Technology in the Classroom

When I was a senior in high school in 1997, I did not have a computer at my house and I only ever played games on it because I rarely used it.  I only knew how to use Microsoft Word because of having to write papers fro my English classes.  Essentially, the internet was in its infancy and the only surfing I knew of took place in the ocean on boards.  Whenever I had to write a research paper, I had to go to different towns to their public library and check out books for sources.  It was a pain in the butt and many times I just decided to pass on some of them because I did not feel like driving to get the book.  I remember thinking that Microsoft Encarta was the greatest thing in the world.  To me, it could not get any better than Encarta because it had so much information.     

When I was a senior in college in 2001, I used the internet daily, sometimes for hours at a time.  I had a computer in my apartment, numerous ones at school, and one at work that all had internet connections.  I never thought that anything would replace television, but I was able to use the internet and watch television at the same time.  As far as school went, the internet made any information I needed accessible with a simple click of my finger.  It sounds weird but I felt smarter and lazier at the same time because I did not have to do really any work to learn.

Today, I can’t imagine life without the internet.  I use it for hours each day.  I read the paper, keep up with my fantasy football team, get parenting tips, etc. all on the internet.  As a teacher, I would be crippled without the internet or Web 2.0 programs because almost all of my lessons are heavily based on the use of technology.  I do not even want to think what it would be like to teach “old school” because I would bore myself to tears as well as the students.  I would not want to continue teaching if all I did every day was come in and have a group of apathetic teenagers pretending to be listening to me talk at them for six period a day.

Although I sometimes feel like my life is basically like living the same day over and over again, so much has changed, but it is hard to realize when you are “in the moment”.  Just writing the beginning of this essay reminds me of how different my life has become and how much it will continue to change with each passing day.  If someone asked me in 1997, “What do you think life will be like?”, I never would have guessed the way it is today.  I probably would have said that I would be married with four children and making in excess of $100,000.

In the year 2020, I think life will be completely different than it is today.  Houses will be totally robotic.  There will be no need for cleaning your house, cooking dinner, washing the dishes, etc. because all you will have to do is push a button or tell your house computer to do it for you.  Televisions and whatever will replace blue ray DVD players will not have remote controls anymore because they will be controlled by voice commands.  Cars will no longer run on gasoline (they will all be electric) and they will be controlled via a controller rather than a steering wheel.  Money will be a thing of the past because everyone will be required to use cards in its place.  Computers will be smaller and thinner than they are today.  Again, it will also be audio based.  There will be no need for keyboards because the computer will type what you want it to.

Web 2.0 technology will not be foreign to anyone.  Actually, the more I think about it, it will probably be obsolete.  There will be newer versions of YouTube, Skype, Flickr, etc.  Students will be able to create dynamic presentations and view or listen to just about anything.  Whatever they will be, I’m sure that they will be more user friendly and totally awesome.  The programs will make everyone capable of becoming the next Steven Spielberg.  Authors or politicians will be able to be available to heard in the classroom for Q&A sessions.      

As a teacher in the year 2020, my role will be completely different than it is today.  I will be 41 years old and probably still trying to stay one step ahead of my students.  I will no longer have to stand in front of the class and lecture them because they will be accessing information from various sites on the internet.  I foresee a paperless classroom which will have great economic and environmental benefits.  I will facilitate the students as they watch videos, listen to podcast readings or critical interpretations, view images, etc.  There will be no No Child Left Behind so the focus of education will not be on how proficient our students are according to a test that does not make sense.  In addition, I will assist the students in collaborative work with other schools and other teachers.  The classroom will no longer be limited to the walls surrounding them.  Cross curricular and cross district learning will be the norm because of the vast amount of information to be had.

With all of the changes that will be ahead in the upcoming years, I would be a liar if I said that I was not a little scared.  However, I am equally, and maybe even more so, excited for those changes.  I embrace the technological changes because I know that they are needed to prepare the students to succeed in the world once their schooling is over.  No matter how much life changes or how many technological advances are brought into the classroom, I will always remember that it is my responsibility to prepare my students for “the real world” to the best of my ability.     

