It's Good Stuff

The online community that I have joined and have found most helpful has been the Alaska Teacher Placement website. It has been helpful for many reasons, the greatest of which is that it helped me land a job. I originally became a member as it was required to attend the job fair. But as the fair grew nearer, I tended to check the site more often. They listed all jobs that were posted, and it was a good resource for helping me narrow down the locations that I was interested in. I was able to apply to a couple jobs and make some contacts even before the fair. Additionally, the forum includes advice from current teachers, that was helpful when deciding my future.

Since accepting my position, the website has actually been an even bigger help than it was before. This is because it offers advice on teaching in small villages, and gives tips on shopping. The site has been a huge help in directing me as to how to shop for food and clothing before I arrive in the fall. I'll need winter, and recreational gear, but each location in the state requires relatively different supplies. How do you get fresh produce? The ATP website will let you know. And that is important when moving to an unusual place where your primary focus is on the job.

It is nice to read that some of the questions that people ask are ones that I would like to have answered. But many of the responses advise you to contact your school and District. Get to know them, and they will tell you what you need to do.

I have used the site more for gathering information than contributing. I have little advice to offer to new hires, as I am one of them. Perhaps next year, I will be the wise teacher from the Northwest encouraging and informing young MAT students dreaming of moving north.

For keeping up on what is going on in the world, I check in with the bbc everyday. This British site gives brief reports on important events from around the world. Its use of images, graphs, and maps is especially helpful when using the site to share current events with the World History class.

I also use Alaska Public Radio Network frequently to keep up with current events in the state. Its podcasting feature is especially helpful when sharing events with my Alaska History class. Each day, 8-10 new stories are posted in a 30 minute show. The news is relevant to my class, and interesting to students and teachers alike. Their stories cover Alaskan news from large to small communities all over the state.

The Alaska Digital Archives is a great resource for Alaska History as well. This site is filled with photos from Alaska's past which are easily searched. The images are great for sharing information with the class. Also, students use the site extensively themselves while compiling presentations on different topics.

Reading and writing is arguably the most important part of education. It is the skills acquired here that will translate into successful futures in college, professions, and life in general. Not to mention the high school qualifying exam. Therefore, if there is technology available which helps students learn to read, then it should be used.

At first, I was skeptical of this article and its 'teacher in a can' technologies. I assumed these computer programs were simply gimics and crutches used to entertain poor readers, and enablers for kids who lack the drive to learn to understand the written word. But the examples given in the article show that students actually become better readers and writers.

For example:

• READ 180 provides students with background knowledge to connect the student to the material
• Read & Write Gold will read a students writing back to them, allowing them to make editing changes
• Students have been able to overcome obstacles which frees them from failure that easily can hold a student back

In the end, the author explains how these programs are nothing more than tools. Quality instruction cannot be replaced with a computer program, but the program can be used to augment the teaching being done. It is a vehicle that can produce great results if used properly, but alone the assistive technology will not produce higher quality readers and writers.

It makes sense to me to use these new technologies. If it keeps a student interested, and advances their skills, then I believe that it can be a good tool for the classroom.