Wrap Up of the CLass

I wasn't really sure what to expect when I started this class at the beginning of the semester because I know that personally I am not a very tech savvy person; I know my way around my own computer and if you put directions in front of me I can usually figure it out but the thought of designing my own website for a grade was not even a thought in my mind.  I had no idea what garage band or photo booth was and if you asked me to create a podcast I would have probably looked at you like you had 2 heads.  This semester has introduced me to a whole new world of Macs (one that does not include me playing the Oregon Trail, which to tell you the truth was the only thing I could do on a Mac) I have learned about Steve Jobs and really want an iPad now but I know that there is no possible way I could afford one, but man all of those apps! I have seen the benefits of eReaders in the classroom and One-on-One laptops but I have also seen the darker side of technology.  We have watched videos of people who literally can't even live their own lives because they are too consumed with a made up world on a computer screen.  We have explored the good, the bad and the indifferent aspects of technology and I think it is very important that as a teacher I understand all of the technology that is out there for my students to be sucked into.  It is my job to weed through the social media and websites and find the good that can be used in my classroom and in life in general.

Balance between technology and humans

I can recall as clear as a bell exactly what it felt like sitting in Mrs. Freeman's 1st grade class and working on penmanship.  It was the time just after lunch that was dedicated to making our writing look more presentable and professional and we must have spent hours working on it.  Fast forward a few years to my 3rd grade class and I can remember sitting facing the board as Ms. Montreal drew slanted lines on the board to teach us how to write in cursive.  Now move forward a few more years and here I am in college and I honestly cannot recall the last time I sat down and used cursive to write a paper, everything in today's world is typed and classroom notes and papers are not very different.  I am not trying to stop technology from entering the classroom I think it is a wonderful tool that helps to enrich the lessons and helps teachers connect better to students but as I was working on my presentation I can't help but notice how much schools have changed even in the last 15 years. At the beginning of the semester I remember Karl mentioning how up until a dozen years ago you could transplant a teacher from the 1930's into a modern classroom and they would still have mostly the same tools but in recent years that modern classroom has changed so much sometimes I don't even know how to work all of the new gadgets and I graduated from high school in 2006.  I think that students are becoming too dependent on a tool and it is our job as teachers to find a healthy balance of technology and old school methods.  Students should have to write out drafts and go through and edit them themselves they shouldn't have spell check and grammar checks taking care of all of their edits they should be able to solve a math equation without using their calculator; a good teacher should be able to use the technology to enhance their lessons not create it for them.

The GreenHorns

I have spent my entire life living in a city.  I have never really spent any time out on a farm so when we had a chance to watch the Green Horns movie I was excited because when I think of farms I tend to think of older people wearing overalls and big straw hats riding on tractors; but this movie was going to give a glimpse into the world of young farmers and how they are striving to make the world a better place.  I think that in a world where everything is moving towards computers and office work it was really nice to see a change; these young people are creating a world where they are working outside and getting their hands dirty trying to make the world a little better than it was. After watching the movie I kept thinking back to last semester in Beth's class when we talked a lot about school gardens and growing your own food and I think that it is great that these people are extending beyond the classroom and into everyday life. After watching the video a few of us started talking about how we were totally going to go out and start our own farms, but I don't really think that I would be able to put forth all of the work that goes into a farm.  I think trying to boost the economy through something as simple as buying locally grown food can make a world of difference and we should all try to make an effort to help.  I've been trying to make it a point to visit the farmers market each week and buy some locally grown food I'm not able to buy all locally grown food but I figure small steps will one day lead to bigger leaps. 

Creating a Podcast

I'm a huge fan of the show One Tree Hill and in the earlier seasons a character on the show, Peyton, had her own podcast and I always remember thinking, "wow, she must be really tech savvy to understand how to have a podcast" but throughout this class I learned that her technological feat was not as impressive as I once thought it was.  When we were introduced to podcasting in the class I thought it was going to be a complicated procedure but really it was just a matter of having the right equipment.  We were asked to partner up in the class and create a podcast based on something that we were an expert on and I found myself talking to Andrea about how I am an expert on what makes someone a good roommate and what makes them a bad roommate.  It was a simple silly podcast that just allowed us to scratch the surface of what can be done.  I think that when people hear a phrase like "podcast" they immediately clam up and get all nervous because it sounds really important but in all reality it is just a recording that can be posted to the internet.  We spent the next class working on putting a visual to our podcast by reading a children's book, which proved to be a bit harder than just making a vocal podcast.  The most difficult thing with the children's book was allowing enough time between pages so that if you had to go back and edit you could.  I found myself rereading that book so many times because I wasn't pausing enough or my pages wouldn't line up right but as the class progressed so did my understanding of podcasts.  After the two classes spent on podcasting I'm no longer looking at One Tree Hill as the cutting edge of technology. 

