Welcome to Technically Speaking with Shonda

Welcome to my blog! I’ve spent over 20 years working in the technology field in various positions; currently as a Support Escalation Engineer leading training efforts around educating individuals on Microsoft Teams. With the advent of Covid and the significant increase of Teams usage in the educational communities; I wanted to provide a space where school administrators, teachers and students could learn not only Microsoft Teams but other technologies in a simplified format. It is also my goal to provide guidance to individuals who are new to the information technology field by sharing how I’ve been able to thrive in an ever-changing climate. My goal is to take you on a journey to encourage you to not be afraid to take on the challenge of understanding different technologies.

Before I get into the “technical” side of “Technically Speaking with Shonda”, here’s a little about me and my journey in the technology field.

The Accidental Career

I started out as some high school graduates do with my career plans mapped out. I went off to college with the hope of starting what would be the beginning of my medical career. You see, I wanted to be a Pediatrician. I went off to complete my first year of college and the summer before leaving had an internship at a pediatrician’s office. Sitting in a few cases with the pediatrician while simultaneously working in the medical records department of the hospital where the pediatrician practiced; I came to realize the pediatric medicine was not for me. Fast forward and it’s my second year of school and I don’t know what I want to do since I’ve never wanted to practice any other types of medicine. I end up going to a trade school and studying computers. I find that I have a knack for the technology and pass my Novell Netware certification (I’m telling my age). After completing that training program, I go on to work at a helpdesk providing basic I.T. support. My passion for computers is born and I would go on to earn a bachelor’s degree in telecommunications management.

Figuring Out My Purpose

After getting my bachelor’s degree in telecommunications management, I worked various I.T. jobs and in each I always found that I had a knack for teaching others. I found that I enjoyed it immensely and even though I was scared to death; I always got positive feedback from those who I had instructed about how much they enjoyed the instruction or training. I loved being able to take complex technical material and making it so that they lay person could understand it. My passion for teaching others was born. I’ve taught numerous technical and non-technical classes to individuals of all skill levels and I look forward to sharing and helping to educate folks on Microsoft Teams and other technologies.

 

Covid-19, Chaos, and Remote Learning

The Corona virus left many companies, organizations, and school districts scrambling on how to best educate students while social distancing. Many districts looking for a quick solution for collaboration turned to both Microsoft Teams and Google Classroom without providing the necessary training to teachers on how to implement both. Both applications offer a way to collaborate with students and they also have some of the same functionality. This left many teachers confused on how to use both without appearing to duplicate effort to get the same results. Microsoft Teams is a powerful collaboration hub that many associate with corporate America but Teams also has an education component that is geared specifically towards the education community. With that being said, many teachers as they prepare to go back to school are still wondering how they’ll use Teams and Google Classroom. I’ve authored another post entitled: “Integrating Microsoft Teams and Google Classroom” that I think you’ll find beneficial.  This article assumes you have some foundational knowledge of what Microsoft Teams is and how it works. If you’re new to Microsoft Teams, read my article: “Introduction to Microsoft Teams” for more information.

 

I welcome your feedback….

 

shonda