Introduction: I was very worried at the beginning of ETEC 524. I have felt for a long time that my technology skills are like Swiss cheese. I know a little bit of information about many different software programs but have many holes in my basic technology skills. I went from being very apprehensive about this class to feeling excited about attending the next class session. I think I had an AHA moment every time I came to a class session this semester.
Blogs and Wikis: (AHA moment) I had never heard of a blog before this class. I was so worried about doing this type of assignment because I did not know where to begin. However, I actually enjoyed doing the blog entries once I understood the significance of each assignment. Blogging has such potential as a teaching tool. It can be used for parent communication, student assignments, staying in touch with family and friends, and as a personal journal. I do not plan to continue the ETEC 524 blog unless I add to it from other graduate education experiences. I plan to create a family blog so I can stay in contact with relatives living in Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri. I had never heard of a Wiki before this class either. Although I have not worked with this concept as much as the blog, I have shared it with colleagues and will investigate more about using Wikis in teaching next year.
Power Points: (AHA moment) I have utilized Power Points for years. I had never made an interactive one before this class. This is a method that I will use in teaching my history classes. I plan to go back and revise many of my power points that I have made previously to enhance them and make them interactive.
Desktop Publishing: (AHA moment) I have used this program before and made brochures and newsletters with my students. I did not know it had so many other features. I loved making the business card and learning how to use the grouping feature.
Bloglines, Del.icio.us, and RSS Feeds: (AHA moment) This was a very exciting class session. I plan to organize all my bookmarks into Del.icio.us this summer. I have been so frustrated in the past trying to re-find great sites. I like the usefulness of RSS feeds and the bloglines also.
Threaded Discussions and Journal Articles: (AHA moment) Threaded Discussions including journal articles is a wonderful way to hear about new technology innovations and studies. I liked the discussions because I was able to learn about other people in our class. These discussions helped me realize that many people are experiencing the same frustrations in the educational world as I am especially with the lack of technology skills and equipment. Many times if the equipment is available, the training is not. The discussions also helped to lend support to others in the class and allowed me to even gain AHA moments from their expertise.
Blogs and Wikis: (AHA moment) I had never heard of a blog before this class. I was so worried about doing this type of assignment because I did not know where to begin. However, I actually enjoyed doing the blog entries once I understood the significance of each assignment. Blogging has such potential as a teaching tool. It can be used for parent communication, student assignments, staying in touch with family and friends, and as a personal journal. I do not plan to continue the ETEC 524 blog unless I add to it from other graduate education experiences. I plan to create a family blog so I can stay in contact with relatives living in Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri. I had never heard of a Wiki before this class either. Although I have not worked with this concept as much as the blog, I have shared it with colleagues and will investigate more about using Wikis in teaching next year.
Power Points: (AHA moment) I have utilized Power Points for years. I had never made an interactive one before this class. This is a method that I will use in teaching my history classes. I plan to go back and revise many of my power points that I have made previously to enhance them and make them interactive.
Desktop Publishing: (AHA moment) I have used this program before and made brochures and newsletters with my students. I did not know it had so many other features. I loved making the business card and learning how to use the grouping feature.
Bloglines, Del.icio.us, and RSS Feeds: (AHA moment) This was a very exciting class session. I plan to organize all my bookmarks into Del.icio.us this summer. I have been so frustrated in the past trying to re-find great sites. I like the usefulness of RSS feeds and the bloglines also.
Threaded Discussions and Journal Articles: (AHA moment) Threaded Discussions including journal articles is a wonderful way to hear about new technology innovations and studies. I liked the discussions because I was able to learn about other people in our class. These discussions helped me realize that many people are experiencing the same frustrations in the educational world as I am especially with the lack of technology skills and equipment. Many times if the equipment is available, the training is not. The discussions also helped to lend support to others in the class and allowed me to even gain AHA moments from their expertise.
Google Pages and Portfolios: (AHA moment) This was another program I had never used before. This is a wonderful way to keep student work organized and portray a collection of projects. I plan to utilize this method with my Gifted and Talented students in the future.
Movie Maker and Photo Story 3: (Favorite AHA moment) I had so much fun working with movie maker and Photo Story 3. I had never created a movie with either of these programs before. The possibilities for utilizing these two programs are endless.
Philosophy: This class helped refine my educational philosophy and strengthen my high educational technology expectations for myself as I can aspire to provide my students with a higher order educational environment that promotes life long learning so they will not become lost in the world of one way thinking.
Summary: These are only a few of the examples of my AHA moments in ETEC 524. I learned something new every time I came to class or completed an assignment so it is hard to define which learning experience has had the biggest impact on me because all of these tools are very useful and many were totally new to me. I think for my personal life the biggest impact will be from using Movie Maker and Photo Story 3. Interactive Power Points and Blogs will have a tremendous impact for my professional life. A possible project next year with my History students will be for them to find a period in history and respond to an historical event in a similar fashion to what I did in ETEC 524 using a blog. I believe that my technology skills have a few less holes after taking this wonderful and exciting class.
Movie Maker and Photo Story 3: (Favorite AHA moment) I had so much fun working with movie maker and Photo Story 3. I had never created a movie with either of these programs before. The possibilities for utilizing these two programs are endless.
Philosophy: This class helped refine my educational philosophy and strengthen my high educational technology expectations for myself as I can aspire to provide my students with a higher order educational environment that promotes life long learning so they will not become lost in the world of one way thinking.
Summary: These are only a few of the examples of my AHA moments in ETEC 524. I learned something new every time I came to class or completed an assignment so it is hard to define which learning experience has had the biggest impact on me because all of these tools are very useful and many were totally new to me. I think for my personal life the biggest impact will be from using Movie Maker and Photo Story 3. Interactive Power Points and Blogs will have a tremendous impact for my professional life. A possible project next year with my History students will be for them to find a period in history and respond to an historical event in a similar fashion to what I did in ETEC 524 using a blog. I believe that my technology skills have a few less holes after taking this wonderful and exciting class.
