Teacher Interview

1.  What types of technology do you have available?

All of our schools have two mobile laptop carts, two computer rooms, smart boards, projectors and much more. 

2.   What technologies do you integrate into your lessons? 

 In my classroom I have 4 computers.  We run many programs plus surf the net for classroom projects or visit sites to work on certain skills/objectives.

3.  What do students learn using technology? 

In my classroom we learn very simple/basic skills.  We learn about the monitor, keyboard, tower and mouse.  We learn how to turn them on and shut them down.  The kids learn how to access the program that they are to be working on and stay there!  We go on line to listen to stories, research something we are talking about in class, math, science, language arts, social science and many more objectives.  I use the projector to do whole group instruction and listen /read stories to the class.

4.        What is your philosophy of educational technology?

It is a very valuable and amazing tool.  There is so much you can do and learn by using your simple laptop.  I am proud to come from a district that has so much technology to offer.  You know Olivia made a power point in Kindergarten. I think that we can’t educate our kids properly if we don’t teach them about technology and what all it has to offer! 

5.        How does your principal/administration/superintendent/school district view technology in the classroom?

Oh I don’t know this one either!  We have two tech specialist in our district. We have a technology curriculum.  Certain outcomes and objectives are taught at every grade level. They provide us with the latest and greatest things.  Our district pushes tech and encourages not only the lab.tech teachers to use it put the classroom teachers too. 

My Reflection:

This is a really small school district and I was really surprised that that much technology was made available to them.  She has a lot of technology available to her, where as a lot of other schools don’t have hardly any of those technologies.  I’ve never worked with a Smart Board but the teacher that I interviewed loved hers.  She thought they were awesome. I thought that it was really interesting that her students, who are 4, 5, & 6 years old, were surfing the web for research at such a young age.  It was fascinating to me that her students were that advanced in their technology skills.  I know kids are like sponges but I am honestly shocked that they know so much about technology and that her daughter made a PowerPoint in kindergarten. I think that her thoughts about teaching technology are dead on.  Children are so perceptive to everything that we do.  If you show a child how to do something, more than likely the very next time they will be able to repeat everything that we do.  Children today have such an amazing wealth of knowledge available to them today and it’s so important that we teach them these technologies so that we can enhance their education and their future.  I also thought that I was great that her administration was really excited about education.  When you have a great support system about technology in the classroom then it makes your job easier because the administration is going to do whatever they can to help the technoligical needs of you classroom.