When I went to the University of Alabama my freshman year, I think this video was more the case. Like the video said, many people would pay for classes and not even show up. Others who came to class would bring their laptops to get on Facebook or the internet. The classrooms at UA were just as big as in this video. However, the classrooms at the University of South Alabama are much smaller and I have found that teachers are much more strict about computer use in their classrooms. Therefore, at South, no this video is not completely what my college experience has been like. I believe in nearly every class I have had at South, the teachers have made an effort to know my name. About 92% of teachers at South have known me by name so far. That percentage at the University of Alabama was much lower.
I suppose this fact is something we should be concerned about, but I believe it is unavoidable at large state colleges like the University of Alabama and Kansas State University unless they were to hire a tremendous amount of more professors. However, this would only cause student's tuition to rise even more. There is no clear answer. The choice is either to go to large college where a Ph.D. is required of professors and students remain mostly anonymous or go to a smaller college with easy-going professors who know your name.
It's Not About the Technology by Kelly Hines
Kelly Hines is absolutely right. Like I have said before, I do not think teachers should have to be technologically literate in the classroom. Yes, they should be outside the classroom so they can know what their students are up to in the 21st century. A teacher could be technologically literate in the classroom but be a horrible teacher! In fact, I have had just these kinds of teachers. It is not about what technology you have, it is about the quality and creativity the teacher outputs. Just because students "respond better" to technology in the classroom does not make it a better thing. In my opinion, it just makes the students lazier. School can be challenging and stressful and boring at times but I feel like by giving students computers and interactive games in order for them to learn is the easy way out. For thousands of years philosophy and education has been based on plain text and lecturers and look where it has gotten us.
Like Kelly Hines said, it is a wonderful thing if a good teacher has technology at their fingertips in the classroom but it could be a total waste of money if a bad teacher has this technology at their fingertips. I am not saying we should become primitive and reject technology, I just do not think we should forget about the traditional way of doing things.
Is It Okay To Be A Technologically Illiterate Teacher? by Karl Fisch
I believe Karl Fisch is being a little too extreme to claim that a teacher who is technologically illiterate today is comparable to a teacher who could not read and write 30 years ago. I have had some very old teachers in college, one (which I had last Fall) who had been teaching at the University of South Alabama since the late 1970's. From what I could tell by his teaching method and overall take on things, he was not technologically literate. However, he knew vast amounts of information and had been to so many places. He was an interesting teacher and just because he did not use technology, that did not make me less interested. In the 21st century, I do not think I should condemn him for being "socially unacceptable" as a technologically illiterate man. Yes, he is from a completely different generation, but that is OK.
I can understand Fisch's argument for the problem with teachers being technologically illiterate and I believe this is definitely true for younger teachers. We are growing up in an age where it will be "socially unacceptable" to be technologically illiterate, but we are not at that point yet. However, I do not think there is any problem with my generation and upcoming generations when it comes to technology. We have grown up with computers and know how to use them effectively. Because of this, we will continue to use the latest technology because we grew up in a society that called for that. By the time my generation is in the teaching field, I do not think there will be any problem with us "learning and adapting" to our students' new technology. We will be right there with them.
Maybe I am biased in my opinion because I am a social studies major and this major focuses heavily on history. I am fascinated with the old. History and technology, it seems, are at opposite ends of the spectrum. History tells how we got to the present and technology is the present. History is old, technology is new. It is important to me that students know where and how they came to be where they are, so I want to keep the traditional classroom all while being a tech-savvy teacher. I can know what my students are talking about when they bring up technology but I can keep my classroom simple. Maybe you do not think this is possible, but I do.
Social Media Count by Gary Hayes
It is amazing how much happens in just a few seconds. The amount going on through Facebook alone is stunning. Not only is the world's human population growing every second but the people of my generation do multiple things at a quicker pace.
As a future teacher, I should realize how busy my student's lives will be, how much they will use the internet, and how used to multitasking they will be. I find myself doing too much at once sometimes and I miss the simplicity of only worrying about one thing at a time. I realize the real world will not be like this, but I want to make my classroom a place where time slows down and the students are required to focus on one thing at a time. It should be a sanctuary where students can place their full attention on the subject at hand. I will make it creative and interesting enough to capture their full, multitasking attention.
I completely agree with your opinions on "A Vision of Students Today." I feel like that video holds more truth when pertaining to larger universities. Though some specific things in it, like textbook costs, are be universal. Overall though, I haven't witnesses those things in large numbers at South either.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth,
ReplyDeleteYou make a good point about "A Vision of Students Today." This video is not necessarily true of EVERY college. However, I do believe it is accurate at a lot of colleges. The creators were aiming for the "typical college life," South has not gotten there, yet.
You'd be surprised at how many people your age cannot use a computer effectively! You and I have both been blessed with access to advanced technology unlike a larger number of people than we realize!
