ISTC 301/501 C.

Wood
Final Reflection
Haley Bowen
I do not think I came into this class thinking that education in the
classroom was useless. I am aware that it is becoming a dominant part of
todays society and that it is going to be implemented more frequently in
situations inside the classroom as well as in everyday life. I had a little bit of
experience with technology while in grade school we had overhead
projectors in elementary and slowly moved on to smart boards in high
school. I also dont remember ever not having monthly trips to the computer
lab. I think my perspective has changed in that I now see technology in the
classroom as more of a necessity. TPACK has allot to do with this new
perspective. The way mixing technology, pedagogy, and content together
makes for a lesson that is not only abiding by UDL and reaching every
learner but enhances the teachers qualifications by challenging them find
different ways to present their material. It is important to have some variety
so that your students are engaged.
I also have a greater respect for classroom technology in terms of its
usefulness to students with special needs. Watching the video on Dan
Keplinger and visiting blogs made by special educators really opened my
eyes to the opportunities technology has given these students. I am in a
special education course this semester and one the most commonly asked

questions asked during our KWL activities, (when you write what you know
about a concept, what you want to know, and then go back and answer your
own questions after the lesson) is what technological accommodations are
available for this disability?
I was also interested to learn about the part common core plays in a
students technological learning and pleased to know that there are
standards set for how well a student should be able to operate a computer at
certain ages. I remember when I was in school typing classes were optional,
but now I am sure they are on their way to becoming mandatory in the
common core curriculum. When we were creating our lesson plans, it was
helpful to have those standards there so that we could make sure our
students would be able to understand and complete the technology based
homework assignment. We also made sure, however to make a different
option for completion for those students who may not have access to
technology at home.
I see technology as necessary in the classroom now because it
provides different outlets to engage different types of learners. I enjoyed
learning about the podcasts, online discussion boards, and digital story
tellers and cannot wait to bring them into my classroom someday.