I love Microsoft Word

Microsoft word is probably one of the most commonly used features on a computer, that I almost forgot to mention it in my blogger. Microsoft word is great for school projects, because you can graph, make tables, write papers, make outlines, flyers...etc. Just about anything you can think of can be typed up in a word document. Not only can you just type information in a word document, but you can use bullets, numbering, different font size, colors, clip art, symbols, and you can even type using other languages and acsent marks. I love microsoft word, I use it almost as much as my internet!

Ipods arn't just used for DaNciNg to music, but can be utilized as a learning tool too:)

Ipods... the new "phase" of this current generation. Ipods are used mostly for listening to music and watching your favorite TV shows and movies. But, ipods can go beyond the general uses such as it can act as a podcast. Since the Ipod has the podcasting feature, it enables teachers to record their lectures and/or video type them and post them online. After the lectures are posted online, the students can retrieve them by downloading the lectures on the their ipod. Personally, I haven't tried this feature on my ipod, but i am looking forward to when I can utilize my ipod to view lectures!

Bookmarks & how much I use them on my MAC*

Using bookmarks are great for lots of reasons. First, bookmarks are great because they save you alot of time and are conveniently accessible at the top of my MAC. All you have to do, is when you find that you are using a particular website alot, such as blogger.com or wikispace, you bookmark it so that all you have to do is click on the words and it takes you directly to the page you want to view without having to type in the whole web address. Personally, I use my bookmarks for this website, facebook, WebCT, udel webmail, and ebay. Bookmarks are also great for bookmarking useful educational websites you found beneficial for your teaching.

The smart board...and just how smart it really is!

The smartboard is one of the newest additions to technology advancements in todays world. The smart board is great for class presentations in that it appears to look like and act like a white dry erase board. Unlike the original white dry erase board, the smart board allows you to attach your computer to it, and type the information you want to present to the class on the computer. When you want to erase something you wrote you just move around the specific area you want to erase. Overall, smart boards are a great new addition to educational technology tools and I can't wait to use it in my classroom!

Using Microsoft Excel

When first learning how to use Microsoft Excel I assumed it was going to be very difficult, but to my surprise I found it very beneficial in many ways. Excel is a great way to store your students grades on all assignments they perform in the classroom. Whats great about excel when your finish posting your students grades, is that it does the averaging calculations for you! Also, excel has a very user friendly layout. I liked how I could easily find the sum or the average of any group of numbers. Also, I liked how excel can graph a group of numbers you choose in any type of graph format you want, for example a line graph, bar graph, pie graph...etc. Also, I learned from class that in excel you can make a workbook consisting of 3 sheets, in which each sheet is a page.

Education Search Tools

Search tools are usually used for students to do research on a topic of interest and help students understand a meaning of a difficult word. As a "soon to be" teacher I would suggest using search tools for students because they are very important for helping them understand new concepts they want to learn more about. Overall, I rate search tools as an extreme importance of education technology!

Facebook - pros and cons

The NEW EXCITING thing for teenagers all way up to adults is FACEBOOK. Almost everyone I know, including my parents have a facebook. Facebook pages are great ways to communicate with friends, family members, co workers, and fellow classmates. By joining the Facebook network, you are open to a variety of usage materials, such as writting private messages, posting comments on a persons wall, and posting pictures for other people to view. Facebooks can be beneficial for students to keep in touch with eachother and for teachers to keep in touch with their co workers. Although facebook pages are a great way to communicate with people of importance to you, they are also very dangerous. Profile pictures can be posted on your facebook page, but sometimes people are not always who they "seem to be!" Every year predators get caught pretending to be someone they are not. For this reason, I have my facebook as private so only the people who i accept - "friends" can view my comments, pictures, and messages.

Using WebCT is great!

I have to admit, when I first started using webCT at the beginning of the semester I was very overwhelmed, since it was a new concept which I would have to adjust to at the University. Now, 3 months after using webCT EVERYDAY... I don't know what I would do without it! WebCT is my "lifeline" to my classes and their assignments/directions. WebCT allows me to view my professor's outlines/powerpoint to print off and study from. It also allows me to view my grades for my classes, upcoming assignments, and printable activities due in class. WebCT is great, because whenever I need information for a class I can either look it up on the WebCT page, or email the professor from a email link on WebCT.

Communication Using Email

Email is a great was of communication in todays world! Email allows for you to have your own account in which you can recieve messages from individuals from school, home, work, another state, the country, and even from around the world! Personally, as a college student I don't know what I would do without the usage of Email avalibility. Using my email at the University of Delaware is critical to staying in touch with what is happening on campus and in my classrooms. Email also provides me with a way of communication with my professors if I have a simple question or cannot attend their office hours. Regarding my education (EDUC) field placement for Human Development, contacting the school and the teacher was an important part of the course and Email allowed me to stay in touch with the school and teacher without any difficulty. Overall, emailing is KEY to working in the workforce, schoolsystem, and even in a household!

Student Using Search Engines

Search engines such as google.com, are great resources that the internet provides! Students can use the search engines to research practically any subject they would like to learn about. This is great to use for school research projects and reaserch papers. Spiders do control search engines, which means that sometimes the information you are looking for does not appear. Overall, search engines are great tools to surf the web, but you need to be careful not to make mistakes when spelling out what you want information on, because search engines DO NOT fix your spelling errors. I would deffinatly suggest using search engines for students when using the web!

Opinion on the Equity & Cost associated with EdTech

In relation to my second published wiki research - Equity and Cost in EdTech, my personal opinion is that more time and resources need to be invested in poorer school districts including public schools and special education schools. Alot of money is being invested in Technology in schools, but we should ask ourselves "Is the technology resources being used to their fullest potentional?" From personal experience I don't believe that they are being used to the fullest. For example, I went to a private High school for four years and my freshamn year, the school invested in a whole new computer lab with MAC computers. The whole time I was in high school I didnt have one manditory computer tech class using the new computers. The only way in which I used my technology reasources was in accounting class my senior year and occasionaly printed off research information for a class assignment. Now, that I am in college and taking this Ed Tech course, I am already beginning to understand the important role of computers and the cost associated. Overall, write now I am writting this assignment on my MAC computer...which is ultimatly allowing me to search and learn about the importance of technology for when I am a teacher!

"Wired" Schools = "Wired" students

In relation to my first wiki - Educational Technology Defined, I agree with the statement that technology provides enormous improvments within the school system. Just looking at the "basics" that technology information provides today, compared to schooling 20 years ago we have come along way in growing. I do believe that if technology in education was a widespread as it is in the workplace (buisnesses) schools including the students, teachers, parents, and administation would be well adavanced. Personally as a student at the University of Delaware, tutor/mentor in a school, and a previous teachers assistant technology has helped me in new levels of understanding i would possibly not have been able to reach without it. As described in the Wiki, technology is helpful in communication. For myself, it has been extreemly helpful in the following: keeping track of my grades, contacting my teachers and advisor, staying in touch with my parents while at college, making powerpoint presentations for classes, finding articals for my biology lab write ups, using the dictionary provided by Microsoft word, and finding quotes for a research paper. As just described, without technology I don't know where I would be in my student life... I can only imagine how useful it will be when I become a teacher!