I also think simpleness is a good thing. I think you can keep teaching methods simple with technology once you find the certain tools you like. I definitely like your idea of making your classroom a place where students can focus their full attention on the subject and enjoy it!
Good post!
Jacey-Blaire
P.S.- good job on the links!
I also went to the University of Alabama my freshman year, so I know exactly what you mean in your post about "A Vision of Students Today." I think while I was there I had two teachers who ever knew my name and that's because it was a class of 30.
ReplyDeleteI don't completely agree with you about "It's not about the technology." I do think that teachers should be technologically literate in the classrooms. Although I do see your point about it being a waste of money for some teachers who aren't technologically literate. Maybe there could be some kind of "intro to technology" class required for teachers to take before they begin using computers to teach. Your post was great, and you are very insightful!
What makes a teacher "great"? What makes a student great? Who is most likely to succeed in life - those who make the best use of all the tools available to them or those who master older, more "tested" tools? What do we mean by "succeed in life"? What advantages do masters of "older teaching approaches" have over those teachers maximizing the effective use of technology as a learning tool. What advantages does the technologically literate teacher have over the master of the "older approaches"? What is meant by the traditional methods of teaching? How important is the memorization of factual information in a world where all "facts" are available in all places at all times? In the world of the mid twentieth century, How important will the ability to access and process information quickly be? How important will being able to communicate effectively with people around the world be? In order to answer the question "Should all teachers be technologically literate?" we need to know a) a what we mean by technological literacy and b) have some answers to those I have posed in this response. We will continue to address these issues in EDM310.
ReplyDeleteMore... I got interrupted.
ReplyDeleteRecently I was talking with a famous author who lives in Point Clear. He was enthusiastically telling me how important Google Books and the internet are to him. He has just finished writing his 15th book. This one is about the Battle of Shiloh. He has written several books about the Civil War. Previously he had to travel all over the country spending days in various libraries reading manuscripts on microfilm. For his last book he sat at his computer, in his house, and was able to access almost all of the collections around the Untied States using the internet. He saved thousands of hours, thousands of dollars and had access to far more information than he had ever been able to access for any of his other books. Think of what your students could do with these data, and more that are now available in every classroom that uses technology as a tool. Would you deny these tools to your students?
It's as if I thinking about hiring you as a captain of a merchant boat to take a precious cargo to New Zealand. You were sailing out of Mobile. You wanted merely a sailboat. You were going to navigate with no technology. I insisted that the boat you captained for me would be equipped with all of the best navigation equipment. You said, "No, I'll do it the traditional way." Would you get the job? Not from me. To refuse to use the best tools available seems a bit foolish to me. Well, more than "a bit"!
When you say " I am not saying we should become primitive and reject technology, I just do not think we should forget about the traditional way of doing things." you seem to agree with me. But then you say "... so I want to keep the traditional classroom all while being a tech-savvy teacher. I can know what my students are talking about when they bring up technology but I can keep my classroom simple. Maybe you do not think this is possible, but I do." Are you really saying I want to sail without technology but I'll use it fully when driving? And what does keeping your classroom "simple" have to do with being a fantastic educator? Are you saying I'm not going to use, or let my students use, technologies as part of their learning activities? I certainly hope not.
Thoughtful, well written. Interesting. But I am not convinced that a classroom without technology, a "simple classroom," is the route to take to being a great educator in these changing times. I agree that making use of fantastic tools does not guarantee that the instruction will be effective. But I think I can state unequivocally that the failure to use the very best tools effectively will guarantee that the educational results will be far less than they could have been.
We will continue the discussion. Keep thinking. That is great. And it is what counts!
Dear Professor Strange,
ReplyDeleteYour analogy about hiring me as a captain of a merchant boat does not apply in this situation. I will never deny that technology is a wonderful thing and it has improved the standard of living tremendously! Because of technology, we have been able to cure people who previously would have died. We can go around the world in mere days because we have airplanes that travel at 500 miles an hour, if not faster! If this analogy were true and you really did ask me to sail a ship, I would most certainly take the ship equipped with the best navigation tools. My point to make is, I have had so many wonderful teachers (and so many bad ones) and I do not think that technology is the reason for this. I do not think kids expect their teachers to be technologically literate. I want the students I teach to use internet on their own time and explore and learn how to use things on their OWN. This is how I learned to use things on the computer when I was growing up and I can tell you, no computer class I took ever taught me any better than I taught myself! In my class, I want to teach students about the SUBJECT at hand with no technological distractions. I know how kids are and they will want to use the technology I put in front of them as tools for entertainment. I promise I will be a good teacher, a different, interesting one that will hopefully inspire the students, but I will not use the latest technology unless the school forces me to. Technology is not the only way to communicate with and enlighten students.
If you're not willing to learn [the benefits of technology and how to use it effectively] how can you expect your students to be willing to learn anything from you?
ReplyDeleteI am willing to learn, that is why I am in college learning to become a teacher. Do you think my students will refuse to listen to me because I am not using the latest technology in the classroom?
ReplyDelete