TX Long Range Plan for Technology

By reading the Texas Long Range Plan for Technology, I understood the weight of value the state of Texas places on teachers being competent in technology skills. In order for educators to teach technology skills, they must be highly competent in those skills themselves.

I believe that I have seen some progress in the implementation of educator preparation and development. My district offers technology training for teachers, and pay them for participating outside of contract hours. They have also had staff development in the use of technology. Another addition that I have seen growing is the hiring of technology facilitators that work at the district level to research and develop ways for teachers to use technology in the classroom. They frequently visit campuses and offer training for teachers to attend while of their conferences. In addition, a few weeks ago, they asked me to participate in a technology showcase at my campus with a few other tech savvy teachers. All we had to do was demonstrate some of the technology that we use in our classrooms. I believe that it was a great success.

With all of the additions in the training and use of technology in education, there are still a few deficiencies that need to be addressed. I often feel like there still is not enough staff development offered on staff dev. days that teach relevant technology use in the classroom. I feel that there could be better use of that time to address that. In addition, there are still many old school teachers that refuse to adapt with the times and learn effect uses of technology applied to learning.

Graphics Software

In computer graphics, graphics software or image editing software is a program or collection of programs that enable a person to manipulate visual images on a computer.

A screenshot from the vector graphics editor Adobe Illustrator
Computer graphics can be classified into two distinct categories: raster graphics and vector graphics. Before learning about computer software that manipulates or displays these graphics types, you should be familiar with both.
Many graphics programs focus exclusively on either vector or raster graphics, but there are a few that combine them in interesting and sometimes unexpected ways. It is simple to convert from vector graphics to raster graphics, but going the other way is harder. Some software attempts to do this.
Most graphics programs have the ability to import and export one or more graphics file formats.
Several graphics programs support animation, or digital video. Vector graphics animation can be described as a series of mathematical transformations that are applied in sequence to one or more shapes in a scene. Raster graphics animation works in a similar fashion to film-based animation, where a series of still images produces the illusion of continuous movement.

In the Webmastering, and BIMM courses that I teach, I teach students graphic software such as Fireworks, Photoshop, and Illustrator. Students enjoy learning new tricks ands skills on how to make their own graphics and photo effects.

Desktop Publishing Software

Desktop publishing (also known as DTP) combines a personal computer and WYSIWYG page layout software to create publication documents on a computer for either large scale publishing or small scale local multifunction peripheral output and distribution.
The term "desktop publishing" is commonly used to describe page layout skills. However, the skills and software are not limited to paper and book publishing. The same skills and software are often used to create graphics for point of sale displays, promotional items, trade show exhibits, retail package designs and outdoor signs.

The two most widely used Desktop Publishing software used are Microsoft Publisher, and Adobe InDesign. While Publisher is more well know among common software users who have Microsoft Office, the InDesign software is more common known among professionals to get the more bells and whistles that come along with its price tag.

As a teacher, I have actually taught both Publisher and InDesign to students. When I taught BCIS in a PC lab, Publisher was taught as part of the curriculum. It seemed to be perfect for beginning learners to start on. In my Business Imaging & Multimedia class, I teach InDesign in a Mac lab to 11th and 12th graders. It allows them to learn more advanced desktop publishing skills while using its inhance capabilities.

Dreamweaver

One of new topics in class is Abobe Dreamweaver. Write a brief description of what you think about this software, and also post any questions and answers about this topic.

Flash Software

One of new topics in class is Abobe Flash. Write a brief description of what you think about this software, and also post any questions and answers about this topic.