Educational Technology Philosophy
My educational technology philosophy is based heavily on the idea of adaptation in the learning process. The constructivism learning theory will allow children to develop the skills and confidence to analyze the world around them, create or support solutions to everyday issues, and then justify their words and actions. I would like to encourage students in the learning process while respecting the differences in opinions for the contributions that they can make to the classroom. Constructivist learning requires students to use their prior knowledge and experiences to formulate new concepts in learning. I believe that this can be achieved through the integration of technology. Utilizing technology when teaching with a constructivist perspective, I should choose technologies that reinforce prior learning perhaps in a problem-solving environment.
Education is about looking beyond the child’s intellect, and seeing the whole child. Teaching, to me, is about providing students with opportunities to be challenged and still succeed. Technology has altered the way teachers and students communicate amongst themselves. Every child has the potential to attain greatness. The job of an educator is to harness a child’s abilities and set them free with the confidence and the necessary tools to succeed. As I continue to study the field of technology, the definition of Instructional design and technology changes as I investigate different medians used in this field. To me the challenge is not what the definition is, but how and which area of technology to use with the individual learner. I do not want to get stuck in one use of technology and miss out on others that will engage a learner to understanding.
I believe that learning is making sense of the things we see and do every day. I believe students learn best when they connect what they learn to the environment in which they live. The way students understand the things they hear and read has a lot to do with the way they learn. They need to be able to explain things they have learned, not just memorize them. This demonstrates that students can build a connection between what they see, feel, touch, and hear every day. When this mission is accomplished in my classroom, my vision of educational technology will be complete.
