Emerging Technology

An emerging technology I am interested in is the Kindle or e-reader. I think this is a very interesting piece of technology because I love to read. I think in the future there will be no more textbooks or printed paper, everything will be on an electronic device like the Kindle. I could use this in my classroom for students to read on or for a special needs student who maybe needs the text enlarged so they can see it better. A lot of schools don't have the money for this kind of technology right now so there may only be one in every classroom, but it could be used as a reward. All students like using technology and new things so there could be a reward set up so that the students took turns on the Kindle and you only got to use it if you were good.

Audiovisual Technologies

One traditional audio technology I could use in my classroom is a cassette tape player. This would be a very easy way for students to listen to books on tape and any other form of music or sound through a tape. This is great for students who can't see well or can't read. An emerging audio technology I could use is internet radio. I could use this in supplementing the lesson so my students aren't bored with just reading in their book or listening to me talk. For example in an older-aged class you could listen to a debate or a political message like the President's address to the country. A traditional visual technology I could use is a poster or bulletin board. By displaying relevant material it will help students keep the material fresh in their minds. For example if we were learning about the solar system it would be relevant to put up a general display with information on each planet. An emerging visual technology is a document camera. This would be very useful in the classroom so that the teacher doesn't have to print copies of a worksheet for each student and doesn't have to print on overheads like if he/she were using a projector.

Technolgy in My Classroom

If I had to choose between a classroom with a lot of technology and a classroom with little technology I would definitely choose the classroom with a lot of technology. This is because I think the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages. With digital technology you are able to do so much more than you can without it. In the book it says once there are computer systems in the classroom the possibilities for expanding their capabilities are enormous. There are so many cool input and output devices that would greatly enhance teaching and learning. Also, if you had any disadvantaged students in the room they would benefit greatly from having the technology on hand for their use. Times are changing so I think over the next few years technology will keep becoming more advanced and it would be to everyone’s advantage to have as much technology in the classroom now as possible. This will educate teachers but also educate students on how to use these devices because we all know how confusing and frustrating it can sometimes be.