WEEK 8

For this week's chapter I decided to respond to objective #2--Describe teacher's thinking processes as they consider emerging technologies for educational use. Educators must go through a five step process and make a final decision in whether to accept or reject specific technology. Those steps are the following: knowledge, persuasion, decision, implementation,, and confirmation. The teacher needs to to become aware of the technology and how it works. Then, they will from an attitude towards the innovation. Next, they will engage in activities that lead to a choice to adopt or reject the innovation. Then, the teacher puts the innovation into use. Finally, a person evaluates the results.

Educators, such as myself, need to make judgments from a professional position that involves investigation of new technologies. There also needs to be ongoing evaluation and reflection about the tool. As a teacher, I understand that when implementing technology into my classroom I will need to question the advancements in at least 6 important areas: cirricular needs in your subject area in the twenty first century, instructional needs in your subject area, student learning, unique capabilities of the new tool, student knowledge, access and management concerns, and finally assessment and evaluation with the new tools.

I know that I will always need to be asking questions such as: can technology be used as a productivity or research tool? Can the technology support learner-centered strategies? Can the technology engage students in important experiences that support learning? What are the tools capabilities? Are there student access issues? What preparation must be provided? How will assessment of students' learning of the subject matter be affected by the incorporation of the new technology?