Brianna Shuler

1/26/15
EDU 2800
Section 4

In chapter 2 some of my prior knowledge was that technology and teaching go hand in
hand. In todays society and future societies technology is almost the center of the world.
Between elementary and middle school the only technology that I remember were desktop multicolor apple computers and VCRs. From middle school to high school, I was introduced to more
technology in the classroom. For example overhead projectors and smart boards, but the use of
pencil and paper was more than technology. Entering college I use technology over 90% on a
regular day, or my instructor does. With some of my older professors they are still learning how
to use modern technology and constantly acquire our knowledge of technology. One of the parts
of chapter 2 that caught my eye were assistive devices: Are technologies specifically adapted to
help students with a physical or learning disability to learn; these technologies enable and
empower students by providing a support that eliminates or lowers barriers to learning, whether
helping students who are sight impaired to read a computer screen, offering students who are
physically impaired a way to operate a keyboard or mouse, or helping a student with dyslexia
practice reading (Teaching and Learning with Technology p. 33). In my future classroom I
would hope to have a smart board in my classroom where I can download apps that are

especially for students in special education. In this way I could incorporate games with learning.
I learned from this chapter the three general types of variables that can interfere with the
communication cycle: environmental factors, psychological factors, and personal filter. The
definition of environmental factors is the interchange of information between two or more
individuals, such as the teacher and a student (p. 308). In this process the information is sent
from the sender to the receiver who decodes it, and then tries to clarify the message. The second
is psychological factors; the unique individual psychological differences that define and affect
the reception of a communicated message (p. 312). In this part the person perception, values,
and beliefs come into play of how they will decipher the message. Last but not least is personal
filters; personal characteristics of the learner/receiver that can impact the communication process
by shaping how the individual processes objective messages (p. 312). Since I am going to be a
future special education teacher I will certainly come into contact with students who have
different learning styles. I would have to be able to create a lesson plans in different learning
styles that each student can relate to, and be able to comprehend the information that I am
providing. I personally dont believe in the IQ test because everyones knowledge cannot be
measured in the same way. There are people who are book smart, and then there are people who
are street smart. The people who are book smart are usually people who do academically well in
school and the people who are street smart usually have a decent level of common sense. They
have a high sense of knowing how to survive and may not necessarily be book smart. But there
are few people who have the smarts of books and the streets. I personally think that everyone is
smart in their own way, whether it is in a certain subject in school or just in life and to figure how
to navigate through it the best way you know how.