Reflections on C&I 335 Computer-Assisted Instruction
Margie Adkins
I feel that during the course
of this semester I have learned a great deal, but the biggest thing that
I learned is how very much I don't yet know about technology and how to
use it in the classroom. I had always known that there has been an
explosion of technology, but this class opened my eyes to how huge the
world of technology really is. This course has been a great introduction
to the many different ways that technology can be used in the classroom
and the many issues that surround that use.
Skills:
The biggest skill that I developed
this semester is how to create a web page and post it on the internet.
I had created a very primitive web page before, with the help of one of
our district's computer experts, but I had not learned the skills necessary
to do it on my own until now. I was also not shown how to post my
page before now. That was done by the experts at the district computer
center. Now I am very comfortable with creating and posting web pages.
I can add graphics, tables, targets, and links. But there are still many
things about creating a web page that I would like to learn. For
example, I would like to know how to create frames or how to lighten
backgrounds. I'd also like to learn how to create templates for my
students to use. I'm sure that these things are very simple to do.
It would be helpful to have handouts for the class that give directions
on how to do all different kinds of things like this. I would also
like to have a better understanding of how the internet actually works.
I feel that I know how to use it, but that I don't have a true understanding
of it.
Communication:
Communicating through email
was not a new thing for me, but it has certainly become a more useful tool
through this course. I have found how helpful it is to be able to
email a classmate with questions and get those questions answered.
Also, the daily updates on webboard via email helped me keep up with what
was going on in class.
Webboard has also been
a great communication tool. I often found that other students had
the same questions or concerns that I had. These questions were very
effectively answered by students who happened to be more knowledgeable
in those specific areas. I have never been in a class before that
had such open communication and sharing of knowledge. I believe the
amount of student interaction was much greater than that in on campus courses.
I have to admit that I was very nervous going into the chat room for the
first time. I had never done that before and found it highly intimidating,
but the synchronous chats that I participated in helped me feel more connected
to the people in the class. I especially enjoyed the audio chats
using real player. I feel that as a class we have developed a great
deal of camaraderie, even though we have only met face-to-face once.
Multimedia:
I feel comfortable using search
engines and the internet to find data. I am also comfortable using
several different CD-Roms that present information in multimedia formats.
I plan to teach my students how to access information using these tools.
I am also able to use, and teach my students how to use, Hyperstudio and
to create web pages. My students will be able to use these tools
to organize and publish their information. I know that there
are many other tools out there that I would like to learn more about.
It would be helpful to have a reference page based on the research our
class did that lists all of the current technologies available for use
in the classroom. Just like our history of technology timeline combined
the research of everyone in the class into a useful reference, a similar
page combining everyone's work on instructional technology resources would
be extremely helpful to us all.
Issues:
The biggest eye-opener for
me during this course was the incredible amount of legal, ethical, and
access issues that surround the use of computers in the classroom.
Although I was aware of things like students plagiarizing internet sources
and that teachers and school districts could get sued for improper use,
I had never taken much time to think about it and never realized what a
huge problem it could be. I feel like there is much more that I need to
learn about these issues.
Access issues really struck
a chord with me. I had never thought about the difficulties that
people with handicaps might encounter when trying to use the internet.
After completing that assignment in particular, I felt that I had learned
something that changed my way of thinking. It made me want to be
sure to make my students aware of possible problems and to teach them how
to create web pages that are accessible to everyone.
The issue of critically
reading the web was an extremely important one. I feel that students
need to understand that they can't believe everything they read, whether
it be on the web or anywhere else. They need to be taught how to
determine the reliability of a source before they use any information they
find to be sure that the information is accurate.
Evaluation:
I found that the emphasis on
evaluation in this class was very useful. It made me question work
that has been done in a more structured, logical way. I am now more
capable of evaluating the work of my students through the use of rubrics
as well as the work of adults on the web using evaluation checklists.
I know that there is much more work left for me to do. I am well
on the way to creating evaluation rubrics that I can use to assess the
products that I will require my students to make using the computer.
Where I still need work is to find ways to evaluate how well students use
their time on the computer. I also want to be able to evaluate
how effectively students are able to search for and locate information
on the internet. I feel that I will be able to accomplish these things
because of the knowledge and growth that I gained through this course.
Overall, I feel that this
course has been extremely beneficial to me. I have learned a great
deal about technology and have had my eyes opened to many technologies
and ideas that I previously didn't even know existed. The best part
is that I enjoyed every minute of it! I am looking forward
to learning more about all of these things in future CTER courses.
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