responses

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The question posed was: How does technology use affect your everyday work outside of grades, email, and attendance?

Answer: In a class where large portions of the work consist of hands on experiments and completion of equations, technology may not play as big of a role as it might in another setting. In the classroom, PowerPoint presentations have become a key element of my teaching style. I find that they are more convenient and therefore time saving. Not only can I provide copies of the slides to student for their notes I can incorporate online content such as animated examples of chemical reactions on a molecular level. I think the students find it more illustrative than having a 2-D example on the board and it isn't as time consuming as illustrating it with model atoms. Also, as I find a better examples or other content that I want to incorporate, it is extremely easy to constantly improve and update my presentation. The other large part technology plays in my everyday work does not directly involve my students, as my above answer illustrates I use the Web to find content for my in classroom presentations. I also use the Web and chat forums to get new ideas involving experiments and strategies for teaching. Overall, as it is intended to do, technology has made certain aspects of my job easier, but it can't substitute for good hands on learning.

Answer: Honestly, sometimes it makes it easier and sometimes it makes it more difficult. I am sure the technology resources vary depending on where you teach. For me, it is a complicated mix between overheads and Elmos (projectors)...and occasionally united streaming. I have trouble consistantly incorporating technology, while still providing the hands on instruction expected on my campus (Raab)

On a similar note: How do you give student time at computers?

Answer: I am not in the educational field, so my use of technology is probably quite different. I work in the medical field where every facet of our work is online. All patient data is stored online and the use of paper is being phased out completely. If any of the computer systems go down, the hospital comes to a grinding halt and we run on emergency status. Luckily this only happens for a few minutes every few months! Our patients often bring homework to the hospital, and we have a dozen or so full time teachers at the hospital to educate the children if they must be away from their hometown for any length of time. The teachers rely on computers in order to faciliate the child's learning and help him keep in touch with his regular classroom at home. With the use of email, faxing, and internet, the children are able to more or less "sit in" with their regular classes at home as if they were actually there. Computers, laptops, and other electronic equipment are located all over campus in order for patients to feel at home and connect with their family, friends, and classmates. Unlike most schools, we have the fortune of having a basically unlimited amount of money to spend on our patients in order to help them live as normal of a life as possible while here, which often includes using technology to keep them in touch with their homes.

Question: I was just given a Mimio for my classroom...I haven't even hooked it up. It apparently hooks to my white board, and when used with a projector it is just like a smart board... I am intrested to know if anyone has had experience with them, and how best to introduce them into a classroom.