Blog Post Sixteen

Well, I guess it is true when they say the time flies when you are having fun! I cannot believe this is my final post for EDM310, but yet, I am so happy to be taking so much with me from this one class. I have learned so many things that have completely changed how I think about educating. I am very surprised going back and reading my first post, because I would not change much to it. Although this might seem like EDM310 did not change how I thought, it is quite the opposite. After watching Sugata Mitra’s “School in the Cloud” and reading Krissy Vendosdale’s blog, I was already thinking in a way that I have never been shown before in my life. By this first blog post, I was already thinking a whole new way of educating. I have always been taught in schools from a white board in a standard lecture setting, and as a future educator, I saw nothing wrong with this before EDM310. I know now that I would NEVER teach my students in this setting. Because of EDM310, I now want to change my future math classroom from what is typically expected in one. I want an energetic math learning experience for my children! I want to use project based learning and use what they learn to apply it to real life situations.

If I had to change things about my first blog post, I would add more project based learning and technology. Originally, when I started this class, I was an elementary education major, but EDM310 actually helped me realize that in order to help my students be the best learners they could be, I have to be the best teacher I can be. EDM310 has inspired me to become a wonderful math teacher and help children not to only learn what we are doing in math, but to maybe even enjoy math. So, as a future math teacher and not elementary, I would take out much of the art use as a tool in my classroom, and add technology instead. Throughout this course, I have seen the role technology plays in the classroom, and I think this would be essential for mine. Through my C4T’s and extending my PLN, I have found many math resources that I would have never been able to find before such as the math PBL resources I found in Michael Gorman's Blog. I also would add the Smart Board to my future classroom. Before my assignments in EDM310, I have not had much experience with smart boards, and now, I realize how useful they are. In my first blog post, I said “As Mitra, I would like my students to be the facilitators of their learning. They should be able excel beyond a curriculum, and take on the roles of researchers in order to continue interest in commonly “boring” subjects.” I think this is actually ironic, since I am becoming a math teacher now. If I had to rewrite my first post, most of what I said would stay. I still want my students to be active, confident learners, and I no longer want to play the strong head role as the traditional teacher. As a 21st century teacher, I want to be innovative, electric, and always a lifelong learner.