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Week 2 - Reading Response

I’ve got to be honest here, I’m not really digging on the blog and RSS thing.  I can see the value in it, but personally, it’s just not for me.  Perhaps I just haven’t found anything that interests me yet.  I did browse through the Google Reader directory, and subscribed to a number of feeds that looked like they might be promising.  I guess I’m just not very interested in gathering information this way.  I usually prefer reading a book.  I suppose one might say there is a certain amount of irony to the fact that I’m embarking on a masters degree in educational technology, and sometimes I don’t always like using technology.  I like to have a balance of experiences in my life and when I do open my laptop, I usually spend more of my screen time creating.  I’ve also been doing a lot of thinking lately about the amount of time I spend on the computer.  I’ve realized that I’m falling into a pattern and that I’d like to make more productive use of my time.  I have a son who is almost 3 and I already feel like I’m setting a bad example by spending too much time on the computer.  So, with all of that said, for the purpose of this class, I’m going to give it a shot.  Perhaps some of you can change my mind. 

     Regarding Dale’s Cone of Experience, I can definitely see uses for this type of technology in the classroom.  Having students use blogs to present and share information has great potential as a very effective teaching tool.  Depending on the circumstances, blogging could fall in a number of places along Dale’s “Cone”.  When considering a specific application for this technology, it would seem that the  “Contrived Experience” might be a logical choice.  In my art classes, very few students have been to an art museum.  I’ve done some searching and found a number of online galleries that have RSS feeds available.   A “Contrived Experience” could be created by asking students to subscribe to a specific art gallery site RSS to view online artwork.  They could then respond to questions and blog about their experiences.   This practice could be brought into the classroom setting by gathering responses and creating further discussion.  

     I believe this type of activity is what Seigel might call “computer imaginative”.  In the visual arts, it can be difficult to provide students with the experience of viewing artwork for the study of art history and aesthetics.  Although it is a far cry from the experience of actually visiting an art gallery or museum, it is an easily replicated “Contrived Experience” that could be applied to any number of art lessons.  

Week 1 - Reading Response

After reading both articles, it is difficult to know where to begin.  These types of articles always get my head spinning about my opinions regarding public education and the work that we do.  I find myself caught somewhere in the middle of both authors, philosophically.  One the one hand, I can see many of the benefits the use of technology brings to the classroom.  Recently, my own school has undergone drastic technological upgrades, which have brought about positive changes in mine, and my colleagues methods of instruction.   On the other hand, I can see how thinking that technology is the sole answer to improving our educational problems is foolish and very shortsighted.  

     With that said, I tend to indentify more with the Postman article.  I have often thought that the problems with education run much deeper, and have less to do with what goes on in the classroom, and more to do with societal issues and how the public perceives education.   Postman states, “the great problems of education are of a social and moral nature and have nothing to do with dazzling new technologies”.  I tend to agree, especially at the elementary level.  We have placed so much importance on the use of technology that we put it into the hands of children as early as possible and demand it’s use in the classroom as early as Kindergarten.  There is plenty of research that indicates children develop and learn better through authentic play and INTERACTION with other children.  We already demand too much content and curriculum from lower elementary students and the addition of technology only aids in distracting younger students from real learning.

     The Reigluth article makes some excellent points about changing the educational paradigm, but this philosophy always seems so frustrating to me.  I agree that students should be given the opportunity to achieve and to learn at a comfortable rate, but the idea of customizing curriculum and instruction for EACH learner and allowing them as much time as they need seems like a nearly impossible task.  How are we supposed to do this?  Certainly not within a public educational system that is understaffed, underfunded, and held to impossible standards. 

     This is where I become very torn.  I teach high school and believe that it is our job to teach a sense of responsibility and to prepare students for what lies ahead.  I go to great lengths to provide as flexible an educational experience as possible, but often am frustrated by student’s lack of genuine enthusiasm for learning.  Reigluth says that in the information age the customer is “King”.  I feel like in public education we have made the learning “King” and we bow to his every whim.  Perhaps we’ve gone too far in one direction.  I want to believe that we can accommodate all learners, but realistically there are often times too many obstacles.  As much as we try to “customize” learning, unfortunately, students won’t be able to work a job at their own pace or take college classes that allow them as much time as they need to learn the material.  If we spent more time considering what is appropriate for learners at every level (especially younger levels), we might find that we would have to do a lot less damage control at higher levels.  Learners might be better developed, enthusiastic, and equipped to handle higher order thinking and problem solving.  More screen time won’t help to achieve this goal.  I want very much to provide each of my students the 

Ed Tech Class

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