Technology Standards

I'm not sure if this was supposed to be done in class. But the instructions were to "talk about some of the technology standards that you would like to work on." There are two sets of standards to consider: those for myself as a teacher and those for my students.

Reading over the handout "Profile for Technology-Literate Teachers," I'm seeing that I need to work on #1, which is to "demonstrate a sound understanding of the nature and operation of technology systems." I personally feel as though I'm not a digital immigrant, but I'm also not a digital native. Experiencing computers for the first time at age 11 and being solely self-taught about their use since, I fall somewhere in the middle. I still do not feel very comfortable with certain technology systems, as I don't keep track of updated technology. (In fact, if I don't hasten my current progress, I will end up like my great-grandmother who doesn't know how to check her email, because I've never used a Smartboard or even an MP3 player and was stubborn about getting a DVD player until I received one as a gift last year.) That said, I believe that I need to meet the standard of feeling more comfortable with technology, having a "sound understanding" of it, because my students undoubtedly will.

Reading over the handout "National Educational Technology Standards for Students: The Next Generation," #2 catches my attention. It reads, "Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others." For my students, I would like to work on this area, especially "c. develop cultural understanding and global awareness by engaging with learners of other cultures." I see this as one of the most beneficial options given to us by technology. As my fiance says, "the world is becoming a small village." This is a good thing. Though many high school students cannot travel the world, they can become aware of it. It seems that, as of now, awareness of diversity doesn't really happen until college; this is unfortunate and can be changed.