Technology in the Classroom

This week I decided to blog about the lack of technology in classrooms.  I touched on the topic in my mid-term paper but since most of you will never actually read that paper I’ll explain what I wrote about.  When I was student teaching at P.S. 131Q I had the opportunity to experience both ends of the technology spectrum in my classes. My first classroom was a half class of 2^nd graders who all had some type of learning disability but no IEP yet, most of my students were either immigrants or first generation American so some of their parents were not familiar with the American school system and hadn’t had the chance to have their child tested.  This classroom was only made up of 13 students but the layout of the room was not a very technology friendly room.  The room could barely fit 13 desks comfortably and the computer was shoved over in a corner; also the sponsor teacher I was working with was a bit older. She was a very nice lady and she wanted what was best for her students but she was not up to date on the technological advancements occurring in the world.  The students never had a chance to use the computer during class and all of the lessons were taught using chart paper and the white board; these kids were not being exposed to any technology while sitting in the class.  Now fast forward 2 months and I was given my second placement of the semester. My second placement was at the same school and it was 4^th grade.  Walking into that classroom I immediately knew that this was going to be much different than my 2^nd graders, the class was more than double the size and so was the classroom.  I had 30 new students and a younger sponsor teacher who actually had a computer on his desk.  In this classroom technology was ever present because of the smart board that was used during the lessons.  Every lesson had a smart board element and my sponsor teacher found different games for the students to play to help learn math skills.  The smart board became my best friend in that classroom because it opens up the door to so much more in the classroom and the students interact so much more with the lesson when they can get up and touch the smart board to answer a question.  This technological element was a great tool that just wasn’t available to the 2^nd grade classroom and it makes me wonder why that is.  The school decided which classroom needed the smart boards and more computers but they seemed to leave other classrooms in the technological dark.  It surprised me how different the two classrooms could be and how uneven the technology could really be. 

Hydrofracking

Prior to sitting in on this lecture on hydrofracking the only thing that I would have been able to tell you is that it’s a funny word.  I cannot even lie, I am not a hydrofracking educated person because it is not a hot topic in my life currently, but after sitting through the lecture I understand a bit more about what it is and why it is upsetting people all over.  There is so much waste occurring every time they perform hydrofracking and in a world where we can figure out how to put a man on the moon I think we should be able to figure out how to get out the resources without causing such waste.  The thing that really shocked me was that there is so much water that is contaminated and they get so little of the resources they are working towards.  I had a hard time grasping the process used because it seemed like they are using more steps and resources than are necessary and that there has to be a better way to get the resources from the ground.  When the presenters talked about the family who agreed to let the hydrofracking people on their land and the way their land dropped in value because of it, it made me wonder why would anyone ever agree to that, but when you are approached by someone with a contract and a promise you tend to overlook that big picture.  I envision that these hydrofracking companies send in a smooth talking guy with slicked back hair to charm the landowners and then swindle them out of their valuable land; I’m sure that this is not exactly what happens but the promise of a quick job with little effect on the family is not what ends up happening and that is what the presenters talked about. 

            I am of course still no expert on the topic of hydrofracking, but when an article appeared in the paper the other day about it I stopped and read it.  I know that there are other solutions to solve the problems that hydrofracking causes but currently the government isn’t pushing the companies to seek them and if they aren’t motivated to change their ways they are not going to.  Hydrofracking is a topic that I’m sure will begin to take up more and more space in the papers as it becomes a more common phrase and when it does I will be able to offer a little insight on the matter.

