I have never felt the need to start up my own Blog to enter a give away, but this time it is different. I am transferring schools this coming year and I have been fortunate to have worked in a school that had a very supportive parent club that believed in the integration of technology within not only the school building itself, but the classrooms as well. Classroom computers, document cameras, projectors, televisions and VCRs, computer labs - both mobile and desktops, teacher laptops, student response systems, and media carts are just a few of the items I have helped get the teachers in my former building while being on the Technology Committee for the building and district, and the Long Term Technology Vision Committee of the Parent Club. Many hours have gone into making technology available for all to access as we work towards the 21st Century Technology Standards.
In my former classroom I have utilized all this technology daily to meet the needs of my students in a variety of ways and through a variety of modalities. Students afraid to ask the question, afraid to give a wrong answer in front of the group, those who need assistance in writing or organizing their thoughts, those who live for presenting information through video or presentation software, those who want to try something new, want to practice their skills online, or just want to publish their work have benefited from the technology available to them.
In my new building, I am not going to have classroom computers or student response systems. I will not have access daily to computers for students to work with or student response systems to assess the group as a whole in a nonthreatening way. I am not going to have the technology I have become accustomed to for implementation and teaching. The ability to move students forward in this technological age requires the introduction of technology through learning and within the educational setting. Technology will continue to advance and our children/students will need the skills to keep up with the advancements.
