EME2040 Blog Post One

Technology has been integrated into the classroom at a rapidly increasing pace since its introduction. Educational technology influences teachers and students in vastly different ways. Technology mainly influences teachers because of third party influences. There are many councils that influence how teachers use technology in the classroom. The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) is a major federal initiative to improve technological literacy in educators. Another major council is the Association for Educational Teacher Technology and Communications. The AECT is the oldest technological council for teachers. The ability to digitally plan lessons and use multimedia to improve learning is important as well. Technology influences students in slightly different ways. While students are greatly impacted by digital lesson plans and multimedia, the integration of computers in to the classroom has had a positive effect on learning. Assistive device technology is incredibly useful to students with disabilities. Technology has increased educational personalization in classrooms because it makes crowded classrooms feel smaller and allow for quick, useful feedback.
The ISTE standards are federally mandated standards that state what teachers, administrators, and teachers need to know in order to be technologically literate. One educator standard that I feel is meaningful to me is the designer standard. I believe that this is the most important technological qualification that a teacher can have. Teachers need to be able to design interactive technological activities in order to captivate students' minds and to facilitate meaningful learning. One educator standard that I believe I need to gain is the collaborator trait. I have always had trouble communicating with my peers effectively online. I believe that this skill needs to be honed in order to be successful as an educator.
I agree with the terms "digital native" and "digital immigrant". I believe that these terms are accurate to describe the era that people are from. Many scientists believe that people from these generations lear differently from one another and therefore the terms are useful to categorize a person's learning style. Being a digital native has allowed for me to gain a thorough and quick understanding of different types of technology. I anticipate that I will be able to keep up with my student's technological skills in the future because I am a digital native.