As an aspiring educator it is important to me to incorporate technology into the curriculum and in to the art of teaching. It was best said in a quote I saw in passing on social media; it referenced how many "teachers now were taught by and use various 19^th or 20^th century values and techniques but are teaching 21^st century students." This quote truly inspired me to take into considers how every student that sits in my classroom comes with some type of level of experience with technology, armed with basic understanding of how to use it. Technology’s role in the classroom will help with taking that surface level experience with technology and leading students to dive deeper into it. It can be accomplished with greater access to programs that encourage coding and technology as another form of literacy. Computers must be second nature in/ outside the classroom and introduce the inner workings and possibilities that technology has to offer. It must surpass smart-boards and having the student’s interactions end with it via a smart pen. Technology in the classroom must become just as important as reading, writing and math. It could be in the form of setting time aside for coding, providing more opportunities to do projects on special programs like Spark, Boom Writer, Storybird, Storyboardthat, and many others.

By introducing more exposure to technology into the classroom, it can open many doors for students to become familiar with it. It is like the idea of creating a literature rich environment to inspire children to read. The more books you use and the broader of the authors and genres you use will get a child to be interested in reading. So why not do the same with technology, create a tech-rich classroom along with having physical books as resources can help students become better learners. A tech-rich environment would include a more general access to computers, i-Pads and other devices at a students’ will. Projects and assignments would be represented more on approves websites, allowing parental access at any time (either computer or phone) so that a student can complete an assignment regardless of the type of internet access. Classwork would become mask as fun-work as many students can be fully engaged in school work with technology. Eventually propelling the students into diving deeper not just into technology but the lesson as well. Leading to a more meaningful connection with learning and even reading.

Reflecting on my own evolution with education and technology, I truly found my self open to the idea of getting on the ground work of something new. Computers were not in every household, nor affordable for it to be like it is today. So, when my father purchased that bright blue apple computer, I became fully vested in learning how to code my own website, anime chatrooms, fan-pages, and various accounts of my little pony and baby monster websites. But coding and building websites were not so easy at opening an account with Google Sites, Wix or Squarespace. So, since my childhood, if you wanted to learn computers or be in the field of technology you had to take coding/ html/ java script + classes. Now I can choose a template and what kind of website I want with a few clicks. But with the ease of technology today means it must be a lot more encrypted for the coders of today.

As teachers, educators we must remember to think this way about the all the website we expose to our students. There may be websites that are Childs’ play when it comes to manipulating and others that may not be so easy to navigate. So as adults we might find it easy but for our students, but it might not be. This is one of the few difficulties an educator can come across, finding appropriate websites for your students’ needs. Which might deter educator to not involve technology so much in the classroom. But it is not a major road block because I would recommend trying multiple websites, reading blogs and keeping up with educational magazines that suggest the latest resources to use in the classroom. This also helps us become better teachers in the long run because we take the time to find other ways to engage and inspire our students. And this would go beyond the surface level of technology, i.e. the smart board and Abcya.com, but get students involved with Web 2.0 websites and interested in blogging, vlogging and even coding. Which honestly, stretches the students interests beyond the computer and coding into creative writing, reporting, videography, directing, and even various art fields they thought were non-existent.

To actively engage new practices of Web 2.0 in a classroom, you cannot be passive nor be an authoritarian about technology in the class. You must be a teacher who has an authoritative teaching style because you need to provide students with realistic goals and understand the individual’s strengths and weaknesses with tech in a classroom. An authoritative style of teaching will give students power in learning but not striping control from the teacher as the facilitator. You have students follow a rubric but allow them to be creative. By using web 2.0 programs you can have students learn creative thinking and creative problem solving early on before college. You open more ways to have collaboration in the classroom and work on socialization skills beyond the classroom.

So, why teach with tech? If for only one reason, is to engage and inspire our students down career paths they thought may have never existed or thought was for them. I want to create a classroom where the students are not just learning, they are also experiencing. And this could be experiencing, difficulties, excitements, and frustration. But through those experiences, the children will know that their classmates are their family away from home and they can look to their peers fro help, they won't be afraid to call on an adult. They will also understand, especially with the use of technology in the classroom that mistakes are okay to make. I as a teacher will work hard to listen to what each of my students needs are and try to met them so that they can succeed in the future. I want my students to also know that education and learning can be fun, especially with the many methods of teaching constantly evolving. Working as an educator has change so much since the past years and teachers are caught up in data collection, assessment and curriculum. Education has evolved so much that it forgot about the whole child, the multiple intelligence they possess and the simple approaches to teaching a child to water their strengths. Teachers are so bogged down by the curriculum playbook, and state tests and observations by administration that teaching the child as a mini human with interest is sometimes forgotten. It truly becomes difficult as class sizes goes up, differentiation becomes broader and time becomes less to plan and teach. So, technology as a tool to teach can help mesh curriculum, assessment, student engagement with ease and track-ability once used correctly. You want to work smarter not harder as a teacher so that you can create the time to assess the child, not by reading level but by who they are and what they want to become.