Zoho Notebook is an awesome tool for all types of learners.  This free program allows students to maintain an online notebook with text, audio, video, or images.  I’ve never heard of this program until very recently but I plan on implementing it into my classroom immediately.  I know that this program will benefit all of my students but I think that it will especially benefit non-traditional learners.

Too often, my students are armed with only words on a page as a study aid for my literature class.  For most of my students, this is enough, but for others it is not.  Zoho Notebook enables students to supplement the text with visuals or audio components. 

I give background information on the time period of the literary work we read prior to reading as well as an author bio.  Zoho Notebook makes it possible for students to go back and add images, video, or audio to help them understand it better.  Additionally, it gives struggling readers a chance to listen to the story or chapter we read and have an easy reference to it later.

I plan on showing this program to all of my students and having them create an account.  I will be sure to inform the special education department of this program and have them keep thier students active on the site to keep up with the reading or whatever else we are doing in class. 

A paperless classroom is a great idea.  With today’s technology and all of the information to be had, paperless classrooms make the most sense to maximize the educational experience of today’s students.  Also, it would save numerous trees and save a great deal of money.

My role in a paperless classroom would shift from the idea of a traditional teacher to more of a facilitator.  I feel as though I would be able to adapt to this new role rather seemlessly.  I do like the idea of utilizing our class time learning without having to waste time on taking notes because I could put them on the internet for the students to have.  I would reference the notes and explain them, but the students wouldn’t have to write them which sometimes takes quite a while.

In my opinion, a paperless classroom would enhance learning because there would be more time spent learning and increases communication between student and teacher via email.  Also, it allows the students to collaborate with others and expand their social learning network because they are able to utilize Read/Write Web Technology..     

The Social, Collaborative Construction of Meaningful Knowledge is the Big Shift #3 of the Read/Write Web era.  It states that the classroom is no longer limited to the walls of the classroom or the knowledge of just the classroom teacher.

As a teacher who strongly believes in using as much technology as possible in the classroom, this ”Big Shift” has greatly affected the way I approach teaching.  I realize that I am not the ultimate authority on every topic and I appreciate it when a student brings up or in additional or new information on a topic.  This shift has also motivated me to become as knowledgeable as I can be in my subject area.

For quite a while, I wished there was a way for me to expand my classroom without having a class with hundreds of students in it (I’d go insane).  This “shift” has opened my classroom up to an audience far beyond what I could have ever imagined.  Students from my other classes are able to see each other’s work and collaborate on projects/assignments. The opportunity is also there to collaborate with students from other schools!  I think this is awesome.  I also think that it makes students realize that their work will be judged by a greater audience than traditionally dealt with in the past (primarily myself), which is a stimulus to getting harder work from students.

As time goes on, I see schools doing more collaborative work.  The possibilities are endless with this “shift” and I can’t wait!   

I wholeheartedly believe that the theory of connectivism is the way to learn in the 21st century.  I admit that I am a Digital Immigrant who wants to learn as much as I can, but I am also a little hesitant to let go of what I am used to.  There are many times when my students lack “basic skills” I take for granted, but I have to remember that they did not grow up the same way I did.

The “basic skills”, spelling, using paper reference material, addressing an envelope, etc., I was taught are not really the “basic skills” of today.  Digital Natives have been brought up in a society that cherishes its technological advances far more than anything.  Does that make today’s students any less intelligent than myself or my predecessors (who probably felt the same way about me)?  No.  Digital Natives have their own “basic skills” that probably makes me look like an idiot to them at times.

In the pro-connectivism group’s site (http://bcewiki08.wikispaces.com/For+Connectivism), they make a great case for the benefits of connectivism because it creates a learning environment where the Digital Natives feel most comfortable.  I can’t ask a student to learn the way i did because it was a different time.  Connectivism opens up the classroom exponentially for today’s students.  No longer is what a student learns limited to only the teacher who stands in front of the class.  If information is power, then today’s students are much more like Hercules than Dopey.

Skype is a great tool for collaborating with others.  To this point, I have not used it for this purpose.  I recently learned how to use it, but the training was with other teachers from my school.  We occasionally use it to contact each other rather than by calling each other.  What I would like to do in the near future is collaborate with teachers from other schools to enhance my lessons.  I’d also like to allow another class into my classroom, or vice versa, via Skype.

