History of Technology in Social Studies

After completing the readings and watching the videos, I finally decided that the television is the technological invention that has had the most impact on teaching Social Studies. Debuted in the 1939 World's Fair, the television continues to impact our lives both in and out of the classroom. It allows a visual representation for what we try to convey through text in our classrooms, making history come to life.

here is my PowToon link: https://www.powtoon.com/show/eJFJexO1bRz/televison/#/

Reflection On Influential Technologies

The influence technology has had, and continues to have, in our lives and the world around us is unmeasurable. For many of us, not a single day goes by that we do not have involvement with some type of technological medium. Whether it be a computer, a cell phone, a camera, or the security check points at the airport, technological advancements are everywhere and prominent in our lives. Those of us who are fortunate enough to obtain one, or more, of the various technological devices that are available today will probably agree that there are some devices that have such an influence on our daily lives that it would be hard to go a day without them. For me, there are three such devices that influence my daily life:

The first and most used device is my iPhone. In the video "Learning to Change, Changing to Learn: Students Voices" the students discuss how technology allows them easy and unlimited access to information and answers through search engines - like Google - and as a way to stay connected to social media, using it as a medium to stay updated on current 'trends' of the day. My iPhone is capable of fulfilling everything they described. It is like carrying around my own mini-computer. I am able to access emails, communicate with friends and family, and waist time reading the gossip that occurs on social media. It allows for me to stay up to date on my networking and academic career. With the help of various apps or just a strong Wifi signal and the web, we are able to do just about anything a computer can without the hassle of lugging one around.  It helps me stay organized, takes and holds pictures as keepsakes, and acts as my alarm so I wake up on time everyday. The phone helps me stay up to date with current events and makes it easy for me to find information that I may need. For example, I can use my New York Times app to read up on current news topics or political discussions at the click of a button. No need to carry around a newspaper anymore. 

The second most influential device in my life is my MacBook. Without my laptop I am not sure I would be able survive, sad but true. I can create and design my own documents, presentations, and projects quickly and easily. What I love most about my laptop is how conveinent it is. It is light, durable, and has a big enough screen so I am not straining my eyes like I do on my iPhone. I use it to complete school assignments, communicate with family across seas with the use of Skype, and even hold/create lesson plans that I have completed thus far, to one day implement in my own classroom. As stated in the video, technology also allows us the opportunity to express ourselves in various forums. My laptop allows me to do just that. Whether it is creating a blog for the first time or designing a power point presentation for a child I tutor, my MacBook provides endless opportunities to complete tasks and express myself. It also allows me to connect and share information with classmates and family members so I can stay in touch and up to date with what is happening in their lives and around the world, with the use of the internet. 

The third most influential device in my life, currently, is my navigation system. Moving away to school has been a challenge for me because of the amount of traveling I do. Wether I am visiting family, friends, traveling to work, or just trying to get to the mall, I hop in my car and plug the address into the navigation system. When I was home I knew the routes and backroads to most places I traveled to, being out here in Montclair it has become quite the challenge so my navigation system is essential for me. Navigations allow us to travel to where ever we want to go. I could never imagine trying to use a map to find my way through a road trip, the navigation system makes it so much easier. The navigation system has taken away traveling restrictions that I once had, I now have the opportunity to explore and discover fascinating places and amazing landmarks all over the U.S. I think this is one piece of technology that the young kids in the video may not be able to relate to as much because of the age difference. However, if they one day have the opportunity to travel, wether for business or pleasure, I am sure they will be grateful for this device. This freedom to travel allows us to explore and discover new things and also allow us to experience the diversity of America from city to city or state to state. Traveling is an amazing experience. 

Technology today allows for endless possibilities to learn and explore the world around us. As future educators we can take advantage of these tools and use them to learn about our students and the things that interest them and bring that into our classrooms. It allows us to throw away strategies that are static and dull and instead utilize innovative and exciting strategies into our classrooms to engage our students. So whether it be communicating through our phones, creating presentations on our laptops, or using the navigation to explore the world around us, technology holds tremendous influence in the ways in which we learn as individuals and as future educators. 

Pew Survey Results: Teachers' Technology Use

"How teacher are using technology at home and in their classrooms," was very interesting to read and gave valuable insight on how technologically involved society has become. After reading the article I thought of a quote from John Dewey that perfectly describes how I feel about the importance of staying up to date with advancements in technology and how important it is for our future students: "If we teach today as we taught yesterday, we rob our children of tomorrow." So, if we are in a generation where technology is all around us and can be used to connect with and educate our students better, then as educators we must do that! Technology provides teachers with the unlimited access to valuable resources and tools to better ourselves and differentiate our lessons so that we can better educate our students. I was not surprised to read that 80-84% of AP and NWP teachers use various digital tools, on a weekly basis, for class preparation and professional networking. From networking to lesson planning, the internet provides teachers with connections and suggestions to grow as educators and teach in ways that students will respond! One report stated that 41% of AP and NWP teachers say technology has had a "major impact" on them by requiring more work on their part to be an effective teacher. This figure was rather shocking to me because I feel that technology has helped make teaching more manageable then ever. Online there are countless teaching organizations and websites that offer assistance and ideas to bring into the classroom that can be accessed right at your finger tips. I can understand how maybe it has changed the way teaching is done within the classrooms but teaching itself has always been a career that requires a lot of work and planning, and I feel that technology has only helped teachers keep up with the demands of our field. Overall, the article has shown that we all need to continue to better our technological skills, stay up to date with the latest advancements, and learn the best ways to utilize the resources we have so we can be the best teacher we can be - and that is what our students deserve.