Recent Changes

Danielle
Final Reflection: Technology for Learners.
At the beginning of the semester I was quiet anxious to see how I would be able to incorporate technology into my classroom and to learn more about the digital world. To be honest I had never even heard to digital citizenship and since I have now been more aware of the current issues and trends in the digital world I notice it everywhere! I was ignorant to the digital world and I have come to realize as an educator this is unacceptable. I was also very curious at the beginning of the semester to learn how I would personally use technology while teaching math. Besides using the smart board I would not use technology frequently in the classroom.
I will admit the first class we had I left pretty scared. I was thinking I don’t want a twitter or a blog, who needs this? One of the most fascinating ways of collaborating come to find out is through twitter. When Maryalice came in to talk about twitter I left with a whole new perspective on twitter not just the thoughts I had about it being just like facebook or anything other social network. This summer when I have more time on my hands, I plan on exploring and making a twitter account, it doesn’t seem so scaring anymore. I was also hesitant to create a blog and especially as a first year teacher in a private school to get permission and ask. Not only did I have to get permission I had to write and modify a contract for the students and the parents to sign before getting started. Creating a blog seemed completely out of reach and out of my element but it came together. The students are enjoying the blog I found this very helpful to continue learning at home. Whether the students are continuing to read about what topic we covered in class or they play a math game, either way it is a win-win situation. I was very impressed with my students and their use on the blog; this has taught me many things. The students are eager to learn and explore new technology and it keeps them engaged. I was astonished with the creativity the students had while on the blog. The students are the ones that found out they can create their own page on the blog too!
Learning about digital citizenship over the course of the semester made me realize how important to it is to educate our students on this topic. Not only about the benefits but also about the dangers and there are way more dangers using technology than I first suspected. Learning about the nine elements of digital citizenship made me compelled to inform my students of this. They are freshman in high school, if they do not know or learn this information now when will they? I felt it was my duty to educate them on the topic to the best of my ability. Over the course of the blog and the semester my students have learned as much as I have if not more about being an appropriate digital citizen.
Writing this and looking back at the beginning of the semester I thought I knew about technology, I was wrong, I have learned so many new things this semester. Assistive technology is a topic I have never even heard of. Going to NEAT was in particular my favorite class of the semester. I never would have though a pen grip on a pen could make a difference to a student or was even considered assistive technology.
Being able to incorporate different forms of technology in my classroom has improved to a great extent. I have used livebinders, blogs, wordle, taxgedo, prezi, this week in rap (which my students loved), templates for power point included jeopardy, smart exchange and a few more. I am amazed by how user friendly most of the applications or websites are and how much my students and I benefit from them. Overall this has been a class where I can use what I am learning in the classroom in my own class room and actually applying what I am learning in an actual setting. This has been a great experience and I feel I am a better educator. Thank you for all your encouragement, ideas, and help along the way.

Technology for Learners
Technology for Learners was one of the two technology courses I took during my last semester as an undergraduate. I have been introduced to various kinds of technology tools and have been shown the many different ways they can be incorporated into the classroom and in my daily life. I have also learned the importance of teaching children to use these tools appropriately. The feeling of a rush of a new way of teaching in the classroom was what I was feeling towards the beginning of this semester. During my content courses-development of reading, mathematics, science, social studies, few technology tools were used and so I did not see power and importance that technology could have within the classroom. It's a relief to know that there are other modern ways to reach the students of the 21st century. It's not longer chalkboards and whiteboards. The world is evolving into more modern, faster ways to communicate and reach others and so are our classrooms. When I student taught, the technology in the school was limited-few SMART Boards in each grade level or teachers who did not know how to incorporate it into their lessons. As far as the use of computers, students were placed on the computer for a short period of time to complete a reading program. Sometimes I would catch students minimizing their screens and play games online instead which brought up the idea of not trusting students.
the classroom.
As a student, I have grown throughout this semester by being pushed out of my comfort zone of what I've been taught the past few years about instruction in various content areas. I have enjoyed using Glogster, Voki, Voicethread, Wikispaces, creating a screencast, using Prezi, creating a blog and so many other tools! It has been fun to try new things and get the experience of how I may one day use these tools with my students. If I had fun using these tools, I know my students will too!
This is an experience that will stay with me throughout my first year teaching and the rest of my teaching career because this is great preparation needed for teachers to reach out to the learners of this century. Technology is having a huge influence on the new way of learning for our students. We all believe that all students can learn, therefore it is important to make learning happen for all our students, even through the use of assistive technology. Attending NEAT was another experience that will stay with me because it is an awesome place to be affiliated with and to know about, especially for students who have disabilities. It was interesting to experience learning the way a student with LD may and to play around with the different computer tools to make learning accessible to students.
In essence, this class has been a breakthrough for me as far as my teaching career and knowing the potential I have to be able to use these tools and assist in the new learning of my future students.

