21st Century....Are You Ready??

When I think about how I feel about the 21st century as an educator, I feel a little overwhelmed.  There is so much new stuff that needs to be incorporated into the classroom how will I ever have the time to learn about it and then use it?? AAAHH!!!!  Being that I come a "technology" generation, I do feel capable of learning about new technology and feel that I will function well.  I have no problem working with the "newer" pieces of technology such as smartphones and ipods, I find myself struggling with "older" things like using excel to make a spreadsheet and making the cute little powerpoints.  Sure, I can make a powerpoint but I can't make it do all of the fun stuff and add in all of the little pictures.

When I think about how well my students are prepared for the 21st century, I feel like they will fare pretty well.  They are exposed to so much by way of video games, the internet, and the different things that we use in our classroom.  But yet there is so much more.  I think in the grand scheme of things, they will be okay but along with that , we could take them so much farther if only teachers would not be so hesitant when it comes to something new.  Trust me, this is something that I work on myself.

I think that one of my strengths for the 21st century are the fact that I have been raised in such a technology forward generation where I am exposed to technology in just about everything that I do.  Another strength is that I am a fast learner so when I am introduced to something new, I can get the hang of it pretty quickly, especially if I am given time to "play".  One challenge that I face when it comes to my classroom is that I do not have access to A LOT of technology.  Sure, we have computers, projectors, clickers, mobi's, and an ipod touch lab but there is more out there!   

Technology.....

When it comes to the use of technology in my classroom, I know that I have some work to do.  There are many things that I could be using but I am not.  I have access to mobi's and clicker's but I have never used them before.  I have access to an ipod touch lab but have only used it one time last school year.  I have however used my overhead projector to show movies, virtual field trips, and websites to my students many times.  I also have a point-2-view camera that connects to my computer that I can use to display worksheets or student work through my overhead projector.
The barriers that I feel I am facing are in the form of education for myself.  I do not use many of the pieces of technology that I have access to because I do not know how to use them or I do not know how to integrate them into a lesson.  I feel that if I was educated more about the various pieces of technology, I would be more willing to use them on a regular basis. 
I definitely think "fear not" could apply to me.  "Fear not" is the approach that I need to take when it comes to using technology in my classroom.  We most often learn from our mistakes but you have to be willing to make the mistake if you want to take away any learning from it. 
My goal for this technology class is to learn how to use different pieces of technology and how to use other items in a different or better way.  I am sure that are many other things that I could be doing with the things that I do use, I just do not know how.  My other goal is to become less fearful and to step out of my comfort zone when it comes to new pieces of technology.