1. Blair, I thought you said you were done? (Just kidding, keep it coming!)
2.What kind of grade one student has the required dexterity to do anything effective with knitting needles? I just don't see it.....
3. I don't know how I feel about this particular school, but I agree with the message. We cannot and should not rely on technology. Remember today in Pelman's class when hardly anyone was interested in more time with the smart board? Has anyone noticed how quickly our minds leave the classroom as soon as someone's video doesn't load or there are technical difficulties? It takes away from the learning in a big way. We are being taught all these technology tricks that are supposed to keep our student engaged, but could we not argue that if we put in just a little more effort, we could be just as engaging and effective by simply being good teachers on our own without the use of a technology which could crash at any given moment? Sadly, I predict that despite our personal feelings towards technology, we won't have much of a choice but to use it. It seems that this is the direction education is going in and this is a shame. I agree that technology can be really useful and beneficial for certain outcomes, but should not be relied on on a day-to-day basis. I personally hope to be hired into a school that has limited technology at my disposal so that I cultivate a teaching practice that relies on my own creativity, rather than the wow factor of technology. Because I think that is an easy and tempting hole to fall into when you are trying to learn how to be a good teacher. Our job is not to impress and entertain our students, our job is to TEACH them and we can do this just as effectively as our teachers did: with a chalkboard and a smile.
I know I said I was done and then I saw this article.....couldn't help it....ok now I'm really done...no really.....
Cory I disagree about one thing...CHOICE...you do have a choice, you have the choice to advocate for the things you believe in...and do it as often and as well as you can... otherwise you'll be teaching the way other people think you should teach...you have to ask yourself why education is going a certain direction - because somebody else is advocating that it should be this way....like I said, a lot (not all) of technology in ed these days is "lipstick " on a pig....does it keep kids entertained - yes - are they learning much? That is unclear to me....
Write papers...write editorials, talk with other educators, do your own homework...so when someone challenges you on your pedagogical philosophy you can back it up without blinking and give the challenger pause to consider what you've said....and I would love to see some more of that around!! Soooo - no "sad" predictions....just well argued convictions.....
I thought about this more after I responded, and thank you Blair for disagreeing with me because I think you are right. I just feel that if technology is being privileged in a school that we may put ourselves at odds with our colleagues, if we don't embrace technology in our classrooms. But Blair you are absolutely right that there should be no reason to fear this as long as you can effectively (and actively!) defend your beliefs. And although there are certain technologies (such as blogs!) that I hope to use with my students to allow for them to publish their writing, I definitely don't plan on relying on technology on a daily basis.
Interesting article Blair. I like their philosophy, but is it going to work? The school has just opened so its too early to tell how successful this alternative program is going to be. Also giving kindergarteners and grader ones knitting needles….how effective is that? Is their brain developed enough to tackle this task? I see technology as a tool. I don’t think it creates or breaks a teacher. Its there for the teacher to use. But I guess questioning the health effects of constant use of technology is a good question.
1. Blair, I thought you said you were done? (Just kidding, keep it coming!)
ReplyDelete2.What kind of grade one student has the required dexterity to do anything effective with knitting needles? I just don't see it.....
3. I don't know how I feel about this particular school, but I agree with the message. We cannot and should not rely on technology. Remember today in Pelman's class when hardly anyone was interested in more time with the smart board? Has anyone noticed how quickly our minds leave the classroom as soon as someone's video doesn't load or there are technical difficulties? It takes away from the learning in a big way. We are being taught all these technology tricks that are supposed to keep our student engaged, but could we not argue that if we put in just a little more effort, we could be just as engaging and effective by simply being good teachers on our own without the use of a technology which could crash at any given moment? Sadly, I predict that despite our personal feelings towards technology, we won't have much of a choice but to use it. It seems that this is the direction education is going in and this is a shame. I agree that technology can be really useful and beneficial for certain outcomes, but should not be relied on on a day-to-day basis. I personally hope to be hired into a school that has limited technology at my disposal so that I cultivate a teaching practice that relies on my own creativity, rather than the wow factor of technology. Because I think that is an easy and tempting hole to fall into when you are trying to learn how to be a good teacher. Our job is not to impress and entertain our students, our job is to TEACH them and we can do this just as effectively as our teachers did: with a chalkboard and a smile.
I know I said I was done and then I saw this article.....couldn't help it....ok now I'm really done...no really.....
ReplyDeleteCory I disagree about one thing...CHOICE...you do have a choice, you have the choice to advocate for the things you believe in...and do it as often and as well as you can... otherwise you'll be teaching the way other people think you should teach...you have to ask yourself why education is going a certain direction - because somebody else is advocating that it should be this way....like I said, a lot (not all) of technology in ed these days is "lipstick " on a pig....does it keep kids entertained - yes - are they learning much? That is unclear to me....
Write papers...write editorials, talk with other educators, do your own homework...so when someone challenges you on your pedagogical philosophy you can back it up without blinking and give the challenger pause to consider what you've said....and I would love to see some more of that around!! Soooo - no "sad" predictions....just well argued convictions.....
I thought about this more after I responded, and thank you Blair for disagreeing with me because I think you are right. I just feel that if technology is being privileged in a school that we may put ourselves at odds with our colleagues, if we don't embrace technology in our classrooms. But Blair you are absolutely right that there should be no reason to fear this as long as you can effectively (and actively!) defend your beliefs. And although there are certain technologies (such as blogs!) that I hope to use with my students to allow for them to publish their writing, I definitely don't plan on relying on technology on a daily basis.
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting this Blair!
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteInteresting article Blair. I like their philosophy, but is it going to work? The school has just opened so its too early to tell how successful this alternative program is going to be. Also giving kindergarteners and grader ones knitting needles….how effective is that? Is their brain developed enough to tackle this task? I see technology as a tool. I don’t think it creates or breaks a teacher. Its there for the teacher to use. But I guess questioning the health effects of constant use of technology is a good question.
ReplyDelete