Final Reflection

As I sit here and reflect upon the completion of my Digital Technology course, I must say, I learned a lot about different technology tools that can help me as a librarian/teacher.  As a closer, I will review some of the things I really enjoyed the most, the things I didn't enjoy so much, and what I feel would benefit students the most. 



My most Enjoyed.....
Screencast-O-Matic was one of my favorites because I think this will be one of my time savors as I become a librarian.  I enjoyed  making videos that my students could watch to revisit lessons or information they didn't get to see, didn't understand, or don't quite recall at their convenience.  Also, making some staff development videos for my teachers about the different technology tools I introduce them too is going to be super helpful.  They will have access to these whenever they have time to view them. 

YouTube, has been a great tool to publicize all you do in your personal channel.  My kids get a kick out of the fact that I have my personal YouTube channel.  Great to be able to place the videos I create and share them with students and staff as well. 

Blogging about our experiences is very enjoyable because this is my personal journal of my life as a MLS student.  I love that I can go back and reflect on all I learned and did by reading my blogs.  The other great thing about blogging was that I was able to read and learn from others as well.  Knowing that we were somewhat in the same boat at times with the assignments, made a difference for me.  Sharing with each other is something I feel we all can benefit from.  We learn from one another, and what great way to do it....in our blogs

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Instagram/Flipgram was another favorite of mine.  Honestly the saying.."a picture is worth a thousand words" goes together with both.  I had my Instagram account prior to the class and I enjoyed learning new and different ways to use it.  The Flipgram was new to me but I quickly loved how instantly it could make videos of your photos.  My kids loved it too. 

QR Codes are wonderful.  I couldn't believe how easy and efficient this tool is.  I'm so ready to use QR codes in my class and for sure within my future library.  Super easy access to your items you would like to share with staff, students, and parents.  We just need to get your audience to comprehend it and see how useful it is.

                      

My lows....

Some technology tools I did learn about but weren't so exciting or fun for me but I'm sure they are valuable to many others are Vine, Twitter, and Facebook. Now this is speaking in regards to utilizing them in my library.

Vine and Twitter didn't do so much for me.  I feel Instagram already has the video and text feature that can be used in the same way.  I know that there are plenty of great apps out there, but no need to have them all.  Things can get confusing or just ignored after awhile.  I must say though in Twitter, it was helpful to follow great librarians, professors or other professionals in the media, library world.  They all have great knowledge to share. 

Facebook, in regards to utilizing it for your library, was not a hit at my school.  I created a FB page, but there was not much excitement of promoting it.  Interestingly, having the opportunity to explore different library FB pages, I noticed the same thing.  Very few seemed updated or being as successful viewed pages by the students and community.  I would've thought it would be a better hit, but not so.  I think people see FB more of a personal app than a school related piece of technology.  I feel that a lot of time goes into making the library Facebook page relevant, and I would spend the time elsewhere helping my patrons be successful in their tasks as they use the library. 

Podcasts were just not that exciting or of interest to me.  Honestly, I feel like if you work strickly with auditory students, then podcasts could really be a great option, but other than that, it wasn't one of my favorite assignments. 

  

Most Beneficial to Students

Along with the most enjoyable I mentioned at the beginning, I found book trailers, cartoons and comics, and info graphics to be the most beneficial for students because they all fall in the create section of the Bloom's Taxonomy.  Creating and designing new and original work is a challenge for many.  I even struggled creating my infographic.  It takes a lot of thought process.  Students may watch videos to remember, understand, or analyze, but creating something to explain their understanding of the concept is where you are able to see the evidence. 






This course has been awesome!  I love technology, even if some of it wasn't as interesting, I did learn a lot.  We have to continue with an open mind as technology tools come and go.  We must stay abreast of what's out there for our patrons.  They are great learning and teaching tools, no matter what.  Thank to all those that posted and shared.  I learned a lot from you all as well.  Thank you to Dr. Gross for sharing all the wealth of knowledge she could.  You really made me think out side of the box at times and had to get out of my comfort zone as well.  I needed it and I'm happy to say it was all worth while!