Interactivity #3: Generating a State of the Art Inventory

There really is so much technology available out there for teaching reading and writing. It was hard to narrow it down to my top ten, but there are a few that I feel have either had an enormous impact on English education or have enormous potential to do the same. There are tons of possibilities for creating interesting instruction while incorporating technology into the classroom. That was probably the greatest insight I gained from this activity, and I feel that there is no excuse for English teachers not to be using technology in the classroom! Even if you don’t have every resource available to you or are reluctant about incorporating technology into the classroom, there is so much out there for us that’s truly innovative, inspiring, and exciting – I don’t understand why any educator wouldn’t want to at least try some of it!

It’s always interesting doing group work – you never know who you’re going to have to share the work with. Luckily, almost everyone in my group was able to meet in person to figure things out first. Google Docs is also an amazing tool and we were especially excited about the chat feature which, had we known about it sooner, would have allowed for us to get the work done without having to meet in person! I’m glad that I have this great inventory to add to my list of teaching resources now – my group members found some awesome stuff and I already have begun thinking about how to incorporate some of it in the future.

Can Technology Wait?

Despite everything we are learning about the possibilities for technology in the classroom, we know that not everyone is on board for digitizing schools. This NY Times article talks about the Waldorf School, a private school in Silicon Valley. They believe that computers and technology get in the way of education and do not allow it in the school at all - not a single television, computer, iPad, or cell phone. This may seem shocking, especially given the recent push for technology in the classroom, but the Waldorf School feels as though there is no place for technology in schools and even discourages parents from exposing students to it at home - at least until they get a little older.

The article is clear about the fact that there is no proof that students learn better without technology, although there isn't really any that students learn better with it either. It also points out that this is a very expensive, elite private school, which tells us a lot about the kind of students that go there and what kinds of backgrounds they come from. We also know that they don't take standardized tests, and they admit that they'd probably do poorly on them anyway since they don't teach many skills drilled on those tests. The bottom line of the article seems to be that this is simply an alternative for parents (who can afford it) who believe that their children need to be engaged in their education without depending on technological devices.

I think we would all agree that this is not the right approach to take in today's world, when everyone is so dependent on technology; still, the idea has it's merits, especially when it comes to the value of face-to-face interaction and hands-on learning. I also really appreciate the idea of slowly integrating technology into a child's life as they get older, althought I'm not sure how realistic that really is or if it's even beneficial. I believe the best approach is to find some kind of middle ground, but I am interested to hear your reactions to the article.

"If we were really serious about educational technology..."

I found this thought-provoking article while surfing the web. Scott McLeod, an Associate Professor at the University of Kentucky, talks about what educators would be doing if they "were really serious about educational technology." We know that technology has come so far recently and is capable of so much, but we still haven't fully integrated all of it into the classroom. This is a great read for all prospective educators; hopefully we all keep it in mind as we begin planning for our future classrooms.

The first point Professor McLeod makes is that we should, "show students how to edit their privacy settings and use groups in Facebook instead of banning online social networks because they’re ‘dangerous’ and/or ‘frivolous’." I could not agree more! I think it's quite ridiculous that most school districts ban social networking sites. While it is important to make sure our students remain on task and safe when using the internet at school, there are more efficient ways of doing so! When I worked at the Boys and Girls Club this summer, the Technology room was equipped with software that allowed the main (teacher's) computer to see and interact with every desktop. Not only were we able to monitor students during free time online, but we were able to use it to launch a PowerPoint presentation on every computer in the room during a lesson. If schools invested in this kind of software, we would be able to do so much more with websites like Facebook.

It is easy to forget: A) the educational possibilities of these sites for our students - especially blogging sites such as this one; and B) the pervasiveness of such sites in the lives of our students; but, we cannot deny the value of teaching our students how to use them properly. We lose so many learning opportunities because these sites are off-limits at schools! I think it would be an amazing idea to teach students about editing privacy settings, especially with the recent changes to the social networking site, and to help them understand the permanent and public nature of posting things on sites like it. Not only would we be teaching them valuable skills, but we'd be helping them plan for the future.

McLeod continues saying that we should, "teach students to understand and contribute to the online information commons rather than ‘just saying no’ to Wikipedia." This is another inspired idea! I've always known that Wikipedia was "unreliable" and unacceptable to cite for academic papers, but I never realized how it could be a great learning opportunity for our students! While I agree that we shouldn't do all of our research on Wikipedia, I have used it to look for sources or find ideas that led to further research. It can be a valuable resource if used correctly; unfortunately, that is something we never bother to teach in school.  I know many teachers have their own class wikis but to have students actually contribute to the biggest one sounds like such an exciting project - one that students could really get engaged in and be proud of.

McLeod also says that we should, "tap into and utilize the technological interest and knowledge of students instead of pretending that they have nothing to contribute." I wholeheartedly agree with this. We all know that students come into the classroom with TONS of knowledge - knowledge that they have gained through their life experiences. We should never forget how valuable this knowledge can be! We know that students love to use technology, and that they know how  to do that better than most of us can. Even those with limited access, like Olivia from Interactivity #1, always seem to find a way to get connected.The younger generations will always be more "in touch" with technology than the older generations, but we forget that we have this wonderful resource of knowledge that walks into our classrooms everyday.  By showing students that they have something valuable to bring into the classroom, we validate their experiences - and we can learn a lot!

I've picked my three favorite points in the article, but he makes a total of 10 - all of which are great. I invite you all to read the article and consider which of these ideas resonate most with you.

"Kindergartners getting Ipads"

I found a video on CNN's website that caught my attention and I thought it would be interesting to share here. In Kindergartners getting Ipads, they tell the story of a school district in Maine that voted to provide Ipads for every Kindergartner in the district. While teachers and administrators overwhelmingly applaud the move, some community members are skeptical about giving the young students the responsibility of caring for the expensive tablet computers.

While it may seem a bit absurd to be giving Kindergartners Ipads, I think it's a brilliant idea. The teacher in the video raves about how the Ipad has motivated students to be excited and engaged in their own learning; what more could we ask for as teachers? I suppose the true success of this move will be measured by test scores at the end of the year, but if the district is willing to foot the bill for the Ipads, I don't see why anyone should oppose it.

It's so important to remember who we are teaching and why we are teaching them. I've heard it said that the point of school is to prepare students for the "real world," but in case you haven't noticed, they are already living in it! What better way to integrate them into today's technologically-driven world than to integrate technology into the classroom in truly meaningful ways? Regardless of whether the Ipads actually help these students learn more, they are gaining the invaluable computer skills necessary to thrive in today's world.

My only criticism of this move is that it should be available to every child in the district, not just kindergartners. There are so many great learning opportunities available to students through the use of personal computers and it's absolutely necessary to provide all of our students with that. Of course, this can be expensive and I wonder if anything like this would happen in a less affluent state/school district. Either way, I think it is a great idea and I'd love to see this happen in more districts across the country.

Interactivity #2: The History of Technology in Schools

Instructional films changed the way classrooms functioned and indoctrinated a whole generation of students into accepting societal norms, values, and beliefs.