When the word “technology” is brought up in the classroom, some people normally think of just computers. In fact, technology can be diverse in itself. My hours this semester in service learning has taught me about diverse technologies, the variety of student knowledge about computers, certified teachers in the technology lab, school-wide projects, and technology lab classroom management. After experiencing 20 hours of technology in the classroom, I am now more aware of how important technology is for the learning environment.  In the technology lab, 30 computers are available, a smart board, a projector, scanner, and a digital camera. A smart board is a cross between a white board and a projector. The image that is portrayed on the teacher’s computers is projected on the smart board, so the students can follow what the teacher is doing. The work the students are producing in the computer lab is integrated with their school-wide project of science. I assisted the students in logging on their computers, coming up with creative ideas to research about the ocean, and keeping them on task. Not only is technology diverse, but the knowledge levels of each student is dramatically different.

Throughout the day, I observed students ranging from kindergarten to sixth grade entering the classroom. The kindergarteners and a few first graders were struggling with finding the correct keys to log-in to their computers. After that extensive task was accomplished, they worked on their computer motor skills of moving the mouse, copy and pasting, clicking and dragging as well as making decisions. The upper grades of second through sixth were working on an ocean project that branched off of their school-wide science project. They worked on an ocean assignment with research through the internet, answering questions, and drawing a picture in Paint. Even though a variety of diverse knowledge levels of technology exists among these students, it is important to continuously incorporate technology into the lesson plans. Instructors can begin to close the gap between the diverse knowledge levels of technology and improve what happens in the classroom by using educational technology that is the same high quality everywhere. Enhancing learning through school-wide projects, integrated with technology, will level the playing field of learning.

The third-sixth graders were working on an ocean project which was integrated from a school-wide science topic. They had to research two ocean animals and answer questions on a worksheet. The most popular two animals were the beluga whale and the penguin. With the research information about their two animals, the students created their own imaginary animal. Some of the students enjoyed the ocean animal assignment and crafted really remarkable animals, while other students had writer’s block. I assisted a student in the creation of her animal because she was having a difficult time. We came up with “the purple pucker fish,” which is a purple fish that has big red lips that “pucker” up. She was one of the students who, in the beginning, was hesitant in doing the assignment because she had writers block. With a little help I was able to spark an interest in her to finish her story. In the technology lab, it is essential to have a certified teacher who is knowledgeable in technology in order to teach the content and also focus on technology.

My mentor teacher for the technology lab believes that it is very important that a certified teacher teach the computer lab class rather than a computer technician. Even though a computer lab technician would be ideal, it is better for the students to have a teacher with a degree in teaching technology. I agree with her and think it would be even more ideal if both were available. An actual teacher certified in teaching computer classes as well as a lab technician, would be the best combination. Teachers of every grade level bring their students to the technology lab, drop them off, and leave. I quickly learned that as soon as their regular teacher left, the students began to misbehave. Classroom management in the technology lab became just as important as in the regular classroom.

My last day was the kick-off for the annual book drive. The school allowed the students to dress up like a book character, which was a creative way to dress up for Halloween. All day in technology class, the students were doing Halloween-related projects on the computers. Two opportunities for me to learn about classroom management, took place during my day in the computer classroom. My mentor teacher created three scenarios that each student was assigned dealing with ghosts, witches, graveyards, bobbing for apples, and haunted houses, which was only intended for the 4^th, 5^th, and 6^th graders. They were to go into Microsoft Word, write a creative story using the scenario they were assigned, and make a PowerPoint presentation. This activity was similar to the ocean activity, in that, some of the students were really excited about the assignment while others didn’t even want to have anything to do with it due to their writer’s block. Most all the students wanted to write about blood, death, and killing. They were not allowed to write about those subjects, so they were disappointed. The second opportunity for me to learn about classroom management for the technology lab happened with all of the classes in all grade levels. When students were creating something on their computer, the students next to them would lean over to look and purposely fall out of their chair for a laugh or attention, but they would say it was on accident. Or they would lean over to look at their neighbor’s monitor and not work on their own project. I had to continuously tell students to return to work and stay on task. The technology classroom should be viewed and managed as a normal classroom where students use very advanced tools to learn and grow.

Overall, my experience in the technology classroom was marvelous. It opened my eyes to a new topic in school that I did not have in my early years of education. Growing up, I would have loved to have learned technology as a student. As a teacher, I hope to be able to have a large variety of technology for my students. Technology is expanding every single day, and has quickly become an important element that touches many parts of our lives, especially the classroom.  Throughout the years, teaching techniques have had major changes; however, technology is by far the most useful and resourceful teaching foundation in education.