Overall, I enjoyed this course and its content, and I found most of it relatively easy to comprehend/master. Because this class is centered around technology, I really appreciated that the focus was on working with the applications and programs to create finished artifacts instead of just learning about them in an abstract, distant way. I also appreciated how helpful and patient our instructor (Ginny Britt) was when we had questions or problems. Looking back at my first blog post about course expectations, I do, however, find that my expectations for the course weren't met completely. One of my main wishes was that the course would provide guidance about when it is best to use technology versus when it is just a distraction. A day or two of discussion on this topic would have been really helpful.
Even such, I'm very glad that I learned a great deal about the many different programs and web 2.0 tools available and about potential ways to include them in my classroom instruction. I'm not completely sold that many of the tools can be used well in a high school English classroom, but I was particularly pleased with Storybird (for creative writing work), Wordle (to highlight themes in a piece of writing), and Glogster (for its capabilities to develop posters as creative projects or summaries of learning). I am much less likely to use programs like Pixlr, Smilebox, and Timetoast because I don't see their applicability to my specific classroom. I also wasn't impressed with Inspiration and ActivInspire because I felt that similar products could be created more easily in other programs, but I know that I will need to learn to utilize these programs (especially ActivInspire) in ways that benefit my classroom.
After completing this course, I feel relatively proficient regarding different computer and web 2.0 tools and applications and how I can use them in the classroom. I came into the class with a good comfort level regarding my ability to use technology and tech-based applications, and that comfort level has only improved. While I don't feel completely comfortable with everything and its use, I do feel more competent than I did before beginning the course. I would have liked more hands-on experience working with the interactive white board and its touch menu and with related components like clickers. I would have also liked a hands-on tutorial about how to connect laptops to projectors, how to input the audio cords, etc., as I see that often being a problem with teachers who don't have a permanent set-up in their classroom.
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