Technology Class at Malone: Day 1 -The Afternoon and Evening

The rest of today's afternoon class went by a lot more smoothly. Well, after the college tech guy came and fixed the screen projector that wasn't cooperating! We learned about educational blogs and were encouraged to find one that we would like to follow, discussed how we could incorporate blogs into the classroom, read articles on line and watched videos.

When the instructor told us we could get out our headphones to listen to the videos online, I realized how out of technological touch I was. Last night I excitedly purchased a new notebook to take notes during class; little did I know headphones had become a staple of class materials. Boy did I feel like I was tottering out of my learning paradigm. But, wouldn't you know it, I rummaged around in my purse only to find the rarely used set of earbuds my husband had given me to listen to music on my cell phone. I plugged them into the computer and instantly appeared techno savvy!

Later this evening, as I was doing my homework to find an interesting educational blog, I became so engrossed in reading the material that I completely forgot my simmering pan of rhubarb on the stove. One hour later I emerged upstairs from working on the computer desk top only to wonder what "that smell was". Smelling the remnants of caramelized rhubarb and sugar, I realized I had let the rhubarb simmer to the point of evaporation, leaving burned, caramelized sugar blackened to the bottom of the pan. Who knows how long it will take to clean. I may even have to replace the pan.

Why do tell you this? Well, it is just another example of how technology can suck you in to spending more time than you anticipate. A book, unlike a computer desktop, is portable. If I had had a reading assignment from a book, I could have plopped myself down at the kitchen table, read and kept an eye on the simmering rhubarb. In all likelihood, it would not have burned and ruined the pan.

On the bright side, I did find some great educational blogs to share in class tomorrow AND I may get a new pan out of the deal!