While growing up, I went to school where technology was very limited and we didn’t always

have access to it so we relied heavily in textbooks, and even those textbooks were not up to date but we
worked with what we had. In my home the luxuries of having a computer, internet connection did not
come until I began high school, so every project or assignment that had to be done was with the use of
books. it was not until my freshman year that we ever got a computer and a hotspot that was difficult to
even connect to. Now in days, having internet and computer is an essential since we have all evolved to
basically depend on technology, the need for books has minimized because everything we need can
simply be found through an internet search. After completing several observation hours, I learned how
much educational technology is used and how much you can do with it to create a positive working
environment for the teacher as well as for the students.

Technology keeps evolving and improving and as we go through time, we have to adapt to the
changes. Not only is educational technology beneficial for a regular classroom to adapt to but it can
even be crucial for special education students. Ever since elementary, I grew up with one special student
who I greatly appreciated and after I graduate high school I went back to the same school to do
community hours, specifically with the SPED class, and I saw how useful his communicating tablet was
for him since he didn’t verbally communicate. Personally, I do not believe we should rely on technology
100%, and the reason being is because students will become so used to technology and loose the
concepts of correct writing methods, the use of books, and many other basic needs that need to be
done without technology. I do believe technology to enhance a topic and give a better image or better
practice is adequate, as I personally have preferences as to what I use technology for and what I prefer
to do through the “old style”.

In the near future, I wish to become more familiar with different programs other than just
Microsoft and web browsing for the easy stuff to find/use. I would love to learn different ways to
enhance my learning that can later be used in a classroom without interfering with what I already
know/use. I want to find different programs, websites, and techniques that will give a more effective
outcome of learning.

As technology evolves I believe it is up to us as educators to decide how much we want to

incorporate it in our daily routines, and I believe that it is a perfect way to target different learners since
some learn better with seeing things being done by someone else or listening to a song or other audio to
memorize things. I think it is important to change between hands on learning, textbook learning, and
technology learning because it creates a broader understanding of different resources and it adds a
variation in the classroom and not simply using the same methods every day.

Personally, I am not too tech savvy, I just use the basic stuff needed like Microsoft, web
browsing, etc., so I plan on jumping into different programs, platforms, and discovering new educational
websites/applications that will help me facilitate teaching but also help me reach my students in a
positive way that will deliver all the right information in a way they will remember. I plan on including
educational technology in my classroom to help reach all type of learners, whether its auditory, visual,
and even those who need to do things hands-on.