Concepts and Techniques

Through this week’s reading we are once again provided with numerous ways to help our classrooms join the 21st century. While certain “old school” methods of teaching will always have a place in the curriculum, I think is imperative to allow “new school” technology an opportunity to transform our educational institutions. From test and rubric generators to student information systems, there are countless software supports that can be implemented into most of America’s classrooms. As educators, we all face the same challenge of making learning meaningful. In order to produce more meaningful instruction, we must find a way to create a more intriguing learning environment. Technology has become the catalyst to make this a reality.

Personally, I have found the addition of hypermedia to be extremely beneficial to my teaching experiences. It has not only allowed for a more interactive classroom environment, but has offered the students a more in depth and accurate look (especially visually) at history. The students in my class seem far more interested in the content and much more motivated when they can see history come alive. Hypermedia also gives them the opportunity to be creative and build valuable critical thinking skills that will benefit them in their years after high school. Our United States History Team recently purchased a new textbook and one of the deciding factors was whether or not it was accessible to students on-line. Not only can students access the textbook on-line, but the text includes various interactive maps, which helps detail important topics such as westward expansion and American industrial growth during the 20th century.

One area that I found intriguing in Integrating Educational Technology into Teaching was the portion discussing student-designed websites and mini-games. While I have not taken the advantage of this type of technology, I was rather drawn to it during the reading. It not only gives students ownership in the learning process, but also challenges them to create a complex and original product. Both of which are beneficial byproducts of today’s learning environment.