Digital Blog Post #A- Chapter 1

Technology is a beautiful thing, it allows more flexibility in life but also more efficiency. I would like to say that this the world we live in. The internet is what connects us all, it’s so amazing because now a days we do not go to a doctor’s office or a person’s home without trying or asking for a Wi-Fi password.  The most common question I hear more often is, "What’s your Wi-Fi password?" It is unavoidable. Being a 21st century teacher is no question technology is being used. In almost every classroom you will see computers set up for kids, or others have laptops assigned to them. Reading chapter one becoming a 21rst century teacher has actually made me think that many years ago this was not something that a teacher needed to prepare for but now it is a must. We need to be prepared to have knowledge because technology is introduced right when the child is born. They are born into it. I second this because I have a two year old cousin who can find YouTube and by himself puts on Peppa Pig. It’s the simple fact we live in this world.

 The first concept in reading that I felt was important was the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK). I think that yes it is very important to be able to blend all the styles of teaching as all are needed. A teacher can sit down and just lecture about the material that needs to be taught but the child will not learn. I know this because I am one of those kids who cannot understand or apply the material taught if all a teacher did was stand and talk. I feel like blending these skills and knowledge a child can learn better or can accomplish much more because we are now involving technology it is not only more exciting but I feel like it is more flexible. Like right now, if there was no blend of these things, assignments quizzes, essays would take much longer than just simply typing and submitting. Same quality type of work just in digital form and more efficent. 

Something else that I liked reading was under the heading the iGeneration of Technology users. In this section it showed statistics since the late 1990s kids have "never known a world without cellphones, text messaging and other interactive technologies." I am a part of this generation I do not recall a time in my life where there was not a computer at my house, or when there was not a cellphone. I do recall the old versions of these items but them never existing is something I cannot imagine. I also know that I fall under the study that 95% of the 12-17 year old are online and 80% of those use Facebook or twitter. I will also add Instagram there. Another thing I really pondered on to see if it actually applied to me is that tweens and teens average around 7 hours and 38 minutes using entertainment media. Well I did some self-evaluating and I second this study. From the second I wake up I am on social media. I go to school and use more entertainment media such as listening to music to concentrate, or throughout the day when I am texting. While writing this blog I have checked Instagram more than once, I have been listening to music, texting, checked Facebook once and as well checked my email. 

Lastly, a concept I believe has made a world difference in life and in being a 21rst century teacher is the cellphone or smartphone. These devices are as described in the textbook on the go options maybe when there is no time to take your laptop. I do think smartphones are a necessity. They make everything less time consuming, and the device is portable. We carry our cellphones anywhere and everywhere. I think that smartphones have allowed easier communication. From shooting a quick text or email to using phones in the classrooms. I know that in the school that I attend we use our cellphones to display things on the screen to participate in games our instructors have provided. Also the devices are always on us and are powered on, so it is always easier to google something and have an answer in seconds. Smartphones are a part of a person’s world and we are so attached it is extremely difficult to imagine life without them. 

I would like to conclude by saying o be a 21st century teacher there should be preparation with the use of technology. Kids are born into this and if it is a part of their world as a teacher one needs to understand that these things need to be put in use. In kindergarten the first thing given to a child is their lunch number. No this number is not just to get lunch but it is used to log in onto computers or gain access to some websites. I think as we are becoming teachers and learning it is very important to keep an open mind because technology is in the world we live in and we have to understand it in order for us to really communicate and understand the 21st century kids.

Textbook - Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.