Given today's digital landscape where everything is being designed and created online using digital tools and platforms, it just seems to make sense for or all users (teachers, students, other professionals) to create a digital portfolio and resume. As I began to create my own digital profile, I began to see how much sense it made to expose the students in my district to this type of activity. When students take a test or write a paper, their work essentially vanishes. Their thoughts, understandings, and learning needs to be captured; with digital portfolios, this can be done. Not only will students be able to demonstrate and showcase their learning and understanding to their teachers, colleges, and future employers, but by building a digital portfolio it's also serving as a reflection tool. Students are re-examining and evaluating the work they've done over the course of a semester or year, an incredibly powerful and useful educational process.
My Internet Tools for Teaching class has come to an end. Over the past seven weeks, I have learned and shared my thoughts with others about Internet safety, created a digital story with just my cell phone, broadcast my own live radio show, and built my own digital portfolio. I take away many valuable lessons that I look forward to sharing with the teachers and students of my district.