Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Save the Drama for your Mama
Another benefit of this class: I am learning all this cool technology that I am now using in my other classes. I am a Secondary Ed student, so I have a content major that my degree is actually in; mine is English. I am taking this ri-dic-u-lous Dramatic Productions course this summer that is to say, not my cup of tea (Sorry, Dr. Long). At any rate, one of our major assignments for the semester is a 30 minute presentation on any aspect we choose of The Trojan Women (we will be working with a partner). Under normal circumstances, I might freak out a bit- 30 minutes is pretty much an entire lecture in itself. However, it occurred to me that I might create a Prezi this time as opposed to the standard PowerPoint to spice it up a bit. I'm actually pretty excited about it & since I am also doing my textbook summary as a Prezi/SnagIt presentation I am getting comfortable with the program and having fun with it. As far as The Trojan Women goes, let me know if you have any ideas!
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
FreeBird
As I get further into our "Teaching Digital Natives" text, I am becoming more aware of the implications of not only being a student in this digital era, but what it means to be a digital native as a lifestyle for young people. Let me start by saying that I have noticed most of these characteristics in my own kids, ages 7 and 2.
Case in point- as we were driving down the highway the other day, my seven year old, who will be entering second grade this fall, randomly asked if he could see my phone for a minute. When I asked him what he needed it for, he simply responded that he was wondering what kind of bird can fly the highest and he wanted to google it. If you knew my son, you would understand that this is a perfectly reasonable and logical thing to be wondering about at 3:00 some Tuesday afternoon on the way to get a haircut! What really struck me though was not the randomness of his request, but the fact that he was wondering about something and he knew how to figure out the answer. Just like that. Because as a true digital native, that is a reasonable, logical, and natural thing for him to do. I can see how the wiring in his brain truly is different than my own seven year old brain because of the technological world he is growing up in.
I love that kid :)
Case in point- as we were driving down the highway the other day, my seven year old, who will be entering second grade this fall, randomly asked if he could see my phone for a minute. When I asked him what he needed it for, he simply responded that he was wondering what kind of bird can fly the highest and he wanted to google it. If you knew my son, you would understand that this is a perfectly reasonable and logical thing to be wondering about at 3:00 some Tuesday afternoon on the way to get a haircut! What really struck me though was not the randomness of his request, but the fact that he was wondering about something and he knew how to figure out the answer. Just like that. Because as a true digital native, that is a reasonable, logical, and natural thing for him to do. I can see how the wiring in his brain truly is different than my own seven year old brain because of the technological world he is growing up in.
I love that kid :)
You've Got Mail
It occurs to me lately how technologically impatient I have become. I consider myself a quasi-digital native; born in 1985 on the cusp of the real tech boom, I am old enough to remember the "car phone", but young enough to now expect instant gratification from my devices at all times. "Whhhyyy won't this work..?!?", when in reality it is taking literally all of 45 seconds to load. Not fast enough!
I was watching "You've Got Mail" (Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan, circa 1995) on cable the other day, and felt pleasantly nostalgic to hear the old familiar dial up tones, along with the little yellow AOL man who so optimistically informs you of awaiting incoming correspondence. (My first internet romance blossomed at age 13 in an AOL chat room. Internet security was not a concern. It probably should have been!!) At any rate, nowadays I have at least 3 old email addresses with 4000+ messages in the inbox; "spammed out". From weight loss offers to credit score fixes and an onslaught of singles in my area looking for "hott girls", "you've got mail" is far different today than the yesteryear of the 1990s.
I read an article once in the waiting room of my dentist's office about something known as the theory of a technological singularity. In a nutshell, its supporters suggest that a day will come (most agree around the year 2040) when technology will morph into a super-intelligence far surpassing the human mind. In fact, HERE is the article. I'm not sure that I completely understand or am convinced of this idea, but the one thing I really took away from the article was an undeniable truth I hadn't fully realized until then; technology is changing... rapidly. Exponentially rapidly. This is why, in the course of my short lifetime, a phone goes from an awkward bag mounted to your car's dashboard to a small machine so unimaginably powerful just fifteen years prior that now slips in your pocket. It took thousands of years from the invention of the wheel to the invention of the light bulb; and now instagram has video?!
Not only do I feel that this technology minor will enhance my resume and open my job market, but I think it's absolutely essential to anyone and everyone to stay on top of technology and how it changes and what that means for you. Tom Brokaw appeared on The Daily Show with John Stuart on Comedy Central this past week to talk about just that; the need to stay ahead of technology. This is the Tom Brokaw who used to read the evening news off gigantic poster cards!
That being said, I understand the angle our "Teaching Digital Natives" textbook is coming from when Prensky tells teachers that they do not have to be masters at the technology they use in the classroom. I understand the main importance of the inquiry pedagogy, and letting students be the users of the technology. However, I would argue that it is as important for teachers to be "ahead of the technology" just as much their students for their own benefit; both in the classroom and personally. It is the role of the teacher to be a lifelong learner, therefore learning and using technology should be just as important to the learning teacher as the learning student. I, for one, am really enjoying this class and all the cool things we are learning to do and am showing them off to my friends and family. I really do believe that technology just might be my "passion", something I have been searching for a lot through my college career.
