Sunday, February 27, 2011

Blog Assignment #6

Video #1: The Networked Student by Wendy Drexler

This video is made using paper cutouts representing people and different sites that can be used to build up a personal learning network. These sites include delicious, skype, and google. The video is about connectedness; The student in the video is working on a psychology assignment using the internet and his personal learning network.

This simple video says a lot about how to build up your personal learning network. In the coming years, classes will be based on internet research more often; this will makes books and paper obsolete eventually. To answer the question posed, "Are you prepared to teach a network student", I would have to answer, no*. The asterisk meaning that although I am not currently ready, I am working toward that, and I will take the information learned in Dr. Strange's EDM310 class as a knowledge base that I will add to as I progress toward becoming an educator.

Will teachers be obsolete in the future? The video says no, but the role of the teacher changes dramatically; instead of the teacher having all the answers, the answers are everywhere. The teacher becomes a guide and steers the student into the right direction by helping students learn to research themselves. When the student is able to find the answers for themselves, rather then the answers being provided to them, they build problem solving skills that will help with their chosen career path much, much more than memorizing endless facts and data which will probably only help if they want to be the next Ken Jennings.

Video #2: A 7th Grader's Personal Learning Environment

This video is about a science student whose class is paperless. They get their assignments from the class blog. The student also uses a program that bookmarks websites for them. I like this feature, and although I don't use it yet, I will; I will use it to write history papers and keep my sources handy so I can quickly go back and forth and cite my sources easily. It appears as though the teaching and learning world is changing for good, and those of us who don't make the change BEFORE we graduate are doomed to stand in line at the unemployment office. (I don't want that)

Blog Post #1: Smartboards

There are indeed pros and cons when it comes to whiteboards; what are the objections and what are the praises of the smartboard? From what I read, the cons to using smartboards are mostly based on misappropriation of funds. Anti- smartboard writers claim that even with proper training, educational white boards offer little "bang for the buck" from an education standpoint.

The pro smartboard/ white board side of the argument explains that it helps engage both the student and the teacher, which leads to enhanced learning. I can see both sides of this argument. I probably won't be the one who decides on whether or not I get to use a smartboard; regardless of that, I will just have to do the best with what I have. Here is a smartboard review

smartboard

1 comment:

  1. "...and those of us who don't make the change BEFORE we graduate are doomed to stand in line at the unemployment office. (I don't want that)" Well put! I don't want any of my students in those lines but some will be!

    Brief, thorough, interesting. Well done.

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