Thursday, November 28, 2019

Teacher Interview Questions About Technology

Teacher Interview Questions About TechnologyTeacher Interview Questions About TechnologyWhen you areapplying for a teaching position, a typical job interview question is, How have you used, or how will you use, technology in the classroom? With all of the new forms of technology available, schools are eager to incorporate it into their classrooms whenever possible. Its important to assure your interviewer that you are familiar with and enthusiastic about using available technology. In addition, note that you are always looking to research new technologies to implement in your classroom, as they become available. Make a List of Technology You Have Used in the Classroom or at School Review your past five years at work. Which technologies did you use and how did you use them? Platforms Tablets, desktop computers, laptop computers, mobile devices.Software Software packages (such as Microsoft Office), programs, apps.Display Devices Smart boards, video displays.Video Cameras, video rec orders, video editing devices, and applications.Audio Microphones, speakers, mixers, amplifiers, recording devices, audio editing devices, and applications. What Technology Do You Use at Home? Discuss how you use technology at home and in your personal life. What social media do you use? Do you use a fitness tracker? Are there apps or games you enjoy? How might familiarity with these translate into future technology in the classroom? If your previous schools had little technology in the classroom, showing that you use it at home can be a positive response. Did you teach your children, spouse, parents, or grandparents how to use technology? What Technology Did You Use at Non-Classroom Jobs? Be able to discuss how you used computers and other technology in jobs that were not in education. You may have used tablets and mobile devices in paid or volunteer work. Have examples of how you found them useful for performing the jobs or how you coached co-workers in using them. Prov ide Examples of Technology You Have Used Provide the interviewer with specific examples of what technologies you have used in the past I was lucky to have one of the first Smart Boards in my classroom. The children were immediately engaged and eager to explore the possibilities being offered. We learned together just what an amazing teaching tool it could be.We used tablets in my last class and the students used apps to enhance their lessons.I taught a class that created a blog and a wiki, with all of the students contributing. Students that were reluctant to speak in class blossomed when they were able to write their entries. One of my classes developed a podcast to share with other students and their families.We connected to guests via Skype for interviews. The students asked questions and received answers from experts who were far away or too busy to come to class in person.I use a personal computer or tablet to develop and organize my lesson plans and to calculate final grades. Be Prepared to Talk about Social Media and Internet Safety Policies The use of social media both by students and by teachers is a charged issue with many educators. While you should be prepared, as a teacher, to demonstrate your command of social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, you also need to make sure that your use of these tools is transparent and that theway you present yourself there is above reproach. You should also know and be prepared to discuss your local school boards policies governing Internet use and the safety protocols they have implemented in their public schools. According to theNational Conference of State Legislatures(NCSL), twenty-five states have implemented Internet filtering laws that require publicly funded schools and libraries to instigate policies that prevent minors from accessing obscene, sexually explicit, or otherwise harmful content on the Internet. unterstellung laws arose in response to the 2000 Federal Childrens Internet Protection Act (CIPA), mandating that schools receiving funds from the federal E-rate program provide Internet filtering of classroom technologies accessed by students. The other significant piece of legislation to be aware of is the 1998 Childrens Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), that protected students under 13 from having their personal information collected without the consent of a parent or guardian (which is why social platforms like Facebook require users to be 13 or older). Some school districts have responded to these laws not only by filtering websites, but also by prohibiting social media contact between teachers and students. Thus, you should be aware of your school districts policies before going into the interview. If your district is one of the many that does allow teachers to use social media technologies for teacher-student and student-student discussion, be prepared to discuss what safeguards you would implement to ensure student user safety and privacy in a ccessing whatever class blogs or social media pages you set up and administer.

