Week 1 : May 6th- 13th 

During this week we were assigned to create our own home page on Black Board and explore the other aspects of technology we would soon be using during this class. One of the important parts of this week was discussing the articles assigned that caused us to think about how we can use technology in our classroom. This was a difficult assignment for me because really and truly, we do not use it at our center. After hearing more about other classmates ability to incorporate programs and technology into their classroom, I was surprised to hear about how  many resources they had available to them (ex. Smartboards). But it also caused me to think about other ways to find the finances to get more technology to Early Childhood Education programs. I also think about how I am able to teach my children without technology and what they are learning beyond the computer screen.  When I was in elementary I don't remember our school having more than old computers that we were allowed to practice typing and other basic assignments on. 

In thinking about having a good balance of technology in my classroom, I feel encouraged to try to find the middle ground. I have children that get speech therapy and I know certain programs would allow them to work at their own pace and also provide them with the type of learning they need. Due to limited resources in Detroit Public School the speech therapist rarely get to see the children for more than 20 mins a week. With these computer programs, the children can continue their progress on improving their speech. In the article about Early Childhood Education "Find the Balance" it discusses that computers encourages "longer, more complex speech and the development of fluency" (Davidson & Wright, 1994).  It talks about 3-5 year old children having technology incorporated allows them to feel comfortable with it and not to "fear" it in the future. It doesn't have to be an activity the children explore, but it should be an option. For my preschool children, the computer is for "open ended use, not to create" (p.15).  I agree with this because it encourages children being allowed to explore, but not have to make a PowerPoint, or type something, but become familiar with an object that will  impact their future. Below is the article, it is very interesting and goes by age/grade level on incorporating technology into education! Hope it's useful :) 

http://www.netc.org/earlyconnections/byrequest.pdf