When I think back to the start of this course, I had quite a negative opinion of technology inside the classroom. I very distinctly remember seeing the title of this course as I enrolled and completely rolled my eyes while thinking, “Teaching technology to students? Hah! This is going to be great!” If you can sense the sarcasm in my first initial thoughts of this course, I feel it is clear that I, of an older generation than probably most students enrolled in this course, felt a certain way about learning and teaching technology. This isn’t an unfair first opinion for myself, when I look at the case of my teenage son and his issues with using technology appropriately in school. However, I have found that the course has brought genuine value to my journey as a student and a future educator.  

 

I have learned many new digital tools and honed my skills on tools I was already familiar with. I also have found that it has bridged a technological gap with my teenage son and not only helped me understand his current mindset but also helped me embrace other tools not taught in this course to better track his educational progress. Learning these digital tools has reshaped my perspective and opinion of technology within an educational setting. I find the lessons in computational thinking have helped open my mind to new possibilities, not only as a future teacher, but also as a mother raising a current high school student. Not only can I point out the moments that my son uses computational thinking to achieve an educational goal, but I can now see the value of it within myself.  

 

I find that my confidence level in technology integration has grown exponentially. Starting this course, along with my other educational courses, this semester was the first time I was within an academic setting in over a decade. To be honest, I was rather intimidated in completing some of the assignments at the beginning of this course. I used to have severe anxiety attacks when I thought about how well I would perform on these assignments. One of the assignments, the “Learning to code with Scratch,” was especially intimidating and challenging. Upon reading the rubric for this assignment, my thought was, “I can barely operate Microsoft Word, and you want me to code? What a joke this is!” However, I saw a pivotal shift in my perspective after needing the assistance of my son to explain how Scratch and coding worked. I realized after his assistance in understanding the assignment, that someone had to have taught him some of these vital skills he would need in the future. It brought a realization that I will one day be “that someone” that teaches these vital skills to other students. I also found this experience to be a bonding moment with him. After completing the assignment, my perspective on teaching technology and computer science in education changed entirely when I had a hard realization that I would need these skills to be an effective teacher in our digital world. Now, I don’t shutter at the thought of a new assignment in this class; I embrace it. My confidence in completing this course grew as my grades on the assignments returned and were far better than I had ever thought I would perform. 

 

I think the most enjoyable learning experience I had in this course was the multimedia assignment. Creating the multimedia video about music, which is something that I love, not only made me laugh every time I would watch a part of the video as I developed it, but also brought my first real perspectives on how I could really incorporate these types of assignments for my students. It brought back high school memories of an old dear friend. With this friend, I collaborated on a project where we created a video for my high school French class. During the project, my friend and I were awarded special permission from the administration to film inside the school at night. Because of the multimedia assignment, I know I will be incorporating these types of projects for my students in my lesson plans. If I have fond memories of some of the sillier assignments in high school, I know I will enjoy being the conduit in which my students form these same types of memories.  

 

One of the most important parts of teaching these types of assignments is the diverse range of inclusion it creates for students. Assignments like the multimedia video, design artifact, concept mapping assignment, and the infographic assignment, have a way of including everyone in a place where the things that make us different are celebrated through a creative muse. I gained quite a bit of insight on how these computational thinking-designed assignments can really bring a diverse group of students together to reach a common goal, while learning individual skills that will ultimately help them succeed through their academic career. I think it is amazing to be a contribution to that growth through inclusion.  

 

Going through the journey of this course, I have identified three major issues that are most prominent in my learning experience. The first of these issues is an equity of access. I think one of the more persistent issues is the gap between those who have access to high quality computer science education. Students who are enrolled in under-resourced schools, do not have the same access as those that do. I find it sad that funding is the difference between students having the same opportunities as others. One of the other pending issues is the confidence of teachers to teach computer science skills. After evaluating my first initial thoughts of this course and realizing how underprepared I would be in a classroom before this education, speaks to how many of these skills may not be known by current educators simply by a lack of professional development. The third, and probably the biggest, issue I see is the lack of balance in utilizing technology as an enhancement, rather than a crutch, in the classroom. I feel the lack of professional development breeds an opportunity for this to happen frequently because of the ignorance of technological tools and an inability to properly teach them. 

 

My experiences in moving from simply being somewhat digital, to thinking of myself as a digital educator, have been shaped by moments where learning about technology has challenged me to rethink how I solve problems through computational thinking, design learning, and connecting with others. In learning how to computationally process and solve problems through the assignments of this course, I’ve realized that teaching technology isn’t just about using devices. Teaching with technology is about intentionally shaping learning experiences that connect and support students. I found this most prevalent in one of the readings earlier on in this course, How Technology is Reinventing Education. The article explains just how much technology has changed in education over the years and what new developments it has brought to the classroom environment.  

 

Overall, I found that this course really shaped and defined my outlook on how I will use technology in the classroom as a teacher. It also gave me vital skills that will help aid in surviving the first few years of teaching by finding engaging ways to captivate my students. I feel that these newly learned skills will help me teach content, that otherwise would probably be somewhat dry, in ways that will grab my student's attention. I no longer fear teaching certain concepts, because I now have the skills to teach these concepts in a way that will be, not only modern, but will hopefully meet my students where they are to form meaningful learning experiences for them.