I found chapter 1 to be interesting. I was born just a little before the "iGeneration", but I do understand the shift in technology demand although I didn't know the numbers were as high as they are. I have two elementary age children so I've noticed how toys and schools have such a strong technology involvement this day in age. Although I do worry that as the schools transition into more and more technology use, that there will be some reason for concern especially for the families who do not have these tools readily accessible. Some low income families have not had so much hands on involvement or even direct access to the technology, so this can be set back. So I believe it will be up to the 21st century teachers to come up with new effective and efficient ways to incorporate the new technology without leaving anyone behind.
“Technological Pedagogical Content
Knowledge” also known as “TPACK”, is the skill of bringing 3 different forms of
knowledge to produce an exciting learning experience for the students. I
believe this is a great skill to learn and master to help teachers use
technology to their best ability for all different types of learners and also
levels of ability. Most importantly here is the United States where we have
such a diverse group of students from different cultures and backgrounds. The
21st Century teachers can use TPACK to help gauge if they are
meeting the needs of the students so that they can be successful.
Lastly,
with the new and ever changing technology I find it very interesting that there
are so many unique ways and purposes of using technology in today’s world whether
at home or in the classroom. In this chapter it listed: gaming, music
downloading, social networking and electronic communications and “in school” it
is used for online writing assignments, research, checking assignments,
creating slide shows, videos and web pages. So whether it is for entertainment
or for a learning tool, technology is very crucial. As a 21st
Century teacher we need to find ways to use technology to help the students
learn and be successful using interaction that they enjoy. “To prepare everyone
for productive lives and fulfilling careers, teachers are expected to convey 21st
century skills to students” (Maloy, 2013). I believe they are more likely to
engage and retain the information if they can have a fun and exciting learning experience.
All in
all, I feel the 21st Century is a perfect fun and exciting time to
be a teacher because there are so many endless options and opportunities to use
a variety of technology to make a fun and exciting educational classroom and curriculum.
I look forward to learning new skills and techniques to become a favorable and exciting
new 21st century teacher.
Resources:
Maloy, R., O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S., & Woolf, B.
(2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition.
Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.
“TPACK.ORG.” TPACK Explained. Dr. Matthew J. Koehler , 2014,
