Blog Post #5

Hey, everybody! Happy October! Don't forget to put out your fall decor because fall is definitely in full swing. I have been loving the weather so much here in Tallahassee. It's a new month, so use it as a chance for new beginnings and a fresh start! I hope you don't get tired of hearing this, but I think sometimes we all need this reminder: I hope you are having a great week, and if you are not, you know it is not too late to change it!!! ☺

Early Experiences Using Twitter

    I joined Twitter in November 2018, so I have almost been using this app for 2 years. I know that is far less time than the majority of my peers, but for some reason I could never get into Twitter. Recently though, I have been growing to like it. I normally react with a few of my family members, as well as a few friends. I normally just retweet things that I agree with or feel is relevant to my own life. Also, I will use Twitter to keep up with certain TV shows that come on that I like to watch. I like to read tweets about what other people thought about the new episode. In my future career, I can see Twitter being beneficial for me in a more professional way. I think I will use Twitter to keep up with different education pages that I have been introduced to in this class. In addition, I imagine that I will use Twitter to get new and effective ideas that other teachers have found to be beneficial to their students to implement in my classroom. I am eager to see how this form of social media will benefit me in my career. 

Digital Divide

    A digital divide occurs when teachers and students have a different skill set when it comes to technology. This can affect student's success in school because when a teacher does not know how to use technology, much of the class time can be spent on trying to figure out the technology rather than learning course material. Furthermore, technology can be very beneficial, but if a digital divide occurs, the students may not be using the technology to its fullest potential, which may cause them to miss out on the benefits of that certain technology. A digital divide can be caused because of lack of teacher training with that technology or just a pure lack of familiarity on the part of the teacher. I think the majority of digital divides occur with older teachers and younger students. I don't anticipate experiencing a digital divide in my classroom because I (and the the rest of my generation) am so proficient in technology that I think I will be able to adapt and learn any kind of new technology that is presented to me. Even though I do not anticipate a digital divide, I will do everything I can, such as participate in trainings and stay up to date with current technology, so that a digital divide will not occur.

Academic Software for Students

    Two programs I would like to implement in my future classroom include Microsoft Word and Microsoft PowerPoint. Regardless of the age of the students that I end up teaching, I want to implement these two programs because the use of these programs will only increase as they go through their schooling, so I want them to have a firm foundation. I think every type of student can benefit from these programs. For Microsoft Word, the students can practice writing papers, newsletters, infographics, and even pamphlets. For Microsoft PowerPoint, the students can practice creating a visual representation of the message they want to send. I think this will also create better communication skills within the students because they will have multiple ways of getting their message out to different groups of individuals. 

Thanks for reading this far! I am wishing you wonderful start to this new month of October. Talk to you next week. 

-Hannah