Reflection: Week 4

What?

This week in class we learned about the many helpful tools and resources available on the Utah Education Network, also known as, UEN. We had a guest speaker come to class and to teach us how to set up our own accounts on this site and how to access materials we can only view as future educators. This guest speaker worked for UEN so he was very knowledgeable about the website. We did not have a specific assignment to work on this week, but we were instructed to investigate the UEN website to find useful tools for our curriculum.

So What?

As a future educator, it is extremely valuable to know how the UEN website works and to utilize the tools it offers. I had no idea how many resources are available for my content area through this website. Most of the material is even fun, interactive, informational, and free. Finding free materials for classroom use is extremely valuable because I am sure I will be spending a great deal of money on various materials needed for my classroom. At first I did not understand why we were doing this assignment because last week we learned how to make our own website through the google sites network. Next week we are going to create our own website on UEN, so I am sure it will contain similar information, but there are advantages to the UEN website. One of these advantages is that UEN is an approved website for all Utah educators. Most likely, parents will not complain about me creating a class website through UEN because it is state-approved and all of the content is highly censored and strictly for educational purposes.

I realize how important it is that I understand how to utilize technology in my classroom. Even though I am not fully "converted" to using the UEN material for my own classroom website, I know it is important to try and figure out how to create a site using this network. Once I know the basics of various networking tools, it will be easy to figure out how different or new ones work, which will come in handy if I am ever required to use them throughout my career.

Now What?

My feelings have changed towards classroom websites. I used to think they were more of a hassle than anything, but now I have seen a lot of the advantages to using one of these sites in my own classroom. Having a class website offers comfort to parents, students, and collaborators so they know what material the teacher is covering in class, any homework or activities done while a student is absent, and gives the students the opportunity to further research a topic using safe, trustworthy links provided by the teacher. Another aspect I enjoy with the UEN website is that it allows students to be engaged through fun learning activities, interesting educational movies, and valuable class discussion content. I am excited to continue learning about the UEN website so I can create a site to use in my future classroom. I know both me and my students would benefit from this resource.

For right now, I still like using google sites better than UEN for my classroom website because I am more comfortable with the way it is set up. Also, it seems much easier to figure out how to improve the site on my own, rather than having to be taught how to do it. The UEN website is still a bit confusing to me, but we have one more class period to discuss how the website works and how to create a professional website. After I know how to use both these sites well, I will then decide which I will use in my own classroom.

Video Reflection:

After watching the video "Did you Know?," I started to think about the reality of technology expansion. Even in the past ten years, computers and the internet have become widely available for any use imaginable. Today, children are growing up knowing how to use technology as a means for entertainment and education and we (as teachers and parents) need to be aware of its advantages and dangers to protect and influence the future generation. As teachers, it is crucial that we know how to properly use technology in order to help our students utilize available resources used for education and also to help them know how different websites work in order to further their knowledge in this ever expanding, technological world. I hope to continue learning about computers and technology in this instructional media class so I can be a knowledgeable and reliable source for my students to count on.