Ed Tech Status – In Progress

If you have followed my blog previously, you would know that I am no educational technology expert. In fact, last semester’s introduction and subsequent dive into educational technology in EC&I 831 was a completely new experience for me. A daunting, exciting, overwhelming, and overall unique experience. Late nights and early mornings were spent writing blogs, embedding content, properly citing photos, and adding important hyperlinks into my blogs.

Photo Credit: _Blaster_ via Compfight cc

I had quite the learning curve, but I now feel more comfortable in regards to educational technology. This, of course, does not mean I am at a stage where I am an expert. Nowhere near.

What am I able to accomplish now? Well, I can tweet, I can pin, and I can blog (or at least I try). I am more aware of the open education movement than I ever was before, and I know now about interesting concepts within educational technology, such as slacktivism, connectivism, and rhizomatic learning.

I began taking a course focusing on educational technology because I felt it was one of my areas of weakness. It was not for a lack of interest; rather, it was an overwhelming sense of being so behind on technological matters, and it being an area of constant growth and development. I didn’t know where to start. That shouldn’t have stopped me from trying; and I encourage all those who see educational technology as a daunting task to start somewhere as well. It has helped me understand so much more in my line of work, and it helped me question what I thought I knew about technology in the classroom.

Personal photo

I still have so much more to learn, though! I have a new and growing understanding of technology in the classroom, but it merely opened up new doors for different questions and further development in this same area of learning. That is why I was so interested in pursuing another course on this same subject matter.

Educational technology has also grown student engagement in my middle years French immersion classroom. Through the use of Twitter chats last semester, I learned new and exciting tools to use in the classroom, like Plickers. Although some classes are less interested in using such materials, my homeroom absolutely loves Plickers, and it has truly grown student engagement. This is but one example of ways that educational technology has helped me with my work, and I continue to look forward to learning about them this term.

If you are interested in my previous journey through educational technology in EC&I 831, please check out my blog relating to my growth in this area, as well as my final learning summary for my first educational technology course. For further information on my personal and professional life, you can check out my introductory page or my about.me page, which further connects you to my Twitter, my Pinterest, and my LinkedIn account.

Are you overwhelmed by educational technology, as I was in the past? Let me know in the comments below!