Integrating Technology Blog

The Journey   At the start of my proposal, the biggest challenge I faced was I wasn't sure where to begin. Part of it was that all I could think of was the effects of Covid last year and the overwhelming influx of technology thrown at teachers. I began to think about the start of this year specifically. What was a significant problem being back in-person for the first time in over a year and a half? I then realized that this year there is a lack of motivation and enthusiasm from my students. There is no joy, passion, or excitement in their learning.                                                                                                   Image Source: smartims  Once I was able to identify what ...

Looking Back Eight weeks ago, my journey began for this class. I remember my initial feelings. I was nervous and knew I had a lot to learn. I was also excited and open to the wonderful new opportunities I was hoping to get out of the class                                                                                           Image Source: GIPHY I am happy to report my new feelings are mind-blowing, grateful, and appreciative.                                                                                         Image Source: GIPHY I still f...

  Mental Health                                                                                  Image Source: Critical Path Learning Center  Mental Health is a topic no one likes to touch or talk about. The reason people don't like to discuss it is that some people don't want to admit they need help or have a problem. In the eyes of others, you are seen as different, something is wrong with you, and you're not normal. I found this website MHA- Mental Health America  that has statistics about different parts of the country based on age and state. It is very fascinating and you should check it out! Social Media Many of us love social media. It is a way for us to connect with others and network which in turn can make us feel good about ourselv...

Digital Tattoo Image Source: College of Dupage Library A person's "digital tattoo" or "digital footprint" is any information about someone online. I prefer the word "tattoo" over "footprint" because just like a tattoo your presence online is permanent. Although some information can be removed, it can take an extensive amount of time and effort. Make sure you don't regret what you tattoo or what you do online!  Data Mine A data mine is when you do a search on a person and find out any information about the person. I began a data mine on myself by doing a traditional Google search by searching first with just my name"Amy Mekeel" in quotes. The first thing that popped up was another Amy Mekeel with the middle initial J.  She is a correctional officer, which I am not. The second was my schools' webpage saying I teach 8th grade Math and Social Studies at Heritage Middle school, which is accurate. The third thing that came up was...

Professional Learning Networks Over the last few weeks, I have been learning more about different professional learning networks or (PLNs). PLNs are ways to connect with other educators about different topics or similar interests. They could be at your school, at a conference, or on social media.   Twitter                                                          Image Source: TechCrunch.com  One of the most popular PLN is Twitter .  Believe it or not, up until a few weeks ago I did not have a Twitter account.  I never felt comfortable having one because I always felt it was just a place to vent to other people in the world.  I wanted to stay far away from any drama related to politics or celebrities.   A few weeks ago, I pulled the trig...

Accessibility When I hear the word accessibility, I think of the ease of access to something. In our classroom, we have a wide variety of diverse learners. Therefore, each learner needs to have  accessibility  or access to the curriculum. All students need an equal opportunity to learn and demonstrate their understanding in the classroom.                                                                              Image Source: Inclusive Companies  My Students Device  The students at my school all use Chromebooks. However, the teachers all use a different device, Acer laptops. I rarely have the opportunity to navigate around on my students' Chromebooks. This past week, I spent some time exploring different accessibility features on one of my student's Chromebooks. I ...