After reading several blogs this week, I came to Tom Whitby's blog about "The Learning Olympics.” After reading it, I came to some very important conclusions about technology and its purposes.
For the blog reading please visit http://tomwhitby.wordpress.com/ or on twitter @http://bit.ly/86CKmb.
First, Tom states that, technology serves as a "tool for collaboration, exploration, and communication...Students in schools may use these tools of technological advancement to succeed at learning. Teachers are not replaced by the tools/technology, they become the coaches." This one statement really shouted out to me for several reasons. I think a lot of students, parents, and professionals today feel that technology in the classroom is simply minimizing the job of the teacher. One example is online classes. Many young people veer away from this type of instruction because they fear they will not be getting the same type of valuable educational experience that they would otherwise receive from being physically present in a classroom. After reading Tom's blog, I came to several conclusions. First, teachers are facilitators. Their job is to facilitate instruction for the benefit of every student. Students learn in all types of formats and instructional methods. Thus, it is important to rely not only on traditional methods of teaching but also investigate new opportunities for student intrigue and motivation. In regards to the online classroom, I think that if a teacher fully understands how to use technology in its many formats then this type of classroom can, in some regards, be better than the traditional style. For example, if an instructor is skilled on how to use googledocs, twitter, blogging tools, chat rooms, web quests, wikis, and other methods, the students can all come together at various times to interact and learn. The online classroom can be more than just an instructor/student email relationship. It can be a great experience if the teacher and student can both take a little time to become educated on all the ways technology can benefit this type of work environment.
So does anyone have any thoughts on online classrooms, or ideas about technology being a tool, not THE TEACHER!
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I read Tom's latest blog about the little red schoolhouse and he makes many of the same points. The use of technology in the classroom (or outside of it) does not minimize the teacher's job. If anything, it probably adds to it. Using online instruction, like twitter, or web lectures, allows the teacher to "be there/instruct/help" when they can't physically be a the school with the student. Let's face it, a good teacher wants to be there to help. However, life is complex and we may not always be able to live at the school.
ReplyDeleteSome very insightful ideas! Your willingness to go the extra mile to insure that students are being challenged is going to make you a wonderful teacher. I think this is a common problem with technology, but by encouraging teachers to use these tools as a support system, not just as a way of lessening their workload, I think it will really improve the quality of education that children are receiving.
ReplyDeleteI love the idea of the teacher as a coach. As with any subject or topic, students are going to have various levels of knowledge and comfort.
ReplyDeleteI see the teacher as a reference or resource. Technology can be implemented as soon as a child has the basic comprehension capabilities to use it. As early as six month, you can use reactive software and tools such as LeapFrog fridge phonics and more. By the age of 2 a child can be reading. In England we started school at the age of three. We were 2-3 years ahead of the US kindergardeners. Technology can facilitate instruction at the level of the students involved and allow students to learn at their own pace. Technology still needs a driver and it is the teacher or guardian that must serve in that capacity,
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this post I couldn't help but remember my public speaking class from my freshman year. One detail that our instructor continually reinforced was the idea of knowing your audience. I feel like this really applies when considering whether or not employing a particular piece of technology. We must consider, at all times, what method will best help our students learn the material. Some students may be excellent with technology while it may be foreign to others. Some may only have access to computers while at school. These considerations are something that must always be in the back of the teacher's mind.
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