Hey everyone,

This past 3 months plus, has been very eventful for me, thank you Dr. Katia, and to all of you for all the learnings. As I conclude my educational technology course, I reflect on how much I have learnt about integrating technology into teaching and learning. This course has equipped me with practical skills and stragies, from using various digital tools, to embracing inclusive learning environments. I’ve gained insights into fostering student engagement while ensuring that all learners have equal opportunities to succeed and I am excited to apply these concepts in my future teaching practices.

Please watch my summary video below to see the highlights of my learning journey.

https://app.clipchamp.com/editor/7a9ec7d1-e71e-4032-a18e-66fea553fbd0

(December 2^nd, 2024’s Blog)

The growth of technology influences people to do more. As an educator, I am always curious with the use of technology in education especially in my teaching areas. I am a person that always want to try new things. The presence of AI honestly makes me think that humans have another competitor. The key is to keep on learning so that we are updated with the current information technology. As an educator, I always ask how technology could bring positive impacts on my teaching activities as well as the learning process for my students. I rarely use direct AI in my teaching activities, but I can feel how this AI brings fast and quick information. The accuracy of AI in providing information should be doubted as I have found some of the information was not truly true based on the facts. The point is I always need to recheck everything, especially in preparing my teaching materials.

I think that AI also brings positive impacts to human lives. In terms of education, both teachers and students have the same right to access AI. I always want my students to know that they have to know about AI, but when they mistakenly use AI for something that is not necessary like making their assignments with the help of AI. Copying and pasting all the information from AI without paraphrasing their ideas and without the students’ effort in contributing to the assignments. These actions that go wrong and should not be followed.

The future of AI will be seriously developed, and many institutions will adopt the use of AI in their business and activities. People cannot avoid AI in their lives, but people can adapt themselves properly and wisely use AI in their daily life.

(November 25^th, 2024’s Blog)

Technology has brought many significant changes to people’s lives. As we have talked and discussed the fast shift of technology is like a blink of an eye, and the presence of more focus categories are STEM, coding, and Maker’s spaces. Based on the overview of the STEM article, STEM (Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) knowledge is being looked up by many students nowadays. STEM focuses on the growth of data, numbers, as well as concepts. Many students are very interested with STEM, coding, and maker’s spaces because they can make their imaginations and creativity without limits. Some students like to play games. The use of coding and science can innovate the games according to the owner’s way. Some students like to build buildings, landscapes, and houses. The use of maker’s spaces can help them in making their art into a 3D reality.

The values of STEM, coding, and maker’s spaces influence students that there are still various of knowledge and areas that they can explore. In creating and innovating things need the process of collecting data, numbers, and mathematics. Everything is possible when they are not afraid to dream about their ideas and imaginations. I can say that this specific knowledge about STEM can only bring advantages to certain students who have passions in numbers, engineering, and Science. I have taught many students, and I know each one of them has a different passion that they want to achieve. Some like to create food, art, and even teachers. So I can say that only certain students who have interests in Science and Mathematics will likely continue their journey in coding and maker’s spaces paths. I am a person who does not like numbers since I was small. I like to share my hobbies and interests related to art, sports, and languages. My parents did not force me to like Science and mathematics, but they let me focus in the arts. Coding and maker space should be taught by experts in the field. Knowing the details and difficulties of these lessons, certified trainers and teachers are needed to teach these subjects to students.

In the course of this EC&I 833, I had a great professional development especially on the role of technology in teaching and learning. However, various productivity tools like Canava, Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, Teams many more tools helped us to foster collaboration and adaptability. These changes have enriched my worldview of the relationship between education and technology, particularly stressing the significance of providing meaningful, accessible, and flexible learning experiences. In my reflections of using new technology in my classroom, I have realized that change is not just about embracing technology as it is about transforming the teaching and learning environment, assessment, and encouraging learning support for students’ individual differences. It has also made us to assess whether we are practicing what we are teaching and how we can transform our practices in order to address the latest trends in education that is in practice. It emphasized the creation of critical competencies for learning including creativity, collaboration, and adaptability, while at the same time considering issues to do with equity and participation. The blog discussion work helped me to learn how to embrace the contexts of creativity while ensuring every learner gets a chance for success in this complex world. Considering my learnings throughout the course, I can be with the belief that am prepared to teaching and in return develop learn humans with meaningful teaching practices, in a holistic lifelong learning approach with consideration to diversity.

I want to express my appreciation to everyone who helped make this course’s journey throughout the course so engaging and interesting. A special thanks to Professor Katia for sharing such insightful knowledge and experience about the effective use of technology in teaching and learning that would be helpful for me to enhance my teachings skills.

I have attatched my you tube video link here, that reflects my incredible learning journey during this course.

