Use of technology in the classroom is imperative. Not only does it give children more exposure to a medium that they need to be experts in, it is a medium that they prefer to learn in. (The whole point is to make learning engaging, tech or not.) Some educators question using tech in the classroom if students have limited outside access. However, in this situation students should be provided more opportunities to use technology in class.
In a typical class of 30, there will be many with computers at home. Most will also have books. A good portion of the children will own art supplies. Others even have sports equipment. There will be students that lack one or more of these things a home. This doesn't mean that it isn't taught at school. It means that students need to be provided more opportunity to access these things at school. It would be doing a disservice to society as a whole to not teach skills that are important for future competence.
There are various ways to provide students with increased access to technology. At school is the first viable possibility. Lunch-time computer room access. Extending early morning and afternoon hours. This takes funding, but there may be parent volunteers willing to staff these areas. Another possible way for schools to help is to encourage the community to donate used computers that can be refurbished and provided to students and their families. Making technology available at home isn't just going to have a positive effect on student learning, it will also enable the family an important tool for navigating today's community. (This type of program need not stop at just computers, but can extend to other technology as well. Digital cameras, etc)
Beyond working through the school to increase student access, there are other resources that students can turn to if encouraged. Our local library has convenient computer access for evenings and weekends.
Another aspect to consider is if students without access to technology outside the classroom are actually disadvantaged. As I sit in my living room typing on my laptop, I can see my other laptop a few meters away. One corner of the room houses a newer desktop. Another corner has my parent's desktop. There are at least three digital cameras on premises but I'm not sure exactly where. I understand the importance of knowing how to use the technology but I couldn't say that I would lack opportunity or quality of life without these things actually being at my home.
Now, as I finish this post...in the backyard there's a fire in the fire pit with an empty chair next to it. There I will sit and talk with my family...and I'll continue to be careful that technology doesn't take away too much of my real life. In the end, balance.
Friday, August 6, 2010
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Shockwave Flash Object...Yeah!
I really enjoyed watching everyone's PowerPoint presentations this last Monday. We're all getting better at presenting as well as staying cool up front.
There were a lot of memorable aspects of the presentations that worked well. Crissy's Brain Jeopardy was quite cool, even though we (including Crissy) forgot what parts of the brain did what for a bit. Candy did wonders to make up for this. Also, I liked how Whitney had the book covers for the young adult literature that she was presenting. That helped me take in the book titles and remember a couple. Finally, John did a wicked job with Rock Climbing Math. It was very interesting and stressed subject application in a fun and "I don't want to experience pain" sort of way.
The least engaging part of the presentations was when there was either 1) an overuse of text, or 2) reading from slides. This happened on several occasions. Paul's presentation was like this last time in Lichau's class, but this time it was WAY BETTER! Mostly just pictures with Paul talking. Way to go, Paul!
Looking forward, I could have done a lot to improve my presentation. First, I didn't print out any note cards to help guide myself along. I actually thought that we were presenting on Friday and didn't prepare. (Ouch! A bit surprised to walk into class and find that out.) Another piece for future thought is to make darn sure that the contrast is high in each slide. I got off lucky this time, as the lights were dimmed before my presentation came up. Last, I think it's very very very important to have a closing sequence in mind. Coming to the end of a presentation, seeing the "black screen of death" signaling the end of the slides, pausing, saying "and next....uh...huh? Oh. I guess that's it," is a horrible way to end a presentation. I did OK on the closing, but having prepared remarks would have been much better.
Overall, I like using PowerPoint. It helps me remember what I'm going to talk about and frame it in an interesting way. In closing -- here are some things to think about when considering the use of PowerPoint...
Some pros include:
1) It's fast to create a visually interesting presentation
2) It guides the presentation, only minimal notes and transitions are necessary
3) Saves paper copies
4) Can help with differentiating instruction to different learners.
Cons include:
1) Overuse can make it uninteresting
2) Proper technique from creation to delivery is critical
3) Highly dependent on technology...if one piece is out of sync it's sunk
4) The program is designed to entice users into making a bad presentation (themes, clip art, too much text)
There were a lot of memorable aspects of the presentations that worked well. Crissy's Brain Jeopardy was quite cool, even though we (including Crissy) forgot what parts of the brain did what for a bit. Candy did wonders to make up for this. Also, I liked how Whitney had the book covers for the young adult literature that she was presenting. That helped me take in the book titles and remember a couple. Finally, John did a wicked job with Rock Climbing Math. It was very interesting and stressed subject application in a fun and "I don't want to experience pain" sort of way.
The least engaging part of the presentations was when there was either 1) an overuse of text, or 2) reading from slides. This happened on several occasions. Paul's presentation was like this last time in Lichau's class, but this time it was WAY BETTER! Mostly just pictures with Paul talking. Way to go, Paul!
Looking forward, I could have done a lot to improve my presentation. First, I didn't print out any note cards to help guide myself along. I actually thought that we were presenting on Friday and didn't prepare. (Ouch! A bit surprised to walk into class and find that out.) Another piece for future thought is to make darn sure that the contrast is high in each slide. I got off lucky this time, as the lights were dimmed before my presentation came up. Last, I think it's very very very important to have a closing sequence in mind. Coming to the end of a presentation, seeing the "black screen of death" signaling the end of the slides, pausing, saying "and next....uh...huh? Oh. I guess that's it," is a horrible way to end a presentation. I did OK on the closing, but having prepared remarks would have been much better.
