Educational Technology Week 3

This week I have learned a great deal about word processing and desktop publishing programs. Both can be utilized in the classroom by teachers and students to make their work more efficient and also more professional looking. The document I am posting with my blog is a flyer that was recreated for the school-based mentoring program I previously worked for.(Unfortunately, funding for the program ended this past school year.) I am not yet a teacher, but I worked as a case manager for a grant funded, school-based mentoring program, and I had to create several different types of documents for the program. We had a hand-book that was created by program staff to give to all mentors who served in our program. We also created agendas for program meetings, and all the necessary forms for the program such as permission slips and confidentiality agreements. One document that I personally created was a flyer to promote the program around the county as part of our mentor recruitment effort. I did not have a copy of the original flyer on my personal computer, so I created a new one. It is similar to the original in that it contains the same information and showcases a photograph of students. I retrieved the photograph from the clip art that was available on Microsoft Publisher, which is the program I used to create the document.I also used the word art feature for some of the text in the flyer.  I actually have not used this program very much. I have only made a few documents on it. However, I thought it was fairly easy to use, especially since it has a variety of templates to choose from for practically any type of document you want to make. I used one of the flyer templates to create the document, which saved me a tremendous amount of time, and when you have two toddlers running around, anything that can save some time means a lot.
I feel like the flyer I created is visually appealing. I like the color combination, and I thought the photograph of smiling students was an effective way to help get the message across. One thing I did realize after finishing the document is that perhaps it does not have enough information about the program itself. It is difficult to display a large amount of information on a flyer without making it look cluttered, which is why I kept it simple, and included contact information for those wanting to learn more.
One of the assigned videos this week,chapter 4 "Technology Supports Diverse Learners-Jr. High Students,"  actually mentioned the use of peer mentoring in the classroom. A technology class featured in the video showed older students who served as mentors helping younger students with technology and computer skills. These students were able to use their skills in these areas to help other students learn. This approach helps both the mentor's and mentee's computer skills and helps them to learn problem-solving skills as well. I thought this was interesting since I worked with a mentoring program.
Creating documents for the classroom with programs like Microsoft Publisher addresses Standard 3-Model Digital-Age Work and Learning in the NETS-T. It especially addresses parts b and c of this standard which state, "b. collaborate with students, peers, parents, and community members using digital tools and resources to support student success and innovation" and c. "communicate relevant information and ideas effectively to students, parent, and peers using a variety of digital-age media and formats." It is important that teachers know how to use technology in the classroom in an effective way. Teachers are role-models for their students, and it is important to be knowledgeable in the area of technology in order to help our students become proficient at using it as well.