EDHD 5007

Here is my portfolio: http://sites.google.com/site/jackrnilles/

I think VideoANT (http://ant.umn.edu/) is a great resource to use in the classroom. VideoANT allows users to annotate videos so that images and text can be viewed side-by-side.

First Group – Technology is great for classrooms in that it connects individuals, but when it mirrors social networking sites too much, social problems from outside of the class enter into the room.

Second Group – Technology is a good way to shake up the class, but it can be exhausting and take up too much time. Mishaps often occur, and students do not appreciate when technology takes over a class – like when a teacher reads straight off of a PowerPoint presentation.

Third Group – Smartboards offer advantages in that teachers can walk around and still write on the board. Internet activities can be fun, but get students off track. When there are glitches in technology, instruction becomes problematic.

Fourth Group – Smartboards are a good form of technology to get students interacting with their learning in the classroom. Online reading is difficult and unhelpful with learning.

Fifth Group – Teachers who rely on PowerPoint are not necessarily good instructors. When it comes to using online resources, things can get confusing. Streamlining technology is important.

Sixth Group – Irrelevant and word-for-word PowerPoint presentations are annoying.

Seventh Group – Tape recorders, cam corders, and fun technology are more memorable. Resource management is difficult though. Having to fight for technology is one of the most frustrating aspects of dealing with technology.

Overall, I’d say that teachers who used technology in the classroom while I was growing up did so for the sake of being technologically relavent, or ”with the times,” but the technology we used didn’t necessarily make learning any easier. That is to say, we could have easily done without the technology and been fine. It never enhanced our teachers’ instruction, the classroom environment, or helped our learning. Having new technology was ”cool,” though, and made everyone THINK that our school was doing the right thing.