I just got back on the job from a month off due to having back surgery! Although I had a great sub who did a great job covering my classes, my students really had a tough time keeping their stuff together and I am currently dealing with some of the worse grades, on average, I've ever had. At first I blamed it on the kids taking a month off while I was recovering, but now I really feel that it was my inability to keep them updated via my hub!
My kids (and parents, and administrators) have all gotten to rely on having the website for reference and support and I was not able to keep up on it during my recovery. There was no homework calendar, no weekly update, no links to the assignments on Google docs and no follow up with kids about whether or not their online assignments were received or not. While the last two weeks have been frustrating getting it all up and going again, and getting the kids caught up I have really had some time to reflect on how important this online endeavor really is!
While some people say that technology is dangerous and has a tendency to suck our kids in (which, admittedly, can be true and is a little scary at times), but it is also their reality and something that they have/are going to have to learn to rely on and it is our responsibility to develop and MAINTAIN a "hub" for them throughout the year. They make their lives, and ours, that much easier! They improve communication, give kids easy access to their work and resources, and keeps us from having to print and reprint worksheets and other assignments as our kids are absent or absent minded!
While I am tired from these last two weeks of catch up, I feel refreshed in knowing that I am doing what is best for kids! This technology thing is not going away and we are learning things through this course that will help our kids succeed now and in the future!
