Kerri Valesey

Today's world is constantly changing with the ever-present, ever-increasing digital technologies that are shifting the way we live.  Our world is changing everyday, whether or not we want to admit it, and using technology in the classroom exposes students to the infinite knowledge that is already available in the palm of their hands.  Contemporary students are members of the unique digital generation, a group of young people who learn differently than traditional pedagogies accounts for.  Teachers in today’s world are charged with adapting to their students ways of learning, to enhancing their multiliteracies and working with multimodalities to reach their students.

Utilizing technology within schools to enhance education for student learners as well as professional development for educators is an essential part of teaching in today's classroom.  In order to best prepare students for career and college readiness, students must learn how to best manage their digital literacies in order to learn, create knowledge, and acquire the 21^st century literacies that are necessary to become productive members of our society. 

During my education at SUNY Cortland, I was able to become more and more technologically proficient through the trial and error process that today’s students utilize in their everyday learning.  By continually challenging myself to learn about the different ways technology can be used to collaborate, problem solve, and construct knowledge, I learned and relearned skills that will enable me to relate to students.  Making mistakes, asking questions, and questioning the everyday answers are all a part of the 21^st century skills that my future students will learn from what I myself have experienced!