I set out in this program on a personal mission to better my classroom environment--to better meet the needs of my increasingly tech savvy students and become more confident and knowledgeable in regard to computers. Prior to the course actually beginning, I was petrified, especially after previewing and contemplating our assignments. Now that the course is coming to a close, I feel better about some things and worse about others.
The Under the Hood assignment was terrifying, and I was so glad the tower for my old Sony was still collecting dust in the basement! At this point, I don't see any immediate bearing this assignment had on me, but in the future if I need to crawl under a hood, I won't be scared. (I have to admit that I didn't get the Sony back together in "working order.")
The Boot up Survey was eye opening and educational. It helped to ease the bit of fear I encountered when I needed to change the boot order of my computer in order to boot an alternate OS. I was frustrated that in the Boot Up Survey, I wasn't able to see more similarities and make more connections. I felt like I was looking for something that wasn't there and am still unsure whether I noticed what I needed to when comparing the class results.
I thoroughly enjoyed the Triumph of the Nerds episodes. I have a greater appreciation of computers as well as technology, due in part to watching these. Some of my students have recently been amazed at my knowledge of computer history! Resulting as well from viewing the episodes is a desire I have to keep in the loop of up-and-coming technology--to be "in the know." This will undoubtedly help me in the classroom.
The OS assignment was by far the most frustrating and time consuming. There is so much information available on these alternate OS's that I wonder if we could have investigated a couple and reported our findings and then worked with and downloaded our one favorite, instead of two. I was pleased to successfully create a LiveCD; I imagine this may be useful in the future. It feels satisfying to know that there are OSs out that are free!
I thoroughly enjoyed the Component Research, although it may simply be because I got to research Windows 7! I learned a ton from this and cannot wait to purchase a new computer, so I have a Windows 7 edition I can call my own! The district I teach in will be using XP for at least the next three years (no upgrade due to budget); I can't help but wonder if something better than Windows 7 will be available at that point!
The home portion of the Disaster DATA Recovery and System assignment felt a bit repetitive of what we did in the first class, but reiterated the importance of me getting my butt in gear to take the security of our home computer seriously instead of continually moving it down my to-do list. The school portion was a tad overwhelming, only because so much of the language I encountered was hugely unfamiliar. Researching that was like reading an immensely difficult text with a dictionary open right next to it. I think it would have taken me half the time, if I was a smidgen more familiar with some of the language. At some point, I am positive that my knowledge of what it takes to protect a school district will come in handy! I worry though that I should be more knowledgeable as a whole in regard to computer language.
The Viruses and their Cures assignment felt like busy work. Do I think it useful and important to be aware of virus products? Most definitely! I'm not sure how it could be improved as I know its vital to the course.
Overall, I feel more knowledgeable as well as feeling pleased that I climbed over some near impassable terrain without having a hear attack! I definitely learned a lot--the most from the assignments or portions of assignments I struggled with the most. Having to make our presentations available to the class was educational as well as frustrating at times, but I am much more confident in integrating the use of Google docs into my classroom for student use. All the troubleshooting I found myself doing will undoubtedly benefit my students.
