Hi! My name is Shannon MacAskill and I am a sophomore at the University of South Carolina. I am majoring in Elementary Education and I hope to teach the second grade! I am currently taking EDPY 401 and for this class we had to chose an educational video and state whether we agreed with it or not. My video is called "Why Teach Technology" and it gives the reasons why we should teach technology in the classroom. Below that video is my video response agreeing with the importance of having technology in the classroom. Feel free to read my thoughts on this topic and feel free to comment on my video and/or paper! 

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            “The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.” -William Arthur Ward. Every teacher desires to be the one teacher that stands out to their students, the one teacher they will always remember. In order to be that teacher you must interest your students in the subject matter you are teaching. One way to do that is to incorporate technology into the classroom. I am not saying that having a computer or a smart board in you classroom is magically going to motivate your students, but I am saying that properly intertwining technology into your curriculum will interest your students. My video “Why Teach Technology” gives many reasons as to why it is vital to have technology in the classroom. These students have grown up with video games, computers, Ipods, cell phones, and digital cameras. They are very comfortable using technology. Piaget believes “Children interpret each new event with in the context of their existing knowledge (assimilation) but at the same time may modify their knowledge as a result of the new event (accommodation)… Our students can benefit from new experiences only when they can relate those experiences to their current knowledge and beliefs.” (Ormrod p. 25) Technology is something students already have a scheme for. As a future educator I completely agree with this video and advocate technology in the classroom. 

            Allowing technology in the classroom setting lets students to branch out and discover what interests them. Through Vygotsky’s “apprenticeship” a teacher can work with students to help them “accomplish more complex tasks” and teach them how to navigate the different programs on the computer. (Ormrod p. 41) Technology enables students to be creative and to truly take a project and run with it. It knocks down some of the strict ridge guidelines that use to go along with a simple three page typed book report. With the use of technology they could create a power point, use voice thread, make a movie, or record a song to get their ideas across. Piaget said “students are active and motivated learner”. (Ormrod p. 25) I believe students are motivated when it interests them. Even if a student isn’t thrilled about a topic they may be excited about the control they have over organizing the project. Technology allows for more hands on learning.

            As a future educator I want to have the best teaching methods possible. Technology allows for students to learn material they previously would have had to miss out on. In a typical high school biology class you are expected to participate in dissections. In the past, students with queasy stomachs may have been unable to complete this task. However, now we can do full dissections on a smart board. You still learn the material that is required, but you just learn it in a different way. Educators need to learn to be flexible and willing to change their teaching methods when necessary. “Education is not filling a pail but the lighting of a fire” William Butler Yeats. 

Works Cited 

Ormrod. Jeanne.  "Educational Psychology Developing Learners fifth edition."  Ohio:  Pearson, 2006.