End of Course Reflection

    As I look back on this course I feel fortunate for the opportunities and technologies I was able to discover in the past seven weeks.  Most importantly, I was able to collaborate with other professionals who are excited about technology, willing to share their ideas, and interested trying new technology.  I appreciate the fact that during the span of this course we were actually able to utilize blogs, wikis, and podcasts in a more "trial and error" way than simply reading about them in a chapter of a text book. 

At the beginning of the course I rated myself low on utlizing collaboriate of students working towards a common goal.  Sometimes in kindergarten we shy away from these activities because it gives too much freedom to students who are still learning rules and procedures.  This course has reminded me of the importance and even shed new light on the idea of 21st century skills being more than simply utilizing technology, but collaboration, problem solving, communication, and technology.  I feel that I have always realized the teacher should be facilitator and not the dictator in the classroom.  It is easy to get sidetracked though and this course was a great reminder in the importance of looking at myself as a facilitator. 

I have been able to share my blog with others along with updating my blog with information geared towards the ipad I now have in my room.  I am working towards recieving more ipads through a grant and district support and the research from this class has helped me make my case to the administration.  This course came at a perfect time of the school year as I've been able to test out many of my new skills.  For the future I have specific goals that I am striving towards.  I plan to utilize more collaboration in my classroom based on creating a project and communicating thtat out to others.  Another goal I have for myself is to maintain my blog and continue to update on the trials and successes of the ipads in my classroom.  I feel that my blog will be the perfect way to reach out to other professionals but also to inform my colleagues and head discussions of effectiveness.