14 Matching Annotations
  1. Apr 2023
    1. Too frequently, teacher technology education focuses primarily on how to use and integrate technology as tools (Kay, 2006), but it fails to explore its inherent and often problematic complexities (Asim et al., 2020; Benson, et al., 2017; Bradshaw, 2017, 2018; Heath et al., 2021; Subramony, 2017; Tshuma, 2021) or built-in injustice (Benjamin, 2019, Noble 2018).

      This is something that I can relate to. I have been told some different tools that I can use in the classroom, but I don't know how to really access those tools or fully use them. Technology is something that is very big during this time, so in your classroom you would also use technology in almost everything. I'm not really fully told in depth what these apps are and everything that comes with them. I'm not really taught about the issues that could come with using these tools if I were to use them in my classroom one day.

    1. The bacon/egg/cheese saga represents the one-size-fits-all scenarios we often see in our classrooms: Every student is expected to read the same book at the same pace, listen to the same lectures, and complete the same math problems using the same materials.

      This is something that isn't true at all for every student. Not every kid goes at the same pace and needs the same instruction taught the same way. Some kids might need more help on a subject. Some people don't learn the same way that everyone else does, so you have to realize that and modify when necessary. Not everyone can or wants to eat a bacon, egg, and cheese just like not everyone will learn using the same material taught in the same way.

    1. The classic example is Facebook—a free service that makes money by selling advertisers the ability to customize ads based on our behavior.

      This is something that I am now way more aware of. Before I didn't think too much about what different apps were doing with my personal information or likes and dislikes. Now that I am more aware of what is happening I can use apps more carefully. Everyone needs to know what and why apps or online websites do with your privacy.

    1. As educators, our goal is to teach students, not just by transferring knowledge to them, but by creating meaningful learning experiences that support their knowledge and skill development.

      This is such an important thing to think about. As teachers it's not just about giving a lesson and having the students listen. It's about being creative and coming up with lessons that engage the students. As a teacher you also have to think about where your students are with what you're teaching them. These are both very important things to keep in mind when you do teach to your students. Having lessons that aren't taught in a way that gets students attention won't be effective to have your students really learn what is being taught to them.

    1. Luckily, there are hundreds of digital tools available that can help solve these types of educational challenges.

      This is something that is important to think about in this generation especially. If you ever need help with something the internet or a digital tool can most likely have an answer. In schools most things are electronic or have something to do with using technology. You can use digital tools for so many things in your class. This is something that could help you as a teacher for your students to use.

    1. In this chapter, we will explore how educational technology (edtech) tools are constantly collecting, using, and sharing personal information, what this means for you as an educator, and how you can better protect your students.

      This is something that is so dangerous when using your technology. So many websites, apps, and your phone are collecting data about you and possibly sharing it out without your permission. Not only educators should be educated about how to use your technology in a safe way. Everyone who uses some kind of technology should be properly educated about how to protect your personal information from an unsafe place.

    1. Individuals who use technological devices to make life easier are likely engaging with artificial intelligence (AI), which has computers performing tasks that traditionally required human intelligence

      In schools you may hear that students are using AI programs to do their work. They use programs like these to help them get everything done with their school work, and the students aren't using their own minds to complete the work. They are relying on the AI programs to think for them. The results are that the students might not be thinking or learning from their assignment. This also becomes a problem for teachers when grading and looking through their students assignments. For both teachers and students using AI programs are not beneficial.

    1. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen an unprecedented number of learners engaging online. Teachers have quickly pivoted from in-person instruction to virtual classrooms.

      This is something that people who aren’t teachers might not really think of or get. It’s hard to change everything that you have done previously in your classroom to now being online. It’s hard to operate your class through a computer screen. You have to use technology for everything when you might have not had to do that fully before. It’s difficult to teach through a computer screen. You don’t get to really know or engage fully with your students. You only see people’s pictures, and they might not even have them on. Your classroom is now a Zoom screen and you don’t get to have those face-to-face interactions that you had before. It was a difficult time to be a teacher having to do everything online.

    1. As educational developers supporting the incorporation of technology into teaching, we are often asked by instructors for a tailored recommendation of an e-learning tool to use in a particular course.

      I think this is something that would be so helpful to teachers. Having people recommend tools that they can use for a specific class would be so beneficial. This would be a great way to get more technology into your teaching and classroom. This is also a great way to get feedback for all kinds in of tools to use in your classroom. This is a great resource to possibly get told about tools that you didn’t know of before.

  2. Mar 2023
    1. While some disabilities may be visible to people (e.g., using a wheelchair), other disabilities may not (e.g., hearing loss or dyslexia).

      This is such an important thing because not every disability is visible or can be easily noticed. Sometimes people do have disabilities that you can't see. Learning more about every kind of disability is extremely important to do.

    2. We have all been there—wrapping up a class feeling frustrated, just like the students, because the technology did not work out as planned. In this case, the problem was the tool did not provide students with a good user experience.

      This is something that has happened to me before. When I go to class and the technology I need to complete my project isn't working I feel like I wasn't able to fully complete what I needed to. This can happen to teachers too when they're trying to teach a lesson or class. It's not a good feeling to have when you wanted to use your technology, but couldn't because it wasn't working. We live in a world that uses a lot of technology. We run the risk of having it break or not work when we need it the most. That feeling of having your technology not work is something we'll have to deal with until possibly someone finds a way to change that. The feeling of not having my technology work is something I don't want to have to randomly experience without a real warning.

    1. In each class we teach there is a unique mix of personalities, mindsets and learning dispositions, alone we are likely to face new challenges meeting the needs of this mix of learners but collectively it is almost guaranteed that a colleague somewhere will have confronted a similar scenario.

      This is a super important thing to bring up. In whatever classroom you teach in there will be all kinds of people in it. No two people are exactly the same, so you will have different personalities and attitudes in your classroom. It can be challenging teaching so many different kinds of people, but having resources to ask people if they’ve been through something familiar is beneficial. You never know who has been through a similar experience as you. It’s nice to get some advice for a situation you’re going through. It can make you feel like you aren’t alone, and what you’re going through isn’t just happening to you. Someone may have had the exact experience that you are having. As a teacher you might feel like what you’re going through is unique to just you, but having a place to talk to people and see that they went through the same or similar thing as you is so nice to have. It can be difficult being a teacher, but there are other teachers out there who might understand exactly what you are going through. They could have advice for what to do in the situation you’re going through.

  3. Feb 2023
    1. Feedly is a great way to meet other educators from different education communities.

      I think this is a really beneficial tool to have. It's nice to reach out to other educators to hear ideas. It's also nice to meet fellow educators and make connections with people who really understand your job.

    1. Social media platforms can distract educators from focused endeavors

      I think this is something that is true. Social media is something that consumes people. Social media can distract educators, or anyone for that matter if you get sucked into the rabbit hole of online stories, apps, etc. It can cause educators to get distracted or lose focus on what they were trying to achieve. Social media is a place that can make you forget everything that you were doing beforehand if you get sucked into it all.