A Vision of Students Today- The facts in this video describe the average college experience. Apparently my experience was about average. The issue that is stressed in this video is the rigidity of our education systems. I agree that they are rigid, but, I'm not sure that that's a bad thing. As someone with an interest in Economics, I find it mind boggling that our schools would not evolve if there was an incentive to do so. This means that either they are prevented from evolving, or, there is not enough incentive for them to do so. In either case, if the incentive is great enough, change will occur. It could be that with the rapid development of technology, the framework and the catalyst for more interactive learning is just being realized.
It's Not About the Technology- Mrs. Hines points out that recent attempts to upgrade our classrooms are putting the proverbial cart before the horse. If we are going to modernize our classrooms we have to start with teachers. Investing money into cutting edge products will not revolutionize the way our kids learn. Teachers have to be willing to learn and utilize new technologies.
Is It Okay to be a Technologically Illiterate Teacher- Mr. Fisch blogs about the need for each teacher to be technologically literate. I guess the only thing I disagree with is to what extent. What should a fifth grade math teacher know how to do on a computer? Use spreadsheets and word documents I would think would be the minimum. Is it acceptable for someone who specializes in teaching biology to not be able to upload a clip on youtube? This discussion interests me. I know a good deal about computers but I'm not sure what I would expect fellow teachers to know about them.
Social Media Counter- The Social Media Counter is an amazing device for putting technological growth into numbers. It's amazing to think about how much information will be available to us through blogs and other nontraditional means (Facebook, Twitter, Flickr). What will the classroom of the future teach, that can't be found using a simple google search? Who can students meet in school that they couldn't be more familiar with by friending on Facebook? (It's funny that both "friending" and "Facebook" fail this blogs spell-check) Will there be a place for traditional field trips or will we simply Skype the San Fransisco Zoo?
I know this post has more questions than answers. Hopefully, I can begin to resolve them as I get deeper into this class.
Wow Mitch,
ReplyDeleteThis is by far my greatest read of the night. I can tell you put some thought into each of your posts by the way you evaluated the truth and exaggerations behind your assignment. I agree with you that the need for tech-literate teachers and class settings has just been realized, and the revolution is on the horizon. I also agree that there are different levels of tech-literacy needed for each teachers' content area. However, I do believe it is important to be able to use technology as a resource regardless of your content area. For example, in mathematics, you can use it beyond spreadsheets to look up applications of math for motivation.
Good work Mitch, keep up the thoughtfulness. I also like your deviance on the title tags.
Anthony