Technology+Integration

==**This is the first assignment that I did for this class. I was asked to watch some videos regarding technology integration in the classroom, and then pick one to discuss. I explained why I liked the video, and what I learned from it. I was also asked to talk about why technology integration is important to learning.**==

=
The video I watched was called “Conquering Technophobia: A Classroom Veteran Warms to Digital Tools”. It was about Jim Wilson, an English teacher for 33 years in Pennsylvania, and how he learned to give up some of his more “old school” approaches to the education process in order to integrate technology into his classes. I liked the video because I want to be an English teacher myself, so it was interesting to watch how students were using technology specifically in an English classroom, like by making Power Point presentations about the period that Charles Dickens lived in. The video taught me a lot about why older teachers who did not grow up with computers might resist using technology in their classrooms. Mr. Wilson stated in the video that it was hard for him to use technology at first because he had become so accustomed to teaching a certain way, and because he was afraid his students knew more about how to use it than he did. He also initially expressed concern about not having as much control over his classroom and how they did things when he introduced technology. From this video, I learned that as a teacher, I must constantly be adapting my style of teaching to keep up with the times and the new technology that society has to offer.======

It is important to integrate technology into today's classrooms because it is a tool that students must be competent in to enter almost any realm of the workforce. I am writing this paper right now because I must take this class to make sure that I know how to use technology when I become a teacher, and other careers are not much different. It is also necessary to incorporate technology in the classroom because it is something that kids now grow up with and are interested in. Using technology can help students who might be reluctant to do class work excel in areas that they might not have had interest in before. It also helps to differentiate the work load so students don't get bored by doing the same types of assignments in class all of the time. In my classroom, I plan to use technology by presenting information to students using Power Point and other media, but also by having them make blogs showcasing their writing, use message boards to discuss class reading, and by showing them how to find authentic sources online.