Reflective Blog post #2

International society for Technology in Education
ISTE is a premier membership association for educators engaged in improving learning and teaching by advancing the effective use of technology in PK-12 and teacher education. I chose this site because it is user friendly, was appealing to look at, and windows and drops information was easily accessible. It caught my attention and I like the use of videos on their website. It is a great way to engage someone looking into technology association membership. They offer many professional development opportunities and told for teaching in the digital age. After watching the video for their summer conference, I want to attend!
http://www.iste.org

T3 – Teachers Teaching with Technology by Texas Instruments
T3 goal is to provide quality professional development that enables the mathematics and science educator to be successful in the classroom through the appropriate use of technology.
They offer professional development for schools, through conferences, online learning and the T3 community. They offer apps and software to enhance your classroom.
http://education.ti.com/calculators/pd/US/Community/T3-Organization

Education Technology – Digital products used to enhance learning in today’s classroom. Products ranging from interactive whiteboards to ipads, teaching apps, and document readers; many tools used to create a learning environment that embraces the digital age.

21st-Century Teaching Wordle

Reflection 1

Having your teaching philosophy written is important becuase as we continue to evolve as teachers, we can see where we started and build upon that.  Having it in writing will serve as a reminder and help us to refocus if we ever lose sight of our goals.

I see blogging as a wonderful tool that could enable our students to write freely about topics.  I do not believe we have met the potential that Stephen Downes discusses in his article.  We still have so many people afraid of what blogging could produce.  He talks about bosses being afraid or not allowing employees to blog about work experiences.  I feel that school districts may be scared for similar reason to allow students to have such freedom in writing.  Blogging would take off any masks the schools and teachers try to create concerning students and eliminate several excuses.  I personally think it would be great and we could see a rise in education quality from this freedom in writing.  I question the number of people truly willing to accept and adopt blogging as common place in schools.

I am excited and intigued by this class.  I have no idea what to expect, but after this first class I see that it is going to be a challenging and rewarding experience.  I hope to be efficient at blogging and have a better understanding of how we can use this in education.

ETEC Technology Teaching Philosophy

When I first thought about becoming a teacher, I initially wondered what I might teach.  I love history and I understand, and as an adult I now appreciate, the importance that history plays in shaping the future.  I also thought about math since I actually enjoyed it and it is currently in demand.  Finally, I thought about business education.  I feel that my 10 years experience in the banking industry combined with the last 5 years in management better suited me to teach Business Education.   As a teacher I want to teach the students about business and prepare them to enter the work force after high school if college is not their next step.  There are so many life lessons taught in the business education classes that prepare the students how to be successful and prepared citizens in the world after high school.  I want my students to be equipped with the knowledge and be able to apply for jobs and career opportunities in the business world, to be able to create a resume, submit an application, dress for success, have a successful interview, know the proper follow up.  I also want them to know how to do their assigned tasks and jobs using today’s technology such as Microsoft office software.  One thing I feel passionate about is making sure they know how to open a checking and savings account, how they each work, and prepare my students how to handle money.  I want them to know how to make money and what to do with the money they made.

I plan to use a variety of teaching strategies and methods to keep my students from becoming bored and to keep the information the focal point of the lesson.  I enjoyed the jig saw strategy and I know that will be a great way to explore a lot of information in business.  There is often a lot of material to cover and what I like most about the jig saw is that it allows peers to teach peers and everyone is included, no matter the learning situation.  Another strategy I really liked and plan to use is the student created electronic picture book and the student authored electronic book.  After going over class materials the students then create a Power point slideshow including pictures and information about their lessons materials and share with their peers.  This strategy can be used for any content area on any lesson.  I enjoy the hands on activities and this will be perfect to prepare students how to use the software in the business setting as well.

I will also use a variety of technology in my classroom.  Technology is not simply a part of our lives, it is essential to our lives.  We plan, communicate, socialize, learn, and teach with technology.  You cannot sufficiently teach anything without the use of technology to today’s students.  They are the tech generation and have grown up with this.  I will incorporate several forms of technology into my classroom through use of ipad apps, you tube videos, elmo, smart board to name a few.  I am an informator through the use of these items and will strive to continue to be on the cutting edge of new technology. 

My grading will be based upon criterion.   Many examples are correct, not just one or a select few to base everyone else too.  One example I would use in my grading would be assignments based on templates.  Another important tool in grading will be the use of rubrics for different assignments.  I will provide my students with clear expectations, instructions, and grading requirements for each assignment so that they can follow when creating those assignments.   I will incorporate many projects and different activities that allow the students to demonstrate their understanding of the material.  I will utilize written tests, but I feel a majority of my assessments will be in project or peer presentation format.

Improvement on my teaching style will be constant; I believe we learn new things every day.  As I learn more about my students personally, as I learn how to better communicate with that age group, as I learn better about my teaching styles I will be ever evolving into a better teacher.  I realize that I have focused on myself and what I will learn and I think that is the key to improving as a teacher.  I can only improve after looking at my faults and short comings.  I hope that my students will care enough to share thoughts or ideas about how they feel I am communicating and teaching them and what I could do to improve or increase the effectiveness I have on them.  I believe skills can be improved upon daily and certainly through useful teacher workshops and events.  However, I think that communication between me and my students will be the most effective tool to directly help me improve as a teacher.  I am not sure if we will know immediately if our teaching is truly effective or not.  That may be something not known ever or until much later when a student takes the time to share the impact and importance we may have made at a certain point in time.

My teaching philosophy is that of Idealism and Recontructivism.  My goal is for each student to be able to clearly identify their goals & priorities and I believe that it is going to take some changes to make that a reality.  Teaching is important to me and exciting because hopefully I will have an impact and possibly improve the future of the next generation.  My own children are starting school and I am more excited and determined to make a difference because of my own children and the impact they have made on my life.  My Christian beliefs will enable me to maintain positive relationships with students and colleagues.  I believe in the “golden rule” and will treat everyone fair and equal with respect and certainly as I want to be treated.  I’m not saying I will teach the students my beliefs, but my beliefs will shape my actions.  They will be able to know who I am by what I do.