Blog Post #10

     I really enjoyed watching the first video we saw of Mrs. Cassidy's first grade class  talking about the technology they use in her classroom. It was a great way to show us that the students really do love, and learn things from the use of technology. I loved how the students were telling us how to be safe on the Internet and how to only say nice things when commenting on each other’s blogs.  One thing that really stuck out to me was one of the students talking about their grammar getting better each time they write on the blog. I think knowing that people all over the world can view what you are writing helps make students want to do their absolute best on each assignment, especially in the upper grades. I know, because I use to be lazy and would just think it didn’t matter because only my teacher was going to see my spelling and grammar mistakes, no big deal. However, when you know the whole world will see your mistakes you will try your absolute best not to make those mistakes.  

     The next three videos I watched were all an interview with Dr. Strange and Mrs. Cassidy. I found this interview to be eye opening, as most of the videos I have watched for this class this semester have been.  I still might not think technology is everything in the classroom, but I am starting to see that it is a very important part of the classroom. Dr. Strange asked Mrs. Cassidy where the best place to start teaching with technology was. She answered saying to start using something that you feel comfortable using, whether that be twitter, blogging, or something else.   Then, start trying new things.  I think this is very important because, as a teacher, you don’t want to feel overwhelmed since that might affect your teaching. Most teachers that have been teaching for years do not want to change their teaching method, and I think that is partly because they feel so overwhelmed with the thought of having to learn all new things. Mrs. Cassidy told us that she started just using a web page and from there her use of technology has grown. I think we need to remember, as we start teaching, we will not know all there is to know about using technology in the classroom, and that we will have to continue learning new things and new ways every year.   

     Mrs. Cassidy also spoke about the fact that she is one of the few teachers in her school to use technology, and I think that is very brave of her. She also does not have a principal that is making her use technology, she is doing it all on her own with the help of her technology coordinator.  I have a lot of respect for her for going against what most of her fellow teachers are doing, and doing what she thinks is best for the kids.  I hope that when I become a teacher, if I am in a school where they do not incorporate a lot of technology in the classroom, that I will still try and incorporate it into my classroom.

     I really enjoyed hearing her talk about how she uses the kid’s blogs as an online portfolio so the parents can see their student’s work whenever they want.  I think this is a great way to keep the parents involved in what their child is learning.  In the very first video, some of the students talked about how their aunt or grandparent commented on their blog some too. I LOVE this! Being an aunt that lives 4 hours from my 6-year-old niece, I am missing out on what she is doing in school. If I could go on a blog and be able to read things she has written or drawn, I would love it. Blogging is truly a way to keep connected to the world.

     The most important thing I got out of Mrs. Cassidy’s interview was how to teach the students to use technology safely. She is a first grade teacher and she is already teaching the students to access the internet and getting them to talk to people all around the world. However, she makes sure that her 6 year olds know how to keep their identity safe, and how not to access sites that are not safe.  She does this by teaching them to only use their first name not their last, and she has all the links that the students are allowed to visit on her web page so the students do not find sites on their own. In this generation, children will be learning how to access the internet eventually, so why not teach them the dos and don’ts at an early age. So, when they do become old enough to get on the Internet unsupervised, they have the knowledge of how to be safe.  Also, Mrs. Cassidy mentioned that she has students who get upset with each other and post mean comments on each other’s blogs, and she has to set them down talk to them about it. I think this a great example of teaching children at an early age that once you post something on the Internet that it will always be there.

     Overall, I found the interview with Mrs. Cassidy to be a very eye opening video.  She is a true example of how using technology in the classroom, even in the younger grades, can better help your students learn. I am still hesitant about this new teaching method, but I am becoming more and more comfortable with the idea of using technology in my classroom.
Interview Part One

Interview part 2


Interview part 3