Final Reflection

        Technologies have been essential in the progress of mankind.  They have shape how we do things.  From the invention of the wheel to the invention of the internet, humans have found ways to create thing that facilitate their lives.  It is that the definition of technology according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary (2013), “the use of science in industry, engineering, etc., to invent things or to solve problems.”  I firmly believe that technologies are here to make our live easier, that is why it is so difficult for me to understand why some people are against the use of modern technologies in the classroom.  If modern technologies are used to solve problems in many areas of our daily lives why can we not use these same technologies to improve the education our children receive?

            Earlier in the semester I defined literacy as having the skills to, look at and understand the meaning of letters, words, symbols, and forming characters or symbols on a surface with an instrument.  Therefore, we have seem a transformation in what it means to be literate, from writing and reading symbols in the walls of caves, to writing and reading The Great Gatsby, to writing and reading text messages. Our concept of literacy has change throughout time, partly due to the changes in technology.  It was in this course that I was able to put the two together. I was able to reach the conclusion that just as technologies change, so do literacy, and therefore as an educator I have to keep up with technological advancements in order to be an effective teacher.

Understanding the needs of our students is essential in order to meet them.  As an educator I think we have come a long way in terms of developing methods of integration of technology in the classroom. At the same time I still believe we have a long way to go before we have integrated our classroom fully into the technology our students need to be successful in our modern world.  It is indispensable that we provide students with appropriate tools, not only physical but also mental, in order for them to be successful.  It is a most, for our students to be transliterate.  They must be able to navigate across platforms in order to prosper in our fast changing world. Our classrooms need to change in order for this to happen.  Our classrooms need to stop being one dimensional and become multi-dimensional.  It will be my pleasure to be part of that change, one that I understand someday might be obsolete, but it is vital today.