Welcome to my website for EdTech 541 at Boise State University. Above you will find a navigational menu where you can view the artifacts I completed for this course (for a Marketing Principles class, grades 10-12), my reflections on my blog, and how these artifacts align with the AECT Standards.
The Vision: Educational Technology should be a guiding force in the classroom. Technology is constantly changing, therefore, teachers have to constantly be willing to change how and what types of technology will be used. Instructors need to embrace the use, integration, and implementation to fully prepare their students for the world they will enter after their schooling is complete. According to Roblyn, “…good teachers are more essential now than ever” (page 10). Today’s classrooms have moved on from direct instruction. Teachers have to have the ability to balance the two theories of teaching, objectivism and constructivism. Meaning, teachers need to give (teach) students some beginning or background information and then take on the role of facilitator to allow the students to take charge of their learning. The classroom of today and the future needs to be more student-centered as opposed to teacher-centered. The more teachers take on the role of facilitator the better outcomes the students will receive. The Mission: Educational Technology should address the ability for all learners with different learning styles to be able to learn the same material on their own time table. This can be achieved by utilizing universal design learning (UDL). “UDL interventions provide multiple means of supports to diverse students by providing choice in how they access and engage in the curriculum and how they demonstrate what they know” (pg. 16). Educational Technology should help teach digital literacy, “or skills in using both technologies and the information they carry…” (Roblyer, pg. 24). Also included under digital literacy is information literacy and video literacy, “or skills in interpreting, creating, and using images” (Roblyer, pg. 24). The biggest responsibility that any institution that uses technology has, is to train on digital citizenship. It is highly important to educate students, teachers, and administrators on “how to use technology resources in safe, responsible, and legal ways” (Roblyer, 24). In a day and age where evil seems to be lurking around every corner, we need our students to be proactive rather than be reactive!
References: Roblyer, M. D. (2016). Integrating educational technology into teaching (7th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.