Saturday, November 23, 2019

Do What You Love, But Not All the Time

Do What You Love, But Not All the TimeDo What You Love, But Not All the Time0Why is it not always necessary, or possible, to only do a job you love? Sometimes you need to do jobs that the market demands or perform tasks you dont like. We need to reverse the do what you love fallacy that makes people think that if they arent doing a job they love all the time, they need to find a new line of work. Wheres the dividing line between a job you like well enough and a job you really dont like?There was once a guy who worked for a lawn care company. When asked how he was doing he would say, Work sucks, but I need the bucks.Work doesnt have to suck, and hopefully it doesnt for many of us, but the reality is that sometimes people have jobs, careers, or certain aspects of those jobs or career that they dont especially care to do, or that doesnt provide the satisfaction they seek in their profession. Sometimes we all have to take a job, stay in a job, or pursue a job that fits whats right at the time. And there is nothing wrong with that, says Curt Rosengren, a passion catalyst who helps people love their work and change their world in a way that feels personally meaningful to them.I think the idea that everyone should be doing work they love or theyre making the wrong career decisions is ludicrous, says Rosengren, author of 101 Ways to Get Wild About Work and The Occupational Adventure Guide A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams. Sometimes reality means you need to do the less-than-ideal option. Maybe your unemployment is running out and you just need income. Maybe your dream job wouldnt let you spend the quality time with your young kids youre committed to. Maybe your spouse is ill and youre relying on your jobs insurance for health care.Rosengren continues I think one of the biggest fallacies is that having work you love means all passion, all the time. The reality is there is no perfect job. I cant think of any career that feels like a more perfect fit for me tha n what I do now, but even so there are aspects of my work I really dont like.We all want a job we love, to make an impact, and to feel a sense of personal and professional accomplishment. Most of all, we want to go to a job and a place of work that motivates us each day. But that isnt reality for everyone. Theres a difference between I have to compromise right now because of my current situation, and I just have to suck it up. Work is a four-letter word says Rosengren.The former is a tactical decision based on what is needed in the present moment. The latter is giving up in defeat and letting a combination of present moment challenges and negative thinking define the rest of your career.Difference Between Like Well Enough And Dont Really LikeThere is a fine line, though, between a job you like well enough to keep going to each day and a job you really dont like. What are the warning signs its time to move on? Its affecting your professional life. The days drag on. And on. And on. Yo u dont want to make that additional phone call, send that email, or call in to that conference call. Or, you dont ever put in that extra effort to make sure the job is done right. You know its going to eventually cost the company, and maybe even your job, but you just dont care. Its affecting your personal life. Lets face it, we all gripe about work at some point. But if its leading to schwimmbad habits outside of work (excessive drinking/drug abuse), affecting your family life, or affecting your health, then it is seriously time to consider finding a new job. If you go to bed at night simply dreading the next day, or cant fall asleep because you dread the fact you have to show up to work again, then its time to move on. Youre making excuses. If youre calling in sick when you are not sick, constantly showing up late, taking extended lunch breaks, and/or making excuses to leave early, then its time to consider moving on. Youre displaying bad behavior. If youve been reprimanded at wor k, your colleagues start calling you out or have reported you to your boss or HR for unprofessional behavior, or youre hastily responding to emails- its time to really consider moving on.Job Happiness Factors NOT in Your ControlThere are also other elements of a job outside your control that can affect your ability to truly love the job and be happy, such asA lack of opportunity for promotion.A toxic work environment or bullying boss.A company not investing in new technology or using dated methods to complete work.Layoffs, or constant threat of layoffs, leaving you to question if it makes a difference or not if you perform at a high level.Those are all realistic reasons to dread the current job and seek new opportunities.Time to look for a new job? Check out these eight high-demand flexible jobs that employers need to fill.What If You Cant Leave Your Job?If you cant move on, Rosengren recommends asking yourself this question How can I bring more of what I love into my work?Make it a regular inquiry- and act on it, he says. Keep taking steps in that direction, whether that is within your current job or through a wholesale change, says Rosengren. Over the course of your career, the cumulative impact of asking that question and acting on the answer can be huge.We all have aspects of our jobs that we dread, but dont cause us to seek new opportunities. Once a quarter, a creative director has to drive three hours to sit awake overnight doing press checks during the printing of a magazine a website editor has to attend out-of-state training for a week once a year when he wishes he was home providing the help needed for his disabled daughter a part-time healthcare worker who works evenings dreads the mandatory once-a-month team meeting at 1000 a.m. because it messes with her child-care schedule. These are aspects of a job these people dread, but overall, they still are happy and enjoy the work they do. Nothing is absolutely perfect.Rosengren admits he tells people the re is no perfect job. It doesnt exist, he says. But, If you can find something where you love what youre doing 80% of the time, youre golden. That takes away the feeling that if theres something they dont like, they must be off track.If you are happy most of the time, but not all of the time, you are not alone. And theres absolutely nothing wrong with that.Readers, how do you feel about passion in a job? Do you do what you love some of the time or all of the time? Share your experience with us

