helped to open up new doors and provide new ideas that can be implemented in the classroom. Technology can be so useful and help give students variation in learning. Technology can be fun and helps the generation of students today who are so used to technology overload in their lives enjoy learning by using tools and materials that they are familiar with. I believe that everything I learned in this class will help me in the future as a pre-service teacher.

Erica Harding

This class has showed me alot about using technology in the classroom. I have never been a fan of technology, prefering posters to powerpoints and written notes to electronic notes. From all of the assignments that we have done in this class, I have familiarized myself with technology and feel comfortable enough to implement these tools in the classroom. I still feel that it is a very important tool, especially considering the fact that I am going to be a special educator. I am going to have to use technology in various ways to both assist my students and enforce my lessons. I feel that this class has given me the tools that I will eventually need when I am a teacher. I now have a great background knowledge of technology and know how and when to use it properly.

Jennifer Summann

This class has showed me so much and I really enjoyed being in this class. I love the different things we learned on the computer such as wordle and glogster and I hope to use these as a future teacher. They are two of many fun ways to get a class involved. My view on the importance of technology has stayed the same. I still believe that technology should definitely be incorporated but not completely take over. Technology will definitely help get the students interested and involved, however, teachers should not heavily rely on technology. For instance, hand writing and paper to pen work should still be done. In conclusion, all of the articles and sites I came across in this class will really help me when I become a teacher. I will now be able to use more technology in an educational/learning way.

Tammy Pickett

I have learned so much in this class. There are endless ways to teach and learn out there if we are willing to embrace the unfamiliar. I love the idea of using the Glog or Voki to express our ideas or to teach a lesson. Students are sure to be more interested when technology is incorporated into the lesson than without. The use of technology is a great way to bridge the gap between teacher and student. It is vital that we as teachers continue to keep up with the evolution of technology in order to reach our students on a level that they can understand. I am hoping to use some of these new technological tools to create projects and presentations in future classes. I have already shared some of these new websites and tools with my own children and family. I am anxious to explore more ways to intrigue and interest students in the classroom. I have always felt that technology is an important part of the classroom and I am even more sure of that now.

Lauren Watts

I have learned a lot of important and useful information in this class. Learning about all the different types of technology out there for students was what made the biggest impression on me. Learning about the Universal Design for Learning and Assistive Technology was very helpful and it showed me that using technology can be a very helpful and important tool, not always just a distraction. Students with special needs can use these tools to help them become very successful in learning. Also, not all students learn the same way so it is important to vary instruction and include places where all different learners can feel comfortable and truly learn what is being taught. My views on technology in education have changed because I learned how important it can be to help students learn. I learned that technology is not something that causes a distraction from real learning but something that can aid and support real learning. It can be something that inspires and encourages learning, while making it fun. Using tools such as a Glog or a Wiki page are a great way to incorporate technology and inspire learning as well. Now that I have taken this class I believe that I will be much more open to technology and learning how to use new programs and materials that come along. I feel that the things I learned in this class will help me differentiate instruction in my own classroom and help my students learn to their full potential. I really enjoyed this class and I learned a lot about new ways to make learning interactive and fun.

**Alyssa DeVita- reflection ** **Technology in the classroom is a very helpful and essential to students today. I always believed this was true, but after taking this course I really saw the ways I can make it happen as a future teacher. Teaching children through the use of technology gives them multiple perspectives on a lesson, as opposed to the more traditional teaching style. I think being an elementary school teacher would benefit greatly from the use of technology. It is a great way to keep children interested and excited to learn. Interactive websites are great for all ages, providing students with games and review for all subjects and grades. Another reason I am strongly for the use of technology in the classroom is because it offers help to all kinds of learners, weather kinesthetic, visual or auditory. After completing this course, I feel like I am taking a lot with me into the real classroom. I would love to incorporate Glogs into my lessons because I think they are a great way to spice up everyday notes and get kids motivated. I now feel more knowledgeable and comfortable using the technology we are provided with and I really think this class is a great asset to all future teachers. **


 * Taharah Shaw- reflection**


 * The ISTC experience was great. I learned things about technology that I would have never learned anywhere else. I learned of the many ways that one can introduce themselves to their students using vokis, glogs, and even video chat rooms online. It is a wonderful thing to incorporate technology in the classroom as early as possible because the world is moving in that direction and we want the future students of America to be prepared for what their work force will present to them. I understand that technology in the classroom will not be offered to all students in America, but as educators we should find ways to fight for those students that need them. I would love to incorporate technology into the class room by way of computers, but where I tend to work money may be slim to none. I am preparing my financial situation now to help to fund my own projects with technology. I hope that it will go the way that I plan. Now that I have had this class, I am confident in knowing that I could introduce my students to new avenues of education.**

Kristen Hoffmann: My personal philosophy about the use of technology in the classroom has not changed. I still believe that teachers should include technological devices in their lessons but they should not rely on them. I feel that for certain lessons the use of technology can greatly enhance the effectiveness of the lesson, but other lessons simply do not need the use of technology to be effective. Something that greatly made an impression on me during this class was the digital field trip assignment. I plan to incorporate this idea into my own classroom one day. I have learned a lot of great teaching strategies and information about how to diversify your lesson by using the UDL. I am going to use everything I learned about how to reach every student in your class through the use of the Universal Learning Design when planning my lessons for my class.

