Philosophy of Technology

I was trudging my way, solemnly to my math class in the rain yesterday afternoon. I was bundled up in my ski jacket, rain boots and two pairs of socks. While I was wallowing and being self absorbed in why I had to be doing what I was doing I counted twenty-two students who were either on their phones or plugged into their headphones listening to music. I counted these innocent passersby not just out of sheer curiosity but because I was intrigued with observing what our world has become. Ten years ago one would not have seen what I saw on my way to math yesterday. We have entered a new era or digital age, it is undeniable. Technology has enveloped our culture. From miniscule FBI fingertip cameras to the new Boeing 747-8 Freighter plane this new existence is a huge transformation for mankind. It is still debatable if these new changes are for the betterment of humanity.

            This generation is constantly on the move and always doing several things at once. “They’re about speeding flawlessly through space, without being diverted, slowed down, or captured by mere gravity.” (Dwelling 5). This generation grew up in this new age of cell phones, computers, cars, and television. They thrive on this stimulation overload because it is all they know. They are so comfortable in this situation that they grew up with all around them. This new window that technology has opened for everyone will no doubt change everything about the world, as previous generations know it. All these changes are caused by this new age of technology.

            As far as classroom usage of technology my personal opinion is that technology should be involved to the highest extent. Technology is what makes students tick. Technology is a drive for learning that previous generations have just tapped the surface of. It is a new, exciting and interactive forum that allows for mass amount of creativity and exploring curriculum. During the course of IT 442 I have had the privilege of exploring new technologies and I truly benefited from this investigation.

            Technology is transforming the way teachers are teaching in resent years. Technology can be simple and add just the right twist to learning that some students may need. Technologies like Inspiration, Smart boards and Edistorm will be used in my classroom to help students with disabilities initiate and engage in classroom discussions. Online blog websites like Blogger and Kidblog will help my students interact in the digital world and have contact with each other in multiple mediums. Kidblog and Blogger also have the ability for students with learning disabilities and English Language Learners to intermingle with all students.

            There are several technologies that to me can sometimes be disadvantages to use in classrooms. Technology can be very tedious. When doing my eBook I had several issues when trying to get my iPhone to read the book. When hiccups like that take place it is very difficult to recover so having a plan B is always important when dealing with technology. But other than that issue that only occurs sometimes I know that technology is something worth investing your time into.

            I believe the most important notion for classroom teachers to keep in mind is that technology can be used to assess curriculum for every student. Every teacher will have a classroom with English Language Learners or students with disabilities in their teaching careers. The crucial thing to remember is that every student can benefit from assistive technologies and technologies integrated into their lives and learning. Making technological adaptations and modifications in your classroom creates a immensely positive impact on student’s performance.

            Adapting is what everyone should strive for because there is no going back. “Around here, however, we don’t look backwards for very long. We keep moving forward, opening new doors and doing new things, because were curious… and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.” That was a quote from Walt Disney and it is right on. Our classroom culture is all about moving forward and trying new things. We are constantly experimenting and learning more to broaden minds and enhance life. Technology is helping us tremendously by advancing our discoveries in illnesses, our environment, education and so much more. 

            Even as I am writing this I am listening to music, my roommate is vacuuming the hallway right outside my door, my dog is walking in and out of the room every 2 minutes, my mom called to see if I have received my absentee ballot in the mail yet, and I have (I hate to admit it) answered a few texts. I am doing all of these things plus trying to write an acceptable assignment. Purely writing this post with no distractions would be the ideal situation because I would be able to surround myself with ideas without my thoughts being broken every time the vacuum hits my door. But in this age is that situation even plausible anymore?

Edmundson, Mark. “Dwelling in Possibilities.” The Chronicle Review 54(2008): 10.

Self Chosen Project

After looking at my classmates Self Chosen Projects I want to write about the one I would be most likely to use, least likely, the most facinating one, and some instructinal strategies that I now could adopt.

Technology that I would be most likely to use:
I loved the vercitility of the website Polldaddy. This is a website that you can go to to create polls, survey's, quizzes and ratings. This is much like the website Vorbeo and other poll making programs but I think it is better because it allows the answers to the poll, quizzes, ect. to be sent to a destination of your choice (email, Facebook, Twitter, and via the website).
This program was easy to use and exploring it was very fun! I can truely see myself generating quizzes for classrooms and surveys for parents on this website. I can also see myself simply playing arouns on this website for fun! Very cool piece of technology!

