Blog #2: Microsoft Word & Privacy

I have had extensive experience with Microsoft Word as a student. My elementary school had computer classes where I learned the basics of all the Microsoft programs, and I continued to learn things as I continued to use Word from teachers, friends, and YouTube. I have mostly been able to use Word to write papers, take notes, and create posters and newsletters. Most of my teachers have used Word for study guides or creating homework, quizzes, and tests, not really branching out and using it in a creative way. I think this is a common theme with educators today: they would much rather stay in their comfort zone rather than experiment when it comes to technology.

In many of my classes in high school, the only talk about copyright we had was when we talked about plagiarism. We learned how to cite sources in MLA, and that was it. When it came to pictures and images, unless it was a graph or some sort of image that was to be used inside of a paper, teachers didn't really care where you got it from and you didn't have to cite it. In my classroom, students will learn how to cite things in different formats, as well as how to cite pictures within presentations and things. We will discuss plagiarism, and students will be punished for plagiarized material. As a teacher, I will be conscious of where I pull my material from when creating tests, quizzes, homework, and any other materials I use in class.

As teachers, we are responsible for teaching our students how to avoid common issues with technology. One of the biggest issues in an English classroom will be copyright: using someone else's materials on your own. I will overcome this issue by teaching my students how to cite sources properly in numerous different formats. This plagiarism also plays into academic honesty, another big issue in an English classroom. I plan to have students turn all their papers in to Turnitin to make sure there is no plagiarism and that each student's work is honest and their own. Privacy is another big issue in this digital age. Students of this generation share a lot online, however, as a teacher, I will stress the importance of not sharing everything online. For example. don't share where you live, your full name, your social security number...

The digital age is great! I am a huge fan of all the material available to be used online. However, as teachers, we need to be responsible for making sure we follow copyright laws and teach our students about it as well.

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