In my past experiences working in different classrooms I have seen a few different uses of technology to aid the students. When I was a senior in high school I did a 3 week internship in a 2nd grade classroom. In the class, each student had their own iPad to use. They did not use them during any structured lessons but when the class had free time or iPad time, then they were able to use them. On the iPads were specific math games, books and articles to read, and other educationally driven apps that the classroom teacher picked out for them. The students loved to use the iPads any chance that they could and I found that the apps that they had did a really great job at reinforcing what the class was learning in their structured lessons. The iPads also had opportunities for students to work together and connect through certain apps which definitely fostered more collaboration. The teacher was also able to put a lock certain apps if she wanted to get students to practice specific subjects over others. I think this class had a really good balance of technology use because students had the opportunity but it was not overwhelming or taking over the class. Last spring, I was in a 3rd grade classroom at Columbus Park Elementary for my CSL for Teaching Students with Special Needs. In this class the students used little technology. What they did use was computers as one of the math centers. The math games that they played were fun and engaging and even had upbeat songs to go along with them. I always ran my own center during this time so I did not see the games too closely but the students always seemed to love them. Then, last semester, I was in a 1st grade classroom for math methods. Like my CSL class, the only technology that I saw there was using the computer during math centers. The students always cheered on the day that they were placed into the computer center. Again, in this class, I was always working with my own center so I never got to see too much of the computer games but the classroom teacher always told me how much she liked the games that they had and that she thought they did a great job of giving the students exactly what to practice. In my previous experiences though, I have not had too much exposure to technology or a variety of technology. I am looking forward to this class and learning more about the different technology opportunities that I can use in my own classroom in the future!
EDU 222: Technology Integration 