Reflection:
I have enjoyed my technology class (EDU 314-600) this past semester.
Technology, in today's society, has become more prominent as a result
of the many technical advances that have occurred. It's important to
understand the newest technological advances and to keep up with them.
In my technology class, my teacher helped me increase my knowledge of
computers and programs within the computer. Being able to learn more
about technology has been very helpful. Technology can be very hard and
frustrating at times, but with practice and learning, most problems can
be overcome. I came across many frustrating times when completing my
portfolio, but with trial and error I was able to overcome my
difficulties and produce an amazing portfolio. The best aspect about my
technology class was that I was able to finally understand how to make
a webpage and have it displayed on the internet. I have always wanted
to make one and now I can achieve this goal.
My
favorite project was project # 7: the creation of a photo story. The
directions for this project were to
create a digital story using tools of digital media such as Microsoft
Photo Story 3 and Nuv. The program, Microsoft Photo Story 3, made
producing the final video easier. I was able to put pictures of my
family, my friends from home and school, and my boyfriend on the video
along with some music of my choice. I have never created a
video/slideshow before, so this was a new and enjoyable experience for
me. I believe my final photo story is awesome and reflects my life
perfectly. I am happy that I have learned how to create a photo story
and now I can continue making other videos using the same program.
One of the challenges during this semester was creating the
Elementary School project. I worked with a partner on this project and
we both equally struggled with creating the many links that we have for
our school. The biggest problem was designing the lunch menu. I started
by designing a table in Nuv, but soon figured out that it would not
work to what I wanted it to look like. After much trial and error, I
figured out that I could make a table in Microsoft Word and just copy
and past the table into Nuv. This idea worked perfectly, I just wished
I had figured it out sooner. Even though this project took me a long
time to complete, I believe my partner and I created a great Elementary
School website.
Another challenge that occurred during the semester was working
with the newest Microsoft Word 2007. I was not familiar to Microsoft
Word 2007 because I don't use the newest version on my home computer.
So, during the class I had to familiarize myself with the new menus,
tabs, and programs there are in Microsoft Word 2007. After complete
this class, I have now become familiar with the newest Microsoft Word.
As a future teacher, I have learned many things in this class that
I can take away with me. I have also learned new ways to teach and give
information to my students, their parents, or the community through the
many projects I have created. The webquest I created is a great
resource for students to access and learn new and interesting facts
about a topic. I also believe that students can easily make their own
webquest on their own topic. Another way to present information that I
have increased my knowledge on is through the use of a power point. A
power point allows the designer to organize their information in an
attractive and eye-catching way for the viewer. The photo story is
another way to present information or an event through photographs,
special effects, and music. These three new ways of teaching/
presenting the information help students become more involved and
interested in obtaining new knowledge. I believe these are important to
use in a classroom because they keep the students engaged, instead of
giving a boring lecture. Overall, every project that I designed will
help me grow as a successful, future teacher
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