Sharing my Thoughts: Week 2

     As I have gotten more and more involved in the topics of Transliteracy, I have been exposed to so many ideas and technology concepts that it has inevitably left me with questions.  Questions such as.....

• What if I don't have the materials or enough of them? I love the ideas that are available for ebooks and on the iPads or computer programs, but the problems arise when I have three iPads to use or only four desktop computers in my classroom.  It takes a lot of planning, preparation, and flexibility to make some of these ideas come to life.
• Can I model these technologies effectively? Some of what I learned came from me playing around and exploring. Also I was the one sitting in front of the computer. How can I demonstrate and explain similar activities to a class full of students? And the question will surely be more troublesome as technology speeds past me when I do not have the technology information that I do now. 
• Is this technology teaching the objective effectively? The ideas seem great and engaging but how can I make sure that I am really teaching what needs to be taught and preparing my students for assessments and evaluations. 

     Even with all of the questions, I feel confident enough to give this technology thing a shot and use it with my students.  I am well aware of many pro and cons with the use of technology in the classroom.  Nada Salem Abisamra shared many positive and negative aspects of technology in her article Integrating Technology in the Classroom.  For example, technology can make learning more engaging and creative for students.  They can feel free to explore and create beyond a paper and pencil.  Additionally, it makes many tasks more efficient. Now students can turn in materials through clicking a button and receive a grade from the teacher all electronically without wasting paper or time! But for all the great things about technology, one of the biggest drawbacks is having to constantly keep up with it.  Just like how once the pencil was a new technology, for those that did not advance their thinking and explore, their students were stuck with pencils as the only technology ever used in their classroom. 

     So now it comes down to the fact that we know technology is going to help our students but how do we know what to use? This week I learned so much about TPACK and its role in teaching.  I had never thought about how all three areas intermix to create a "Sweet Spot".  The best way to choose a technology is to consider how it benefits the content that is being taught and how it can best be used to teach the material.  A lesson is useless if it is not preparing students for the end goal or teaching the content even if it is fun and engaging!  So, now with all of my knowledge and new insight about TPACK, I still want to know how this looks in actions.  Do teachers really think about content, pedagogy, and technology together when lesson planning? I guess the only way to start answering my question is to try it out myself and ask and observe other experienced teachers.