Journal 8

Focus Question 1
How can teachers use communication technologies as teaching and learning tools?
 As mentioned in the text, teachers can use communication technologies, “to enhance teaching and learning.” Communication technologies offer teachers and students more instructional time outside the classroom environment for those who have access to a computer and Internet. Depending of the topic or material that need to be covered and the (CT) being used, they may also serve as assisting aides for parents as well; for example, teachers can provide step-by-step instructions for parents to  follow along should the parent's child or children need further assistance with anything he or she did not understand while in class. Moreover, students may access information they missed during class and retrieve them online as a source of backup.

Tech Tool 8.1
TaskStream is a subscription service where a community of highly trained and competent individuals provide multiple services to administrators in educational institutions and teachers with goal planning, creating assessments and e-portfolios, to name a few. Among the services they provide, TaskStream partners with educators to help customize assessments designed to effectively challenge while increasing the level of comprehension among educational institution's students which will in turn help earn more accreditation of the schools. They also provide educators assistance in establishing goals and reaching them in order to maximize the teachers/educators' instructional capabilities.


Summary
Communication technologies is an alternate approach from the traditional methods for communicating instructional information such as, " lectures, discussions, cooperative learning groups,..."(Maloy, Verock-O'Loughlin, Edwards, Woolf, 2011, p.208). Communication technologies offer various ways in which one can use them as a means to convey a message to another individual or a group, for personal and professional purposes. They can help establish educational communities among administrators, educators/teachers, students, and parents all over the world--through the Internet of course. A community of educators can use them to share educational ideas through Blogging tools or forums to later implement in their classrooms, or they can customize instructional websites with their students to promote their creativity. Wikis encourage collaborative effort among student users from all over which is another benefit of communication technologies. All of these tools create and build stronger communication abilities among any group. It is because of communication technologies, we are not limited to the ways in which we communicate to others. We learn through sharing and learning through various means because of these communication technologies.

Reference:
 Maloy, R. W. (2011). Transforming learning with new technologies. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon.