Technology and Me - Week 1

When I first entered the field of education, I was the dance director at a local performing arts high school. Although reading and writing were often incorporated into my classroom, movement was the key component in the dance curriculum. As a dance educator, it was rewarding to watch my students become kinesthetic learners, discover a new talent, and use movement as a form of self-expression.

As you can imagine, incorporating technology into the dance curriculum was a challenge! In order to try to introduce the use of technology into my classroom, I began using PowerPoint to present lecture notes. I also incorporated the use of Edmodo to have students complete journals entries and self-reflections. For those of you who haven't heard of it, Edmodo is a education-based social networking site which allows students and teachers to interact in the virtual setting. The design of Edmodo is similar to Facebook, so it was easy for students to learn how to navigate the site. Also, after our school district began permitting the use of YouTube, I was able to show my students different videos relating to the style of dance or choreographer that we were studying at the time. After watching these videos, students were able to engage in group discussions, share ideas, and critique different pieces of work.

As a result of this course, I am hoping to become more confident about using different types of technology. I feel like it is time for me to expand my knowledge beyond the use of Microsoft Word and PowerPoint. I would really like to learn new ways to incorporate technology into my current field of learning assistance. I know that incorporating technology can make instruction much more engaging and exciting for students.



Time for an upgrade!