Obviously being virtual we are heavily relying on technology. I don't have a personal computer at home, so I had to borrow a student laptop from school in order to teach. We were only supposed to be virtual for 9 weeks, so I figured the student laptop would suffice until we got back face to face. Now it looks like we might be virtual the entire year or at the very least hybrid when I will still be teaching 1/2 of my students virtually every day.
Unfortunately, this student laptop is outdated and unable to support our new way of learning. Due to the protections on a student laptop, there are extensions I cannot access and despite talking to our technology department, they can't undo these protections.
Each day, the students and I are online during our normal school hours. That’s 7.5 hours a day! We use Zoom meetings, Canvas, Google Classroom, and various online websites to guide our instruction. This laptop has a camera and microphone which will make all of those things possible! Now my students will be able to see and hear our lessons without a problem! I will be able to download extensions like Chrome's Web Paint that will make it possible for me to annotate to assist my students that are visual learners. The newer technology would make programs run faster, so my students aren't waiting for my lessons to load.
Once we return to the classroom, I will still have a group of students I will be teaching virtually who will continue to rely on our Zoom meetings and online sources for their education. This device will serve as a lifeline of communication between my students, their families, and myself. This year, their education will be right at my fingertips.
About my class
Obviously being virtual we are heavily relying on technology. I don't have a personal computer at home, so I had to borrow a student laptop from school in order to teach. We were only supposed to be virtual for 9 weeks, so I figured the student laptop would suffice until we got back face to face. Now it looks like we might be virtual the entire year or at the very least hybrid when I will still be teaching 1/2 of my students virtually every day.
Unfortunately, this student laptop is outdated and unable to support our new way of learning. Due to the protections on a student laptop, there are extensions I cannot access and despite talking to our technology department, they can't undo these protections.
Each day, the students and I are online during our normal school hours. That’s 7.5 hours a day! We use Zoom meetings, Canvas, Google Classroom, and various online websites to guide our instruction. This laptop has a camera and microphone which will make all of those things possible! Now my students will be able to see and hear our lessons without a problem! I will be able to download extensions like Chrome's Web Paint that will make it possible for me to annotate to assist my students that are visual learners. The newer technology would make programs run faster, so my students aren't waiting for my lessons to load.
Once we return to the classroom, I will still have a group of students I will be teaching virtually who will continue to rely on our Zoom meetings and online sources for their education. This device will serve as a lifeline of communication between my students, their families, and myself. This year, their education will be right at my fingertips.
Read more