Week 2

First of all, I like websites to have a strict structure that makes them easy to navigate.  I do not like when each new page you visit has a different layout that you have to then figure out.  This is not the case with the  Carteret School District website.  The navigation bar remains in the same place even for each new school website you visit within the district.  The color scheme just changes according to the colors of that particular school.

The usefulness for parents is immediately displayed, as the district's mission statement (or the specific school, depending on where you navigate) is front and center.  There is also a "Quick Links" menu on the left hand side with a link called "Parent Portal," a link with the staff directory with teacher websites and emails, among other links.  There are also two tabs right under the mission statement: "News" and "Upcoming Events" which help parents and students alike stay informed.

The Quick Links menu changes when you move to a specific school's website.  It adds a link called "TeacherSites" which provides a list of all the teachers and their websites.  For example, from the Carteret High School website, you can click on TeacherSites and then look at Mrs. Alcasid's Webpage (a business teacher).  She provides excellent resources for her students.  It is an easy way to see her daily class schedule, classwork and homework assignments, and even a calendar of events.

Week 1

I generally get the hang of new things very quickly, but that doesn't stop me from doubting and getting frustrated at times.  I can definitely, and unfortunately say, I have been raised in the "instant gratification generation" as I like to call it.  In the area of technology, there has been no exception.  I have shied away from newer technologies, like smart phones and even facebook, just for the sake of saving the time that I would have to devote to learning how to use and maintain them.

Since technology is constantly changing, it almost seems like you have to be a dedicated student of its various forms or else you get left behind the rest of the world.  I do not believe, however, that I have reached that point (besides the fact that I'm probably the only person my age without a facebook).  This is mainly because I HAVE used and been familiar with most of the standard technologies, but as I said before, I am reluctant to dedicate myself to the annoyance of their upkeep.

All that being said, I am not afraid of nor do I find this class to be daunting in any way.  I am open to any possible challenges that this course will throw my way, and I have the same attitude toward any and all of the challenges that await me as a teacher.  I understand that there will be certain things that will be easier than others, just like anything else in life.  I also understand that I will need to be able to "learn how to learn" about technology, and especially technology that will be useful and productive in a classroom setting.  As was so eloquently stated in the video "Learning to Change - Change to Learn," "give a man a fish and he will eat for a day, teach a man to fish and he will eat for the rest of his life."

In the article, "Four Takes on Technology," an excellent example of how useful technology in the classroom can be is clearly displayed.  The section entitled, "Using Digitized Documents in the Classroom" shows how documents that would normally be illegible due to their handwritten and sometimes ancient quality can be read with ease.  The text can be digitized, listened to from the audio recording of the text, and even manipulated by the students (font size for example).

I am looking forward to "learning how to fish" in this class.  I believe I will be able to utilize similar technologies as a music teacher that may help students to read music quicker and easier, just like in the aforementioned article's section "Using Digitized Documents in the Classroom."