Three Instructional Technologies

Go!Animate
Glogster
Quizstar

·          For each tool, how will you integrate this tool into your future classroom/profession? (if you have already responded to this question at another location (e.g. on your personal wiki before/after demonstration that of your proficiency with that tool)

I chose Glogster as one of my three technologies because it will provide my classroom with great visuals. Students will also be able to use it and they can express how creative they are. Quizstar is a good technology to incorporate into my future classroom because it will give an alternative way of test-taking. Students may get bored after having only paper based tests so giving a test online is a good way to change it. I also picked Go!Animate as one of my technologies. I feel it will be entertaining for the students and they will be able to focus better by seeing the different animations.

·         What tools did you use? Did you like using these tools? Were they easy to use?

I used the tools, Glogster, quizstar and Go!Animate. I really liked using glogster and quizstar. I thought they were both easy to use. I was able to complete those projects very quickly. However, I did not enjoy using Go!Animate. It was very difficult to use. I thought it was good that they provided a tutorial video, however it did not help fully. Some of the tools would not work properly and it was slowing my computer down. Many times my computer would freeze due to it. It took me awhile to get a handle of it. I ended up having to redo my video a couple times until I was happy with the final product. It 

·         Would you use them in your future classroom? Please explain.

I would use glogster in my future classroom because it provides the students with good visuals. I was able to add as many pictures as possible to my product. I also like that you can add videos and other sounds to it. I could see myself using this in the future. I also would use quizstar in the future. I think it will be easy for both the students and I to use. I think the format of a quiz online will be a good change for the students, rather than a paper quiz. In addition, it is beneficial for the teacher because I would not have to go through and individually grade each quiz, it will do it automatically. I find this program to be very useful in the future. I would not use Go!Animate in the future. It was very time consuming trying to make the video. It took me over an hour to finish my video, and it was only 20 seconds long. I think students would like watching the video, but there is a lot of time that has to be put into making it. 

·         What did you find most difficult about this assignment and how did you overcome that challenge?

I found it difficult to have to teach myself the new tools. At first they were very challenging because I had no idea how to even start. But I overcame this issue by just working through each tool slowly and efficiently. Then eventually I was able to get the hang of it and found them enjoyable to work with. It was also difficult keeping track of all of the usernames and passwords. On each of the tools I had to make new usernames and I kept getting them all mixed up. But to overcome this issue, I just simply wrote down the usernames and passwords.

·         How did this assignment contribute OR not contribute to your understanding of integrating technology into the education process? 

I believe this assignment did contribute to my understanding of integrating technology into the education process. I think having technology will be useful in my future classroom because it tends to be more efficient. However, I know that I cannot rely completely on technology in case it does fail me. I have to make sure I have backups of all the student's assignments and grades. Also, not all students will have access to certain technologies such as computers and I need to make sure I remember that and not rely completely on technology.