Rubi C
Technology for Learners
Technology for Learners was one of the two technology courses I took during my last semester as an undergraduate. I have been introduced to various kinds of technology tools and have been shown the many different ways they can be incorporated into the classroom and in my daily life. I have also learned the importance of teaching children to use these tools appropriately. The feeling of a rush of a new way of teaching in the classroom was what I was feeling towards the beginning of this semester. During my content courses-development of reading, mathematics, science, social studies, few technology tools were used and so I did not see power and importance that technology could have within the classroom. It's a relief to know that there are other modern ways to reach the students of the 21st century. It's not longer chalkboards and whiteboards. The world is evolving into more modern, faster ways to communicate and reach others and so are our classrooms. When I student taught, the technology in the school was limited-few SMART Boards in each grade level or teachers who did not know how to incorporate it into their lessons. As far as the use of computers, students were placed on the computer for a short period of time to complete a reading program. Sometimes I would catch students minimizing their screens and play games online instead which brought up the idea of not trusting students.
Teaching students to be digital citizens and how to create creative ways to send out this message is critical because not only will we be teaching to use technology appropriately but also how to be citizens in person, to one another. What better way to send out this message than to have students use the tools first hand to teach their classmates. Many have designed and presented creative ways they have taught their students what it is to be a good digital citizen and the results were great! These are prime examples that should show us to not give up on the idea of our students + technology. Many of the tools we were introduced to are simple to use and many were free-two components that are important to teachers because we want tools that we can easily use without confusion and frustration and the less expensive the tool, the better! As a class, we've seen the benefits of incorporating various tools into our lesson plans and how much fun it can be the students and teachers. It is a matter of taking risks and not being afraid to use these tools in the classroom.

Mike H
MICHAEL M. HATZIKOSTANTIS
FINAL REFLECTION ON SEMESTER: WHAT DID I LEARN THIS SEMESTER?
What did I learn this semester? First, I have to say, “Wow!” This was by far my favorite class here at Saint Joseph College in West Hartford, Connecticut. Nicole Feeney was simply “The best!” Saint Joseph College would benefit from hiring her on a more permanent basis. Never had I felt more comfortable in a class than I did this semester. The course work, the speed in which we completed our assigned projects, the weekly blogging, our textbooks, as well as the Assistive Technology which we were introduced to were done in stress-free manner. On a scale from one to ten, I have to give a twenty.
Digital Citizenship is still in its infancy stage. Technology is changing constantly and the laws cannot keep with this this explosion. I really appreciated one of our earliest blogs which asked us to discuss a personal bullying experience from our lives. This is a tough subject for me because it brings bag so many bad memories. However, those experiences made me a stronger person and I believe it allows me to help others who are currently dealing with this situation. Moreover, our class joined thousands of others to demand the Motion Picture Association of America to lower the “R” rating they gave the movie, “The Bully Project” to the requested “PG-13” rating. This act shows just how powerful our voices can be when we stand united against a social injustice. This was a powerful lesson to learn and one that we should all learn especially with the accessibility of social media today.
Early in the semester, our syllabus posed a simple question. The question was “Does a 21st century classroom have to integrate technology?” I went to school before personal computers were in most homes, the creation of smart phones, social media, IPads (tablets), etc. I did great in school. However, times have changed. These technological items are all around us. I still do not believe in teaching technology for technology sake. Students must first have a firm grasp of the concepts being taught. Technology can then be implement to enhance learning. Teachers as well as parents/guardians have to teach proper control. Students today over use technology and have lost simple communication skills. This is something I discussed several times in my blog as well as my final project on our Digital Citizenship Constitution.
I finally learned how to create a working blog, invite my Sunday School students to that blog, post important religious issues into the blog, and create a positive atmosphere within the blog so that my students could post their beliefs and comments. While I was disappointed that many of my students did not participate, I was very impressed by those who took the time and posted several comments. I have to thank Prof. Feeney for her help and guidance throughout this process especially when things did not go as planned.
Another positive experience this semester was our trip to NEAT. My only contact with that building was when I did my U S Census training in 2010. I did not realize just how much they do there with assistive technology and with refurbished items for those who have no insurance or for when insurance denies any further payouts.
Toward to end of our time there, we were introduced to some other types of software to help students with special needs. However, it went deeper than that. These applications created a “Universal” setting were no student feels different. I only regret two things; one, that the technology piece was last, and two; that I had to leave 25 minutes early.
In conclusion, I have to argue that this semester has been very positive, engaging, informative, and fun. I want to thank Prof. Nicole Feeney for everything she has done for us this semester and look forward to utilizing these resources in a future classroom. Moreover, I also learned that while this technology is not going away, we have to teach everyone about its proper uses.

