Introduction

Remember Mr Do!? I do! It was one of the first computer games I ever played and it's definitely on my top 5 list of all-time greatest video games. I didn't play it at the arcade which was where most kids battled it out in the early 1980s, I played it at home on the newest Apple computer! My dad was in charge of the computer lab at his school so my brothers and I became my dad's guinea pigs as he tested out all kinds of educational software on us. While none of the programs were as fun as Mr. Do!, Summer Games, and Castle Wolfenstein, that game about westward expansion was pretty sweet. Though. . . I could never figure out which was worse, having my crush die first and feeling like the trip from there on out was totally worthless, or having my crush and I survive all the way until the end only to have everyone tease me about it... Anyway... Unfortunately for my dad, when Nintendo became available it took the place of gaming and personal computers seemed to become nothing more than fancy typewriters. So, while my gaming evolved into the 8 bit fairytale land of RBI Baseball and Super Mario Brothers 3, I continued to use Apple for word processing and illustration programs like Kid Pix. In my early teens I went online for the first time using the Prodigy network. I remember thinking how cool it was because I didn't have to pull encyclopedias off the shelf to look things up anymore. These days, I use computers to connect to the internet, and as digital file cabinets and editing tools for essays, journals, music, photos, videos, and websites. I think the only aversion I have to technology is that the newest programs are very expensive and by the time I can afford them they are usually already outdated. It makes me wish my dad hadn't retired! Anyway, speaking of outdated, the picture below is of an Apple computer that looks a lot like the first one I used. That thing was sweet.

I have been involved in education for about as long as I can remember, but I've only had to be the responsible adult for the last nine years. My first position was in an after school and summer camp program called Kids Factory. I worked there during my sophomore year of college. When I graduated from SDSU I began working in the Irvine Unified School District as a substitute teacher. I worked there for two years and did some tutoring as well. In the second year, I took a class and earned a certificate to teach English as a second language (TESOL). After two years in Irvine I moved to Quito, Ecuador, and I worked at a private inner city school teaching six, seven, and eight year old kids English. I also did tutoring during the next year and my students were anywhere from three years old to 68 years old. When I returned home from South America I found myself living in Oakland, California. For the next two years I worked in the Oakland Unified School District as a substitute teacher. I also took a job coaching a boys soccer team in nearby Berkeley. I'm really looking forward to beginning the credential program this fall so I can better articulate and understand my past experiences in education.

Below are two photos. The first is of a two of my students dressed up and ready to celebrate the Fiestas de Quito. The second picture is a view of Quito with Volcan Cotopaxi looming in the background. The picture was taken from the top floor of the school where I worked.

From my experiences I know how fun technology can be. Whether it is music and videos on ipods or web browsing and gaming on cell phones, it is truly amazing how much information we have available at our fingertips. As a teacher armed with a dry erase board and overhead projector, all that accessible information just a tap away can be difficult to compete with. I'm really interested in learning how other teachers are incorporating social networking sites, video conferencing, and blogging into their activities. Also, during this course, I hope to learn more about Microsoft Excel and how I can use this program effectively as a teacher.

Cheers!