Mod4-2: A Facebook-like teaching tool...ahhhhh!!!

While reading about Ning in our text my blood literally starting pumping.  My brain started buzzing just thinking of all the ways it could be used.  I, like many other people, am quite addicted to FB, and just thinking that there is something out there that can be used professionally is simply EXCITING(for lack of a more appropriate term, you will see this word a lot in this posting)! 


I did a few searches and clicked on the ones which had a decent amount of members (100+).  I found a 

few accounts which sounded really interesting, but kept running into roadblocks like the site was inactive or it was being re-modeled or it was private.  So I spent a good amount of time on two sites which are very popular and FULL of exciting information.


The first is classroom20.  With over 50,000 members you are guaranteed some sort of activity to be happening.  This Ning site is "social network for those interested in Web 2.0 and Social Media in education".  The site has a very familiar feeling to which made it easy to navigate.  They have a group feature which focuses on special interests.  One group that caught my eye was "cell phones in education", how exciting is that?! I read through some of the postings, and was thrilled to see how some schools have already implemented the usage of phones into students everyday learning.  There is also a post about the discipline in the school, and the steps they take if students abuse their privilege.  I only took a few minutes to view Classroom 20 but what I did se made me excited to be a future educator during this time.  This site alone made me feel as if implementing technology into the classroom is completely do-able, and is ALREADY being done... EXCITING!


The second site I checked out was eflclassroom2.0.  I also spent some time checking this site out and was once again excited.  I found a forum on teaching and stereotypes.  There were a lot of interesting discussions going on and some interesting links worth spending your time on checking out.  This site also has a large amount of members, although it seems like there is one main person who is doing most of the contributing, while the other members are  participating by adding information and thoughts to the main idea.  The layout of this network was much more busy than what I am use to, however, it had plenty of links which could bring you to other social networks to keep completely connected. 


WOW! talk about a new world opened up! This is SO EXCITING.  I am really looking forward to using this on a daily basis... it gets my brain thinking and excited about surfing the net... unlike FB...which now, seems... kinda boring.  

Mod4-1: A learner is like a...

A learner is like a vehicle (please bare with me on this one… I am in no way poetic and thus, much better at stating the obvious). 

Learners need to be re-fueled with knowledge, constantly.  They can choose through which technology they want to re-fuel; phone, computer, TV, video games, ipad, etc.  They, now, have options as to where they want to access their knowledge; on-line journals, databases, blogs, social networks, etc.  And like our vehicles, learners need to refuel often to function properly. 

In fact according to the Siemens article, the knowledge of the world is doubling every 18 months, meaning that what we knew in September 2009 is now obsolete.  This also means that what we knew about learning and learners 18 months ago has changed. The way in which younger learners are learning is changing because of the increasing amount of exposure to technology and the effect if has on the wiring of their brain. 

Learner’s brains are becoming wired differently and thus the foundations of the learning experience need to change.  This is where the idea of collectivism comes into play.  More on the principles of collectivism can be found here.

As auto companies are constantly coming out with new vehicle models, the learning models are also changing.  As Siemens said in his blog about the impact of social media on learning  “content leads to conversation”, and I would like to add, conversation leads to learning.  He continues on to say that working together and collaboration, through technology, will be one of the new ways in which learning will occur. 

Alas, vehicles may not be the best analogy to describe a learner.  But one thing is for sure; vehicles bring us from point A to point B in our lives and so does learning.

Mod3: Technology, Technology and TECHNOLOGYYY!!!!

At the age of 23 I sometimes feel like I am already going through my mid,mid-life crisis.  I like to think that just because I know my way around computers, iphones and Facebook, that I'm "with it".  But what about ipads, twitter, nooks, kindle, new video games, new touch technology, etc,etc,etc.  Sometimes I just feel like I cant keep up, or afford it.

I watched 21st Century Education in New Brunswick and was EXCITED.  I was excited to see that they are so tech forward and actually thinking about what their current students will encounter during THEIR lifetime.  If their not doing anything else, at least they are being EXPOSED to the technology they will be working with in their future.  Not everyone can afford these technologies, but it is probable that the companies they will work for will have them, and lets not forget about that handy dandy resume.

This video threw out some astonishing stats:
-Technology will experience 20,000 years of growth this century
- The top ten jobs today didn't exist in 2004
- 2nd graders can type up to 60wpm using twitter, fb and txting

I would be interested in sitting in on a typical day and doing typical homework in a New Brunswick school.  It would be an eye opener to experience how they are moving their students forward into a RELEVANT world.

The second video I watched was RSA Animate- Changing Education Paradigms.  If you were ever going to spend 11 minutes doing anything, check this video out!  First of all it is visually stimulating and it hits on our, not so modern,  educational system HARD.

He focuses on some hotly debated topics like:
- reforming how schools are organized
- the "plague" of ADHD and the debate of medicating/anesthetizing children to go through their schooling sedated
- the fact that the "work hard--> do well--> go to college--> get a job" model is no longer true/relevant and kids KNOW it.
- the idea of DIVERGENT THINKING.  Meaning the ability to see many possible answers to one question.

This video brought up some serious topics in todays educational system.  It made me think about my personal thoughts on these topics as an educator and it also brought up some ideas that I had never REALLY thought about.  For example: that schools function much like a factory (see video for more) and that kids are "produced" in batches based solely on their date of manufacture.  There were some many "ah-ha!" moments for me in those 11 minutes that I watched the video a few more times just to re-live it all over again.

The two videos were both showing the possibilities and problems in todays schooling.  Mostly that the WAY in which we are teaching our students is completely IRRELEVANT in the world that they WILL encounter.  Which poses a tough task to all educators; learn about the technology, implement it into the classroom, meet state standards, do all students have access to the technology at home?, will the school system support you?, what about that budget?, will your student's parents understand WHY you are so focused on re-vamping what their child's schooling?, and lets not forget, politics.

I am personally simply excited about the fact that there IS a movement towards change and that I might be able to experience it or even be a part of it during my teaching career.  I just need to keep up.  This is an exciting time to be living and I need to take full advantage of it.  No mid, mid-life crisis for me...Not concerning technology anyway...