To be honest, my first experience with computer technology was extremely horrible. My pre-kindergarten classroom was equipped with some of the first classroom computers. These computers weren't very complex- they had a screen, a power button, and three choice buttons (A, B, and C). They were pretty much a computerized example of a multiple choice exam; the computer would show you a question concerning a picture, pattern, or word and you would have to press the button representing the choice with the correct answer. I used this computer maybe once or twice with the help of my teachers with no problems. However, this soon came to an abrupt end when I observed two of my classmates using the computer to do their work. It was the end of the school day and everybody was already lined up and some were even boarding the bus, but these two students were not because they had not finished their work yet. In reality, these two students were probably getting picked up by their parents and just playing on the computers while waiting, but I thought that they missed the bus because of the computers and were now stuck at school. I conceived an absurd conclusion that if you used the computers you would not be allowed to go home, therefore developing an extreme paranoia and refusing to touch any of the computers for the remainder of the pre-k year.
My kindergarten year the school supplied the classroom with eight new computers. These were extremely similar to the computers we have now, other than the fact that there was no access to the Internet. After many bribes from my mother, including a Lion King poster (it was my favorite movie at the time), I finally began using the computers again. We mainly played pattern games using a variety of shapes to make up a picture or practiced our typing with the "Touch Typing" program. We continued using the "Touch Typing" program to enhance our typing skills throughout first and second grade. Teachers insisted on our fingers always being on the "home-row keys" and some students even received detention when they were caught 'pecking' instead of using the "home-row keys" technique. From third to sixth grade we had 'lab time', in which the entire class went to the lab and played educational games (Carmen Sandiago was extremely popular) or worked on creative stories using word processing. I was not a part of bilingual class, but those that were used the Rosetta Stone program as well. On a personal note, sixth grade brought with it our first home computer that could access the Internet, introducing a world of online gaming, e-mails, downloadable music, and chatrooms.
In seventh grade we moved from the elementary school to the middle/high school. The middle school wing had their own computer lab, which was used for the same things as before along with the new addition of the Internet. Now we were able to research and play games on the Internet, along with using a translation program for our french class. There was also a mandatory year-long class that taught us how to create professional letters and business documents, along with more practice with typing accuracy and speed. That year a member of my class broke the school record with a typing speed of 108 words per minute, a characteristic of the new 'chatroom' generation. Eighth grade was the biggest turn around- all of the seventh graders got their own laptops through the Laptop Initiative Program. Although my grade did not receive laptops at first, we began to experience changes in our classrooms. Teachers went from using overhead projectors to PowerPoint Presentations and Internet projects were assigned on a regular basis. The emphasis on how to correctly use a computer and how to type correctly was finally gone. The teachers were now finally emphasizing what we could learn by using the applications on the computer/Internet and incorporating that in their lesson plans.
Ninth grade brought laptops for the entire high school and middle school. We were one of the first schools in the state to have laptops for all students in grades 6-12. An entire day was designated for the high school students to learn how to use the laptops with the help of technicians from the Apple company. The atmosphere of the entire school changed. Now not only the teachers were using PowerPoint, but students were expected to for projects as well. Every piece of writing in English classes had to be typed and research projects with at least three Internet resources was always expected. Pamphlets were created as a part of projects, usually to supplement a written report using our creative side. Technology was also introduced to the music room as well, with an electronic gadget to tune the instruments. Teachers began to experiment with different web programs, including my eleventh-grade Advanced Math teacher who showed us how to use 'SecondLife', an online community. In SecondLife we could create our own buildings, furniture and even clothing using geometric figures and formulas. Our junior year also brought a new online SAT training program along with a portfolio project that we could use during college interviews. The most important and influential technological addition during my high school career was the SmartBoard. The SmartBoard is in its essence an interactive marker board. The SmartBoard is connected to a laptop and a projector machine projects whatever is on the laptop screen onto the SmartBoard. Whatever a student 'writes' on the SmartBoard using a fake marker is digitally added to the laptop. You can also play interactive games using the SmartBoard and instead of using a mouse to click or move the cursor, you can use your fingertips! The SmartBoard is especially useful when it comes to uploading whatever you do in class with your students. My physics/chemistry teacher used the SmartBoard to go over homework problems and each student would be able to go up and demonstrate on the SmartBoard how to do a specific problem. Afterwards the teacher would upload it to her class website and then when we studied for the test we could download all of the homework problems that we had done step-by-step in class.
I think that my experiences in elementary and high school are going to help me immensely when I begin teaching and trying to integrate technology into the classroom. I can use everything that I've learned from my teachers with my own students. I've had the most practice with PowerPoint and those skills can come in handy for lesson plans, lecturing and for interactive projects. I think the most important thing that I've learned is that technology can be integrated into ANY subject, you just have to search around and try. In college classes I've learned the importance of a 'hook' to catch your students interest at the beginning of a lesson, and what better way to hook your students then by using a video on YouTube or an interactive application. You also need to keep your students interest in mind and try not to get into a habit using only one program (PowerPoints are great, just not over and over again!). I love to make learning fun and integrating technology definitely helps to achieve that, so it is something that I'm excited to learn more about!
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