Everything+I+Need+to...

Everything I Need to Know About Applications of Technology.....I learned in this class.
Ann Toney I have learned a lot about technology. The first thing I learned is that when exploring web 2.0 sites leave yourself a lot of time because you get lost in them. Second, I learned is to take any technology class in person because I am not the most tech savvy person and my children don't want to teach you how to do something they just want to do it. I do feel that through this technology class I am a little more confident with technology. I just had a some interviews and sounded very impressive when I asked if they had any policy against edmodo accounts for the classroom. I also talked about creating my own webquest. I think I like the webquest the best. When I do another webquest I already know many things I will do differently. I just don't want to start over. I also love this site www.planbook.edu that I discovered and I am sure I will use it in my future. === I have learned a TON about technology and we are only three weeks into this class! I've told numerous people that I actually LIKE doing my homework in this class. If I can say that after a long day of work, I can only imagine that our students will feel the same way. I have learned that technology can be continually incorporated into a classroom, even with a small amount of computers. I have learned that incorporating technology does NOT mean focusing our projects around a certain program, but rather, focusing our projects around the objectives and letting the technology help inspire and motivate the students to create and share with one another. I've learned that certain LMS can be used as little or as much as we want and there isn't just one LMS site (Moodle), that there are a ton and we just need to find the right one for our class!- Submitted by Kim Mack === ||
 * **DaJuana Madison -I have learned alot about technonlgy in the last three weeks. I wish this class was offered as a 16 week course because we move so fast. I cant wait to show my __students__ what I have learned next year. Im going to bring my own computer to school so my students can see and use the new sites I have found over the summer. I want to bring technology more in my class and thats the only way I can because the Headstart program do not allow you to go on sites that they do not provide.**

====I am inspired as I move through this course! I realize now that I didn't know how much I was missing out on... I know I am just scratching the surface of what is out there, but I feel like we have highlighted so many wonderful tools that I am adding daily to my toolbox. With the vast amount of resources online, I am learning quickly that as educators we need to be very creative to incorporate web tools when our resources are, many times, limited. I am also learning again how fun it is to learn through discovery and creativity, which is what I most want for my students. Technology doesn't have to be rote or prescribed. With a little guidance and a clear goal, the journey we take in technology is the most important. I always tell my students it's not the answer that is most important, it's how we get there. I am excited to use Symbaloo even more in depth to organize the sites that I use frequently for topics and lessons (especially my Smartboard lessons and online manipulatives), and I look forward to building an online learning community with my students next year. ~Brandy Antonio ====

====P.S. I also learned that you don't have to purchase software or apps to be able to utilize technology in amazing ways. I can hardly believe the amount of freeware out there that can be used for educational experiences. ====

Reflection- Rebecca Hamm After only three weeks in this course, I can say that it has been one of the most applicable and practical courses I have taken at MoBap. Many of my classmates have shared valuable resources that I have enjoyed exploring and am looking forward to integrating into my classroom next year. One of the best experiences that I have had so far, is having the opportunity to try out many technological resources for myself. By creating an Edmodo, writing my own Storybird, generating a Word Cloud, etc. I have gained first hand experience in how these programs can benefit both myself and my students. I am looking forward to the opportunity of creating my own WebQuest in this course. I think we are setting a strong example for our students by sharing resources that we have created ourselves, as models to guide them.

====Reflection-Kim Thomas I have learned that there are so many different ways that technology can be integrated into the classroom that is just overwhelming. There are so many ways in which technology can be used as an engager NOT a babysitter for our students in the classroom and at home. We as teachers just need to tap into this educational gold mine and incorporate more of it into our classrooms. This means there needs to be a changing of the mind set about paper and pencil versus the online activities. More professional development is needed for the teachers that were certified many years ago to get up to speed with the contemporary practices that engage the students of the 21st century. Many of these online tools like Vocabularyspellingcity.com can save teachers time and free them up to do more one-on-one or small group instruction while students from another group are working on various independent assignments.Teacher social networking sites such as Edmodo can be a great resource for seeking out new suggestions from other professionals. Google can help a teacher find a new lesson plan or video to enhance a lesson plan. This is some of what I have learned in just three weeks and I have to say that I have surprised myself.====

Reflection - Josh Klaas I feel like I have learned a lot about applying technology in my classroom in only a short period of time. My confidence is boosted when it comes to using technology. This class has shown me how easy it is to integrate various Web 2.0 tools within the classroom to inspire creativity and cooperative learning environments where students interact with each other in person and through the internet. This can be done with wikis, blogs, and educational networking sites. Not only are these tools helpful and creative, but they grant students ownership, which is one of the most motivating factors that can get students excited about school and learning. When students have ownership over their learning, it can transform the attitude of the whole class. A sense of pride comes out when students know their work will be available for anyone to look at, especially other students and classmates in the school.

** Kimberly Knox - Reflection **
The main thing I have learned during these short 4 weeks is that incorporating technology into your classroom does not have to be scary! Many resources such as, Wikis, blogs, LMS sites are free to use and user friendly. There is so much that can be done with technology. Keeping parents in the loop, allowing students to brainstorm freely with each other, cooperative learning opportunities and more. Because students are interacting with each other on Facebook, Twitter and on other social media sites, it will add value to learning when teachers allow them to communicate on the web. These creative websites can help students learn and they do not seem as challenging as traditional classroom assignments. Students will be motivated to learn using these tools! I cannot wait to find the best fit for my classroom and incorporate technology.

