All it took was one semester to completely change the way I saw technology and how I used it. Technology has always been a part of my everyday life; however, I never valued the importance of it, nor did I ever allow technology to challenge me and shape me into a more effective educator. The one semester which completely changed my views on technology was when I took the course, Educational Technology, at Peru State College. Through this course, I was more challenged by technology than I was often comfortable with. As my eight week course unfolded, I discovered the value technology has within the school system, how I can use it to not only enhance my lessons but also empower my students, and how to create new engaging learning tools to use in my future classroom. I now possess the skills to create my own classroom website, instructional YouTube video, Prezi presentation, Google Form, and how to utilize free online resources to both my advantage and the students' advantage. Although it only took eight weeks for me to completely fall in love with technology, I know that just as technology continues to grow, so must my knowledge. As an educator and as a citizen, I realize I must always be open to new technology, and continuously be striving to learn through new technology, and that is exactly what I plan to do.
Below I have listed examples of technology skills I have obtained, as well as free educational resources I have grown to love, all which shape my skills for digital work and digital learning. Please feel free to click on the icons below to explore and discover the areas of technology I love.
The following icons are technology items I have created to use in my future classroom and display the technology skills I possess.
The icons below are free online education resources which I have become competent with and plan to use in my classroom.
*Click on any of the icons below to see examples, links, or documents for an explaination of each
*Click on any of the icons below to see examples, links, or documents for an explaination of each