Andrew Prietz: Sometimes the most obvious thing is the hardest thing to see. So, I really took away that there is not a right way to teach. Using different technologies and different methods to teach can be just as effective as the next. I am still skeptical about technology because I do feel there is a huge risk with kids missing the information because they just think it is fun. Becoming a special education math teacher means IU will be using technology heavily especially because of all the assistive technologies for the students with disabilities. Overall, I have do think technology is important to opening kids eyes to seeing education as fun and not just school.

Chelsea D.: My philosophy on technology has stayed the same, but after taking this class, I have become more aware of the different techniques I can use in the classroom. I've always believed technology was an important aspect of any classroom, but after completing our different projects and readings, I feel I have a better understanding of what I can do to incorporate technology into my own classroom. I especially liked finding out a lot more about assistive technology because it's so important for children with special needs to get the everything a school has to offer. It's not fair for them to have to miss out because of limited capabilities. Assistive technology has given them the potential to experience the world a little more like everyone else. I plan on using not only assistive technology but also some of the technologies used in our class in my own classroom. I liked the Promethian Board a lot and find it a very good interactive learning tool. The children can really involve themselves in the lesson. This class has showed me a lot I can do to improve the way my future students attain an education!

My initial philosophy focused on the importance of incorporating technology into the classroom. My philosophy has not changed because through learning more about how to properly use technology in the classroom we have learned the benefits it has. Hopefully when I begin the professional year of school and move into the teaching field I will be able to use the techniques learned to keep students interested in the subjects and encourage them to learn. Through teaching how to use technology in the classroom we also learned that we need to be as advanced as the students are in order to keep the classes interesting to them. Students will have the benefit of growing up with the new technology, but we as teachers need to grasp it in order to appeal to our younger students.
 * Jeffrey H**

Erica Applebaum My philosophy on techonology has stayed the same. I think that technology is extremely important and a great way to communicate with your students. I have, however, learned of many ways to incorporate technology in the classroom. I think virtual fieldtrips are a great experience and a different atmosphere than just reading from a textbook. I also think that assistive technology is extremely important to know about because of the inclusion in many classrooms. Students are to be treated equally and using assistive techonology it is made easier. I learned a lot about technology through the keystone presentations. There were so many websites that will be helpful when teaching various topics. Students go home to a computer everyday after school so if you incorporate it in the classroom it is another way to relate to the students. I think technology is more than helpful and should be used in the classroom more often than not.

Megan Ghothane I've always known/understood that technology was going to take over the classroom at some point, but I've never felt prepared for that day. After taking this class I definitely feel more well equipped to teach my students by utilizing technology in a positive way. I enjoyed seeing what was out there online for the students and myselft to use in the way of activities and videos, but I think I've alway known that those are out there; it was just nice having them brought to the forefront. What I really appreciated was learning how to use all the programs and websites that allow for students to create projects. I am an advocate of differentiation in student products; after learning about all these different programs I can know all studetns to do even more types of projects to represent what they have learned. My classroom will definitely use technology effectively.

**In hea Kim: **

I learned valuable strategies and methods for my teaching career in the future. Also, I learned that the technology is helpful tools for students to take advantages in the classroom. The HTML page, voki, and glog are great resources for students to use in the classroom to benefit their learning. Also, I think the students will enjoy digital storytelling to share their story in the classroom with their peers. Therefore, the students will be able to gain social skills and increase motivation in the classroom. My philosophy of technology in education remained the same. I still believe that the technology is important tools for teachers to incorporate in learning. In addition, I believe that using technology will benefit students to approach new ideas easily and understand concepts better to achieve academic skills. This classroom gave me so much experience that will benefit my teaching career in the future. I will definitely incorporate technology in learning for students to achieve both social skills and intellectual skills to succeed in the future. __ Andrew Ahlstrom I have really enjoyed taking this course. I have always known that technology plays an important role in the classroom, however, prior to taking this course, I did not fully understand just how much technology was out there. Being exposed to things like wiki's, voki's, blogs, glogs, etc, really just shows how much is available. If anything, I have come out of this course with more of a desire to implement and fully utilize technology in the classroom when it comes time for me to teach. I have always been the power-point presentation type of fellow, but now that I have been exposed to much more, I know I have many more options at my disposal. Hopefully in the end, my students will benefit from all of this.

Rachel Rainville. My opinion of the importance of technology in education remains the same. I still strongly feel that technology can hinder rather than enhance a lesson in the hands of an inexperienced teacher. It is better to present a solid lesson without any technology than to use technology and get so wrapped up in how to use it that it detracts from the real purpose of the lesson. I believe that this class introduced me to many interesting tools that I can utilize in my future classroom. Technology makes it possible for those with exceptionalities to express their creativity in ways that may not have otherwise been feasible. It is also a great way for kinesthetic or tactile learners to show their knowledge through projects. Some people don’t write or test well, so technology can be a great medium for them to demonstrate their understanding. I cannot wait to incorporate many of the fun programs, such as the Moviemaker, podcasts, and a class website into my classroom.