Final Reflection

When the class first started, I wasn’t really sure what to expect. Technology is such a broad area of study that I couldn’t possibly have determined what we’d be studying before the class started. In the end it turned out to be a great set of resources.

Beyond the many and varied resources we discussed in class, I was also very grateful for the insights of my classmates. When we discussed a given technology or tool, I always appreciated the chance for everyone to share their own unique opinions and observations. While I didn’t necessarily agree with everybody on every topic, I still found that being exposed to so many opinions made me think more deeply about the subject of discussion, allowing me to view the matter from many different perspectives.

A few of the resources we discussed stood out especially as valuable assets. Google Drive, with which I was familiar before the class started, is an incredibly useful tool. Its capacity to allow for collaboration and its functionality as a Microsoft Office-like suite of applications that use cloud computing to allow multiple people to access the same documents makes it a powerful tool for collaborating on projects and presentations, as well as a host of other creations.

Another tool I plan to make extensive use of is Padlet. This is somewhat similar to Google Drive, in that they are both cloud-based collaborative platforms, but where Drive is largely oriented toward the creation of presentable final products, Padlet stands out as an excellent site for brainstorming and organizing ideas collaboratively. It creates a “wall” that can be shared with collaborators, allowing people to post links, embed videos and other multimedia elements, and create text in a setting that lets them organize ideas quickly and easily.

Of course, it’s important to continue growing as an educator even after this class. To that end, I think that I will do my best to keep seeking out both new resources and many different opinions on those resources, so I can constantly be aware of new technologies that may aid my practice as an educator.