If ten years ago I had told you that with a device the size of a deck of cards you can carry 2,000 songs, control the temperature of your house, and take a video of your child's first steps and instantly send it to 500 of your friends, would you believe me? Me either.
This technology thing is pretty cool, isn't it.
My baby isn't even 8 months old yet and she's taught me things about my ipad that I didn't even know. Seriously. This is why I'm taking this course -- technology is here to stay. Textbooks will be gone any day now. Classrooms are becoming bedrooms. Lectures are taking place in coffee shops. If I want to keep myself marketable and current, I have to know what's happening in the world of education and technology is it. Every time I turn on the TV I see a commercial for a new K12 online school. I'm hoping to learn many different platforms for online instruction including Google docs, blogs, Moodle, Blackboard, etc. As an alternative ed teacher, I'm always looking for "outside of the box" ways to educate my students. Although I teach middle school now, if I ever got back into high school, online learning will soon be a big thing for secondary learners who need an alternative setting in general, for credit recovery, and even for GED instruction.
When I first logged onto class and began getting acquainted with the system, it was a little daunting. But once class progressed I felt more comfortable and in a way it really did feel like I was sitting in a live classroom. And the best part was I was in my pajamas, eating dinner (baked tilapia -- super good), and I didn't have to find someone to watch the baby.
I love what you are saying about the classroom becoming the bedroom. I think that as we differentiate more and more to find ways of teaching that work and with the 21st century model we are going to see more movement towards online teaching/learning. I agree that nowadays we need something like this to keep ourselves marketable. If we aren't ready to embrace technology I fear there will be no place left for us as educators. What a scary yet exciting thought.
ReplyDeleteI believe that learning can take place anywhere. It does not take place only in the classroom, but constantly around us as we go through our daily lives. With the advent of online learning, you can augment any classroom. You have some nice thoughts here about how you want to keep up as a teacher. Whether that be the teacher of your child, or of students that you have in class. The important thing is to keep learning. What is an area that you are hoping to be able to teach using technology?
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