So, this is what it feels like to break into the world of blogging. I hate to disappoint any potential readers but I must confess outright that I am a tad skeptical of the world of blogs. But this could stem from my skepticism of technology in general, meaning that this tech course (and, thereby, this blog) required by my program could make for an interesting journey.
Prior to our first class meeting, I had never once considered how I might utilize the advancements of technology in my future classroom. Reading Sheskey's article, however, opened my eyes to simple ways a teacher can augment the level of engagement or motivation of her students with technology. I found the article to be exciting; perhaps technology can do great things in a classroom, my classroom, even. Maybe my skepticism has been unjustified. My stance towards technology has always been that unless the benefits greatly outweigh the hassles AND the environmental impact, I wouldn't bother. In other words, I have no desire to use technology for the sake of using technology. As much as I love to read, you will never see me with a Kindle. And to be honest, I would be happy as pie if I could shut down my blog this very instance and write my reflection with pen and paper. But the example of the teacher whose digital camera revamped his students' attitudes towards learning made me question my assumption that technology hadn't much to offer my classroom. So I went to EDUC 504 with a slightly optimistic outlook, thinking that I was going to learn how to bridge the gap between myself and my students by learning to communicate with them through the means of the digital age.
But that's not how I left class. After our discussion concerning the ramifications of technology in the classroom, my outlook was dismal. There are dangerous implications for encouraging students to share their work in the public eye, for allowing students to engage in discourse with one another that is unsupervised and which has no explicit norms to guide conduct and behavior. Technology opens doors that otherwise would remain closed, this is true. But reflecting back to my general outlook, are these benefits worth the hassles, the possibility of unchecked cyberbullying, of misuse and abuse of privileges by my students? Not to mention the additional stress caused to students unfamiliar with particular forms of technology, an example being myself and this blog, these wikispaces and online gadgets of which I have never heard before. Looking ahead, I hope this course can provide resolution to these fears of mine and help me to shift my focus to the benefits of technology while simultaneously preparing me to anticipate and handle any "hassles" that may arise.
I like your comments a lot. I am very attuned to the issue of exposure, mainly by my own Facebook gaffes, that seem to rebound with a vengeance. And cyber-bullying I have definitely witnessed firsthand. But truthfully, I fail to see how this has much to do with the classroom. The classroom, after all, is supposed to be--must be--a safe zone, a zone of inviolability. The idea of "leaks" into some bully-ridden cyberspace seems absurd to me, really. But it is very telling, how worried students in the program seem to be about this.
ReplyDeleteI have returned to school after a hiatus of two decades or so, and education has changed in the interim. Teachers and professors seem generally oriented toward high levels of cognition in their courses. We were told in Roman History and Classical Archeology both, for example, that the most important thing was that we think (about the subject matter). And otherwise bookish old school profs using Powerpoint and Smart board in every session. This comparatively simple technology has much improved classroom instruction. The fact that I can diagram text with a smart board, save my hand-drawn color annotations and then post them on a site for student review--this is all very positive. And it has nothing to do with the agoraphobia of being subject to scrutiny and potential ridicule on line.
So in my case, I look forward mostly to mastering the nuts and bolts of the instructional technology itself. And I will continue to safeguard the privacy and dignity of my students, each and every one.
Master Woodard....no, don't deny the honorific, in my opinion it is well deserved. I am encouraged and comforted by your positive, yet practical, outlook on this brave new world of "techno-ed". On of the most exciting aspects of teaching is the challenge of preparing students for the unknown. God forbid that we run out of new things to teach or ever lack the courage to teach them! Although I struggle with "the agoraphobia of of being subject to scrutiny" and a "wow, that's cool" grasp on technology, I too look forward to the advantages of instructional technology.
DeleteI love the way that you're trying to have such a positive attitude, despite your inherent skepticism. I share a lot of your apprehensions (as I think many of our classmates do). I'm also hoping that this class will help me resolve some of my questions and will teach me how to anticipate misuse and abuse by students and prevent it. I'm curious though. Why do you think you're so apt to avoid technology? Are you worried about the same things that other students are worried about (in discussion how we discussed that some students don't want their work to be seen by peers)? Or are you just "old-fashion"?
ReplyDeleteIn any event, I shared the excitement you felt after reading the example of cameras in the Sheskey article. It was exciting that he was able to engage so many students, some of whom were never engaged before. I also hope that I will be able to do this in my classroom.
