# 2 Tech in the Classroom

Generally, as a student I've used Microsoft Word to type up assignments and papers. When I was in the seventh grade I took a computer class that was about learning how to use Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. When I was in that class we used Word to edit pictures and create posters. Outside of this I've used the features that were used in that course but I've only ever used them within papers and other assignments not related to art. My teachers have always seemed to use Word for about the same thing; posting assignments and articles for students to read in Word.

It was also in that same computer course that I learned about copyright and fair use for the first time that I can remember. It's obviously been a rather important part of education for more modern students who are using the Internet to access all sorts of online sources of information. I think the most difficult part of learning about copyright and fair use was getting a sense of the severity of the issue. Because things are online and you can just read them and anyone can read them as well as being able to very easily copy and paste, it is very easy for a young student to take advantage of these things without thinking about copyright and fair use. I think the best way to go about teaching us to students would be to highlight the severity of the consequences that a student can face for copyright infringement as well as very clearly teaching the proper way to practice fair use.

I think that the three biggest issues with the implementation of technology and education are copyright, cyber bullying, and privacy. Copyright is an incredibly important issue that will extend outside of the classroom and into your student’s future professional lives. Teaching students about the consequences associated with copywriting as well as giving students very clear and understandable explanation for what copywriting is will be necessary for students with technology and schools. Another major issue with the implementation of technology in schools as well as technology outside of the classroom is cyber bullying. Making sure that students understand what it is, how to combat it, and how to avoid doing it, are going to be massively important to helping students function properly in and outside of the classroom with respect to their use of technology. Student privacy is another major issue that has arisen with the implementation of technology. It is important for students to understand what types of information they should be sharing on the Internet and what information is not appropriate for them to share. Discussing this in the classroom will be incredibly important to making sure that students are aware of how to be safe when using the Internet and social media.

#1 Classroom Tech

Much of the reason that teachers are compelled to use technology in the classroom is related to the needs of their students and conversely students who are responding to teachers that are using technology in the classroom are than compelled to meet this expectation. The modern student of the 21st-century is now already equipped with experience and interest in technology this thereby influences their teachers to bring more technology into classrooms in order to excite the interest of their students. Students are greatly influenced by their teachers and classroom situations to use technology for learning; Technology can be used by teachers to provide better individual accommodation to students in their classes by being able to communicate with them using different means. This allows classrooms with greater diversity to thrive.

Looking at the ISTE standards for teachers, I am seeing that number four: Collaborator may be a bit beyond my current knowledge base. Outside of email and minimal social media I have not had a great deal of experience with a wide variety of collaboration media and education based media and would therefore not be able to contribute much. Although I would be open to learning more about this. Number seven: Analyst sounded the most exciting to me. My favorite assignments in school where the ones where I could be the most creative. I loved being able to create presentations using programs like Movie Maker and even PowerPoint to have fun and be creative in class. I would love to see what students would create with a wide knowledge base within this type of media for assessment.

What I think the biggest difference between my generation--of 'digital natives'--and my teacher’s generation--of 'digital immigrants-- would be that my generation seems to spend much more time using technology for entertainment, socialization, and their personal lives. Many of my teachers, even in high school, did not even want to participate in any of the commonly used education based websites (like Turnitin or Schoology) despite how useful it would've been and other teachers that were using the sites. Some of my teachers seem to think of technology as being a necessary or, as a rule, not education related. I believe that my generation as educators will be much more open to using technology in new ways and viewing it as both a tool for education as well as entertainment and all other uses.

Lever-Duffy, Judy. McDonald, Jean. Teaching and Learning with Technology. Pearson. 2009. Print.

"ISTE Standards for Teachers". ISTE. 2017. 

#0 Me and Technology

    Before this class I have used technology in school settings a great deal. The first computer I ever used was in elementary school when they had a set of laptops for each class--kind of amazing for us. In middle school I had the great fun of watching the teachers struggle to figure out the "smart boards" that were very new to the school and, I believe, just new in general. In high school I had a smart phone and got a Macbook for the first time. This was mostly because we had Mac Lab in our art department and i was able to get familiar with Adobe Photoshop.

    I hope to become more competent with the programs that I already use most often. I remember taking courses in high school that taught me the basics of word processing but not anything detailed. I do not intend to teach in the classroom but I hope to learn new ways of conveying information in all settings--I will still need to give presentations and collaborate. I also think that getting another perspective on these sites will be interesting--just for the sake of using technology.

     I seem to fit more strongly into the Reflective learner category. This means that i spend more time thinking about incoming information. This sounds very much like me--I usually deliberate over my assignments and study materials. I seem to have a good balance of sensing and intuitive learning styles as well as sequential verses global learning types. The latter was a bit surprising because I always think of myself as a strict instruction follower. It also turns out--unsurprisingly--I am more of a visual learner. This has always been true for me, diagrams are always more helpful to me than a written description.