Blog #5

     My early experience with Instagram started around 7^th grade. At the time, I had a couple of my friends help me start an account and find people to follow. I first found it very complicated and didn’t really understand the purpose of Instagram other than to see what my friends were up to. After some time, however, I began finding family members I didn’t regularly talk to and thought it was nice to get updates on their families and careers. I also began following media outlets for local, state, and federal news as well as to stay informed on new findings and discoveries. From here, I also started looking for more funny pages that could keep me entertained while on the app. I followed pages with funny video reels, and pages about funny dogs, and from there created a more personalized experience. Now, my Instagram is a mix of friends, family, and coworkers, memes, funny videos, and current news. For my future career, I would be able to use Instagram to find relevant trends and other current news that may apply to my students. Instagram may help me stay modern which would also allow me to understand my students. Additionally, I can also use it to stay connected with coworkers and find useful teaching techniques that I may apply to the classroom learning environment.

    Digital Divide is definitely a big factor to consider and be aware of as a teacher. Some students will have more readily access to technologies, and some other students may not. It is important to evaluate your students and take into consideration who may have access and who may not, and plan assignments around this. Digital Divide affects students school success in many ways. Being a student myself, I could not have imagined what schooling would have looked like after elementary school without a computer. For a lot of my assignments and homework, I would always have to open my computer and use a platform that I was familiar with. However, some students who do not have this access may see disparities in their education. For example, a student who was brought up only completing textbooks and paper homework, may have a hard time transitioning to technology in the work force or in higher education. They may not feel as confident using a computer or navigating through certain platforms in comparison to their counter peers and may need additional training. In addition to this, some students don’t have easy access to google, and to search up informative articles and materials that may help aid with their studies. This also leaves a gap in education, as they are not getting the same access to information and tools as some other students. Digital divide happens for students usually of low SES, or students who live in rural areas with limited signal and Wi-Fi. In the classroom, I may experience students who are affected by the digital divide and that is why I believe it is important to conduct an initial survey at the beginning of the year to establish the students who do and do not have access to technology. In this way I can plan class activities that directly integrate technology into the classroom and help with developing technological skills. I can be specific about homework and how to complete it without the use of computers or the internet. Finally, I can provide all the information and material they will need during class to study and complete homework and assignments.

    Some academic software tools I would like to implement in the classroom are Canvas and Kahoot. Canvas is an application for classes that helps keep students up to date with information, classroom assignments, classroom expectations, and more. It is a great way to keep your classroom material organized, and a great way to help students stay organized. Kahoot is a fun quiz like website, where students can use this platform for interactive educational games, to find study material, and to quiz themselves on their studied information. I believe I can use canvas to give specific information on instructions for assignments and group projects. This is a good way to keep all students organized and access their material more easily. This is also a platform that can be used in class to access PowerPoints and articles that may be used during instruction. Kahoot is a great way to keep students engaged and having fun while learning. I can use Kahoot for practice quizzes, to solidify information, and to make sure my students are having fun and understanding the material.