Blog Assignment #5

 

       Scott McLeod J.D., Ph.D is an Associate Professor of Educational Leadership at the University of Kentucky and he is also the founding director of CASTLE. He was also a co-creator of the Did You Know? Videos. After reading his blog post, Don't teach your kids this stuff. Please?, I was a little confused. I don't agree with most of his points that he is trying to make. However, I do understand his point of the safety issue. I believe that you should teach children safety of the internet, as well as in the "real world". In my opinion, children should love technology and learn about it. In today's society, the world is all about technology and so children will definitely need it to succeed in their future. However if we as parents monitor our children while they are on the internet then maybe that will help out a lot. Because I understand that our children are going to have to use technology.  And that technology will be on the computer in order for our children to get through this world in the future. 

        I can honestly say that I enjoyed watching the The iSchool Initiative (Mobile Learning0 and the Travis Allen's ZeitgeistYoungMinds entry (Mobile Learning) iSchool Initiative videos. Travis Allen was just an ordinary teenager that wondered why teachers were being laid off and class sizes were getting bigger. It is very hard to learn in a class where the teachers don’t even know your name. Therefore, he created the iSchool. The iSchool is basically a school or classroom on an iPod that allows the teachers, students, and even parents to access the work daily. It is also eco-friendly because everything is done electronically. Travis Allen believes that if the schools were to switch to iSchool the cost of paper, ink, books, and projectors would be eliminated.
        Before taking EDM 310, my thoughts of iPads in the classroom were not what they are now. I just thought it was a waste of money and the students could not benefit from it. However, in just five weeks into EDM 310 my thoughts have changed especially after watching Travis Allen's videos. I think that the iSchool is a wonderful idea. Not only would it benefit the teachers, but parents and students as well. I love the fact that everything the teacher needs is in the palm of his or her hand, as well as the students and parents. I am extremely excited to see if this project ends up in the school systems. Because I would rather see the kids benefit from something and the teachers are able to teach them instead of getting laid off or let go. There are so many great teachers out there that are being let go instead of given a chance.  If you ask me I think that we should get rid of some of the teachers that have been in the system for way to long and give some of the new teachers that are up to date with the modern technology a chance. But that is just my opinion. 

         After watching Eric Whitacre's Virtual Choir I was speechless. It is absolutely amazing what the internet can do. I mean how can you do that? Make 185 people that have never met or preformed together, a virtual choir. I am anxious to see what else the technological future has in store for the world. This was so amazing.

       In the video Teaching in the 21st Century, I believe that Kevin Roberts does a great job of explaining what it means to teach in the 21st Century. Children should be able to express their creativity in what they love so they would have a better understanding of what they want to grow up and be. Roberts explains that drilling children with information and expecting them to remember it is not the key. He goes on to explain that children should engage in education and have hands on experience. I feel that teachers should teach their students to engage in what they love. I also believe that students should engage in technology because it has so many answers. As an educator, I plan to teach my students to engage in everything that they do because it will make them the person that they want to be.