Blog Post #6

Final Blog Post

What did you learn or “take-away” from this course and how has your perspective about integrating technology into K to 6 education changed/grown throughout the course?

My perspective on technology has always been a bit biased. I have strong feelings towards the use of social media and how technology can take us away from valuable time spent elsewhere. However, after taking this class and observing technology use in my practicum, I've realized how beneficial technology can be to both students and teachers. My practicum school uses Seesaw, an app that connects students and teachers by providing a platform for them to complete work, receive feedback, and be "assessed." I got to see first hand how helpful tech can be in facilitating strong lessons and making my “workload” a bit less overwhelming. 

How did this course help you answer your “burning” question about the use of digital technologies in K to 6 education?

At the beginning of the term I posed the question “What can a teacher do to ensure that students are using technology effectively and in a positive lens?”.  During my time in the grade nine classroom I learnt so much about technology use, and how to integrate it effectively! My students were very proficient with technology, and even have a class dedicated to it. Students at Connect Charter are taught on how to properly navigate tools and resources and are not allowed to use phones or “non school related” tech while on school property. 

How did you contribute to the learning of others?

I really enjoyed creating my digital story and being able to share it with others! I never thought about integrating indigenous studies with technology, yet telling stories through digital platforms was a fantastic way to share knowledge about different nations! This experience taught me a lot, and I was really passionate about sharing my findings with others in my class. 

What did you learn from others?

Within this class we got to pair up and demonstrate a tech resource to use in our future classrooms! This was such a great idea because we all got to add more resources to our collection AND see an example of how it could be used. This opportunity was SO fun and beneficial to everyone involved and I would love to do this again! I believe it is essential for educators to share our work and discoveries because we are all attempting to navigate the educational world together!