Goals and Expectations of ENED 250

I hope to be less intimidated by technology and be able to successfully use it with students. I have always seen myself at a disadvantage with technology because I lacked it in my household during my childhood years. I am comfortable with my phone and iPad but not laptops, computers, and anything else that goes along with those, so my main goal is to feel more comfortable using a computer. I also hope that I will gain the skills to use technology in the classroom setting. Throughout my education, I used the least technology in my language classes (English and Spanish), but I hope to change that. I do believe that there is a time and place for technology in the classroom, but I also believe and expect to learn the ways to effectively use it in ways that students will learn and grow like they never have before.  

Wishful Thinking for Poorer, Less Populated Districts- A Response to "The Digital Divide in Education"

I hope that rapidly increasing technological improvements prove me wrong. I just don't see digital equality ever being achieved. I have been that kid who doesn't have internet at home. It wasn't until the summer going into college when I had unlimited data. Fortunately, I had the benefit of my parents who are both teachers at my high school. Ninth through tenth, all of my papers had to be done at school, since we had no computer at home. But the kids who didn't have computers at home had serious issues getting work done. Unlike Terence Lee's suggestion that kids have to go to the libraries, we only had one with computers that were compatible. And the hours were extremely limited. These kids have jobs. They have family. But instead kids would sit in school in academic recovery until 5:30, some kids, because of the bus, not getting home until 7:30. The stress wasn't coming from the amount of homework, but that students had to worry about whether they could rush and do all of their homework done on the computer in 2 or 3 hours. In eleventh grade we got Chromebooks, making things easier, but without wifi there wasn't much to do. And with suggestion Lee makes that students can go to a restaurant with wifi to work on laptops. The nearest McDonalds is 15 minutes from the school. We still don't have wifi at our house because it isn't available, even though we were promised it would be back in 2016. I hope that one day wifi will be available to all, but our country is large, and, like many high schools, has other problems it needs to fix first before fixing the digital divide.

Small, Rural Town Full of Single Stories

As someone who grew up in an extremely small, rural town (graduating class of 69 students) I lacked diversity in my life. The populating of the town in 2015 was 98% white, primarily Christians. I do know that more kids have been coming out more recently due to acceptance in society, but I still only knew about 5 people in my high school in the LGBTQ+ community. I compiled a list of single stories that I know I have in my head, but also some single stories that people have about me:

-Lives of people of different religions (stereotypes of how they act and celebrate their beliefs)

    - I grew up in a very small town where the population was primarily lower-class white Christians.

- The opposing side in any politics.

-Any LGBTQ, the differences between the different sexual orientations→ Gay meaning all sexual preferences other than straight

    -Also the stereotype of gay men being feminine and gay females being masculine

-Feminism. Much of society believing it’s all females>males, when really its everyone is =!

-How females dress… Something I definitely relate to. The single story that females are trying to “impress”, or the fact that every day females must or do dress feminine.

-Dancers aren’t athletes. An argument that comes up frequently. Many only think ballet. There are many other styles, and it isn’t only about the art to it.

-People with mental diseases, such as depression and anxiety. Usually told to “shake it off” or “don’t worry about it” or “just cheer up” when, in reality, that can do nothing or make the situation worse.  

More than Books- Response to "Lessons From History"

A good English teacher knows it isn't just about the books. Rather, it is about the lessons and themes the students take away, whether it's through reading, recording, discussing, or any other learning technique. I found it quite interesting that teachers since the early 1900s have found ways to engage students more deeply. When students, or anyone, can make something theirs, it naturally enlightens them onto new ideas, themes, and understandings, no matter what you are teaching them. So by having students create a pod cast, or film a scene, or create a character Facebook status, and so on, it allows them to claim their own work. And with all of the new and extremely mobile technology that has been invented, even in the past 5 years, if teachers utilize these, students will be able to not only grasp onto more concepts, but to enjoy the material that they are learning.