Sunday, February 26, 2012

Blog Post 5

Consumed by Technology

Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please?

Scott McLeod is an Associate Professor of Educational Leadership at the University of Kentucky. He has won many awards for his work with technology, and he wrote the book, What School Leaders Need to Know About Digital Technologies and Social Media. He is widely known for his expertise in the issues of school technology leadership.

In, Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please?, he makes great use of sarcasm to convey his point that technology is important. At the very end, if the reader has not caught on, he shocks them by revealing that he teaches all of his students about technology, and he thinks they will have an advantage because of this knowledge. I believe he is right. The "cons" of having children so technologically savvy are definitely outweighed by the pros, and if these children are guided by their parents, teachers, etc. then there are virtually no cons. To make technology useful for children, we need to be familiar with it so we can guide them down the right path.

iSchool

In The iSchool Initiative and Zeitgeist Young Mind's Entry, Travis Allen argues for the use of more technology in schools. He claims by using an iTouch, education costs can be greatly reduced. There are various apps that the iTouch already has that could replace items used in most schools such as: Email, Chemical Touch, U.S. Constitution, WorldWiki, U.S.A. Presidents, Star Walk, Formulae, Recorder, Scientific Calculator, Graphing Calculator, Notes, Calender, Classics, and iHomework. There would be limited internet on these devices so they will only be used for educational purposes. This would create massive savings, while also helping to save the environment since there will be no waste of paper.

This is definitely an innovative idea. I think there are pros and cons to this idea. I personally like having books and notes that I can physically touch and read, but having all of this conveniently in one place would be amazing. I know that my back has suffered from carrying around backpacks full of massive books that I never even use in class, and I know I am not the only one. In the second video, there was a quote from CNN that said "... Travis Allen started a revolution." He has definitely done just that, and I hope he succeeds because this really is completely integrating technology into the students' lives.

Virtual Choir

Virtual Choir by Eric Whitacre is truly breath taking. It is amazing how these people never met but created something so beautiful. I have to imagine it took a lot of hard work to make this work, but I think it was worth it. We've been reading, watching, and hearing different ways to use technology in education, but technology can also be used for art like this. I think this is a wonderful use for technology. It reminds me of how the students, from one of the links we were required to look at, took a story and recorded it in pieces and all out of order. Then they were able to piece it back together using technology and make it sound like it was recorded all at once. This video just shows you how people from all over the world can be linked through technology and a love of music.

Teaching in the 21st Century

In Teaching in the 21st Century, Kevin Roberts discusses what it means to teach in the 21st century. It means being the filter of the students' knowledge, rather than the main source. It means teaching skills, rather than facts for them to memorize. It means engaging the students, rather than entertaining them. Basically, it means learning how to integrate technology effectively into the classroom. The children we will one day be teaching will have never known a world without technology. It will consume everything they do so it is our job to help them learn how to use it effectively. We have to be there, knowing what we are doing, to guide them through the process and to use technology to teach them lessons in school as well as about life.

Reading Rockets

Reading Rockets has a variety of reading resources available, and it is almost an overwhelming amount of information. They offer help on how to teach reading, on how to help students who are struggling, topics for reading, and so much more. The resources for helping struggling students are definitely my favorite. One of the biggest fears for me, and probably most people, is failing to be able to reach a student. This website offers links on why they struggle and how you can target the problem.

They also offer videos and podcasts. They have interviews with authors and experts, and they offer videos from classrooms. I like the videos of the authors because you could watch them before reading their book. I also like that they include various lists of books that are recommended for children. Educators should be able to guide a student to something that they are suited to read, and these lists are definitely a big help.

3 comments:

  1. Hello. You have done a wonderful job summarizing the videos for this assigment.
    "To make technology useful for children, we need to be familiar with it so we can guide them down the right path." I agree with this statment. In the book written by Rafe Esquith, Lighting Their Fires, he too states that teachers and parents should not allow students to watch films that they haven't watched themselves.

    "The "cons" of having children so technologically savvy are definitely outweighed by the pros and if these children are guided by their parents, teachers, etc. then there are virtually no cons " - The key is to have guideance in anything when we are trying to educate our children. Without it is like throwing them out of a plane and expecting them to land safely.

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  2. " I personally like having books and notes that I can physically touch and read,..." A vanishing breed.

    Thorough, thoughtful, well done!

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  3. Jami: I wasn't required to read that book, but after how much I loved his other book, I will definitely have to check that one out. I like the analogy you used at the end of your post. I think it's a perfect way to describe that.

    Dr. Strange: I guess I'm a little old-fashioned.

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