Summary of EDM 310

I had a great time in EDM 310. I have to admit that on the first day of class I left there with a migraine. I had taken the same class about 9 years ago when I graduated. Oh how the times have changed. I was very overwhelmed at first and was not sure what to expect. I thought since I never heard of blogging that I was going to be in trouble. To my surprise I have done fine in the class and I have really learned a lot about the advancements in technology and how to incorporate them into my own classroom.

I have really come to enjoy blogging. I have had a great time with it in this class and have gained a lot of valuable knowledge through the use of blogging. I like how blogs connect you with other people and it can keep me current on teaching topics. I also enjoyed reading other people's blog post. I found a lot of the post to be very inspiring. Ms. Averitt showed our class how to use html tag modifiers on our pictures in our blogs. I was glad to learn how to do this so that a blind person using the computer will be able to receive the image information. All the presentations, vidoecast, and podcast for EDM were great. I am not one for public speaking, but Ms. Averitt made it really down to earth. The podcast assignment was the presentation that I enjoyed the most. My group was able to provide great websites to elementary school teachers. A lot of great topics were discussed during the presentations. Everyone did a great job and hopefully can now use podcast with their own students.

I am glad that Ms. Averitt went over Google Docs and Google spreadsheets. It had been a while since I have used these programs and I am glad I got a refresher course on these programs. I was able to learn different shortcuts and formulas for this software. During this semester in EDM I have learned a great deal about different resources available to teachers. Some examples of these resources are ACCESS, ALEX, iTunes, Google Earth and iTunes U. Before this class I never knew these things existed. ACCESS and ALEX offer a wide variety of information for educators. ALEX even has lesson plans grouped by grade level and subject along with the Alabama Course of Study. I have never been introduced to iTunes until this class. I am amazed at the educational material available on it and iTunesU. College students have a wonderful tool of iTunesU available to them. Google Earth is another amazing tool to use to incorporate technology into the classroom. Not only is google earth fun and excited it gets the students eager to learn!

Personal Learning Network was an assignment where we had to develop 5 people who we share similar interest in a subject. My topic of interest was how to incorporate technology into the classroom. I researched this topic with five individuals and developed my PLN. These five individuals were teachers of different grade levels and they shared different ways they use technology with their students. I learned so much from these teachers that I was excited to return to the classroom and try their suggestions. My personal learning network is something that I will definitely use again in the future.

Comments4Kids was another one of my favorite assignments. This assignment really touched my heart. As a parent and a teacher I was inspired by the works of the children. I love to give the students positive feedback on their hard work. I know as a teacher that a little encouragement goes a long way. In class I also developed a professional resume on my blog. This was really neat to have this available for employers to view. By doing this professional resume I was able to provide teaching tools that I thought were important in education. This assignment was a great way to present myself and teaching strategies as an educator.

I am very glad that I had the opportunity to take this class. I have learned so much from blogs to technological literacy that I feel that I am able to return to the teaching field with a better respect and understanding of current technology. I feel this class has helped me to become a better teacher and parent. What I have learned in this class I am now able to share with my own children at home and with students in the classroom. My confidence in technology has definitely grown over the semester. I feel Ms. Averitt did a great job in covering all the topics in class. She was very open and understanding to all the students. She was willing to learn along side of us with some of the topics, like twittering. That was a great example of how teachers must always continue to learn.

I can leave this class knowing that I am technologically literate. I am current on technology and I take what I have learned and adapt it into the classroom. I am confident that my students will be able to use technology incorporation with their studies. I appreciate the help and guidance that Ms. Averitt gave me. Like Randy Pausch I chose to be a TIGER". I hope to let this spirit shine through me to all of my students so that they will learn to enjoy their life and have fun doing it, especially with their education.