Summer is a Great Time to Learn for Yourself!
PODetc is offering several terrific courses for the summer and now is the time to enroll! We are currently running Introduction to Instructional Technology in the Classroom and are just finishing up with Tech Literacy 102: Building Knowledge Management Systems and Creativity and Innovation in the Classroom.
Our July offerings include:
http://www.podetc.com/PODetc/Course_Catalog.html
PODetc is offering several terrific courses for the summer and now is the time to enroll! We are currently running Introduction to Instructional Technology in the Classroom and are just finishing up with Tech Literacy 102: Building Knowledge Management Systems and Creativity and Innovation in the Classroom.
Our July offerings include:
- Survey of Emerging Technologies
- Tech Literacy 103: Utilizing Social-Networking Support Tools in a Leadership Capacity
http://www.podetc.com/PODetc/Course_Catalog.html
Posts
I have been teaching computers and technology to elementary school children for the past 12 years. Teaching has always been in my blood. I belonged to the Future Teachers' Club in Junior High School and even had a "borrowing" library, arranged by the Dewey Decimal System in the basement of my parents' home when I was in elementary school. After becoming a trainer in the banking and computer industries, I taught both credit and non-credit classes in the Connecticut Community College system.
ReplyDeleteRecently, I found myself becoming stagnant. I wanted to learn something new, but did not necessarily want to go for another academic degree. I love teaching children to become independent and lifelong technology learners. This process, I believe, involves using technology as a tool to enhance the learning process and to reinforce learning itself. During the past few years I had attended various seminars that discussed Web2.0 apps, but I had not been given the opportunity to engage in hands-on learning of these apps as I did with the PODetc courses. Also, this year the professional development in my school district emphasized Common Formative Assessments (CFAs). The teachers were charged with the task of writing CFAs and tying them into the state standards. Unfortunately for me, there are no state standards for technology itself, and so I felt a bit out of touch. If I had taken the PODetc classes last summer, CFAs would have made as much sense to me then as they do now.
The PODetc courses use ISTE’s NETS (International Society for Technology in Education’s National Association Technology Standards). I was able to gain hands on experience in using these standards and have gained a better handle on tying these standards to my teaching assessments. The three courses I have taken so far have sparked my enthusiasm for changing what I teach and how I teach. Learning Web2.0 apps and access to them seems much easier. I also have a much better sense of how to create CFAs and how to use NETS in order to formulate these CFAs. After my last class, I made a suggestion to the district administration which would enhance collaboration between the grade levels in the three elementary schools using skype. It will be put into place during the coming school year.