Welcome to my Blog

 내 브러그에 환영해요
Maligayang pagdating sa aking blog

 (with apologies to any fluent Korean and Tagalog speakers out there)

Classroom technologies.  These two simple words, not so long ago, increased my anxiety level and simultaneously prompted a sense of inadequacy within me.

The thought that I had to be proficient and knowledgeable in all aspects of classroom technology was a driving force behind these feelings. It always felt like such a big job, to have to introduce as much technology as possible into my classroom, and to be able to manage this alongside all of the other things I had to do......

Taking time out, transferring to a different country, different culture, different school system, away from full time teaching to substitute teaching, brought with it a chance to look around, see what was being done and see the potential for technology use in a classroom, especially with good support.

Transfer again to another new country, return to full time work, counsel myself to aim big, but achieve small, and I feel like I am, at last, finding my way slowly but surely, through the CLASSROOM TECHNOLOGY minefield.  Along the way, I am discovering that it is not so much a minefield as a world of endless possibility.

I can't possibly learn, do, discover every aspect of this technological world, but I can carefully sift through the options and take what I think is useful out of these, without feeling that I have to see or use everything.

And do you know what I have discovered......

People notice little things, they are even impressed with little things, and are encouraging of what I can do.  I can help students to learn to be wise in their choice of tools, whether technology tools or more traditional tools - this is what we have always be about as teachers.

So, now I don't feel so inadequate.  Sure, I realise that my knowledge and expertise are not the same as many and that I may not be EdTech teacher quality, but I'm quite happy with that (and who knows....perhaps....).  I know that what I have chosen to use has been useful (or not..... and so I don't continue using it), I am becoming more confident in trying new things, and every experience is a learning experience! My previous subject (EMT501) was an amazing help with this confidence.

I am looking forward to learning much more, in this subject, about how I can wisely use technology resources to build my students' learning, and how I can teach them to be wise and careful in their use of technology.

......and I can now find many more things on my own - I just took 10 minutes to change the time zone for my blog..... and I did it!!!!