I made it! I finished my third year, five-week long practicum, and let me tell you I had major breakthroughs and learning throughout these past five weeks. Looking back to the beginning of this semester, one of my burning questions in regard to technology in the classroom was how I can incorporate technology into my assessment. Although we did not explore many tools and resources we can use to document assessment, I feel that I did find many tools and resources that I could use to assess my students learning and understanding. One of my favourite resources that I took away from this course was the virtual tour website. I feel that this resource is a unique way for students to demonstrate their learning and understanding, and is a unique way for me to assess their learning and understanding.
Looking at this semester as a whole my perspective on integrating technology has changed considerably. I have often struggled to see the implications of technology in younger grades, such as kindergarten. However, through this course I have recognized that integrating technology in the classroom doesn’t mean students need to be consistently using technology in lessons, but it could just be the students recognizing how to treat technology. This is crucial in the early grades such as kindergarten, and I am looking forward to integrating this new perspective into my future teaching.
As a final reflection of this semester, I have learned the importance of collaboration with fellow peers. If it wasn’t through the extensive collaboration I have had with my peers over this semester I would not have had as many resources and tools to reserve for both my practicum and my future practice. We all come from different experiences, and different backgrounds, which means we all have different knowledge to bring forward. I believe that I had a lot of experience exploring educational apps on iPads, and that was something that I was the best able to share with my peers. While other peers of mine had more experience with educational websites, and were able to share that knowledge with me. Overall I am looking forward to continuing collaborating with my peers in my future practice.
In conclusion, this semester has been a rewarding experience for me, especially in developing my knowledge and experience with technology. I have learned a lot about technology in the classroom, and I am looking forward to incorporating this knowledge into my future practice.
