In the
beginning of this course, seven weeks ago, I started learning about technology
and teaching strategies. I thought that
I was pretty technologically savy, but come to find, there are some great tools
out there that I didn’t know existed.
This course has helped me find and learn how to use some new technology
in my classroom and also how to group and teach students even better than before.
Looking back
at my personal theory of learning, I stated that “in short, my learning theory
boils down to the need for patients, understanding, believing in them, getting
to know them as individuals and as learners and finally using the best strategies
available and keeping up to date with current research.” When I was addressing my theory I wrote that
I was a young teacher just in my beginning years and that I expect my theory to
change as I grow and learn in this profession.
Thinking about all the learning that I have done through this course I
still stand by all my major points. I
still believe that our youth requires patients, understanding, and someone who
truly believes them. Through this course
I can stand by my statement even more through learning more strategies to use
with my students.
In this
course I have learned how to use several great tools with students. Two examples that I hope to use in the future
are SpiderScribe and VoiceThread.
SpiderScribe is great because it allows students to visually see what
they are mapping and allows them to think deeper. I really enjoyed using VoiceThread because
you can make a presentation however you want.
If you want to share your thoughts on someone else’s you can do it by
webcam, voice recording, or text. It is
also neat because if you were having students respond to a prompt, students can
hear and see other students’ responses to help them form an opinion if they are
not sure what to say.
Immediate adjustments that I have
already made as a result of this course would be with how I group my
students. I tend to put students who are
near the same academic level together.
However, learning about cooperative grouping has opened my eyes to how I
should group my students. Since learning
about cooperative grouping I have changed my grouping strategies and it has
become less strategically grouped and more random (but never completely
random). I know that I will be using SpiderScribe
later in this year. Because students
have already had some experience with it this year, it will only become easier
and easier to use. By the end of this
year it will be a tool that they can use on their own, and they may even use it
next year in 6th grade.
One long-term
goal that I have in regards to technology and instructional practice would be
to integrate more technology opportunities for students. I want my students to leave me with a variety
of technological experiences so that when they enter middle school they have
experienced more than the usual PowerPoint and Microsoft Word use. A second long-term goal I have is to expand
my goodie bag of technological strategies for my students to use. I hope that through my courses at Walden I
will gain more and more strategies to keep in my back pocket. As I’m acquiring books and strategies from
Walden I am moving these books into my classroom with plenty of post-it notes
and highlighted parts. I’m hoping that
this way, I will be able to access any strategies whenever I need them.
In
conclusion, this course has helped me grow as a professional teacher. This course has helped me gain some new
insights and new strategies to use with my class of fifth graders. I am excited to move on to our next course to
see what more there is to learn. I
cannot wait to learn new strategies and new technology that I can implement
them in my current and future classrooms. 
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