Diana
Technology is seeping its way into our lives more and more each day and I am so grateful that from this course I will be taking away so many new ideas and techniques to incorporate into my future teaching. This course ranged from learning about assistive technologies, to numerous digital programs teachers can use freely, and to digging deeper as to how we can promote using technology respectfully and appropriately. As a class, we saw how using the internet in careless ways can lead to devastating consequences, we followed stories as touching and devastating as Tyler Clementi’s and Dharun Ravi’s, and reflected on the ways in which we, as educators, can be the advocates for change our nation needs so desperately.
Through numerous education and teacher preparation courses, I have been taught multiple times how to differentiate instruction to meet the needs of all students. However, looking back, not many of my classes touched much upon the area of technology. I signed up for this course because I wanted to learn about different programs that I could integrate into my teaching. I found I learned so much more than that. I learned that technology is a way to level the playing field for different types of learners. Assistive technology especially is the pathway for students with disabilities to participate and be engaged in school. It’s amazing to think that by providing such tools, digital or otherwise, can have life-changing impacts on their lives and on the education of our students.
Before starting this course, I was aware of certain programs I could use with my students. I feel very comfortable using Microsoft Office programs, but I wanted to widen my knowledge of technologies that I could use in my teaching. I feel so fortunate to have an entire Live Binders full of tools and programs to refer back to in the future.
This course explored so many different programs and technologies, but more importantly, it weaved in the importance of being a responsible digital citizen and what we can do as teachers to promote appropriate usage of technology for all of our students. We discussed in detail the issue of cyberbullying that has become such an epidemic in our society. We reflected on celebrities such as Ellen DeGeneres who has been such a hopeful voice for a change in our future. We talked about other artists such as Taylor Swift who writes powerful lyrics and sings inspiring songs with messages we should all take to heart.
I believe it is important to remember that kids at any age are vulnerable to peer pressures and are sensitive to how others perceive them. What I’ve learned from our discussions in this class is that we cannot walk around with closed eyes and ears to the bullying that is going on in our schools. There have been devastating cases of children not seeing a way out of their challenging realities, and as a result, taking their own lives from no longer being able to deal with the pain. The stories we have heard of our youth feeling that suicide was the answer have been haunting, especially because we wonder what may have been done to prevent it from happening.
I’m leaving this course with a greater knowledge of technology and its impact on the education of all students. I feel more confident that I will be able to use these new programs in my teaching. More importantly, I feel more aware of some of the consequences of using technology inappropriately, and I know that I will do my part to be an advocate for the change our nation needs.

Tina {Reflection.doc} Tina

Your lessons into the technology
by Kate M
Technology course by onon GoAnimate
Make a Movie - Powered by GoAnimate.
My last three courses on integrating technology into the classroom have become the most rewarding experiences I have had throughout my professional careers. My journey of learning how to take technology and incorporate it into the students learning has evoked a passion even I never thought it existed. My whole life I have told myself that I just want to find that one thing, besides my family, that I can be passionate about. The career that will allow me to feel like I have a purpose, I have a focus, and I want to continue to learn from it. But most of all, a career that I can help others become successful. Well, I have to say, at this point in my life, I have found it. And I thought it would take my whole life to try to uncover it.
My last career in the media field involved me working with technology. I loved it. I loved the problem solving aspect of technology. I loved the ease of technology. I loved the outcome of technology. I loved the integration technology brings. But I did not enjoy the atmosphere that I was experience this love in. I knew there was another place for me. I stepped away from the media field to pursue my dream of becoming a teacher. And even as I began my academics, I did not feel that passion, until I took Computers in the Classroom. This is when my passion began. I was able to take the two strong interests in my life and pair them together; teaching and technology. Yahoo!

Your lessons into the technology
by Kate M
course by kmorrone on on GoAnimate
Make a Movie - Powered by GoAnimate.
My last three courses on integrating technology into the classroom have become the most rewarding experiences I have had throughout my professional careers. My journey of learning how to take technology and incorporate it into the students learning has evoked a passion even I never thought it existed. My whole life I have told myself that I just want to find that one thing, besides my family, that I can be passionate about. The career that will allow me to feel like I have a purpose, I have a focus, and I want to continue to learn from it. But most of all, a career that I can help others become successful. Well, I have to say, at this point in my life, I have found it. And I thought it would take my whole life to try to uncover it.