The Role of Technology in the Classroom (Virginia Heffernen option)

1. During my school years, I was taught how to use many different technological programs. In my early school years, we learned how to use programs like power point and word to create documents and slide shows. Later in high school, I learned how to use blackboard and excel. Blackboard allowed us to view assignments and create class discussions online. My teachers also used Facebook, to communicate to students by having a class Facebook page. In AP English literature we also used Kindles instead of paper back books. I believe that blackboard prepared me for tech requirements in college. Blackboard is very similar to Moodle, but I never had to submit assignments online. I believe that my teachers could have created more assignments and class discussions for us outside of the classroom. I believe that blogs are a good way for people to share their views and also create many different ideas to discuss in class. My teachers could have put more emphasis on different forms of technology. Power points were ALWAYS used to teach information. I believe that their could be other programs to help teach information besides Powerpoint. If I had to write a email, I would suggest that the teachers create more online work to create more outside of the classroom work. I believe that the math teachers should look into programs like Aleks that give additional help to their students. I believe that this type of program creates more repetition and practice for their students. By having more online work, time could be saved in the classroom for other curriculum.
2. I will be a teacher who majors in English and history. I want to use many different forms of technology to make my curriculum exciting and fresh. If I teach middle school or high school, I will probably have a program like Moodle or have my student create blogs. I will be creating worksheets and I will have to write papers. Oakland will prepare me by giving me the knowledge of how to make professional documents. I will be using power points to discuss information. Hopefully, I will be able to find many different forms of programs which could help make discussions exciting and different. I believe that the technology I have used at Oakland has given me an idea of how to create different forms of lessons. I want to use different programs to get every student involved and engaged in the curriculum.
3. I believe that I do write more relaxed in a blog setting or in a email setting. There is not as much pressure to create the perfect text. By having a blog, you are able to be more relaxed to express your views and opinions. Blogs are more unprofessional rather then having a paper. By writing a paper in a document, their is more pressure to create the perfect paper and perfect grammar. 
4. I will be becoming a English teacher, so I will have to think about how to create lessons that will help prepare my students for the future technology advancements. I will try to introduce my students to as much technology as I can. The fact is that their will be more and more advancements in technology in the future, so I will have to be up to speed on the latest technology. If I am up to date on the technology that my students are learning then I can create curriculum that involves this technology. If Facebook is still around, I will use this social media format to create a online classroom to tell my students about upcoming events. 
5.  I agree with the author about how we shouldn't force students to learn the way students have always learned. We should encourage students to learn in different ways that can interest them more then writing another term paper that they have been doing forever. I do think that we should still encourage old fashioned teaching but introduce new teaching styles. I think that kids still need to be encouraged to read but maybe get them things like Kindles that are advancements in technology.

My Literacy Timeline

• Kindergarten
• I started to read

• 1st Grade
• I was behind at my reading level, so I started to go to tutoring to help me with my reading. I didn't really like reading because I had a hard time comprehending what the words meant. I was pulled out of class at a certain time everyday to go get reading help, while the other kids in my class learned reading. I knew this was going to help me down the long run, but I didn't like being left out from the other kids.

• 2nd Grade
• I hardly read because I didn't have a passion for it. My brother started to read to me from his books. My favorite books became the Harry Potter books.

• 3rd Grade
• When my brother read to me, it made me want to become a better reader and writer. I wanted to read the books that he read. So I began to read and finish the Harry Potter books. One time my brother was reading a Harry Potter book to me and I stopped him so I could finish it by myself.

• 8th Grade
• By the 8th Grade, I had achieved one of my goals which was to read all of the Harry Potter books. I accomplished this goal and I learned to love to reading. I started to read more books and finish more books in a shorter amount of time. I also started to love writing; which helped me gain a better appreciation for reading.

• 12th Grade
• Took AP English Literature and I started to learn how to read with an in depth mind. 

• 12th Grade
• Decided that I want to become a elementary teacher with a major in English and a minor in History.

Breaking through Barriers in Culture Groups

Cultures sometimes have barriers. Sherman Alexi grew up on an Indian reservation. Alexi was trying to go against the normal outlook of Indians and wanted to become successful. He grew up in an environment that had stereotypes against the intelligence of Native Americans. Sherman grew up having white teachers who obtained a low level of expectations for their students. Sherman's teachers did not encourage their students to continue their education and break the stereotype against their cultural group. Sherman was inspired to read from his father's passion for reading. So Sherman took it upon himself to teach himself how to read. He started to read constantly and was reading at an advanced level compared to the other children's reading level. Sherman wanted to improve his life and he learned that if he read and got educated he would create a better future for himself. Most children did not go against this stereotype and did not have the drive to push them towards a better future. Sherman eventually became a writer and tries to encourage students on reservations not to fall under this stereotype, but break it. Literacy was important to Sherman because it showed him the loophole to a better life.

I agree with the stakes Sherman took to get his future career. I believe that it would be hard being apart of a culture that doesn't encourage education. I believe that if you want to become successful, then you need to have the drive to go get it for yourself. I am apart of a culture group that encourages furthering education. I cannot imagine the difficulty of being apart of a culture that doesn't have high expectations for their youth. I am very impressed with the drive that Sherman had for his education. Hopefully more people will take the route that Sherman took and have the drive to push past this stereotype. I believe that no matter where you come from you have to want something bad enough to go get it. Similar to Sherman, I have the drive to push through goals and I also want to create a better future for myself. I also believe that to have a better future you need to be educated. As a child, I always knew that I was going to go to college and that education was a top priority. When I was little, I knew that to have a good future, I needed to get good grades in school. By breaking stereotypes, you are not just helping yourself but you are helping your family through generations.

The Importance of Writing in the Teaching Profession

I am pursuing a degree in elementary education. I believe that writing will be a very important aspect of my career. My writing needs to be eligible and understandable. I need to become a good communicator so that I can communicate efficiently to students, parents and colleagues. I will have to write lesson plans and tests/worksheets. I need to learn how to prepare myself for communication. I will need to gain confidence communicating by thinking about what I will say before I say it. I will need to question if this makes sense. I will have to write so that my word choice and sentence structure makes sense to my students. I will probably have to make up lesson plans in advance and make sure that they are eligible and understandable. I will be writing in front of the class on white boards and making tests. If a child doesn't understand what I am saying or the question that I am asking then this will confuse the student about what they are learning. If my writing confuses my student then they will not know what is going on in the class and they will fall behind.