Blog Assignment #2

What will teaching be like in the 21st century?  Teacher will have a completely different role in the classroom compared to the traditional classroom.  Teachers will empower their students to find validated information.  They will teach their students how to use the tools in order to succeed in all areas of life.  Students will be in charge of their own knowledge and their own futures.

In the movie Mr. Dancealot, the students are being taught to dance through power point presentations and demonstration they couldn't see.  The students are not allowed to put that knowledge into practice, so the students are not really learning anything.  When it is time for the final, the teacher expects his students to know how to dance, something they have never been allowed to put into practice.  I agree with the author in the aspect that if a child is not allowed to put what he/she is learning into practice, they aren't going to be able to learn.

During Teaching in the 21st Century, Roberts provides many arguable points toward the usage of technology in the class room.  Roberts sees how teaching is evolving.  Using traditional means of teaching, teachers will no longer be able to keep up with their students.  Teachers will no longer be able to engage their students in the learning atmosphere.

I.  Traditional teachers are becoming obsolete
     A. Students are able to find information immediately
          1. Blogs
          2. Facebook
          3. Wikipedia
II. Why do we need teachers in the classroom?
     A. Teachers are filters
     B. Teachers give the tools in order for the students to find validated information.
          1. Remember
          2. Understand
          3. Apply
          4. Analyze
          5. Evaluate
          6. Create
              a. planning
              b. blogging
      C. Teachers give the rules for using sources
           1. What is plagiarism?
           2. What is a copyright?
           3. What is involved in professionalism?
III.  How does a teacher manage the use of electronics in the classroom?
       A. The same way as traditional school supplies
       B. Electronics are not the sources of bad behavior.
IV.  What can these tools do for your students?
       A. Tools need to be challenging
       B. Tools need to be engaging
            1. activity
            2. learning
            3. long-term
            4. applicable
            5. solving problems
            6. creativity
            7. fun and exciting
V.  As a teacher, we need to remember...
      A. See what is out there
      B. Start small
      C. Collaborate
      D. Take a risk
      E. Remember to think big

If Roberts is correct, the educators will need to be able to change with the time.  Educators will need to rethink how they present their students with information.  Educator will need to be more flexible in the way they teach.

In The Networked Student, the author asks the question, "Why does the networked student even need a teacher?".  I can understand why students might feel they don't need a collectivist teacher, however the teacher plays an important role in the students' education.  The teacher has given these students the resources they need in order to find the information they are looking for.  The teacher helps the students sift through all the information found and helps to organize that information.  In Dr. Stange's Writing a Quality Blog Post, he is not doing the work for you, but giving you the tools to succeed.

Vicki Davis has many valid points in the movie, Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts.  Davis uses empowerment to teach her students.  She customizes her curriculum to fit her students' needs.  Davis also has her students teach portions of the class.  She does not go into the class knowing everything, she also learns from her students.

Dr. Stange proposes a very interesting question in, Who's ahead in the Learning Race?  Children have grasped the use of technology at such an early age.  As adults, college students normally have a harder time embracing change.  Therefore, as we student to be teachers, we will have to change.  We will have to embrace the use of technology as much as the children.  If we are unable to do so, we will not have the necessary tools to teacher these young minds.

Flipping the Classroom is a new technique for me.  It is not one I have heard of before watching the video.  As a Secondary English teacher, I think we use this method to a degree.  Most of the assigned reading and writing will be done outside of class.  I feel grammar lessons will be benefit from this new technique.

I hope to embrace the idea of team learning into my classroom.  This type of learning is used in one of my current English classes.  It allowed extroverted students to discuss what has been assigned in a safe environment.  It also allows introverted students insight to their fellow students without forcing themselves out of their comfort zone.  I think this learning environment would be beneficial to any literature class.  Bringing the Locker Room into the Classroom