Assignment #12- Reflection 3

As a result of what I have experienced by completing the 3rd strand of the course as well as what I have experienced from completing the course as a whole, the main thing that I am taking away is the recognition that I need to make an effort to incorporate more technology in my classroom. In addition, I am also taking away ideas and knowledge of how to go about doing that. I realize that students today are immersed in technology in their every day lives, and schools need to keep up with the pace and prevalence of technology in order to keep students interested and engaged. I would like to make use of a blog this year with my students. I already have a website for my students which proves to be very helpful for them. I am also entertaining the idea of using wikis this year as well. Although I am not one of the teachers currently piloting Smartboards or PC tablets this year, I look forward to learning more about them and eventually using them. I have really enjoyed this class and hope that there will me more class like this offered.

Assignment #11- School 2.0 Model

I think the School 2.0 model is very exciting and definitely the direction we should be moving in. In fact, I think our district has already begun moving in this direction through offering the offering of tech classes like this one and also through the piloting of new technology like the smartboards and PC tablets. Almost all teachers have websites and many have set up interactive blogs as well. When exploring the School 2.0 site, this statement was significant for me:

"In School 2.0, the learning ecosystem includes not just a school building, but also the combination of home, school, and community that collaborate to bring the wider world into day-to-day instruction and provide a rich array of learning opportunities."

This brings a well-rounded approach to learning for our students. I think we already strive to do this and are fairly successful. However, it seems that integrating technology to aid us in this endeavor would bring us to a whole new level.
As for the school map, I enjoyed seeing the ideas and goals of a School 2.0 sketched out and brought to life. I would not eliminate anything from the map at this time. I liked the speech bubble that stated "the data shows that students in your virtual program are doing great". I think it is extremely important to collect data about satisfaction and success levels from both students and staff whenever something new is attempted.

All in all, the school 2.0 model was very fun to explore and it will be interesting to see our district's progress in moving towards a similar model.

Assignment #10- Another Perspective on the challenges we face: Dr. Zhao

There were quite a few points that Dr. Zhao made in the podcasts that struck a chord with me. First, he stated that policy makers are stuck in the past. I couldn't agree more. They seem to have locked onto this old way of thinking and can't seem to recognize that times have changed and therefore the educational system must also change in order to keep up. A second statement Dr. Zhao made was that our educational system is not preparing students to live, compete, and work in the globalized world. I hope this statement is not entirely true, because as an educator, I hope that I am preparing my students well for the future. However, this statement will become completely true if education does not begin to fuse with technology. We do live in a changed world, one that is digital and virtual, and ignoring or disregarding this fact is a disservice to our students. Dr. Zhao also stated that we are afraid of what we don't know. I will agree that this is true for many teachers. Many teachers aren't tech-savvy, and fear of the unknown keeps them from embracing technology. I also thought that Dr. Zhao's recognition that students should be contributing to learning and knowledge rather than simply being on the receiving end was right on. Learning becomes so much more meaningful when students feel that they had a part in reaching the knowledge instead of just being told or given the knowledge. By contributing, students feel a sense of ownership and confidence in their education which makes them more invested in what they are learning.
All in all, I enjoyed Dr. Zhao's podcasts and thought he made some interesting points.