Hmmm….technology. Right now technology and I are "on a break." 10 minutes ago, as I was drifting through Discovery Online articles and drooling at the pretty pictures, technology and I were doing GREAT. However, as we speak, technology has prevented me from blogging directly into this thing because, as Google told me, “Sorry, there seems to be a problem. The service you're looking for is temporarily unavailable. We're working hard to restore your access as soon as possible. Please try again in a few hours. Thanks for your patience.” Unfortunately, in a few hours I will no longer be using class time, but rather my own time…which is sadly limited these days.
…Wait a second, you say. How are you typing in present tense about this blog if you are unable to log into you account?
Well, as all good teachers know (and hopefully I will be joining their ranks soon) you must always have a backup plan. This is my backup plan: write the blog on Word, then copy and paste it to the web. Let’s just hope it works! (It did if you’re reading this, of course).
Back to my relationship with technology. I think of technology as a handy dandy toolkit. Right now I have a Swiss Army Knife range of materials rather than a Home Depot at my disposal. I’ve got Google taken care of—Google Earth, Google Maps, Google Docs, Google Google Google. I am Googled out. I’ve got Pandora, Facebook, Grooveshark, Cornify (try it), the list goes on and on. But what I am lacking is technology that can be incorporated into the classroom: stuff to get kids going “Woooaaahhhh, cool!” So if you know any good websites, apps, what have you, share the love!
I share your frustration with technology and those annoying "sorry..." messages. That is why I describe myself as a Luddite when it comes to technology. I also like your army knife comment...that is an eloquent way to put it, and in keeping with the idea that we all have "toolboxes" of ideas. Killer metaphor.
ReplyDeleteI love the way you write. It is very entertaining. I get so easily annoyed with those messages as well. Hopefully you and technology have restored your relationship and do not have anymore roadblocks.
ReplyDeleteJennifer - Technology can be so frustrating and so helpful at the same time. Because it is often so helpful, I keep coming back. Like you say, it is important to always have a back-up plan as a teacher. How many times have you been in a class and the first 15 minutes are taken up with technical difficulties?
ReplyDeleteYay! I found a "conversation" here. Jennifer, you have yourself to thank! Your writing has voice. It is engaging and draws the reader in. Well done!
ReplyDeleteI'm with Joey. Love the metaphor. And I would add, keep the knife and ditch Home Depot (lousy service anyway). If there was such a thing as a customizable Swiss Army Knife, then that is what you want to carry with you into the classroom. As a teacher, you want to be discriminating about your technology "toolkit." There is a lot of cool, free stuff out there, but it's not enough to just go with the "wow factor." Choose the tools carefully, with your course content, instructional objectives, and, most importantly, your LEARNERS in mind.
One more point: You are most certainly NOT lacking technology for the classroom. EVERYTHING you noted above has classroom implications (if, of course, it's not blocked by your school's filter). I will go out on a limb and say every tool you mention has educational application, even the ones I don't know. What's "Cornify"? (I'm checking it out.) Check out the resources at Educause. They speak to a higher ed audience, but do a great job of analyzing the educational value of the most cutting edge apps, even Facebook.
OK, you absolutely need to cornify your blog!
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