- Goal #1 - To learn even more Web 2.0 tools to add to my professional repertoire. I learned of several last semester, and I'm always looking to find more! I'm also hoping that now I'm more comfortable with them, I'll be able to use them more efficiently and with more confidence.
While a good goal, it's pretty vague. To narrow it down a bit more and ensure a growth mindset, I'd like to modify it to say
- Goal #1 - To learn even more high-quality, education related Web 2.0 tools to add to my professional repertoire. I learned of several last semester, and I'm always looking to find more! I'm also hoping that now I'm more comfortable with them, I'll be able to use them more efficiently and with more confidence.
Learning more Web 2.0 tools isn't necessarily beneficial in itself. I've been exposed to many while searching for tools for projects in both this class and others, and I've found many that I did not care for. I would try to still use these tools, but ended up wasting a lot of time on them, trying to make them work for me and my particular topic. In order to be efficient and keep growing, I need to make sure that I'm focusing my attention on high-quality resources. If a resource isn't working for me, I need to be willing to abandon ship and move on to another one. Focusing my attention on tools that are more specific to education would also help utilize my time for wisely.
- Goal #2 - To find more ways to incorporate technology with Pre-K age students. A lot of the Web 2.0 tools I've discovered on my own have been more geared towards much older students. I think it's important to start them young! They're already pretty advanced with their parents smartphones and tablets by the age of 4, why not incorporate more technology into their school lives, too?
While I am reasonably sure I'll continue to teach Pre-K until I (hopefully) find a job as a media specialist, I need to be more open to all elementary-focused tools, because you never know where you'll end up as a teacher. I'd like to modify it to say
- Goal #2 - To find more ways to incorporate technology with elementary school students. A lot of the Web 2.0 tools I've discovered on my own have been more geared towards much older students. I think it's important to start them young! They're already pretty advanced with their parents smartphones and tablets by the age of 4, why not incorporate more technology into their school lives, too?
In order to maintain a growth mindset towards this course, I need to continue to revisit and revise my goals throughout the semester. I need to actively work towards these goals and create checkpoints along the way to make sure I'm on track.
I completely agree with you about the fact that knowing about and using additional Web 2.0 tools is not effective, in and of itself. It requires careful use and consideration of Web 2.0 tools in order to have effective results. There is no sense wasting time trying to make a tool work, when it isn't the tool best suited for the job. Making sure that the Web 2.0 tools we are using and advocating are high-quality and worthwhile is extremely important as we begin to integrate them more into our teaching and our learning.
ReplyDeleteYeah, there are a lot of web 2.0 tools out there, but not all of them are that great. A lot can either be too basic or way too advanced. It's nice to find those that are just right, so we can pass them along to either colleagues or students.
ReplyDeleteI like your goal on specifically finding high-quality, education related Web 2.0 tools. There are tons of Web 2.0 tools and they work for different needs. In order to be successful with the use of the tool, one must put it into practice.
ReplyDeleteI like what you did with Goal 1 in terms of narrowing the focus of what kinds of Web 2.0 tools you need for your own classroom. I love Web 2.0 tools but there are sooooo many out there you really must be careful and tailor the tools for your classroom. I teach Life Science so vocabulary is very important so I use Quizlet a lot with the kids to learn the terms that they need to know. I also like to use Socrative for a variety of things such as ticket out the door or a quick quiz. Sounds like you are right on track!
ReplyDeleteIt's always a good strategy to revise goals because it shows that you are ever evolving and therefore the goals should evolve along with you. I also liked how you went through each goal and talk about in depth. I should of done this with my goals and hopefully in the future I will do so. Goals are fun to set and should be continued throughout life.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you updating goal #1 to specify the need for high quality web 2.0 tools. There is a vast assortment of tools to choose from for almost every purpose and they do not always work or work correctly for your environment. It is also important to perform a dry run prior to trying to introduce it to your students so that you can anticipate any problems.
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