Thursday, November 21, 2019

10 Tech Careers That Dont Involve Coding

10 Tech Careers That Dont Involve Coding10 Tech Careers That Dont Involve CodingAre you seeking involvement in the booming tech scene but dont know how to code? Scores of career opportunitiesin techinvolve no code skills at all.Ten lucrative careers in technology, along with mini-profiles and the national average salary for each are explored.Note that all salary information derived from PayScale.. 01User Interface DesignerJuhan Sonin//Flickr.comSimilar to UX, but user interface konzeption (UI) gives greater emphasis to the design of the interface.UI designersestablish the look and feel of a softwares interface. UI designers are often responsible forVisual design through each stage from brainstorming to engineeringClear communication of ideas and instructions to users through well-designed wireframes, storyboards, user flows, and sitemapsMaking the interface a cohesive whole by intentionally designing each element of the site or web app to ensure they all work togetherNational Average Salary for UI Designers $61,30802User Experience DesignerUser experience designers (UX) create products with the end user in mind. Basically, their primary goal is increasing user satisfaction.The field of UX varies greatly. Some UXers focus on user research exclusively, while others may be more involved with prototyping products.Nonetheless, a few key responsibilities includeUser research understanding users through interviews or other methods like card sortingInformation architecture knowing the most effective ways to structure content on a site or appData-driven design making design choices based on data analysisWireframing and prototyping building test versions of websites/web appsNational Average Salary for UX Designers $72,78003Software Quality TesterSoftware quality testers (SQTs)test the quality of software products prior to public launch to ensure they are working properly.The field is related to, but separate from,quality assurance (QA).SQTs ansturm various functional, st ress and scalability tests across numerous customer scenariosin efforts to break the software with a goal of eliminating bugs and improve the quality improvement of the final product.National Average Salary for Software Quality Testers$53,64604Search Engine Optimization SpecialistSearch engine optimization (SEO), while often classified under the marketing umbrella,? is characterized bytechnical aspects of its ownspecifically,dealing with increasing rankings in search engines whose algorithms are forever being optimized for up-to-the-minute relevance.SEO specialists collaborate with developers and web designers to ensure SEO best practices are being implemented across a website/web app.Other common responsibilities for SEO specialists includeResearching keywordsWorking with content teams to drive SEO in content creationOptimizing copy on pages to improve search engine rankingTracking, reporting, and analyzing website analytics and PPC campaignsNational Average Salary for SEO Speciali sts $40,75005Data AnalystData analytics jobs are perfect for those possessingan affinity fordata set analysis, trend spotting, and strength inconveying the findings in laymans terms.Strong mathematical and analytical skills are keyto the role data analysts play, notably knowledge of statisticscollection and organization of large sets of data are central to the job description.Additionally, some companies may requiremeasurable programming acumen.National Average Salary for Data Analysts $52,98106Web Analytics SpecialistWeb analytics relates to SEO and digital marketing. A specialists focus lay in site traffic measurement, goal-setting for site elements, user experience visualization through Google Analytics, and site change monitoring with A/B testing.Web analysis specialists generally work throughagencies representing multiple clients, so expect to handle more than one website, depending on the agencys size and workflow.National Average Salary for Web Analytics Specialist $62,464 07 Enterprise Software SalesEnterprise software schlussverkauf can be a highly lucrative field for the right person. As with any sales job, exceptional performance is generally quite healthily rewarded with commissions and bonuses, putting top performers at some of the largest global companies in the $400,000 per year range.Software-as-a-service sales, more typically known as SaaS sales functions primarily as geschftsleben-to-business (B2B) service.However, as is the case in so many sales roles, high reward comes with high risk. Quotas, high-pressure-high-stakes negotiations, and extensive travel can often do take a toll on family life, so knowing what youre getting into at the outset is important.National Average Salary for Enterprise Software Sales $72,32508Growth HackerAlso known as a user acquisition specialist, growth hackers fall under the larger umbrella of marketing, as well.Commonly employed by startups, growth hackers combine marketing, technology, and business development wi th a laser focus onuser acquisition. They develop and implement onboarding strategies, experiment extensively, measure results, and tweak or even discard plans as necessary, based on consumer response and engagement. Such a role requires flexibility and agility of process to successfully execute.National Average Salary for Growth Hackers $74,36909Tech Support SpecialistSome types of tech support jobs require a degree if the type of support you are giving is highly technical for others, a degree is no issue.Perhaps the greatest benefit to many in this field is theflexibility. Many tech support companiesallow for flex scheduling, working from home or some hybrid therein. As long as youre able to engage with the customer and help them with their technology problems, it doesnt always matter whether youre in a cubicle or on your sofa.A solid familiarity with a wide variety of tech products and issues coupled withstrong communication skills are essential to this position.National Averag e Salary for Tech Support Specialists $40,33510Technical RecruiterTechnical recruiters often stand as gatekeepers between major organizations and technical employees such as programmers and developers. While they dont perform hands-on tasks with technology or coding, a fundamental understanding of the larger technical landscape is nonetheless extremely important to successful procurement of adequate professional experience for the often highly-specialized roles theyre contracted to fill.Excellent communication skills are key for a technical recruiter. Experience working in technology fields is a bonus, as is a mature and confident personality.National Average Salary for Technical Recruiters $45,064