Blog Post 5

Don't teach your kids this stuff. Please?

"Don't teach your kids this stuff. Please?", by Dr. Scott McLeod is a satire on the arguments that people use to get around teaching children technology. He states arguments such as "pen and paper aren't going anywhere" and "they could be sexting (so don't let them near cell phones!) and getting hooked up with predators". In this article, he, like many others, focuses on the NEGATIVE only in technology, until the end, when he says: "don't do any of it, please; really; 'cause I'm doing all of it with my kids; can't wait to see who has a leg up in a decade or two; can you?", which I feel like is his main point - children who are trained in technology will have a leg up in the future.

According to his official website, Dr. McLeod is an associate professor of education at the University of Kentucky. He founded and currently directs CASTLE, which is a project to train school administrators in technology. He is also an avid blogger and twitter users. For his work in promoting technology, he has won multiple awards, such as being named a Phi Delta Kappa emerging leader.

The iSchool Initiative (Mobile Learning)

In this video, Travis Allen, a seventeen year old high school student in Georgia, argues that he has a solution for the multiple problems our education system is suffering through. He has prepared a PowerPoint entitled, "Does Technology Belong in the Classroom?".

Allen feels that iPod Touches, by the company Apple, could replace the current trends in the classroom, such as papers, pecils, etc. He showcases certain apps, such as the E-Mail app, where students, parents, and teachers could stay in touch with one another, Chemical Touch, an app about the periodic table, a digitial copy of the consitution, WorldWiki, an application that gives maps and globes, Formulae, an application that provides every possible formula for science and maps students, a calendar application, a notetaking application, and more. He even shows the application "Classics", which could be a great resource to read books, including textbooks. iHomework allows students and teachers to communicate about homework.

Allen shows that the iPod touch could be further customized to show grades, calendar menus, and more school information. He shows that it could save money on things such as calculators, paper, and textbooks, and he says that it could save $600 (at least) per student for $150 per iSchool.

Travis Allen, now a student at Kentucky State University, travels around to help push the iSchool initiative with seminars. Towards the end of the second video, Allen says, "The simple truth is this: If we are going to thrive in the information age, we must rethink, retool, and rebuild our educational institution to better prepare our youth for the digital world we were born in to."

Wow. That's about all I can say about this video. I immediately posted the final quote given to my Facebook after watching - how incredibly true, and how wonderful that somebody my age could have already made such a difference! Honestly, I'm unsure as to why we haven't made this leap into technology yet, though I suspect fear is a large part of it. The idea of teachers being so incredibly accessible would be wonderful for students, and the idea of carrying around a small, less than one pound, mini computer is very appealing as opposed to multiple backpacks and books. This is probably the most impressive video I've seen in this course to date.

Eric Whitacre's Virtual Choir - 'Lux Aurumque'

Eric Whitacre's use of the internet and technology is absolutely incredible. Funnily enough, this is not the first time I've seen something like this. Being a fan of musical theatre, I've seen videos where people have sung songs together via the internet and laid down the tracks together to create harmonies. That said, I've never seen anything of this magnitude. And this is just 185 people. Under the video, there is a link to "Eric Whitacre's Virtual Choir 2.0", where "Sleep" is performed by 2,085 people from fifty-eight different countries. Wow! What a way to connect with people from around the world! This is extremely impressive!

In the classroom, it might be fun for a choir or theatre teacher to try something like this. If the jobs were avaiable, I would probably actually be a music education major and would definitely love to try something like this. I'm about to email this video to my old choir teacher from high school.

"Teaching in the 21st Century"

Kevin Roberts' video "Teaching in the 21st Century" asks the simply question "What does it mean to teach in the 21st century". He starts by saying that teachers are obsolete if all they can provide is information, seeing as students have easy access to all kinds of information - we are now a filter, helping them how to go through information and use the information already given to them. He states that we should be teaching students skills - both life skills and technology skills - as opposed to simply facts and content.

The crux of his video seems to be that we should be teaching students how to use technology to obtain reliable data and to work together using technology. He states that we should be engaging students in their education, not simply teaching them.

I have actually always thought that it is astounding that our schools do not teach many life skills to student - skills such as how to change a tire, how to find housing and evaluate housing, and other realistic skills for life. Mr. Roberts seems to touch on that. I do love the idea of helping students obtain facts and content and evaluate sources, but I also feel that some facts and content must be taught. Basic principles of any core curriculum should be cemented into the head of students, though many of the higher concepts could be taught by simply teaching students how to obtain the information they need instead of having to burp it back.