Technology that I would be least likely to use:
I think the technology peices that I would be least likely to use in the future would be the online presentation makers like Photopeach, Shwup and Animoto. This has nothing to do with the technology themselves but with the fact that I already know how to use other programs that do the same things. There could be hidden huge advatages of these free online sites but as far as I saw iMovie, iTunes and Powerpoint can do the same things that they can.

The most facinating technology:
The most facinating technology was Slimber. When I first sat down to learn about it I thought "wow it is a program just like Paint" and "why would I want art to be online and not in my hands?" But once I looked at the example drawings I was amazed with the fantastic pictures that can be generated using all the finite, intricate and wonderful tools. This technology blew me away!

Instructional strategies: 
There is a technology for everything! Some of the simplest tasks can be transformed, easily shared and developed with the use of a simple technology program. Going through and expolring technologies directly shows me how rich and engaging technology in the classroom can be. Even simple activityies like addition on a whorsheet can be done with the use of an iPad and Mathboard. Many of the porgrams I observed had built in assessment tools and the majority of each technology peice could be enjoyed for free.

Assistive Technology

Name of technology: 
The technology that I chose to explore was the Quantum Leap Pad

Category of AT:
I believe that this technology covers almost all aspects of the reading categories. This assistive technology qualifies for reading comprehension and vocabulary because all the words that aren't sight words or may be hard to understand and read are in bold and when you tap the bold word with the Leap Pen a definition and context are shared with the reader. This technology also qualifies for the evaluation of reading comprehension because there are comprehension quizzes and word problems at the end of each section. These could be used as an assessment tool for teachers.


Description of how the technology works: 

This technology looks like a large plastic book with an attached pointer pen. When you open this book you can see there is a place for you to insert another paper book. When this paper book and its digital cassette is placed inside the plastic book the Leap Pen works whenever you tap any of the words on the page. The Leap Pen works to read all the "break it down", "phrase it", "hear it", "repeat", and "figure it out" buttons on the sides of the pages. These buttons, when pushed, give the reader clues to words, context, pictures and other interesting things in the book. There are several different books that are sold so a learning reader can have lots of experience working with different books.  

Which of the Universal Design for Learning principles listed below might be facilitated by this technology?  Explain how.
This technology qualifies for the engagement in learning principle. This is because this book is so chalk full of interesting facts about the readings that if a student read this book they would be able to become an expert on the books subject matter. This students could then contribute to the learning community of a classroom by sharing the facts that they learned from the book. Book reports, presentations and classroom discussions are a few of the ways this tool could benefit many students learning English. 


What types or groups of students might benefit from the use of this technology? For what learning goals might it be most effective?
This technology would mostly benefit young students or early English language learners. The extra information it provides and background to the context helps in immersing the student fully in the experience of reading. 


Do you have any concerns or reservations about this technology?
One problem with this technology is that it is meant for one student to use it at a time. Another reservation I have about this technology is that it is pretty solitary. The students in a classroom using it would have to wear headphones and they would then miss out on classroom instruction.     


Any other comments, suggestions, or recommendations you might make to a teacher contemplation the use of this assistive technology?

I would use this technology as an accommodation to a lesson. Making this technology the center of a lesson would be very difficult and it is more intended for individual use. 

A day in the life...

I always wake up to the sound of my radio, without being completely conscious, I immediately reach over and press the snooze button and sleep for another 9 minutes (Woo Hoo!). Once my alarm goes off the second time I know its actually time to wake up. I always turn on my light on my bedside table and open my blinds. I reluctantly stumble to the shower and turn on the water. I am usually the first one in my house to wake up in the morning so I have to wait a few extra seconds for the water to warm up. After my shower I turn on some music (softly so I don't wake up my roommates) and I get dressed. My favorite part of my morning is after I get dressed and I make my coffee. I love getting up early enough to sit on my couch with my coffee and watch the Today's Show. I usually don't finish my coffee in time to leave for classes so I put the rest of my coffee in a thermos and get in my car to head to school.

About me!

Hi!
My name is Stephanie Page and I am a senior at Western Washington University. I am enrolled in the Woodring College of Education at Western and hope to become an elementary school teacher. I was raised in Kirkland Washington (which is about 80 miles south of Western). Here is a map of Kirkland!


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I have a mom and a dad, two sisters named Maddie and Jessie, a wonderful Jack Russel puppy named Izzy, and a lazy but adventuresome cat named Gus Gus. I love spending time outdoors, singing, swimming and being with my friends and family. My favorite animal is a frog and I love the color red!