Hmm…I am going to pose something to you as my response to your blog. Everything in this world can be dangerous is left unchecked. What is the key to making things safe?
ReplyDeleteA car is without a dangerous weapon, of that, there is no doubt. We hear about accidents all the time, this person hurt that person killed these lives changed forever, yet we still keep driving. The cars get better, faster, we spend more time in them but statistically, cars are not overly bad, it is just sometimes bad things happen with them. People do not intend to harm with them, but sometimes they do and in the end, it is up to us to teach them how to make sure that weapon is turned into a useful tool.
The same can be said about technology. I have three children and I worry about what the world will be for them and then the generations after them. The cyber world is both an amazing place and scary at the same time. Words, thoughts and ideas never go away there, they last forever. So I have taken it upon myself to make sure my children understand why it is so important they must learn how to use technology for the good it provides and not the bad it allows.
While it can be an unfeeling weapon it is also an amazing playground of imagination and investigation. Answers can be found and friends can be made but it is up to us as teachers to make sure our students, no matter where they come from are taught how to use it.
Technology is here, it is not going anywhere and it will continue to become a bigger and bigger part of our lives…like teaching our younger citizens how to drive safely, we need to also teach them how to use it respectfully, not as a weapon, but as a tool that will help us live better lives.
I value your comments, John. I think you're right to say that everything has the potential to be dangerous and I also appreciated your word choice of "the good it provides. . . the bad it allows." That said, I'd like to point out that, in comparing cars and technology, there are laws that regulate driving and people misusing vehicles are policed and reprimanded. No one is policing the internet, the comments, the videos, the bullying, the teasing, the offensive statements. In practicality, it's impossible. And the mere thought of it seems ethically debatable. But should we encourage our students to enter a world that we do not have the power to monitor?
DeleteJust food for thought. In all honesty, I realize that we do have control over how we use the technology and the extent to which our students are vulnerable in the process. There are plenty of low-risk assignments and activities that involve technology. On the other hand, there are more public displays of student work, ideas, and thoughts enabled by technology, such as blogs or e-portfolios, and I'm not yet convinced of the benefits outweighing the risk or the trepidation it may invoke.
You've sparked some great comments, Carrie, which makes me all the more appreciative of the fact that you gave us the benefit of the doubt here, both by writing a blog post and (even more importantly) by expressing your skepticism and your reservations.
ReplyDeleteThanks for trusting us enough to do that.
I absolutely share your reservations about "allowing students to engage in discourse with one another that is unsupervised and which has no explicit norms to guide conduct and behavior," whether it is in the classroom or online. As we consider the possibilities offered us by extending discussions to the web, for example, and weigh the potential benefits and drawbacks, one of the more attractive aspects for me is that it forces a discussion of what proper and respectful discourse is. Not that it's the only way to get there, but it provides an especially rich context for it, one that has implications for aspects of kids' lives that extend beyond school as well.
Thanks for hanging in there, Carrie.
Carrie,
ReplyDeleteYour comments were real eye openers for me. I guess I thought that nearly all young people were much more comfortable with technology (blogs, etc.) than me and that I was far behind the curve. It's comforting to know that bright, well educated individuals like you are also a bit anxious about the rapid advances in technology and their impact on our youth, educational systems and society in general. (I don't have a Kindle, though my wife, all my children and my 89 year old Mom use them religiously!!)
One of the factors that influenced me to pursue teaching and apply to the WWTF program was a discussion last year with two of my children (both educators) and their friend (also an educator). They talked about teaching in high school and the technology involved - IPads, smart boards, on-line input of assignments, etc., etc. I listened, mesmerized.
I liked the Sheskey comparison of the development of the printing press to the technology boom as revolutionary changes to our world.
I think there are great opportunities to enhance education through education, though rules and regulations are certainly needed.
It will be fun to have discussions about those opportunities and limitations in this class.
becarrie, I'm wondering what your take is now after several weeks of blogging? Are you more comfortable with the idea? Have your thoughts on using blogs in the classroom changed?
ReplyDeleteI appreciate the concerns raised here about the potential for unsupervised electronic discourse. I like the idea of using a blog as an extension of the classroom community, although I do worry whether it is realistic to think that I could monitor it effectively, or whether it would simply be too much of a burden on time. I think our own instructors have done a nice job of modeling what teacher feedback looks like, including the frequency of posts on our blogs. It has occurred to me that there are two of them! But that also leads me to think that maybe a blog would be a good way to "co-teach" across classrooms and content areas.