Welcome to the Technology World

I completely forgot to blog last week, so this week’s posting will include what I was going to talk about for that blog and this week’s thoughts; it’s very convenient that both were going to be about the video that we watched in class.  After watching the complete video I really think that there is so much that needs to be talked about and I think that we covered many of the topics in class, One thing that really struck me about the video was the differences between each country and their computer/technology users.  In the first half of the video they focused more on foreign technology and how it affects the people there, mostly through looking at video games.  The second half of the video had more of an American view of technology and computer games; the big difference with the two was that in the Asian culture there were more young people playing these video games and they seemed to be a more individual form of entertainment.  When looking at the USA and their computer games they focused more on older individuals, in their 20’s and 30’s and the games that they tended to play were more of social games.  They played things like World of War craft and Second Life, games where they were socializing with other players. The part of the video that I found a bit funny was that even at the WOW conventions the people were still playing the game even when the real people were in the actual game.

            It was really interesting that we watched this video because this past week I was watching the MTV show “True Life” and they were doing a special about people who lead a different life on the internet and there was a girl who played Second Life.  It was a fascinating story because she was a famous singer on Second Life, but in real life she had horrible stage fright, she explained that in Second Life she doesn’t have to look at people and she knows they like her music they aren’t just there because there is nothing better to do.  I have such a hard time believing that this fake made up world is better than actually getting out and interacting with real people, but I think that I am a people person who needs social interaction with actual people.  The video we watched in class and the episode of “True Life” offered a glimpse into a world that I don’t really know much about and I think that it is a world that as a future teacher we need to understand because the students walking into the classroom have been raised in this technological world. 

iphoto

I am not a computer savvy person, I know this I have enough trouble with my PC at home and when I sit down in front of a Mac I am completely technology challenged; so this class at first, made me a little nervous, but then we were introduced to iphoto and I was completely comfortable.  This tool put my mind at ease when it comes to the topic of Macs.  It can have such a positive impact on a classroom, it can be used as an amazing teaching tool and it’s really easy to use.  I also thought that it would be a great tool if talking about body heat and thermal temperatures, there was the feature where you could make the photo look like it was taken using a thermal camera; this could be a great way to introduce temperature to a class.  Talking about how everything has a different temperature and that is a way to show the differences.  The iphoto was such a simple tool that can be used in so many different ways in a classroom, not only does it take still photos but it takes a series of pictures that can show slight changes between frames, or the mirror image to show the person side by side.  It offers a visual aide that can have such a great impact on a lesson using such a simple idea, photographs.  It gives a topic or lesson a personal touch that a textbook can’t. Students can research a different landmark and using the iphoto they can pose standing with said landmark or environment.  It can give students a sense of connection to the place even if they have never been there before. Rather than looking at a picture of the Eiffel Tower they can pose right next to it using iphoto, this gives a connection that other programs can’t.   

Ken Robinson Take 2

Sir Ken Robinson Bring on the Learning Revolution!

            This speech by Ken Robinson was probably my favorite TED video that we were assigned to watch this week.  I found that after watching his previous talk that I really enjoyed his humor that he peppered through the talks and how he was so human with his thoughts and stories.  He talks about his family, his own experience and the direction that he believes the world of education should be going.  This 2^nd TED video from Ken Robinson continued on his ideas of encouraging human talents because we are in a crisis of losing those human resources through not using them.  The speech is focused on how to create a revolution in the world of education not just evolving it to fit with the times because evolution does not make it new it just changes it in certain places.  We have to begin to trust what we do not know, go into the darkness towards what will be a brighter future, but too many people fear the unknown and are not willing to take that leap of faith towards a better educational world. 

We as a society are very used to staying in our comfort zone.  If we are not willing to step outside of what is comfortable than we will never be able to change the way we teach and what we teach; in order for this revolution to work there needs to be people who are willing to make a trail where there was not one previously.  Robinson talks about how education is a track towards the rest of our lives, but who is creating that track, is it a group of highly educated, well paid people who are deciding what will be necessary for the rest of the student’s lives? How are they supposed to know what is best for the next generation if they are so set in their own ways and how they believe education should be taught?  With the generation that is in school now they will never understand what it means to listen to a tape or ever know what it was like to watch a VHS and actually have to rewind the tape to the beginning, the world now is changing at such a rapid pace and to believe that the education “track” will be able to hold every student’s mind is just absurd.  I know that when I was in school the “track” was elementary school, then middle school, high school, and then college.  This is not the track for everyone just look at someone like Bill Gates, he jumped off that track and hasn’t looked back since. There is talk of the school system operating on a fast food model, where everything is made exactly the same but according to Robinson we must move away from this fast food model and towards a more organic process.  As a teacher we need to prepare our students for the future which is unknown but certain and also prepare them for the present.    

