As I reflect on the things that we have learned about and explored in C&I 335, I realize that we have covered a wide range of topics and material. I have gained experience using a lot of different technological tools.
As far as acquisition of skills using various technological tools, I feel that I have become fairly efficient at using Claris Home Page 3.0. Although I have used in the past, I was not real comfortable with it. My experience using Claris Home Page was limited to two half day workshops, and developing two web sites. I would be very comfortable having my students develop web pages using this program, and plan to do so. In the past, when I have needed my sites updated, our school's computer aid always had to upload the sites for me. Now, I feel very confident that I could accomplish this on my own. I also feel much more comfortable using the Internet. Although I have been on the Internet hundreds of times, my purpose has never been as clearly defined as in the activities in this class. I feel that the skills I have acquired using the Internet during this class will be invaluable in the future in my teachings.
In regards to communication tools, again I have become much more efficient at using the Internet, and I have added experience using email. I have used email in the past, but mostly to communicate with colleagues. I would be comfortable using email with my students for assignments. In fact, another teacher and I have talked to Karen Thompson, one of our district's technology people, about setting up email accounts for our classes. One thing I would like to do in a future class is explore the possibilities for doing email assignments with my classes. Before this class, I had never used any type of Web Board. I felt it was a good way to post some assignments and receive feedback from others. I thought the idea of the office hour on the Web Board was also a great, although I did not utilize it that much, mainly because it was not convenient for me to do so. I had also never used a list serve. I was always afraid to because of hearing horror stories of the enormous amounts of "junk" mail. I think list serves such as EdTech and HILITES will be great tools to use for the classroom.
In regards to multimedia tools, I have used HyperStudio and Clarisworks Slide Show with my classes in the past and am comfortable using both. My students have also had the opportunity to use a FlexCam, Digital Camera, and Scanner. I am also fairly comfortable using these. I liked the activity where we looked at emerging technologies. I feel that I could get complacent using these other programs. I am glad I was exposed to other things through this assignment. I would like to do assignments similar to this in the future, and would also like to become more familiar with programs like CU-SEE Me, Virtus Player, and Filemaker Pro Web Companion. At this time I would not be comfortable using any of these programs, nor would I know what types of activities to do with my classes using these programs.
I think that learning about legalities, special needs and other issues was the most "eye opening" part of the course for me. I was aware that our district/school had an Acceptable Use Policy, however I had never taken the time to read it thoroughly or even gone over it with my students. Through Activity 2E I learned the importance of the policy and will definitely put a great deal of emphasis on it in the future. I also plan to make the policy part of my classroom management plan, and feel that I somehow need to make parents aware the Acceptable Use Policy and its seriousness.
As far as special needs, I did not have a clue about tools such as Bobby or making special arrangements for disabled students. I thought Bobby was a great assignment. I think it would be great to have students run Bobby when they are developing their web sites for class. I was glad to become familiar with various tools for disabled students, such as special keyboards, audio/visual equipment, and software. Springfield High School has a variety of students with learning disabilities, including hearing impaired students and visually impaired students. Although I have never had one of these students who needs special accomodations, I am thankful to have been exposed to these issues in C&I 335. In doing Activity 2C I became more familiar with certain teaching strategies that I plan on trying next school year, such as concept mapping, teaching big ideas, and teaching background knowledge.
I was also enlightened by the various legality issues presented in this course. I was aware of copyright infringement in using the Internet, but had never bothered to research it. I was also pretty naive about things like unauthorized entry/security issues, software piracy, and fraud on the Internet. I feel that these are all things that students should be exposed to before using the Internet or developing web pages. I would like to do similar activities in future classes regarding legalities and special needs.
The one area I am still very uncomfortable with is evaluation. I think it is tough to differentiate between skills and content when assessing a student's work. In the future I would like to spend more time on this subject. I would also like to become more familiar with developing rubrics. I liked using the ePortfolios to link our assignments to. I would like to have all of my students develop their own ePortfolios in the future.