Pause and Ponder #2

Camping at Playcard was very exciting! I do not know who overcame the most fears; my students or me. I went zooming down a zip-line 35 feet in the air with only a helmet, a harness, and a prayer.

While reading The Digital Writing Workshop by Troy Hicks, I learned that teaching in a digital workshop means that we teach students to compose new literacies and technologies. Hicks also writes that we need to teach digital writers to assess their own work based on authentic audiences and purposes, various genres, and self reflection. I realized that in order for me to guide, assist, and or faciliate digital writing, I am going to have to be a digital writer. That is a scarry thought! It is necessary for me to assess my own work the same way. For example, living the life as a blogger keeps me writing for real audiences and purposes. It is my desire to communicate my thoughts in a way that is captivating and comprehensible. With that being said, I am on the right track. I just need to put it in a higher gear.

While reading The Tech-Savvy English Classroom by Sara Kajder, I found the section called Ending Points very true. Kadjer admits that she believes strongly in using computers as tools in writing, but not for all writing. She continues to honor the power of pen and paper as well. It is important to choose the right tool paired with the right student and the right task. Keeping in mind, with an engaging and rigorous writing task, technology can enhance and empower our student writers. This means, building relationships and using multiple intelligences appropriate for each individual must be a priority in order to plan accordingly in my classroom.

So far, I have tinkered with various technologies that were both challenging and invitational. Being able to actually use these tools purposefully has enhanced my learning significantly. After this course, I will continue to use Photo Story 3, iPadio, Wall Wisher, and live the life as a blogger. Blogging has made sense to me as a teacher, writer, and social butterfly. The other technologies we have used did not make as much sense to me at this point in my life. This is most likely due to the information overload and complex interpretation my brain is balancing. For the most part, the majority of the technologies explored in this course are relevant and accessible in the classroom at some degree, either directly or indirectly.

Class discussion has influenced my thinking in several ways. Collaboration, support, providing and gaining information were and are the most influential.