Blog Journal #5

 I have been on Instagram since I was in the later years of elementary school. While a large portion of my time spent on Instagram has been purely for entertainment value, I have recently begun utilizing Instagram as a means of learning and networking. I now use Instagram largely to find information about current events and updates within my professional and academic life. I currently follow accounts of several professional organizations and important people within the field of ABA which allows me to learn about upcoming events and opportunities for involvement. I plan to continue using Instagram in this way and I hope that it allows me to meet people with similar professional and academic goals.

I think the digital divide is an important concept that needs to be considered by educators when planning lessons and activities. While it can be easy to overgeneralize and think that every student has internet access and knows how to navigate technology, this is not always true. Many students have had very little access or exposure to technology while others are extremely comfortable with it. Students who are more fluent with technology may have an advantage, as they can utilize the internet to learn new things and use online resources to learn or study. As classrooms become more dependent on technology to teach and practice material, students who are not as comfortable with technology may feel left behind. As a teacher, I would make sure to give clear instructions when letting students work with technology so that everyone is on the same page. I may include visual aids when demonstrating how to navigate technology or show the students as I do it so that they can understand what they are supposed to be doing. 

As a teacher, I would be sure to use Class Dojo and Kahoot within the classroom. Class Dojo is an amazing tool that allows the teacher to give or take points to each student or the class as a whole. This can be used to reinforce or punish appropriate or inappropriate behaviors and can also be used as a token system so that students with a certain number of points can earn rewards. I would also use Kahoot as a studying tool within the classroom. Kahoot allows you to create or use pre-made quizzes and have each student play along with fun avatars and names. Kahoot is very fun for students, as they get to personalize their accounts and play along with their friends to try to have the highest score. I would love to use this to encourage participation and engagement with the material within the classroom.