Emerging Technologies Assignment

Emerging Technologies Project

T&L 445:03

Kristen Eirich

November 14, 2007

Gruenewald













Eirich 1

Emerging Technologies Project

The first emerging technology that I am reviewing is the use of mobile phone cameras in the classroom. These mobile phones are basically cellular phones with the camera capability. With mobile phone cameras, students can transmit the pictures and take them anywhere. These camera phones can allow students to collect evidence and scientific data, visually express ideas, identify things and people, and a multitude of other things that pertain to learning.
This technology could impact my teaching and preparation in both negative and positive ways. Camera phones could positively affect my teaching because they could be a way to effectively teach material, while allowing the students to have some fun and use their creativity while still learning. On the negative side, camera phones could create a lot of distraction in the classroom. These camera phones could be used by the students in very inappropriate ways, and could easily distract students from the material being taught. In order for students to get the full benefits of using camera phones in class, there would need to be very strict rules when using them, and very severe consequences if they are misused. Camera phones could impact how my future students learn by allowing a more visual take on learning. They could also impact their interaction and engagement in the classroom by comparing pictures, sharing different ideas represented through pictures, and basically approach learning through pictorial evidence that can be fun and interesting for students.
The next technology that I am reviewing is instant messaging in the classroom. Instant messaging is a tool that supports informal communication, and has been sought as a no-no in schools, because it has been thought of as distracting and useless. Like mobile phones cameras, instant messaging could be misused and abused by students. However, there are many ways that instant messaging can be very beneficial to teachers and students alike.
First, instant messaging can be very beneficial to hearing impaired students. This group of students benefit from instant messaging because it allows them to communicate in real time and use instant messaging as a tool to facilitate communication with their teachers without the help from a interpreter. This can lead to more engagement and interaction in the classroom. Instant messaging can also impact my teaching and preparation by creating easier ways to assess hearing impaired students and where they are in their learning development. Students with disabilities can be challenging for teachers because it can be hard to assess their learning. For students without disabilities, instant messaging could be useful for online discussions about topics pertaining to the classroom, and could also allow students to get automated feedback from assignments By using instant messaging in the classroom, teachers and students could have an easier time communicating and learning.
The last technology that I would like to review is the FLY pentop. The FLY pentop is a computer device the size and shape of a pen. The new "pentop computer" works with a special brand of electronic paper that lets students interact with their own drawings. Using the magic-marker sized device, students can write a word in English, then hear the word translated via a special voice synthesizer to Spanish; draw a piano keyboard, then listen to the notes played back to them by tapping the keys with the pen; or make a calculator that performs mathematical operations by touching the pen to a combination of handwritten digits.
The FLY pentop could benefit my teaching and my preparation because this device could help me reach out to the students who struggle through school, because they lack motivation. Al Johnson, a technology director for the Jefferson Parish Schools states, “It has so many applications, and we're providing so much--like calculators and workbooks--that we can condense it into one device..Whenever you can make a child feel like something is special just for them, they want to use it. It's a valuable tool (Murray, 2005).” With that, I think that the pentop could benefit students because it has organization features, as well as learning games available. I think that this device is so new and advanced that it would excite students and create a new eagerness to learn and build organizational habits.