I think this video accurately predicts a lot of students' college experiences. We need more technology in the class room other than the chalk board. Class is a lot more enjoyable when there are presentations and interactive activities to participate in.
"It's Not About the Technology"
I really appreciate Kelly Hines' blog post, "It's Not About the Technology." Yes, it is very important for us to be up-to-date with current technology but in order for us as teachers to really make a difference, we must change our mindset. In her post, Ms. Hines says 21st century teaching is working harder, not smarter. The new technologies are useless without good teaching first. We must know where our children are coming from. If a student has not learned, no teaching has been done.
The most important thing we can teach our students is critical thinking skills. This is called be a 21st century teacher without the technology. If we can do this, we are teaching our students something that is more important than anything we could teach them about technology. Ms. Hines says "The lack of comprehensive and curriculum related professional development for teachers is why schools have thousands of computers being used as game systems and word processors." We MUST be ready and willing to learn new technologies and concepts in order to be effective teachers to our future students.
Karl Fisch: Is It Okay to Be A Technologically Illiterate Teacher?
I found Karl Fisch's post to be very thought provoking. I probably wouldn't have made the correlation of teachers 30 years being illiterate with teachers today being technology illiterate. I liked this post because there is truth in it. At the rate technology is being developed and put to use we will most definitely have to being technology literate. If we are not, what is the point of teaching at all? We wouldn't be teaching our students skills they would actually use in the future world.
I did find Mr. Fisch's post to be extreme. However, I think of it as being extreme for the "better." Sometimes we have to be extreme to get our point across and I think his point is one we should stress to future teachers.
Gary Hayes Social Media Count
This is ASTONISHING!!! It really brings things in perspective. I mean, 29 iPads sold in 45 seconds? For us as future teachers, watching this social media count should put into perspective for us just how important it is to learn new technologies. Even after we graduate and think we know a lot of what there is to know, there will still be more to learn. This social media count proves it! Researching and reading will be detrimental for us to keep up with all the new technological advances being revealed.
I enjoyed reading your thoughts! You, as well as most of the students in our class, seem to be able to relate to the statistics quoted in "A Vision of Student's Today". I, on the other hand, received my first degree 20 years ago and had an "old-fashioned" college experience and education. I am having a hard time adjusting to all of the technology that is used in the classroom and at times find myself wishing for the days of text books again.
ReplyDeleteWhen you combine the statistics of this article with the numbers in Gary Hayes Social Media Count, I can see that things are only going to continue changing and changing quickly! I often wonder if it is even possible to keep up with all of the technology that is out there! There will always be plenty for us to learn and in turn to teach our students. I am excited and motivated to take on the challenges that the technology presents. And, I definitely agree with your comment,"We MUST be ready and willing to learn new technologies and concepts in order to be effective teachers to our future students." How true that is! If we as teachers are not continually learning, how can we prepare our students for the future. We can learn with them and allow them to truly participate in their education!
Good luck with class and I look forward to reading more of your blogs in the future!
"We need more technology in the class room other than the chalk board. Class is a lot more enjoyable when there are presentations and interactive activities to participate in." This is a start. What else must we do to change the organization and delivery of instruction? Not only in college classroom but also in the classroom in which you will work.
ReplyDelete"We MUST be ready and willing to learn new technologies and concepts in order to be effective teachers to our future students. " Will you be ready? If you only do < 1/2 of your assignments? Are you a good role model for the students you will teach?
And in 45 seconds over 27 HOURS of movies uploaded to youTube and over 1 million videos watched on YouTube. In 45 SECONDS!
Well written. Thoughtful. Keep up the good work. And be a good role model for your future students!