From+My+Heart

Dear Dr. Stocker,  Even though I had quite a few technology problems with the assignments, I did enjoy the class immensely. However, I do think that I would have liked to take it as an actual class instead of an online class so I could have gotten help and had my questions answered. However, I did learn that I am more creative than I thought that I was! This class was a huge stretch for me because I am not very far into my degree program yet, so this is really only the 2nd class I’ve taken for my education minor. Because of that, I have had literally no experience or guidance whatsoever into creating a lesson plan, so having to not only decide what I was going to teach my students, but also come up with a technology tie-in was very difficult for me. However, I feel that I was able to accomplish this to the best of my abilities. I do feel that I applied myself very hard to be able to get my work completed.  I have also learned that being a teacher takes a lot of planning! I guess I have always known that, but I also assumed that schools gave specific guidelines as to what needed to be taught in a specific class and the teacher just had to fit lessons around those criteria. Apparently that’s not correct. When I was in high school, no matter what teacher you had, you learned basically the same thing, even though some of the activities were different. But everyone read the same books and did most of the same projects. That is why I figured that the school or the district decided. I think that I am the most proud of being able to come up with technology assignments for each lesson. At first I was skeptical. I only graduated from high school in 2004, and I think that it is completely unrealistic to think that technology is used to such an extent in the classroom. My high school was brand new. My class was the first class to go all the way from 9-12 grades, so it’s not as if we were lacking anywhere. But for me, I feel like it’s the teacher’s job to interact their students. I think that it is such a shame that technology has taken such a hold on today’s youth that they feel lost without it. It’s not that I don’t think that technology has its place in the classroom. I do believe students should know how to create great presentations and things like that, but I do think that the overuse of technology will actually be the ruin of many students. They will get to a college lecture class, and not know what to do because they are not used to having to sit for 2 hours taking notes.  When I actually become a teacher, I know that I will take much more time in planning my lessons. It will also be the only thing that I have going on, so I will be able to take that time! Right now, it was difficult with a full load of other classes, being a single mom, and having to work full time. But I definitely want to be more organized next time I write lesson plans. As for using the technology, I did save a bunch of the links into my favorites so that I can refer back to some of my favorite projects, or those that I feel would be useful in my classroom. I would also do more research into any technology piece that I used to make sure that I was utilizing it to the best of its capabilities. I think that it’s important to do something really well of you’re going to do it at all.  I am most concerned that I will have trouble integrating technology into my classroom. I do feel that many of the projects that we worked on are better suited to some subjects/classes than others. I know that I will use it and create presentations for my students, as well as have them create presentations, but it will definitely not be something that I used even every week, not to mention every lesson. I don’t think it’s necessary, and I think it takes a lot away from the teacher. If a student feels that they can learn what they need to learn from the internet and from technology, what motivation does that give them to listen to a teacher? However, I also believe that the more I play with the programs and figure them out, I will be more comfortable using them when it does call for it. If I know everything that they can do, it will be easier to integrate them into my lesson.  When it comes to teaching, I am most concerned that my students will be impartial. I was always a student that loved to learn. No, I didn’t love to learn every minute of every day, and there were days that I didn’t want to be at school, but overall, I wanted to learn. I had some wonderful teachers that have really motivated me to become a teacher myself. I want to be that kind of teacher. I want to be the teacher that my students feel that they can have fun with and that I’ll listen to them, but that they’ll also respect and pay attention to. I know it’s a fine line, and I had some great teachers that were able to do that very well. However, another one of my problems is that I tend to look like a high schooler because of my height and build, so I do feel that it will be harder for me to get students to respect me as a teacher than it might be for other teachers. There’s not a whole lot I can do about what I look like, but I also don’t want to be the teacher who demands respect by being mean. That is something that I will have to figure out on my own.  When it comes to technology, I think that I am most excited about finding new and exciting ways to use it when I do use it. There is so much that can be done, and I think that trying to discover new ways to integrate it into my classroom will be fun and exciting. However, I guess part of my hesitation is that in most classrooms, unless you’re taking a computer class, there is only 1 computer. It is easy for me to do projects that I can show my students on my laptop, but having my students work collaboratively on projects all the time isn’t really possible. So I think that I am excited about finding other ways to incorporate it.  I am so excited to become a teacher because I do believe that kids today need guidance. They are not receiving it at home and many kids today are in school because they have to be. I want to change that. I want my students to be there because they want to be. Because they want to know what will happen next. I want to get my kids excited about whatever we are doing. I know that not everything will be exciting, but that’s just the nature of education! I think that being a teacher intrigues me because you are in control of the education of hundreds and thousands of students over the years, and I think that it would be great to see where they end up taking this knowledge.  I think that my classroom will be a pleasant combination of the 20th and the 21st centuries. I do think there is something to be said for lectures where students are forced to take notes. That’s how I did some of my best learning. I think that I learned better when I saw something on an overhead or a PowerPoint presentation, the teacher talked about it at the same time, and I wrote it down on my paper. Repetition is so crucial to a good learning experience. However, I know that technology also offers many things that were previously unavailable that is very engaging and can really get a student interested in what is being taught. I also have to be realistic and understand that the internet is so important to many students. For some, it’s their life! So I have to be sensitive to that and know that for many, that is an important piece that will help them learn. I really hope to make a difference in the lives of my students. I really want to be a teacher that students come back to visit years after they graduate. I hope that they remember me and look fondly back at my classroom as one of their most favorite experiences. I want to be the teacher that students look up to and say, “She’s the reason that I became…” whatever they decided to become. That is so important to me. I know that I have a teacher from high school that I still look at as one of my favorite because of the way that he taught.  Anyway, I have really enjoyed this class. It has taught me a lot, and even though I did struggle, I did learn a lot. I don’t think that learning is real learning without a little bit of struggle anyway!  Sincerely,  Reaghan Cooke