Overall, I like using PowerPoint. It helps me remember what I'm going to talk about and frame it in an interesting way. In closing -- here are some things to think about when considering the use of PowerPoint...
Some pros include:
1) It's fast to create a visually interesting presentation
2) It guides the presentation, only minimal notes and transitions are necessary
3) Saves paper copies
4) Can help with differentiating instruction to different learners.
Cons include:
1) Overuse can make it uninteresting
2) Proper technique from creation to delivery is critical
3) Highly dependent on technology...if one piece is out of sync it's sunk
4) The program is designed to entice users into making a bad presentation (themes, clip art, too much text)
Monday, August 2, 2010
Should Mobile Phones be Banned From Classrooms?
For now, absolutely.
The classroom currently has no place for mobile phones. Although many children have them, use revolves around constant messaging back and forth with friends.
MAX: Hey. What u doin?
BILL2015: Im learnin stuff. u?
MAX: Yeah. Learnin suff here 2.
BILL2015: Kewl.
One of the biggest problems that effects our society today is that people are overly connected. As teachers, we should educate students to seek reflective time away from electronic devices. Living in a fast-paced environment of rapid communication and multi-tasking is becoming normal, however, our brains are built in such a way that required time to "download." Our students need time to absorb.
Turning back to the classroom environment: Kolb, a supporter of having mobile phones in the classroom casts them as "the students’ “Swiss Army knife” of technology. Cell phones can be audio recorders, digital video camcorders, still cameras, note-taking devices, calculation devices, scheduling and management tools, phone conferencing devices, Internet researching tools, faxing and scanning devices, blog and Web page editors, or even audio assessment recorders."
Although Kolb is correct in her assertion, the problem of using cell phones as a classroom tool centers around two pieces. 1) The distraction factor and 2) Lack of oversight.
The distraction factor relates directly to the students natural need to use a mobile phone for all available functions...even if it's just supposedly being used as an audio recorder in class. While being used, an incoming message or phone call directly disrupts learning...much like a note had been passed or a student walking in late causes a learning distraction. Both of these are not tolerated, and the related use of a mobile phone is class should be considered equally disrupting.
Second, a lack of oversight. Schools have no control over the messages sent or received on a student's mobile device. All websites are open. This becomes an issue of student safety and quality of the learning environment.
Now, if there were ways to have a mobile phone go to "airplane mode" upon walking on campus, there may be a place for mobile phones in the classroom. Yes, they are "Swiss Army Knives" in a way. But until that time they are still a distraction that is better suited to life outside the classroom.
Questions moving forward:
1) Phones and computers are becoming more synonymous every day. How do we incorporate these tools into the classroom without undue distraction? (The "Airplane Mode" idea sounds great, but maybe a more specific "Learning Mode?")
2) Where does the will of the school against electronic devices clash with the rights of students? (Is this something that schools are coming down too hard on and need to adapt? How can this be done?)
The classroom currently has no place for mobile phones. Although many children have them, use revolves around constant messaging back and forth with friends.
MAX: Hey. What u doin?
BILL2015: Im learnin stuff. u?
MAX: Yeah. Learnin suff here 2.
BILL2015: Kewl.
One of the biggest problems that effects our society today is that people are overly connected. As teachers, we should educate students to seek reflective time away from electronic devices. Living in a fast-paced environment of rapid communication and multi-tasking is becoming normal, however, our brains are built in such a way that required time to "download." Our students need time to absorb.
Turning back to the classroom environment: Kolb, a supporter of having mobile phones in the classroom casts them as "the students’ “Swiss Army knife” of technology. Cell phones can be audio recorders, digital video camcorders, still cameras, note-taking devices, calculation devices, scheduling and management tools, phone conferencing devices, Internet researching tools, faxing and scanning devices, blog and Web page editors, or even audio assessment recorders."
Although Kolb is correct in her assertion, the problem of using cell phones as a classroom tool centers around two pieces. 1) The distraction factor and 2) Lack of oversight.
The distraction factor relates directly to the students natural need to use a mobile phone for all available functions...even if it's just supposedly being used as an audio recorder in class. While being used, an incoming message or phone call directly disrupts learning...much like a note had been passed or a student walking in late causes a learning distraction. Both of these are not tolerated, and the related use of a mobile phone is class should be considered equally disrupting.
Second, a lack of oversight. Schools have no control over the messages sent or received on a student's mobile device. All websites are open. This becomes an issue of student safety and quality of the learning environment.
Now, if there were ways to have a mobile phone go to "airplane mode" upon walking on campus, there may be a place for mobile phones in the classroom. Yes, they are "Swiss Army Knives" in a way. But until that time they are still a distraction that is better suited to life outside the classroom.
Questions moving forward:
1) Phones and computers are becoming more synonymous every day. How do we incorporate these tools into the classroom without undue distraction? (The "Airplane Mode" idea sounds great, but maybe a more specific "Learning Mode?")
2) Where does the will of the school against electronic devices clash with the rights of students? (Is this something that schools are coming down too hard on and need to adapt? How can this be done?)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)