College

I'll have to say that the start up of this class has been a little bumpy. The biggest hurdle I think that has been necessary to overcome is the pulling together of the bits of information relative to the assignments. In particular the due dates, but also little pieces of info that should be included for submission that are on one description but not on another. I think our cohort has done well and has banded together to communicate our questions and answers with each other. Everyone has been great about sharing, and I think this may have saved us inundating the instructor's mailbox!

The material of the class has been very useful. Already we have been exposed to many things that seem relevant and useful if put into practice in our classrooms. The introduction to these new tools is fascinating to me. This links together well for me in that I feel we are getting a technological addition to the base knowledge of the more traditional arenas for teaching provided in our two previous classes. This is not to say that the instruction in those classes has been by any means antiquated, simply that it is in a more traditional classroom setting format. The tools that we are being exposed to in this class are bringing the classroom more in line with both our and our students' real world experiences. At the same time, it has exposed me to some of the new technology that I have been hesitant to try. I thought blogging was more akin to instant messaging, but it seems more similar to myspace pages. In this context it is the creation of a teacher lead classroom medium that can be accessed beyond school hours, and by anyone who has an interest in what is going on in their child's classroom.