The Death of Creativity

            I actually began watching Ken Robinson’s 2^nd video but within the first minute he referenced his previous talk with TED, so I decided I should probably begin with that video.  So I settled in front of my computer and began watching as Ken Robinson began to tell me how schools were responsible for the death of creativity in the minds of the students.  Right off the bat he had my attention. He did not claim to know everything about everything, but rather he told the audience that he did not know everything and no one knows what is going to happen in the future so how are going to prepare our students for the future. The educational system is so worried about preparing its students for the future and the world after school that they never really take the time to allow students to sit back and enjoy life now; they are too focused on what is going to happen when they grow up.  The future is not now and we need to educate children for now.            

            Robinson then spoke about the talents that are found in students and how those talents are all too often not harnessed but are considered to be a hinder to the educational system.  He asks why we do not teach dance in the same way we teach math and it is because society does not place as high a value on the arts and dancing as they do on Math and literacy.  Being creative will not prepare you for the real world, this is the message that is being subliminally relayed to the youth of the world through the under emphasis on creativity in schools.  Robinson states that we grow/get educated out of being creative and that is a shame because there are so many talented students who are lost because of the lack of focus towards creativity in the classroom. Personally, I do not have an artistic bone in my body, I lack all rhythm and I can’t sing to save my life; but I truly believe that if during my elementary school years if I had the opportunity to work on my creativity and have in encouraged I might be more willing to get up and dance in front of a group or paint a picture that is displayed for the community to see. I never had the chance in my elementary school because we did not have an arts program until I was in the 6^th grade and so I’ll never know how creative I could actually be.  Near the end of the speech Robinson said something that I really think sums up the way we should educate he said “our task is to educate their (the students) whole being, so they can face this future.” We need to prepare them for the unknown but we must also teach them in all areas of life, not just in literacy and mathematics.   

Aimee Mullins and her 12 pairs of legs

I’m not going to lie, before watching this incredible woman speak I always had the same picture in my mind of what a prosthetic leg looked like and just give you a picture in your mind it was the plastic and metal ones that you see on TV when watching a special about a soldier who lost his leg while fighting in a war.  The legs are bulking and only really meant for walking or running, they don’t look like a real leg, but the person can lead a normal life with this hunk of metal attached to them.  But as the video began I was a bit taken a back when they showed Aimee Mullins walking around in a short dress with her legs exposed and they actually looked like legs; it never even crossed my mind that they could create these prosthetic legs that actually looked like legs, I know that it was silly of me to not realize that this was possible but I’ve never seen them so my mind only envisioned them as the metal and plastic things. 

After my initial shock wore off I started to listen to what she had to say and it made a lot of sense. She spoke about how she talked to groups of children and she could imagine what the teachers told their students before coming in to listen to her speak, they would warn them about her legs and how they shouldn’t ask questions or stare, but rather they should just sit back and be polite.  That is what is wrong with the educational system, we push down the curiosity; so rather then start off her talk with that awkward elephant in the room of her fake legs she invited only the students in for 2 minutes without adults.  She eliminated the limitations that would hold back students from asking real questions that they had.  Without the teachers and adults in the room the students were able to really express their thoughts and opinions, this lack of limits created a safe zone where they felt comfortable with Aimee and were willing to shout out any answer to any of her questions because there was not their fear of being wrong or being considered rude. Society is teaching children that people with disabilities are less capable then those without, but Aimee shows that you can lead a completely normal and inspiring life with the handicap. 

Aimee Mullins has had the opportunity to combine two areas of education, technology and the arts, to create her own way of living with her 12 pairs of legs.  She has learned that through the power of creativity she can reach out to more people than she ever thought possible.  She has learned to embrace the curiosity and the questions because it is through the questions that students ask her that they learn how to explore the unknown.  What I really took away from this TED talk was that creativity and curiosity are what really drive the human mind and the problem that is faced in so many schools is that those elements are all too frequently pushed to the back burner in favor of math and English, we teach students to fear the unknown rather than embrace it and the endless possibilities of their mind. One quote really struck me towards the end of Aimee’s speech she said, “To discover full potential in our humanity, we need to celebrate those heartbreaking strengths and those glorious disabilities that we have.” This means that we have to teach to the whole child, we must understand that each student possesses something worthwhile and it is the teacher’s job to pull that out and allow the world to see what that student has to offer.