23 Things and Technology

As I was watching the video, I found myself thinking about how reluctant I am to change some of my teaching styles. I always thought of myself as someone who adapts well to change, but technology can scare me. It is difficult for me to embark on projects that I am uncomfortable with. I would love to integrate more technology into my classroom, but don't always know what to do. I don't want my students to see me struggle. What I need to realize is that I can make this a learning adventure that we can accomplish together. I want my students to become successful adults and this means I need to expose them to more technology. So my goal is to use the 23 Things project to help me become more comfortable with technology so that I can pass my knowledge along to my students. I also need to take advantage of what schema my students bring to the table and learn from them.

7 and 1/2 Habits

Of the 7 and 1/2 Habits, the habit that I found that the easiest for me is to begin with the end in mind. I am very much result-oriented. I want to know what I am working towards. So whether I am teacher or I am the learner, I set goals so that I can be clear on what I want to accomplish. I also think it is very important for me to have my students set goals for themselves. Setting goals helps me to stay on the right path and not get sidetracked.

The hardest of the 7 and 1/2 habits for me is accepting problems as challenges. I tend to steer myself away from things that are difficult, be they do not make me feel very successful. I am not used to things being hard to understand, so it is difficult for me to admit when I do not know something, even though I am constantly telling my students to ask questions and never give up. I signed up for the 23 Things Project because technology can sometimes scare me. Because of this, I have avoided using it in my classroom as much as I should. In the future, I would like to face this as a challenge and not a problem.