A Technolgy Maze

I found the reading for this week about technology and the three core concerns involved with using technology in schools very interesting. I am by no means a highly technological person, having admitted to the cohort already during Doering's class that on a scale of 1 to 10 for technology ability I would rate myself a 1. That being said I am extremely apprehensive about introducing technology and computers into my English classroom. I am horrible at trying to figure out how to use computer programs and other things similar to that and I think that if my students turned to me for help with these kinds of things I wouldn't know what to do. The authors mention that becoming literate with computers is important for students' futures and I feel sorry for the students who expect me to help them with this because I'm not sure if I will be able to help them as much as they need.

I was also a little disappointed in the article because while they brought about the fact that many kids are at a deficit because they don't have computers the authors don't give suggestions for ways to help students gain more access to computers. The authors mentioned also that students who do again access to computers aren't always able to succeed with them because they don't have the training and preparation necessary to navigate the Internet. Again, a valid point, however the authors fail to mention how they believe this problem can be solved. I feel that this semester I have been bombarded with education problems and have been provided with very few suggestions for making education better or no success stories involving educational issues. I do agree that students need the preparation for using computers and that being part of the online community will be beneficial for them but how are we as teachers supposed to ensure that all of our students receive this opportunity?

My website for this week is an online community called SG Fireteam. It is a community that I myself belong to for adult gamers who use Xbox Live. I think it is a good example of the way people interact in an online community and I am really proud of being identified as an SG Fireteam member. It might even be a good example of the kind of online community our schools could have for students, though I will warn you since it is an adult community of gamers there might be some cussing.......
www.sgfireteam.com