Alec Couros sure raised a lot of interesting points talking about networked possibilities for teaching and learning. Starting off the lecture by talking about how most 8-9 year olds are using social media sites stressed for me how accessible things have become for most people and how I need to get myself up to speed in the technology world. Alec talked about a classroom in Regina where the students were allowed to bring their own devices to class. I feel that this shift is a necessary one. We all know that students are bringing devices into the classroom regardless policies attempting to regulate this, so why not work with it instead of against it.
Many teachers take on the philosophy of teaching as preparing children for 'the real world'. In this 'real world' technology is readily available at your fingertips at almost all times, so why not teach children to make use of the same technology that will be out there at their disposal. This makes more sense to me than trying to fight the never ending battle against students bringing devices to class.
The possibilities of connected, networked learning are open ended which opens up a world of knowledge that we have access to with a few clicks of a mouse. I really liked the quote Alec shared about how the world doesn't care what you know, it cares what you do with it. This is so true when we think about where the information that we gather comes from. If we didn't have those people that shared their knowledge and information, we would not have those resources at our fingertips. When I really thought about how much I depend on other people's knowledge, it became apparent that I really care what people do with their information.
As a personal goal, I would like to begin to share and give back to the online community from which I heavily rely on.
~Carissa
Carissa, how you connected what we do with information to our internet habits is insightful. I support you in your goal of giving back. If you have any questions on the way I'd be more than happy to share my experience.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your devices in classrooms policy. They are bringing them anyways, so instead of fighting to stop them, and wasting a lot of class time, work with it. There are many advantages to having them use their phones and such in the class in the sense of accessing information. Plus, if you tell the kids not to bring them and use them, that is just going to make them want to do it more. If you give them the opportunity to use them, it may actually cut down on the goofing around on them at school.
ReplyDeleteCarissa, you are probably right to assume students will bring their devices regardless of the rules, but I do think we need to be cautious about allowing students to use them in class if it goes against school policy. What we may need to do, if a ban on devices exists, is work to change the policy. We can show those in authority how devices can be used as learning tools in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteI definitely see devices being welcomed inside the classroom as years pass by. We need to make sure that they are used for good (searching for info on educational topics) and their not a distraction (email, fb...etc). And like Scott said in his comment, the devices can be a focus point for the students and it may cut down on the goofing off....and what teacher wouldn't want that..?
ReplyDeleteI agree that students should use all resources available to them... as should teachers! It only makes sense to teach children how to best utilise the tools that they willl be using in the real world. I think as teachers, it is more important than ever to emphasize "doing" something with knowledge.. it is not a commodity, but a shared experience.
ReplyDeleteIt is so true about making the students more knowledgeable on the devices they will actually use in the real world. I think a lot of teachers get stuck on their "old-school" ways and do not want to make the switch. If you look at math for example, how many teachers are actually encouraging the use of iPods or smart phones in their class, instead of graphing calculators, even though they can do almost the same things and the chances of having a smart device with you at all times is a lot higher than a calculator (In case anyone doesn't know, if you open the calculator app and turn the iPod horizontally, it will open the scientific layout).
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