My Experiences with Technology

I must say that I think during K-12 my education was up to par with integrating computer technology. I went to a private elementary and middle school from Kindergarten to 8th grade. The school had an exclusive grant from Apple. Everything in there was Apple Computers. Being in a strict private environment, they did not hesitate to get us started. I was learning to type with the home row keys as early as first grade! That was back in the early 2000's, before everyone even had a computer. Kudos to my school for predicting what a huge necessity computers would soon become. I remember right around 6th grade the SmartBoards were first introduced, and my school was lucky enough to have just two of them. (They were retailed in the thousands back then). I spent my junior high years getting familiar with Microsoft Word, Excel, and Powerpoint (2003 versions). Unfortunately I am so used to that model that I now struggle sometimes with the modern versions. My only other gripe was having the computers be Apple brand, because my home computers were Dell, as well as my high school's, so Apple was lackluster in comparison, but that's just my opinion.

My high school tech experience was a bit different. I went to a public high school with crummy lockers and walls, so you can imagine how the computers were. However, they did a fantastic job educating me with the use of computer applications. It was a required class for all students. We also had school exclusive research databases at our fingertips to use for any project or assignment. I was also learning the ropes to Prezi in my senior year, and I have a feeling I will be working with it a lot more to come here at SNHU. The staff were very well educated on how to integrate technology into their curriculum. Other than the actual quality and outdatedness of  our computers, with a wifi network that tended to crash a bit, I was satisfied with my tech experience in high school.

I think both schools did a good job teaching technology to students and getting us to work with it in our every day lives. I hope to be able to mimic the exact experience my teachers gave me when I am teaching someday.

What Brings Me to SNHU?

Hello EDU235 classmates and other readers!

For those of you who do not know me yet, my name is Alex. I am a commuter from Pelham, New Hampshire. It's a small little town about 25 minutes from here. I hope to start living here on campus by my sophomore year next year, after I can get my family's financial situation taken care of.

So the question on everyone's minds right now must be what this post is appropriately titled, "What Brings Me to SNHU?" Southern New Hampshire University seemed like one of the best options for me to attend this year. I knew I would have to go somewhere that I could commute to, so that limited a lot of my choices. I looked at Lesley University in Cambridge because of their respected education program, but as I mentioned, the distance was just too far. I also checked out St. Anselm's College right here in Manchester as well as Merrimack College in North Andover. I didn't like the Catholic environment there. SNHU was also generous enough to offer me two scholarships worth a total of $16,000 per year. As I touched on earlier, money is a big issue for me currently so I could use all the help I can get. Although I will say I did not just choose to come here because of the money. I think the Manchester/Hooksett area is beautiful as well as SNHU's rapidly expanding campus. I will be proud to call SNHU my home for the next four years!