My podcast  deals with my notes from class.  I realize that there are some students who take all of the notes in my class but are not scoring well on tests.  Some of them just don’t seem to “learn” that way.  I think that making my notes audible will benefit many students. 

Also, I feel as though having an audio version of my notes online will enable those that are not in class to keep up with what’s going on.  Obviously, these notes will not be interactive so it would greatly benefit students to attend class to get more than just what I have as my outline. 

Flickr is a great site to access many pictures with the click of a finger.  As an American Literature teacher, I give a decent amount of background information on the time period that each piece we read was written.  The easily accessible pictures on this site will help me greatly in adding more visuals to the notes my students already receive from me.  I realize that it is sometimes hard for students to picture certain things that they have no prior knowledge of. 

The picture here depicts life in the 1920s.  This is just one of several images I am planning on using to help my students visualize what life was like in the “Roaring 20s”.  Flickr is a great resource for teachers in most if not all subject areas.  

Collaborative wikis provide a great opportunity for teachers to use in order to get students working together using technology.  Students are able to work together without actually being together.  The discussion board on the wiki site allows the students to communicate with each other.  I hope to collaborate with a teacher at another school and have their students create wikis with mine.  I think that would be something different for the students and give them a chance to expand their classroom beyond our school walls.     

Vouchers

Teachers, parents, and the general public have long  opposed private school tuition vouchers — especially when funds for vouchers compete with funds for overall improvements in America’s public schools.

NEA and its affiliates have been leaders in the fight to improve public schools — and oppose alternatives that divert attention, energy, and resources from efforts to reduce class size, enhance teacher quality, and provide every student with books, computers, and safe and orderly schools.

The Educational Case Against Vouchers

• Student achievement ought to be the driving force behind any education reform initiative. See what research says about the relationship between vouchers and student achievement. 
• Americans want consistent standards for students. Where vouchers are in place — Milwaukee, Cleveland, and Florida — a two-tiered system has been set up that holds students in public and private schools to different standards. 
• NEA and its affiliates support direct efforts to improve public schools. There is no need to set up new threats to schools for not performing. What is needed is help for the students, teachers, and schools who are struggling. 

The Social Case Against Vouchers

• A voucher lottery is a terrible way to determine access to an education. True equity means the ability for every child to attend a good school in the neighborhood.

   

• Vouchers were not designed to help low-income children. Milton Friedman, the “grandfather” of vouchers, dismissed the notion that vouchers could help low-income families, saying “it is essential that no conditions be attached to the acceptance of vouchers that interfere with the freedom of private enterprises to experiment.” 
• A pure voucher system would only encourage economic, racial, ethnic, and religious stratification in our society. America’s success has been built on our ability to unify our diverse populations. 

The Legal Case Against Vouchers

• About 85 percent of private schools are religious. Vouchers tend to be a means of circumventing the Constitutional prohibitions against subsidizing religious practice and instruction.

The Political Landscape

• Each year, about $65 million dollars is spent by foundations and individuals to promote vouchers. In election years, voucher advocates spend even more on ballot measures and in support of pro-voucher candidates.

   

• In the words of political strategist, Grover Norquist, “We win just by debating school choice, because the alternative is to discuss the need to spend more money…” 
• Despite desperate efforts to make the voucher debate about “school choice” and improving opportunities for low-income students, vouchers remain an elitist strategy. From Milton Friedman’s first proposals, through the tuition tax credit proposals of Ronald Reagan, through the voucher proposals on ballots in California, Colorado, and elsewhere, privatization strategies are about subsidizing tuition for students in private schools, not expanding opportunities for low-income children.

Vouchers have long been promoted as an avenue for students to get the “best” possible education by allowing school choice.  Are vouchers truly a vehicle to be taken for creating better students and schools or would they be creating an elitest society where we give up on those struggling widening the gap between the haves and have nots.  If vouchers became widespread, how could low-income school districts, or any for that matter, possibly ever exist as an “educational community”?