Riquel Wilson

http://mrswilsonclass01.weebly.com/
EDU-225
03/06/2016

Entry 1: Technology to Support Communication

Introduction
Technology has become an important and essential tool to use in the classroom today.
With the new advances in technology, society learns, teaches and communicates much differently
than before. For teachers establishing a good line of communication with students and parents is
crucial because having good communication helps to support student success in the classroom.
The use of technology enables teachers to communicate with students and parents more
frequently and effectively outside of the classroom. Various studies claim that teachers can use a
variety of communication formats and channels in order to promote parental involvement in
building a sense of community between home and school(Palts and Harro-Loit, 2015). Digital
resources such as email, the class website, Skype and social network will help ensure that a
constant flow of communication between all parties involved is present during the duration of the
school year.
Technology to Enhance Communication
Email:
Email serves as an effective tool for communication between parents, students, and the
global community. This digital resources allows for more timely and effective communication

between various parties regardless of time or location. Students can use email to send
assignments to teachers and to ask questions. Parents might prefer to receive an email over a
phone because it allows them to communicate with teachers quicker and I'm private. As for
communicating with the global community, teachers most likely favor emails because emailing
is a quick and convenient way to send and receive messages from their peers and administrators
regarding their school related questions and concerns.

Class Website:
The class website contains important information for students and parents including
current classroom announcements, events, and homework reminders. Important resources such
as informative and helpful websites for both students and parents can also be found on the
website in addition to the teacher's contact information. Classroom websites are open to the
public which is good for teachers because they are able to make connections with other
classrooms and share different ideas with their peers.
Skype:
Video conferencing is very popular in todays society. Skype allows a person to have a
spoken conversation with another individual over the internet by using a webcam. Teachers can
use Skype to help promote classroom communication and collaboration among students despite
their location. Skype is also a great tool for tutoring. Teachers could also use skype to catch up a
student who has been out of class for some time. Parents can use Skype to video conference with
teachers. Using skype will make it easier for the two to communicate is they are unable to do so

in person. As for communicating with the global community, teachers can use skype to
communicate with other educators and administrators outside of school.
The Social Network Website Edmodo:
Social networks can be used to create a closed online community for parents and
students. Edmodo is a safe and easy way for teachers to connect and collaborate with students
and parents outside of the classroom. On Edmodo teachers are able to form groups, create
assignments, and track their students progress. Edmodo gives parents the opportunity to stay on
top of their childs homework as well as view lesson, quizzes and event schedules on the site.
Students are able to communicate with their teachers and classmates on the website in addition to
participating in discussion forums. The Edmodo global community is expanding and more
teachers are utilizing the site to network and share ideas with educators across the globe.
Communication Internet Security and Safety
While communicating online is fast and easy, it is crucial to be safe and cautious while
using the internet despite who one decides to interact with. Internet use is nearly ubiquitous
among US youth (Moreno, Egan, Bare, Young, Cox, 2013), thus internet safety is a valuable
concern for teachers and parents and it is something that should be taught to students early on.
Before integrating technology into the classroom, it is important that students understand and
know the rules for using the internet at school and at home. Teaching children how to use the
internet correctly early on will help protect them in the future.
Concluding Paragraph
Technology can be used to enhance the overall learning environment of a class. With the
use of technology teachers are able to communicate better than ever before. The twenty-first

century classroom is heavily influenced by the use of information technology (Union and
Green, 2015), digital devices such as email, class websites, skype, and social networks enable
teachers to communicate more effectively with their peers, students, and parents outside of the
classroom. One important thing to consider when teaching students how to communicate through
technology is their safety. It is crucial that students learn how to communicate properly online
without giving away any of their personal information so that they can have a safe and enjoyable
online experience.

References
Moreno, M. A., Egan, K. G., Bare, K., Young, H. N., & Cox, E. D. (2013). Internet safety
education for youth: stakeholder perspectives. BMC Public Health, 13(1), 1-6.
doi:10.1186/1471-2458-13-543
Palts, K., & Harro-Loit, H. (2015). Parent-Teacher Communication Patterns Concerning Activity
and Positive-Negative Attitudes: A Journal of The Humanities & Social Sciences, 19(2),
139-154. doi:10.3176/tr.2015.2.03
Union, C., Union, L., & Green, T. (2015). The Use of eReaders in the Classroom and at Home to
Help Third-grade Students Improve their Reading and English/ Language Arts
Standardized Test Scores. Techtrends: Linking Research & Practice To Improve Learning,
59(5), 71-84. doi:10.1007/s11528-015-0893-3