** Reflection on what I have learned **** Ryan Zieg ** ** Throughout the first 4 weeks of class, I feel like I have made tremendous steps towards understanding how to successfully utilize and implement technology into my classroom. Before this class started, I had never heard of Edmodo or Moogle, and I now see them as incredible resources for creating virtual classrooms. I had no idea that I would be able to post instructions, presentations, assignments, assessments, and discussion opportunities for students to actively access and be a part of outside the classroom. The vast array of Web 2.0 tools that have been discussed and displayed by other students has greatly increased my ability to create an aesthetically pleasing website for my students. Knowing how to add widgets and embed files into websites makes it so much easier for students to engage with the pages that I create, thus enhancing the depth of meaningful learning that can occur within them. I am very grateful for the wide breadth of knowledge and skills that I have already learned, and I look forward to furthering that knowledge throughout the next half of the semester. **

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//__Amy Rainwater-Reflection __ // ===

I have learned so many things from this course. While working on the Edmodo project I thought how can we learn anything more useful. Well everything I have learned will be so useful in the classroom. I really never heard of Web 2.0 before this class. Now I feel like I have been introduced to a whole new world. It amazes me what all you can do on the Internet that will help in the classroom. I struggled with my wikispace page at first. However, I finally learned how to add a video, image, and cool text! I never knew that you could go to YouTube to find all your answers. I couldn't have done this project without YouTube. I have also found so many sites with so many useful academical tools that I can't wait to introduce to my students. I love the fact that you don't have to carry around so many thumb drives any more. You can just get on the Internet and find your projects. That to me is fantastic. I have several thumb drives, but get so frustrated trying to figure out what thumb drive has what project saved on it. I think that my students may be more motivated to complete their work since it is on the computer. I think it will be such a great motivational tool. This is probably the most informative and interactive class I have taken. It will really come in handy during the school year. I have signed up for so many Web 2.0 tools and I have learned something from each. I am just so happy that I now know how to add videos to projects and sites. I remember being frustrated because I did not know how to add them to my PowerPoints and now I do. Symbaloo will be such a helpful tool too. My favorites list is so large on my computer it is hard to look through. Having all the sites rite their on the page and just having to click a tile will be so much better. I can't wait to finish that. I am constantly adding sites to that tool. So just knowing that Web 2.0 exist is a huge advantage to the classroom. I have learned so much about them and want to continue to find knew sights that will help my students.

Donny Harris- Reflection Web 2.0 is not what I first expected it to be when I first heard the term. I was expecting some kind of specific site that only educators knew of. Now I know it is so much more than that. It is almost every popular site we use everyday. It is sites like facebook, youtube, and twitter. People use these interactive sites everyday and do not even realize that they are using Web 2.0 technology. These sites uses are mostly limited to the users information provided. These sites do not work if the users do not input any thing on them. Think of Facebook with no one posting anything on it.......obsolete, like must websites that failed to transition into Web 2.0 sites. How many people use Encarta any more? Not many and its not because it isn't full of great information but more the lack of interaction and ever changing information. What I have learned most about Web 2.0 is to look at every site I know or come across and look past its initial or popular use and look for a more richer use. One that I could be valuable to me as a future educator.

Reflection- Melissa Stufflebean I have learned so much in such a short time. I have even applied some of the tools for my current job as a early preschool teacher in my class now. I have really the love the web 2.0 tool [|www.symbaloo.com/] to keep all my favorite sites and other tools in a place where I can find them. I also loved the Emodo project. I am still currently get great feed back and helpful information to use in my classroom now and the future one to come. I have talked to some awesome educators throughout this class that I have given great information and I as an educator have shared my own information as well. I thought this class was great and will be very helpful in the future.

Reflection - Cindy Rieger I have learned about applications of technology to the point of being overwhelmed. The most difficult for me to get comfortable with is that I will never learn all there is to know about technology and bringing it into the classroom. This is an ever evolving beast full of wonderful ingenuity and creativity that continues to build upon itself. Edmodo and Delicious are my favorites thus far. I have also enjoyed creating a web quest and look forward to creating more of those. Learning about Web 2.0 has been mind-blowing for me and I realize that I will be a forever student of this technology. I am so happy to be a part of this course and love that it was offered online. This will definitely be helpful to me as a future teacher.

=Kyle Davis-=

=Applications of Technology has definitely been an eye opener so far. I've learned a lot and forgot a lot already. My mind is pretty well fried 5 minutes into our assignments and research. The weird thing about me is that I really like technology, but the fact that I'm interested in it hasn't really given me an edge on picking up on everything quickly. This Web 2.0 tools assignment has really gotten me interested in taking advantage of some of these tools to help me personally and inside the classroom. Once you learn your way around on Web 2.0 tools and learn all the lingo and jargon that goes with these great tools, it seems like it would save you less time and help you teach more efficiently. More importantly than the fact that they will help me become a more efficient teacher, they will help my students become more effective and interested learners. While this technology tidal wave has been challenging so far, I guess that's part of my learning experience and I can see that the applications I learn in here should stick with me more so than assignments done in traditional education courses.=