Reflection

= Congratulations! =

You have finished the 23 Things!

For some of you this was a real eye-opener to the programs and features you can use on the Internet. Others may have already learned about some of these features in recent classes that centered around integrating computers into the classroom, but I hope that all of you were able to come across a few, new things you might not have known much about before this undertaking.

No matter what level of computer expertise you may have been at when you began, you have accomplished quite a feat by participating in the 23 Things and deserve a round of applause.

What you do from here is up to you. You have now viewed a very small sample of interactive features offered online. See if there are ways you can integrate these features into your teaching even simply by guiding students to sites they can explore in their own time.

What have we learned?

 * **Time:** It may take time to grow accustomed to new features, but once you get comfortable with it the technologies can actually save you time in the long run. Think about how long it may have taken you to register an account, create the style or template, and continue to change and add the initial information into the program. Now think about when you went back into an account or program. After you did the initial setting up it was often just a matter of point-click-type, and you had your end product. Just look at the blogs you created. Most of the time it took was in the initial set up. After that adding a new entry took less and less time, if you knew what you wanted to say. The same goes for the other features. Once it's created the content is much easier, and quicker, to manage.


 * **Need:** Our students' needs are constantly changing, and we must continue to reflect those new needs in our teaching. When students enter the workforce or higher education environments there are now digital literacy expectations of them. There is little assistance for the beginner computer user when they enter college and the workforce, so it becomes much more important that we understand these expectations. When we pay attention to the barriers our students may face when leaving us it becomes clear that the idea of literacy has transformed in the 21st century. Now on top of reading, writing, math, social studies, and science our students are expected to possess digital and information literacies. Even though these have been student needs for the past decade and beyond they are only beginning to be weaved into the curriculum. This means that much of technology's integration into the classroom depends entirely on whether a teacher chooses to do so. I am so proud to be a part of such a willing staff of teachers who have participated in this program to do just that.


 * **Fun:** Last, but certainly not least, is the fun aspect. I hope that you found a few sites and features you found fun and useful. This does not mean everything needs to be incorporated into the classroom. Communities are developed for people of all interests so they can share, create and enjoy. There is online scrapbooking, recipe swapping, book clubs, automobile repair, gaming (I learned Yahtzee this year online!), movies, dining reviews...the list goes on...and on...and on... As you become familiar and enjoy these new possibilities it becomes easier to understand where the new millenials are coming from. Just remember to take the pressure off yourself a little and have some fun with it.

Ultimately, I hope your experience was beneficial to you. We are progressing into a digital age, and now you have a good taste of some of the new technologies out there. Your final reflection in you blog should be titled 'Final Reflection.' Then just pull together your thoughts on 21st Century Skills before you began the program, and your future outlook of these technologies. I have included a few articles below that I feel tie together new technologies, 21st century skills, and looking to the future. Feel free to read other people's thoughts on these topics.

Click Here to read the article "43 Things I Might Want to Do This Year" by Stephen Abram. Get some ideas for what other technologies you might want to explore, and make your own list of things you'd like to accomplish at 43 Things.

Click Here to check out the website "What is 21st Century Education." Here you will find examples of 21st century teaching and classrooms. From this site is an article titled, "A Day in the Life of a Future Teacher."

// Thank you for your participation. //