2. I do feel that there is a difference between the use of technology in the classroom and the integration of technology in the classroom. The use of technology is simply students being able to use a computer, a digital camera or a TV during their day. It may be for academic purposes or it may simply be for fun during free time. The real challenge is being able to integrate technology into the classroom. We need to be able to teach children about computers, how they work, how we can use them for communication in the academic world and not just personally at home. I believe that many educators today would agree that much of our future will revolve around technology so it is crucial that our students know how to use and integrate it into their lives productively.
3. In this article it was clear that the author felt it was very necessary for teachers to be moving into the technology era in their classrooms. I felt that this article portrayed a difference between technology integration and technology use. The article made it seem that schools are already using technology in their classrooms; they have TV’s, computers, cameras ect., but that many schools are not yet integrating these concepts to their fullest potential. Some I.B. schools do use the internet to communicate with sister schools around the world but that is still a luxury and something that many schools around the U.S. are not yet using.
4. This article argues that computers can help to engage students in a deeper thinking. I do not know if I necessarily agree with this. Often times we look at a computer as an easy way out. We would all rather type than handwrite, we would rather use Google than an encyclopedia, we would rather use Freetranslation than a Spanish-English dictionary. I feel that the study of computers is a completely different story however. While the article does give many different examples of the ways that students can use deeper thinking I still feel that this article would fall into technology as a use in the classroom versus an integration.
5. I feel that meaningful learning can come from the use of a computer but I feel that this slide show favored more hands on activity that engaged children versus starring at a computer screen. I also feel that most students would agree that a majority of the time that we are allowed to sit at or use a computer during a class we are often off task and surfing the net. If students are being monitored to make sure they are on task than I absolutely feel that technology can be very helpful in the classroom. We do need to however make sure that it does not become the only way of learning; that children still appreciate books and literature.
6. This article seems to be in full support of integrating technology into the classroom. It gives dozens of examples of how to use many different medias in the classroom. I really enjoyed the first few slides that showed the evolution that has taken place over hundreds of years that has led us to where we are today with technology. This power point shows how necessary it is to educate our students in the future of education. Like many of the examples, slates and fountain pens are forgotten about. We need to use this digital age to immerse our students in all that technology has to offer, especially globally.
7. I felt that this website had so many great ideas on how to integrate technology into a classroom. This website seems as though it was designed for teachers who may not be comfortable integrating technology into their classroom and may need help discovering why it is important. It also pointed out the important facts about how to go ahead and integrate technology. The website points out that we now live in a digital world and we need our students to be able to learn within those standards.
8. In my opinion, this website did not offer much insight into the argument as to whether we use or integrate technology in the classroom. While I feel that the website had many ideas on how to use blogs in the classroom I feel that it lacked ideas on how to integrate them. It did offer many websites to visit and challenges for the teacher to explore. It is easy to tell a child to use the computer to do this or that, but it is important that children understand why it is so important today to know how to navigate a computer and all that it has to offer not only here in the U.S. but also globally.
9. This particular article focuses on how classrooms currently use technology but that it is not integrated into the classroom daily at this point. It offers many options and suggestions for using technology in the classroom as well as professional development with technology. Today’s college students are apart of the technology age and use technology nearly everyday in their classrooms. Teachers that have been teaching for twenty or thirty years did not have these experiences and need to be exposed to the amazing opportunities that technology can offer their students.
