(This post is an assignment for my EDCI 520 class at Purdue.)
Technology in the elementary classroom has come a long way from my teacher training days of overhead projectors, TV/VCRs, and the LaserDisc. Madison Metropolitan School District was just finishing the roll-out of 1:1 devices (mainly Chromebooks) to students as COVID-19 hit and school went virtual. It was a scramble for students and teachers to find and learn many new ways of interacting online. Prior to virtual learning, most students only used computers for Lexia (an online reading/phonics program), Google products for papers and presentations for older students, and an occasional online math game.
That first spring of virtual learning, teachers were instructed to use Seesaw for K-2 and Google Classroom for 3rd through 5th grades. I had not used either with students. I also learned and taught students how to use several online sites that were giving free subscriptions just for the spring. About June 2020, I felt I understood the benefits and limitations of Google Classroom (the major drawback was the self-grading feature... any type has to match perfectly for it to count.) Heading into a virtual fall, MMSD announced that all elementary grades were going to use Seesaw. Seesaw was a platform I had not used before, and prior to COVID was meant as a tool to be used in the classroom to collect drawings and videos from students too young to type. In the fall of 2020, Seesaw was thrust into a national platform for virtual learning, and the programmers worked tirelessly to try to meet schools' demands, but it was quite clunky and difficult to use for most of the school year.
I pride myself on quickly learning new technologies and online platforms and also being able to teach them to my co-workers and students. 2021 has really tested my abilities as web-based software that I am familiar with continues to improve and change AND every training, class or PD (professional development) seems to use a different platform for video calls and assignments. Just this month, I have learned how to use the LETRS training platform, Brightspace for my master's program at Purdue University, the FASTBridge assessment platform (both the training site and the assessment site), and the Indiana University anti-plagiarism site. I still need to spend time on the updated MMSD website, as locations and formats of information that I need to know have changed and moved. In summary, for the present and the future, staying on top of digital technologies assists me as both a teacher and a student to use the tools to my advantage and the advantage of my students.