I was watching "You've Got Mail" (Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan, circa 1995) on cable the other day, and felt pleasantly nostalgic to hear the old familiar dial up tones, along with the little yellow AOL man who so optimistically informs you of awaiting incoming correspondence. (My first internet romance blossomed at age 13 in an AOL chat room. Internet security was not a concern. It probably should have been!!) At any rate, nowadays I have at least 3 old email addresses with 4000+ messages in the inbox; "spammed out". From weight loss offers to credit score fixes and an onslaught of singles in my area looking for "hott girls", "you've got mail" is far different today than the yesteryear of the 1990s.
I read an article once in the waiting room of my dentist's office about something known as the theory of a technological singularity. In a nutshell, its supporters suggest that a day will come (most agree around the year 2040) when technology will morph into a super-intelligence far surpassing the human mind. In fact, HERE is the article. I'm not sure that I completely understand or am convinced of this idea, but the one thing I really took away from the article was an undeniable truth I hadn't fully realized until then; technology is changing... rapidly. Exponentially rapidly. This is why, in the course of my short lifetime, a phone goes from an awkward bag mounted to your car's dashboard to a small machine so unimaginably powerful just fifteen years prior that now slips in your pocket. It took thousands of years from the invention of the wheel to the invention of the light bulb; and now instagram has video?!
Not only do I feel that this technology minor will enhance my resume and open my job market, but I think it's absolutely essential to anyone and everyone to stay on top of technology and how it changes and what that means for you. Tom Brokaw appeared on The Daily Show with John Stuart on Comedy Central this past week to talk about just that; the need to stay ahead of technology. This is the Tom Brokaw who used to read the evening news off gigantic poster cards!
That being said, I understand the angle our "Teaching Digital Natives" textbook is coming from when Prensky tells teachers that they do not have to be masters at the technology they use in the classroom. I understand the main importance of the inquiry pedagogy, and letting students be the users of the technology. However, I would argue that it is as important for teachers to be "ahead of the technology" just as much their students for their own benefit; both in the classroom and personally. It is the role of the teacher to be a lifelong learner, therefore learning and using technology should be just as important to the learning teacher as the learning student. I, for one, am really enjoying this class and all the cool things we are learning to do and am showing them off to my friends and family. I really do believe that technology just might be my "passion", something I have been searching for a lot through my college career.
Summertime.. && the livin's easy
Ahhhh.. summer. Three whole weeks of glorious summer break!! Now, back to reality.. and summer classes. I am taking it rather easy this year though, only two classes - this ED 307 course, and Dramatic Productions (we will see what this one is all about!) At any rate, I am pretty excited about this Ed Tech class! I added the minor after taking ED305 last semester; I found that not only am I really interested in this type of thing, I am pretty good at it too (I hope).
It makes perfect sense to me to teach students in ways that they are used to learning. Since I am a Secondary Ed major, I am constantly thinking about teenagers and ways to connect with them in the classroom. Obviously, teens are obsessed with technology. Being "digital natives" and all, teenagers love the 'latest and greatest and coolest' new technologies. To bring this into my classroom gives me a way not only to connect with my students on a level outside the classroom, but also to bring learning to their level and interests. And I am looking forward on cutting down on the amount of copy paper being used!! My ideal classroom is project and problem based instruction; no more vocab crossword puzzle handouts.
Additionally, I think graduating with this minor will give me a fantastic advantage in the job market as a new graduate. If I didn't really believe that, I wouldn't be taking these courses- it will literally double the time I have left in school. But not only do I think I will have an easier time finding a job, I hope to find a job in a good school district that embraces the technological shift in education and will support me and my efforts in my classroom.
So, summer semester. Ready, Set, Go.
It makes perfect sense to me to teach students in ways that they are used to learning. Since I am a Secondary Ed major, I am constantly thinking about teenagers and ways to connect with them in the classroom. Obviously, teens are obsessed with technology. Being "digital natives" and all, teenagers love the 'latest and greatest and coolest' new technologies. To bring this into my classroom gives me a way not only to connect with my students on a level outside the classroom, but also to bring learning to their level and interests. And I am looking forward on cutting down on the amount of copy paper being used!! My ideal classroom is project and problem based instruction; no more vocab crossword puzzle handouts.
Additionally, I think graduating with this minor will give me a fantastic advantage in the job market as a new graduate. If I didn't really believe that, I wouldn't be taking these courses- it will literally double the time I have left in school. But not only do I think I will have an easier time finding a job, I hope to find a job in a good school district that embraces the technological shift in education and will support me and my efforts in my classroom.
So, summer semester. Ready, Set, Go.
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