Reflections to Readings

I was intrigued by the information presented in chapter 3 of Making Literacy Magic Happen. I like how the book shows different ways that technology can be utilized to foster students' learning. I really liked the section that talked about how middle school students are asked to review software that they could possess in their classroom, but also review software that is not financially possible to obtain. This promotes higher-level thinking for these students and requires that they really evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the software. In addition, the students are also given a voice in which types of software that they believe would be beneficial to their learning. They are challenged to think about how this software could promote learning and they are required to justify their thinking. In my opinion, this is a great way to actively engage students and promote critical thinking skills. The only thing I was disappointed with while reading, was that majority of the ideas focused on students ranging from grades five to ten. I currently teach third grade and would love to utilize some of these technological programs in my classroom, but want to make sure that they are developmentally appropriate. I hope that while I continue reading this book, I will find programs that are suited for my grade level or can find ways to modify these types of instructional techniques to meet the needs of my learners.

In the book titled Literacy, Technology, and Diversity, I particulary liked the section that focused on multiliteracies. I recently took Dr. Murnen's Advanced Language Arts class and he focused a lot on multimodal literacy. He stressed the importance of not just teaching our students how to read and write black ink on white paper, but to teach students how to demonstrate their thinking in other ways. Technology is a great way to promote multimodal learning or as the book states "multiliteracies". This really made me evaluate my own instruction in my classroom and reflect on how I could improve. I am confident in my teaching abilities and know that I engage my students in hands-on lessons and promote critical thinking. However, reading this particular section in the book and combining it with what I learned from Dr. Murnen, I have realized that my teaching could be much more effective if I partnered it with technology. I have already consulted with my technology director and inquired about setting up e-mail for my students and using Imovie in my classroom with my students this year. Cummins (2007) stated that students need to be provided with opportunities for learning that are meaningful. I believe that using technology will help my students to actively participate in their learning and also provide them with meaningful learning experiences. This will also prepare them for their future outside of school seeing how our world is ever changing and requires the use of technology in almost every profession.