As I reflect over this semester it has been one that has been unusually busy and of change for me. Due to the life altering ceremony that I partook of this semester, I knew that I would have to be on my ‘A-game’. I initially started all of my projects quite early so that I would not have a lot of last minute work to do. But technology and life threw me a curve ball that I tried to manage, but did so horribly. At the beginning of this class I wrote all due dates in my calendar and never went back to see if any had changed. (my mistake) This made me realize what a face to face learner that I really am. I need the constant reminder of seeing my professor every week. The drive doesn’t bother me as long as I know I am getting the information I need on a weekly basis. Although Atomic Learning is a great tool, there are times that I need the modification of having my instructor show me step by step what I am suppose to be doing. Especially in this type of course, I am not technologically fluent AT ALL!!! Therefore, I wish there were more meeting times for those of us who lack prior knowledge.
One of the other things that I have learned and appreciated about this course is the multi uses of PowerPoint. I truly have never taken out the time to walk through and discover all of its applications. To show my students what they could accomplish utilizing this software was awesome and they began to ask me questions that I had to research further to give them correct answers. In the Teach & Learn with Technology course I discovered the ends and outs of Excel, Access, and Word, in this class I am glad I took the time to learn the more advanced applications of PowerPoint.
Using audio is a great tool for me being a reading teacher, I have had a blast learning how to use Audacity and other recording programs. My students who are behind grade level have grown by using these tools to read into and playing back their work. They have taken the time to learn the vocabulary and understand the tone and mood of what the author is trying to get across. This has increased not only their reading ability, but their understanding of literary devices as well.
One of the pitfalls, if you will, that I am not sure I will ever conquer is video. I had the worst time/luck with this aspect of the class. I have cried, screamed, and pulled hair over the video projects for this class; so much so that I am rethinking taking the MTT certification exam. I really wanted to take this cohort to grasp an understanding of where technology was going in education when I initially started out and I think that is what I am going to stick to. I do plan on completing the other two courses, but I think I am going to leave it at that. I will however continue to try and get better at editing and cleaning up video for the benefit of my students, but I need more hands on direction on this subject.
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