Teachers use technology to enhance their productivity and professional practice. 
Teachers:
A.  Use technology resources to engage in ongoing professional development and lifelong learning.
B.  Continually evaluate and reflect on professional practice to make informed decisions regarding the use of technology in support of student learning.
C.  Apply technology to increase productivity.
D.  Use technology to communicate and collaborate with peers, parents, and the larger community in order to nurture student learning.
       Technology tools can help teachers perform their jobs so much more efficiently.  For instance, during student teaching I used a program called SASI to record daily attendance.  When the children arrived, we checked SASI to see if parents had contacted the school about absent children.  The system recorded reasons for absences and if a child was not accounted for, we put that child into the system as "unverified."  Then, the office personnel could contact parents and change the setting for any child during the day.  This eliminated the need to send attendance to the office on a slip of paper and facilitated communication with classroom teachers and office personnel.  I also used Microsoft Word and Excel to produce my unit during student teaching.  I searched for clip art on the internet to add pizzazz to my work and I used Power Point to make an electronic book for student use.  I also used Kidspiration for concept mapping to organize my own lesson planning ideas.  As a classroom teacher, I am sure to use electronic grade books, rubric makers, and web publishing programs to accomplish my professional work.  As I progressed through the semester, I learned that I need to find ways to work efficiently and make the best use of my time as a teacher.
          There was a first year teacher who was hired while I was student teaching and I saw him begin to take a lead role in networking with other professionals about technology.  I attended an in-service about web building and I helped my cooperating teacher with setting up our initial web site.  During full-time guest teaching, I was able to help a first grade teacher record her students reading books they wrote using Kids Pix.  Then, at conferences, the parents were able to click on icons on the desktop to hear their children read!  As my technology skills progress even further, I could see myself supporting teachers who are just starting to learn about technology.  Email was an important part of my student teaching experience.  I was able to communicate with the staff and received weekly newsletters from the principal.  For instance, when minor adjustments to the schedule were necessary, I could contact the special education staff to coordinate our schedules.  Also, I used emails to set up special activities, like a nearby teacher whose dog visited our classroom for "Drop Everything and Read" time.
    As a participant in training through "Teaching for Tomorrow," I have access to the latest in research and developments in technology instruction and integration.  I attended a seminar at Spring Arbor University to learn more about COATT and the current technology being used in schools.  As a member of the Michigan Reading Association, I attended their spring conference in 2004 as a student volunteer.  At that conference, I attended an informative session on using technology in early childhood classrooms where I learned how to make class books with voiceovers of children reading using Kids Pix.  I seek to continue to further my knowledge of technology and to help others to become more comfortable with including technology in curriculum so the children of today will become the technical leaders of tomorrow.
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