Summary of Learning Experience EC&I833 Foundation of educational technology

(November 18^th, 2024’s Blog)

One of the short and long term goals of education is to creat equity among all students from different backgrounds. All people have the same right to access education despite of their backgrounds, ethnicity, and beliefs.  The presence of assistive technologies as the bridge to accommodate and support people in terms of accessing information. From the key benefits of assistive technology article, we can see how our brothers and sisters face many challenges in accessing information physically and mentally. The hope and the goal of assistive technologies will bring easier access for them in their daily activities. People with disabilities tend to fall in category where they need assistive technologies the most. Let us say people with wheelchairs. Wheelchairs itself is an assistive technologies created by people to support disabilities people in their daily activities. The goals is to make these disabilities people to be more independent and live their lives to the fullest. With the help of assistive technology tools, they can access information and improve their communication. The examples of assistive technologies are divided into two categories. Hardware and software. The hardware assistive technologies can be like wheelchairs, standers, neck supports and etc. The software accessing technologies can be in the form of applications or websites where it provides information that are designed for disabilities-friendly access. We can see like magnifiers become the assistive technology tool that help people with low vision.

From the perspective of educators, assistive technology brings fresh air in education. We know that students are unique as well as special. Assistive technologies support those students tat are in need in order for them to have and experience the best learning. I could say that glasses become the relevant and common assistive technology tool that people are using it. From the perspective of the teacher article, assistive technology brings a dilemma. Teachers have more tasks in helping the students with the help of assistive technologies. Some teachers are very busy with their tasks and administrative tasks that need to be completed. Learning and gaining more knowledge and training in assistive technology becomes an impossible goal for them to do.

One of my personal experiences with assistive technology was when I taught my students a few years ago. This student had low vision, so I needed to put him in the front-row seats. I was so grateful that my classroom had a projector so that I could zoom in and zoom out my presentation easily. I think this was a great innovation and assistive technology that brings positive impacts to the users. There are some challenges and limitations. Spending more time to prepare the tools as well as it requires great understanding from the other people to be patient.

(November 4^th’s Blog)

We have been discussing technology and its relation to pedagogy and education. As I mentioned earlier technology can bring good impacts when it applies to the education areas. There are many findings and research about the impacts of technology to students in education. As an educator, I know how technology bring good impacts to students especially when I create learning activities with technology. Students are very happy and their understandings can be seen from their curiosities and motivation in learning. When it comes to assessing students’ understandings, I personally do not like to assessing students by the standardized scores and rubrics criteria, because I believe that each student is very special and unique. When few students did not pass the lesson assessments, it did not mean they do not understand. It could mean they have different understandings. Working in educational institutions means following the rules and the regulations. I have no choice but to follow the regulations. I always make lesson assessments with the use of technology and I put the fun and interesting aspects in the assessment so that students would not be pressured in doing the assessment. I taught lower level students and interesting assessments become unwritten rules that need to be followed. From the technology in education article, we can highlight how education and technology should bring impacts to students all over the world. With the complexity of the world’s growth, it is almost imposible to rely only on education to educate students. With the help of technology it will create efficiency in many aspects in education. We can take a look with the distance and only education. This is a good example of education that can be access outside the classrooms. Some rural areas where they most likely do not have access to the city, but through technology they can have access education from their current places. Another challenges appear as the internet as the technology that connects people. Good technology tools bring no impacts when it can not be used properly. There are many divisions that need to contribute for the success of achieving the education goals in terms of efficiency.

From the assessment technologies presentation group, Nysa pointed out the important journey and history of assessment. Assessments are not just only to assess students’ understanding, but there are deeper meanings and concepts of why it is created. Nysa highlighted of all the assessment technologies, there were education philosophies behind them. Assessments are not only about paper test and let students to fill them so that the teacher can give scores. Assessment and assessment technologies can be in many forms. Behaviorism becomes the base for any assessments like gamification, instant feedback and external simulations. I like to interact with my students while I am delivering the lessons to them. I usually test their understandings to see whether they are still with me or busy with their worlds. Giving small games and activities just to put some refreshments. I also like to divide my students within groups and I create a small competition so that they can compete within groups by answering some of the questions and discussions from me. Leveling games work on my students so far. It motivates them to learn and focus. These assessments have something to do with cognitivism. Another education philosophy is constructivism. This is very interesting for me and I also apply this philosophy in my teaching activities. I like my students when they can discuss with their group members especially to solve problems. It automatically stimulates their critical thinking skills.

Assessment technologies bring positive impacts. Many people ask how it can contribute positively to students. Good assessment must be in line and prepared carefully by the educators. In assessing students, making sure the assessment materials and lessons should have been received or learned or brainstormed by the students before assessing them. The use of technology in assessment will bring variations and colors in the assessment itself. Levelling questions in assessment is also important. Students usually face easiest questions then followed by the challenging questions and tasks. From the article of facts about assessment tools, we can conclude how technology brings efficiency in many aspects. As educator, I can feel how technology helps in my tasks especially in assessing students. I usually create assessment through google forms. I also use the Google classrooms as well in maintaining my students about their assignments. I relatively spent lesser time in correcting as well as giving feedbacks. Since it is online, I can put the marks online for each students and do not need to mark it physically one by one.  

The Evolution of Web Technology and AI in Education

This PowerPoint presentation gives insight into my perceptual changes, personal experiences, and the benefits of using three tools we explored in class throughout the course. The presentations’ contents were beyond enlightening and I appreciated the information shared by all. I have seen tremendous growth in my approach towards integrating and embracing technological tools.