In a Perfect World...

It would be ideal if schools had all the money they needed to provide children with an adequate education and the military needed to hold bake sales to buy another bomber, but that is not the case. It is becoming increasingly frustrating that teachers are expected to do more and more with less and less. What is so ironic is that with some investment in technology into schools, so many problems would be solved. Schools that endow money into themselves are really putting it into their students. Providing adequate training to teachers on technology that is present in schools is another way that schools would be looking into their own best interests. Without moving forward and giving teachers and students the chance to “upgrade” their teaching and learning, we are holding ourselves back.

Each website that I explored this week required basic computer skills in order to navigate it. I know people my age who couldn’t figure it out, and I know people half my age who would also need help with it – and they’re the ones who are supposed to know how! As for its use in a classroom, I am going to suppose that I am teaching a class called “Writing Across the Curriculum” for undergraduates. I would have these students use many of the websites listed, as there is such a vast array of choices and hours of information worth exploring. I want to group the students by specialty. Each group would have the mainstays; English, Math, Social Studies, and Science. The teachers would be required to teach about the same topic, just specific to their field. For example, if the English teacher was teaching, “The House on Mango Street,” then the Social Studies teacher would be working on the history of Hispanics and Latinos. The math and science teachers would be working on social contributions of that race as well.

I would suggest the use of www.readwritethink.org and www.thinkfinity.org to the undergrads, but I would also have them play around with the rest of the sites sorted into each section. There is such a wealth of information and websites on that page that it can be beneficial to any teacher, at any stage in their career. Readwritethink.org has lesson plans that can be tweaked to suit even the lowest of learners in a heterogeneously-grouped classroom, yet it can also satisfy the savvy, on-top of it all learner. I have used it in the past and have found the graphic organizers and vocabulary lessons helpful with introductions to writing assignments and anticipation conversations for new novels. I am just getting to know thinkfinity.org, but it looks as if it can be helpful. Right now it’s got a “hot topic” question up there about what 5 items you would buy for your school (technology-wise) if you were allowed to (no monetary limit.) It is approaching the time of year when I had my students write controversial topic essays. I like to have more topics than abortion, steroids, and euthanasia. I’d have liked the kids (in a disadvantaged neighborhood) to get passionate about what they should be exposed to in terms of technology and what the world is going to be like for them in the next few years. This topic would have got them going, and when they get revved up about something, they get zealous! I’m sure the papers would have been better this year than last, because the exposure to more websites for me would be good for them, no more just looking at lists of information, now they can watch videos and listen to podcasts to help create a piece of work. That is the ultimate gift to them – to watch their eyes light up and a smile come across their face as they realize that they just learned something.

Life IS Good.

Life IS Good.

New Schooled Literacy

After reading all the assigned material it is clear that the definition of “new literacies” is going to change continuously over the coming years.  It had already been painfully obvious for years that students were beginning to outshine their teachers in certain areas.  I remember last year when we were having technological difficulties at the school were I was working, and I asked my administrator where I should turn for help.  His answer was, “Kevin.”  I am sure I looked perplexed.  Who was Kevin?  He continued, “You know, Kevin, from 7.1?”

Seriously?  I’m supposed to pull this kid from class to have him figure out why my sound isn’t coming out of my computer?  I did.  He looked.  He fixed it.  Awesome.  But, that is not his job.  His job is to learn.  Yet he’d taught me some things, and the kids all agreed, Kevin was the go-to man for these problems.

I guess there could be a number of problems here…the first one is that I don’t have the basic skills to troubleshoot on a computer.  The second is that there is a lack of technological assistance in the school district, and the third is that the children don’t get enough exposure to technology to all be as savvy and at ease with technology as Kevin seems to be with it.  Only about 15% of my students had access to a computer at home, and of those 15% about 5 had their own email address and had the ability to email me assignments and papers.

