Blog post #2

The Microsoft application I tend to use the most is Microsoft Word. I have never been in a class that did not use Word, it is an app that allows you to type out essays, paragraphs, letters, resumes, etc. While using this app, Word checks your spelling, counts the amount of characters and words that you have written and fixes grammar mistakes. It is a great way to type up an essay and double check your work. I have used word in countless classes from writing 3,000 word papers to just jotting down quick notes that I learned  in the class. Teachers love Word, because after typing up their work they are able to send it online to all students and cut back on wasting paper and vice versa, the teachers have students type papers up on word and the submit it through an online website to avoid receiving hundreds of papers. Another bonus to having students submit an essay that was written on Word is that teachers are able to check for plagiarism much easier.

Plagiarism is taken very seriously now a days. On the first day of school, teachers explain to the students that plagiarism is not tolerated and if caught, the student is at risk for expulsion. By having students submit their work online, the teacher is able to run the paperwork through a system that checks all websites online to see if the student's work has been copied. As a teacher, I believe it is a very smart idea to have the students turn in the work through the website "turnitin.com". Turnitin.com is a website that tells the teacher the exact percentage of the student's work that was copied. By using this website, not only is it an efficient way to check the students work, but it also encourages the students to not plagiarize, since they are aware the teacher is able to check.

Three technology issues that I tend to notice in a classroom are: copyright, privacy, and the digital divide. I explained earlier that the website "turnitin.com" is an easy and efficient way to avoid plagiarism with in students. When it comes to privacy, I believe there is a fine line. Students should be able to have privacy while on their technology devices, but there needs to be a way for supervising the students, in order to ensure they are doing the right thing. I believe a solution to this issue would be a teacher walking around the classroom subtlety checking to make sure the students are on track. The teachers do not need to go over the students shoulder or read exactly what they are doing, but making sure they appear to be on the correct website. The last issue is the digital divide. It is very apparent that not every child has their own computer to bring into the classroom, I know I didn't have on in high school. It needs to be known that if the students do not have their own computer, that they are allowed to use the computers that are in the classroom or in the library. If there is a big project approaching, there needs to be frequent class trips to the school library so that everyone is able to use the same computer.

xoxo,
Kat Burnham