Blog #6 Educational Technology End of Semester Reflections

    

    As I reflect on my practicum and what I’ve learned throughout this course, I realize how much my view on technology in the classroom has changed. During my practicum, I used technology mainly for planning lessons, finding resources, and communicating with students. While I didn’t use AI in a big way for assessment or lesson delivery, I can see how tools like AI could help personalize learning for students and make tasks like grading or giving feedback more efficient. This is something I plan to explore more in the future.

    Before taking this course, I thought of technology as a nice tool to have in the classroom, but I didn’t fully understand its potential beyond that. Now, I see technology, especially AI, as something that can truly support students’ individual needs. For example, AI-powered programs could help students work at their own pace, whether they need extra help or more challenging work. I’m excited about how these tools can make teaching more personalized and engaging.

    One question I came into this course with was how digital tools, like AI, can help support different learners in the classroom. After learning more, I feel much more confident that these tools can really make a difference. Adaptive learning platforms, for example, can adjust to each student’s level, giving them the right kind of support without having to wait for the whole class to catch up. This makes it easier for teachers to focus on helping all students at their own pace.

    I enjoyed sharing what I learned in my practicum with my peers, like how I used digital assessments to track student progress and how that made it easier to give quick feedback. In turn, I learned a lot from my classmates about tools they had used, like digital storytelling apps or interactive games that help students learn. Hearing about these ideas helped me think about new ways to bring technology into the classroom in ways that are fun and effective.

    This course has really opened my eyes to how technology, especially AI, can change the way we teach and learn. I now see it as a way to give students more personalized learning experiences and help teachers manage tasks more efficiently. I’m looking forward to using more tech tools in my teaching and finding creative ways to integrate them into my lessons to better support all my students.