I can imagine that new literacies are going to be one of the most important challenges to impart into classrooms today and in coming years.  Not only will the ability of our students change as they come to us more and more electronically adept, but our teaching environment must change as we embrace their knowledge and accept that there is no going back to 20^th century learning.  Books and print media, while still around now, are not going to be around forever.  When I began my teaching career 14 years ago, I didn’t think that I would have to change so much to keep up with my students and the ever-evolving educational maze that is our present state.  For the last few years I have known that I needed to know more about technology, and have wanted to implement it into my curriculum more and more, but was unable to do anything about it for lack of resources and ability to change the curriculum.  Now, I see it is a necessity, or I am not working in the best interest of the child in my care.

I have been in a number of schools that both have and don’t have technology.  I spent a year with a SmartBoard in my room and used it daily to teach geography, social studies, and English.  I also taught in a district where I was given a computer that had a sticker on it that said “Y2K Safe!” and took 20 minutes to start up! In the districts where there is technology, there needs to be training.  It’s great that the district is able to acquire technology, but without the knowhow, it’s useless.  I agree with Marilyn’s blog (http://mciarleglio.blogspot.com/2011/11/response-to-week-1-readings.html?showComment=1320788091763#c3162245735738105220) and Cara’s response that there is little to no training on technology.  We had this great program that allows us to see our students’ data, which skills they specifically needed help with and it broke down their answers to the DCMTs (district tests,) but I only got about 15 minutes of training on it, so it was useless to me!  It’s the teachers who need to be taught and given some time to “give it a whirl” so that they are comfortable with it.  I think it might be scary for some teachers to make a transition from “old and comfortable” to “new and innovative.”

While watching the Dr. Leu videos (http://ctell.uconn.edu/canter/canter_video.cfm?movie=1a_new_technologies.mov) I was thrilled to learn the word “deixis.”  I now know what word to use to describe the world we live in.  It does continuously change, and so does the internet.  Cell phones do, video games do, and any other electronic toy will continue to change in our world.  This new technology will force us to redefine our world, just like the motorized vehicle did for our ancestors over 100 years ago.  We can never see the world in the same way again.

As far as the standards for NETS, they are superbly crafted and well-suited for their purpose.  I found myself nodding with each one, thinking; surely this is the most beneficial for current and future students.  After all, teaching one to help themselves is the utmost achievement.  These standards are basic skills that go beyond basic.  They set a regulation for success across the board.  No matter what field a student goes into, they will be mandated to meet certain requirements and perform basic tasks.  If these standards are to qualify as basic technological proficiency for all students graduating, then surely the educational institution they attended has done their job preparing them to do so.  The world that they, their children and grandchildren grow into is going to change at a rate so much startlingly faster than anyone can imagine, that without providing this basic knowledge to them would be greatly disadvantageous.  I am especially interested in the concept of digital citizenship, it is a realm of which needs to be discussed, but that can be easily overlooked.  Teaching students how to be ethical, responsible, and safe while maneuvering this digital world that they will live in is essential to their well being and their growth as a human being. It is another way to help kids become socially aware of polite and expected behaviors.   The best thing about all of this media is that those students who struggled with the “old school” way of learning, thinking, and processing, is that there are a lot more options out there for them now, and that is where the learning really begins.

End of Days?

As I stand in my parents yard, walking my dog around, hoping he'll decide to poop soon, I can't help but think that this is a very strange dose of events that keep happening to the environments that I inhabit. It seemed to be years that there was nothing but Hurricane Gloria for me to remember, when my family had put all the animals, horse included, in the basement. Now it seems like everywhere in the world humans are dealing with more and more of Mother Nature's wrath. What if the human race has produced so many people that we actually do wither out this earth right before our very eyes? I don't even have children and I'm scared for the future of what my possible children might inherit. I really don't see how so many people can get up in the morning and go out into the world and be angry and find ugly things. My favorite song is "A Thousand Beautiful Things" by Annie Lennox. She sings of finding the beauty and joy in everyday life. It has taken me almost 35 years, but I just realized that I have the best life on earth and I am the luckiest girl ever! I got to spend the last 3 days hanging out with my parents and my dog. I don't know if I'll get my power back tomorrow or Sunday, but my life rules because of the family and friends in it. I still don't like snow though. Just because I was born here...