Observation/Application from class (3/26/09)

In class we were given time to explore with our digital cameras.  That was a very valuable time to be able to get more comfortable with features on the digital camera that I do not utilize very often. To be able to try out different features of the camera and to become more familiar in the manner in which the settings are set-up really helps to make me feel more comfortable to start on the PowerPoint project.

As teachers and college students, we like to feel comfortable with materials and tools before we are required to use them in a graded assessment or evaluation. The same thing goes for our students. They have the right to feel comfortable and knowledge with the materials that they are working with. In the classroom, there is wide range of skills. Some students may have never touched a digital camera while other may have digital cameras of their own. This exploration time gives those students with little experience to become comfortable and those students with some experience can develop their understand of the camera at a higher level. 

This is a very valuable lesson to apply to my own classroom when introducing a lesson that requires the use of technology. In the type of settings that I have been teaching in, many students come from homes that do not have access to the Internet or much technology at all. By giving students the time to explore the means in which we are asking them to show us what they know, will help them to produce a better product. 

This idea should be applied not only to technology in the classroom but many other materials and manipulative's that students are working with. If they feel comfortable with what they are working with, then their end product will be more successful.