Final Blog - Helping Teachers' Lives


Helping Teachings:

In reviewing the top 8 technology resources from the beginning of class and the 20 educational tools, there are still so many resources to explore.  I jumped on WeVideo, as I'm concerned about how to do screen captures if I ever do not have free access to CaptureSpace.  I did not sign up for an account, but with a free account, teachers can create 5 min. of material, and with an account for $3 a month, teachers can create up to 30min of material per month, which seems like plenty and worth the tiny annual free to continue creating fun and interactive materials students can access from home. There is just so much value to providing screen-capture instruction to help students complete homework assignments, refer back to lecture materials, and to cover information as homework and save time in-class for discussion and even deeper development and comprehension.

I also took a closer look at Really Good Stuff, as I was hoping the site had the teacher supplies available for free or for trade with other teachers. I know teachers spend a lot of personal money on organization, crafts, and supplies for their classrooms. The deals on Really Good Stuff are great, 50% off, but I would love to see a site that allows students to trade, recycle, or give away old filing cabinets or old school materials when schools go through upgrades, so these materials go to good use and teachers have ways to get supplies without always having to spend their own money.

Lastly, I went to https://sharemylesson.com/grades/high-school and explored sharing lesson plans.  I suppose this final blog is really about how technology can make teachers lives easier by making resources free and sharing materials, both filing cabinets and activities and lesson plans. Share My Lesson has an overwhelming volume of material for English teachers and unfortunately a relatively poor search engine for narrowing down the pool to sift through. Nevertheless, having access to shared materials could be inspiring and save a teacher in a pinch when needed an activity related to particular books or learning targets.

Technology for teachers is about helping teachers (and students) as much if not even more than incorporating technology into the classroom. The big takeaway I have from this course, which had never really been instilled into my understanding of technology and teaching, is that it is not about fulfilling the requirements of a school, to use technology. And it is not about just catching your students' attention with a flashy website. Technology enhances the learning experience for students and makes teaching easier. We can capture out lessons, share at home, use again in the future, cover more at home and increase student success with diversified teaching methods and resources, all for the purpose of enhancing the learning process for students and instructional process for teachers. I hope school are making this clear and administrators are able to share these kinds of value in teachers rather than making technology a kind of a punishment or rigid requirement that inhibits or prevents teachers from seeing the true pleasure and value of the infinite resources for teaching available with technology.

Comments

  1. Kara McElwrathNovember 27, 2018 at 10:15 AM

    Trying to stay on top of new technologies as they become available is a daunting task - which is one of the reasons I share postings like this one each semester. I look forward to these because they are great sources for learning about what I've missed, and even better, what other teachers found valuable.

    It's been an honor for me to work with you this semester, Cassidy. I wish you the best of luck in your future teaching career.

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