Strenghts and Weaknesses

It would appear that I have many "weaknesses" in the realm of computers and technology. I can install and navigate software with the best of them by following the "dummy" prompts that are enclosed in a nice little box labeled "next", but if the process is clicker-user unfriendly, I am at a loss! And I admit that I do not understand some of the basic computer technology terms. Why in the world would they relate computer terms to food anyway? You got your "cookies" and "bites" (bytes), I mean, that's just asking for trouble anyway! In addition to the computer and technology terms that I do not understand, the copyright laws scare me. Nowadays, you have to walk on egg shells to use any media material without infringing on some law. I can understand why some teachers opt not to use it at all.

The following picture was found on google images


With all the tricks that I do not know, there are a few things that I do know. And I do come from a generation that is supposed to be pretty tech savvy. I am familiar enough with most programs to be able to figure out how to use them with a little instruction or some good ole' experimentation. For example, I had no idea how to make a digital story, but after I played around on Windows Movie Maker, I was able to figure out how to incorporate voice, music, cool transitions, and ultimately put together a pretty decent story.

It is clear that I need to further my education to become more aligned with the Technology standards. To start, I found a podcast called "Technology for teachers" that I subscribed to. I also found a great website that offers web tutorials at www.arps.org/resources. I think another thing that I can ultimately do to better the technology use in my classroom....is marry a "computer geek" and force him to help me! J/K (kinda) :)