EDPC 610 ISTE Standards Reflection

            After reading over the ISTE standards, it is increasingly obvious that the implementation and utilization of technology in the classroom is an imperative tool for not only enhancing the learning experience for students and teaching pedagogies for teachers but also for ensuring students are educated and up to date on the modern technologies that have become ubiquitous in the modern world. I have a background in information management and technology so all of the usage and discussions about technology certainly excite me as I have always planned on stressing the use of technology in my future classroom.

            ISTE Standards are a framework for students, educators, administrators, coaches, and computer science educators to re-think education and create innovative learning environments. These standards are important and can serve as a guide to transforming the classroom into an effective learning environment for the digital age throughout their entire educational journey. The standards for students are designed to empower student voices and ensure learning is a student-driven process. For the student, there are several main points to focus on: becoming an empowered learner, a digital citizen and a knowledge constructor, maintaining the mindset of an innovative designer and a computational thinker as well as becoming a creative communicator and global collaborator. Students will have the skills and knowledge required to safely navigate the web, use tools that are created to enhance and create innovative, virtual learning environments where they can work collaboratively and provide them with tools to understand how to utilize the internet for all these beneficial reasons. The standards also speak about the goals for teachers in terms of technology. Teachers should have deep knowledge and understanding of the content, effective teaching, and learning strategies and learning environments and effective professional knowledge and skills.

            For students, there is a stress about digital citizenship which means students understand human, cultural and societal issues related to technology and can practice legal and ethical behavior. There is also information about technology operations and concepts, as well as critical thinking, problem-solving and decision making and collaboration and communication.

            I think it is so important for students and for teachers to not only be aware of the ISTE standards but also to utilize them to the best of their abilities every day in the classroom. Since the technology tools are so prevalent and important in this day in age it is even more important to train and  guide the students as future members of society so they are well-equipped to utilize and manage these tools in safe and effective ways.