Blog Post #2

As a student, I have used Microsoft word throughout my time as a student. In Highschool, I used it to write papers and make diagrams for classes. Now, in college, I use Microsoft word primarily for note taking. My teachers have always used it to create newsletters and make tests/quizzes, it is an extremely valuable resource that can save time and produce amazing results if you know how to properly utilize it.

My experience with copyright is also from my time as a student, in high school and college. Plagiarism has always been strictly prohibited by every teacher I have ever had, and I have always had to turn in papers to turnitin.com (an anti-plagiarism website) to ensure that my work I submitted was 100% my own. As a teacher, I would also require my students to submit their work to an anti-plagiarism server and I would educate them on what plagiarism is and my expectations of them.  I would also give others credit in my lesson plans, when need be, to set a positive example for my students.

While using Twitter for this class, I have realized that many educators have accounts and post tips & ideas for fellow teachers. I would definitely utilize this in my classroom and use it as a communication forum, as well as a way to get different ideas/techniques for teaching in my classroom.

Blog Post #1

To me, technology is crucial to a successful educational experience in this day and age. It is a so important to have in the work force and is quickly becoming a "life skill", due to all the technology literally everywhere. P21 skills are important as well, and especially useful when fostered in primary education. A major concern is mandating laws to have technology equally implemented all over the United States. At the moment, each state decides how technology will teach children. While this freedom is nice in some ways, it would be especially helpful, as well as beneficial, if all children were taught the same basic technology skills. I support the work ISTE performs and it makes me happy seeing their efforts towards student's reaching technology literacy before entering high school.

I whole heartedly agree with the term "digital native." It fits our generation perfectly. As a child, I was exposed to technology at a very young age. Granted, the majority of it was for educational purposes (computer games to help with vocabulary, reading, etc.), but there was exposure. I would consider my parents "digital immigrants", considering that they were exposed to technology much later in life. I would place the majority of my teachers in the same category. Because they were exposed later, they have a harder time adapting to updates and changes that occur with technology. Technology is always advancing, so it's hard for even the "digital natives" to keep up. I anticipate that my students will be more "in the know" than me, but I will be more adaptable because I've always been around technology and am open to changes and advancements.

Blog Post #0

My prior technology experience is extensive, but I don't know if I would describe it as 'advanced' by any means. I know the basics about Microsoft Word, Power-point, and Excel and the bare minimums of Adobe Photoshop and iMovie. Granted, I am a millennial, so I would consider myself  'tech savvy' when it comes to the Internet and social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest. For the most part, due to my past experiences, I am usually pretty quick on picking up technology and adapt to technology updates relatively well.

I hope to learn more about Excel in this class. Excel in particular because the opportunities are endless with it! I hope to pursue a job in teaching, so being able to input test scores and make comparisons would be very helpful. Excel can also be utilized in day to day life when creating budgets, or just dealing with a variety of numbers/lists in general. Being knowledgeable in this area would not only enhance my resume, but also my self confidence in organization and overall management of numbers.

I was not surprised with my results from the Learning Styles Scale, I have been a visual learner from day one! I do my very best when I can see step by step what is required of me. The highest score you can earn on the test is an "11", and that is exactly what I got in the Visual learning section. My second highest result was "Sequential", where I scored a "7" which also reflects me very well. This one was initially less obvious to me, but the more I think about it, the more fitting I think it suits me. I have a tendency to organize things in steps and usually follow logical steps to find solutions to problems. This questionnaire was enjoyable and it was very interesting to interpret my results!