Wisda

I think that technology has great potential to be beneficial to our profession because it provides us with a wide variety of methods in facilitating student learning and understanding. The availability of new educational technology like interactive whiteboards offers great promise for instruction however, in order for the effective incorporation to occur teachers need adequate training in the proper use. I believe that the reason some of the teachers do not like to use the whiteboards is that they did not receive any training and do not know how to effectively incorporate the technology into their lessons. Furthermore, another explanation for why some teachers do not like incorporating technology into instruction might have something to do with how long they have been in this profession; some older teachers may favor more traditional means of teaching and feel uncomfortable using technology. It would be inappropriate not to mention the possible shortcomings that may coincide with the use of technology. It is increasingly becoming aware that some educators are using technology simply for the sake of using technology. Incorporation without purpose is one of my biggest concerns about the use of technology in education because all it does is take away the opportunity for someone else to use it effectively.
 * My Final reflection **
 * I have always believed that technology should supplement and facilitate the transfer of knowledge. It should be in addition to, not in place of instruction. Furthermore, technology should always have a purpose when used in the classroom and never be used simply for the sake of using technology. The incorporated technology should enhance the lesson so much that if you removed it, the difference would be significant. **


 * Here is a link to my digital story. **

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 * Glogster **

Today there is a wide variety of disabilities. There is just as much variety in the assistive technologies that can help individuals function in everyday life despite their disabilities. The obviousness of these technologies can range from something small and unnoticeable like a hearing aide to one of those talking computer things that Stephen Hawking uses.
 * Assistive Technology **
 * From visiting the websites and viewing the videos in Part I of the assignment, what information did you learn about assistive technology for disabled individuals?

I felt that Kathy Schrock’s site was most informative because it had so many resources for not just teachers. The depth of information and resources that Schrock includes on her site is greatly helpful when trying to understand ways to work with students with disabilities.
 * Were there any sites, products, or resources that particularly impressed you and that you want to remember as you prepare to become a classroom teacher?

Technology has done wonders for individuals who do not fit the learning norm. As long as there are individuals with ideas, the possibilities are endless. For almost all major disabilities and disorders that exist today, somewhere around the globe, an object can help individuals overcome and if it does not already exist; chances are it is currently in production.
 * What promises/potentials does technology provide for students with diverse learning needs?

I really have not had much experience with anyone, who uses an assistive technology as severe as those mentioned in the videos do. However, I have met a few people, who have cochlear implants in order to hear. To my knowledge, most of the people with disabilities whom I have met did not use assistive technologies and if they did, it must not have been obvious.
 * Have you ever had a personal experience with a student or other person who has used some form of assistive technology to help them function in learning or everyday life? If so, describe what you observed from that experience in terms of meeting the special needs of those individuals.

Even before this assignment, I realized that as a teacher I would have students with disabilities. Furthermore, it is my duty as a teacher to get my students to learn, without exception. I acknowledge that for some students that will take a lot more effort on my part but I am okay with that. If I did not plan to put in the effort, than why else would I be trying to become a teacher?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">From this assignment, what will you carry with you as you prepare to become a teacher – one that will, most likely, face the challenge of meeting the needs of special education students along with non-disabled learners?

According to my results from the learning styles survey, I can learn equally well in any learning style except kinesthetic. I already knew that I was not a kinesthetic learner, so that part was not new. However, I did not know how balanced the other categories were. I think the reason I was balanced between three categories is that when I began college I had already employed some of the suggested strategies, which I did not previously use in high school. Overall, I felt that the CAST website had a wide array of useful material and effective strategies for presenting information. I felt like the “create your own book” tool is geared for use in lower grades. Based on first impressions alone, I am not sure how effectively I can incorporate some of the activities in my high school history class. While looking at the online textbook, I took note of a few tips and strategies that I could potentially incorporate in my future classroom. I believe that Social Studies as a subject area can greatly benefit from the UDL approach to learning because in the past many students do not do so well in this content area. It has become increasingly obvious that the traditional ways of teaching the social studies is no longer the best way to teach the material. I honestly believe that the UDL approach has become the necessary model for teaching today’s students. My concern however is that it will be extremely difficult to incorporate UDL into every lesson for each day. The amount of time and preparation necessary makes it almost impossible to produce a UDL lesson every day. To be honest when I was attempting to do the activities, the second activity would not continue past the picture of the family. Despite the problems I had with the second activity, I thought that the first activity was effective. I would like to know if the CAST website had any activities/strategies specifically geared for teaching history.
 * CAST Assignment Part 2**

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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Based on my results from the learning styles survey, I have a balance of learning styles. I scored a twenty-six in the first three categories and a twenty-four in kinesthetic. This surprised me because when I have taking this kind of survey in the past, the results leaned toward the Visual/Verbal learning style. The strange thing about these results is that the category that I scored lowest in was kinesthetic; the reason this struck me as odd is that when I was diagnosed with ADHD in the third grade. At the time of my diagnosis, there was not a lot of research regarding ADHD; however, since then there is much research relating ADHD and learning styles. Much of this research suggests that children suffering from ADHD, learn best when movement is incorporated into the learning process. In light of the plethora of research that connecting ADHD and kinesthetic learning, I question something, which has been a major part of whom I am today; was I was misdiagnosed or am I just an anomaly.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Reflection to Learning Styles Survey **