Technology

Having recently been exposed to digital storytelling, and also the various factors detering teahing from using the medium in their classrooms, I have decided to combat those obstacles here and persuade you to try it out. 

First, you may be asking, what is a digital story?

One of the main reasons why teachers do not incorporate digital stories in their classrooms is they simply have not been exposed to them. This is where I come in! In short, a digital story is any narration constructed with digital technology. This can take many forms, including: photographs with voice-over, short videos, documentaries, and student created productions. 

Next, you might be thinking, okay now I know what it is, but why should I use it in my classroom?

From: http://www.ted.com Indian education scientist Sugata Mitra tackles one of the greatest problems of education -- the best teachers and schools don't exist where they're needed most. In a series of real-life experiments from New Delhi to South Africa to Italy, he gave kids self-supervised access to the web and saw results that could revolutionize how we think about teaching.

We were contacted about a school library grant opportunity by Acer and Inter.  With about a $10,000 dollar value, it sounds worthwhile to apply.  Included are 10 laptops that the school could use in a variety of ways.

The school library can be a rich learning environment for students, provided they have the most up-to-date tools and resources at their fingertips. Is there a school library in your community that could use a technology upgrade?

As students become increasingly digital-savvy, they rely on the latest technology resources to complement their educations. At the same time, funding for school technology continues to dwindle. That’s why Acer and Intel are offering K-12 schools across the country an opportunity to transform their libraries into 21st century learning labs. Nominations are now open Acer’s School Library Technology Makeover Contest, which will award 10 new Acer Aspire Timeline notebook computers, valued at nearly $10,000, and two all-in-one desktop computers to two deserving school libraries.

In this new fast paced society we live in, the echnology all around us causes us to go and think at a faster pace than years past. When it comes to education, during the next eight weeks I will be exploring theoretical foundations for technology use in the classroom and ways to incorporate technology with instructional strategies to support and facilitate learning.

This resource section provides content based Photo Stories, Movie Maker videos, power points, and other media to provide the integration of technology in the classroom.

My name is Vannette Simmons and i teach first grade in the great state of Texas!  I am not new to technology but I feel like a lot of it has left me behind.  Now I am taking a Masters course and trying to ride the wave of technology.

Join me as I explore the impact that technology has had on education.