Webb of Thoughts

When I was putting together an assignment for my ECS 100 class a few weeks ago (which I posted here), I came across the following from an article entitled Real-World Issues Motivate Students…

“If schoolchildren are given the gift of exploration, society will be the beneficiary, both in practical and in theoretical ways, scholars say. “This is the way that mathematics started,” notes MIT’s Seymour Papert. “It started not as this beautiful, pure product of the abstract mind. It started as a way of controlling the water of the Nile, building the pyramids, sailing a ship. And gradually it got richer and richer.”

I didn’t really think much about this quote at the time, but I have been thinking more and more about it.  Currently, we are teaching students how to do math from a textbook, from a set of rules that we tell them and that’s how it is.  I don’t think too many students are able to discover something on their own when they are taught this way.    The closest event would be figuring out how to solve a more complex question.

Wordle of this post (wordle.net)

Those who discovered and created math in the past weren’t told how it works from a textbook.  They had to figure it out.  They learned it because they wanted to.  Because they were curious to understand the world that they lived in.  If someone told them right from the start that this is how it is I highly doubt that the discoveries they made would have occurred.  Perhaps someone else down the road would have, but not them.  They likely wouldn’t have had any desire to explore new things if they were told how everything worked by someone.

I understand that not everyone can master math without help.  But, perhaps they can if we simply guide them along, allow them to make their own discovers, possibly by conducting studies and projects where they begin to see things clearer through their own eyes, not the pages of a text.  I think that if we started this at the beginning of a students education, they will be much more capable of grasping new concepts later in life and more able to figure things out on their own.

In my eyes, this approach would not only stimulate individual problem solving and thinking skills in students, but boost the need to share information and communicate with their peers.  No one can possibly expect a student to discover everything on their own.  However, I wouldn’t be surprised if a group of students did by constantly building upon each others work.  students would learn how to network ideas, how to constructively criticize, and  work with one another as a team.  They would have to work together to accomplish their goals.

I haven’t really figured out how this would look in a classroom.  These are just some thoughts I had once I reread the quote.  Does anyone else think this approach has some potential?  What are your thoughts?

This week in ECMP 355, we were to subscribe to and review two different podcasts; one for personal interest and one relating to education. I have downloaded quite a few podcasts but I’ve decided to tell you about two of them: fitmusic.com and Learning in Hand: iPods.

fitmusic.com Podcast Screenshot

I downloaded fitmusic.com because I have been getting pretty bored with my iPod music lately when I’m at the gym. I downloaded all 137 episodes, which took a little time, but wasn’t too bad. Basically, the podcast just has various mixes, all technoish. They range from 20 minutes long up to just over an hour. I used a few different episodes (I can’t remember exactly which ones) while I ran some laps at the gym. They were a nice change to my typical music and seemed to build up as I went, pumping me up to go even longer. I was expecting many of them to be pretty much the same thing, but much to my surprise, every episode I quickly sampled was different from the others. For each episode, there is a list of the song’s title, artist and BPM. The only thing I wish they had done differently was categorized different episodes for different types of workouts (ie. Sprinting, Casual Jogging, etc.). You can check out the podcast in iTunes here

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Learning in Hand : iPods

I came across Learning in Hand: iPod podcast when I was looking for resources for my final project. Tony Vincent is the host of this podcast. Some of the episodes were in video and some were in audio form. Currently, there are 19 episodes for this podcast. I watched episodes 18 and 19. Episode 18 talked about the basics of using iPod touches. Tony bla bla 18. In episode 19, Tony takes us on a tour of Washington, DC by taking photos along the way and use them in a comic strip, all on the iPod touch. He used the Maps app, the screenshot feature, Google Earth, and a comic creation app. He shows us how to use all of these features and ultimately showed us his final product. These two episodes were really cool and showed some great ways to use iPods in a classroom. I will definitely be looking the other episodes as soon as I get an opportunity!

From Flickr (click for original)

Yesterday, I stumbled across this article by Katie Ash. It talks about two different incidents where students used Facebook to post school shooting threats.  In the first story, a student’s post went unnoticed for five months until authorities learned of it.   In the second story, a threat was made in PEI and administrators decided to keep the school open just with tighter security. Apparently, the decision to keep the school open was because there was no way to contact students and families on such short notice.  Needless to say, parents were not pleased that they were not made aware of the threat.   Katie goes on to suggest that parents are expecting schools to be able to get the message out quickly with all the available communication tools of today.

This article brought up some interesting thoughts.

How can a shooting threat go without action for 5 months?   Was it only because it was made through Facebook?  If  dangerous threats like this are occurring on Facebook, should accounts be monitored?  What if this student came a week after his post and “shot the place up”?  Should something not have been immediately when the threat was made?

Now with regards to letting parents know quickly.  We do have incredible technology capable of reaching enormous amounts of people in no time, why couldn’t it be utilized to warn students and their families of such a threat?  They certainly could make a list of cellphone numbers to text, twitter accounts to tweet, emails to email, and so on.   The radio works great, but I’m sure even less people listen to it than ever before, so more and more ways to communicate a message like this should be explored.

What do you think about these two situations?  What can be done to better handle similar situations in the future? They certainly made me think about how technology should maybe be monitored and how effectively it is currently being used.

(This is an assignment I just submitted for my education class.  I’ll warn you, it’s a long post)

Just over a year ago I decided I wanted to pursue a career in education.  Since then, many people have asked me why I wanted to become a teacher.  At first, I was not entirely sure why I wanted to.  I would tell them that I wanted to make a difference, to work with children, to have as many holidays as possible, and to be able coach sports.  Don’t get me wrong, those are all things that still motivate me to become a teacher.  However, now I attribute my desire to teach to something much different:  I want to be a better teacher than my teachers ever were.  My teachers were behind in the times and did not always have the passion and enthusiasm I hoped for.  I do not feel that they prepared me to live in the world of today.  I can barely apply anything I learned in school to the real world and I am very inadequate when it comes to using technology.  My students will not suffer through an education experience similar to mine.  I will be a better teacher by using relevant, real-world problems and examples and I will incorporate the incredible tools of technology that are at my disposal.

From Flickr (click to enlarge)

For me, the most difficult aspect of school was applying what I was learning to the world I was living in.  Whenever a classmate of mine asked “Why are we learning this?” we typically got a response similar to “because it will be on your exam”.  What motivation is there for students to retain knowledge if the only reason they are learning is because it will be on their exam?  Students do not want to learn what will be on their exam, they want to know how it connects to their lives in the “real world” (Burden, 2000).   If a teacher can illustrate a purpose to a particular lesson, the students are more likely to dig deeper and expand their interest in the subject matter (Curtis, 2001).  Eventually, using this approach will encourage students to make connections to other lessons they have learned and apply a greater amount of knowledge when trying to solve a problem (Curtis, 2001).

This lack of real world applications will be addressed when I begin to teach.  If I can give my students reasons to learn, they will retain their knowledge rather than dismissing it immediately after their exam (Curtis, 2001).   I will give my students the framework to apply everything they learn within the walls of my classroom to the vast world outside of those walls.  I want my students to be able to do more than pass the final exam; I want them to connect their classroom experiences to their real-world experiences (Linking the real world, 2002).  It makes sense to say that “lessons related to real issues in a community have greater meaning to students than textbook ones” (Linking the real world, 2002, para. 17).  When students can build on their education outside of class, school will feel like less of a chore and will be more exciting.  Learning will become an everyday practice when students can start applying their school knowledge outside of school.

From Flickr (click to enlarge)

Having real life applications to schoolwork will unquestionably motivate students to learn.  Elliot Solloway, a University of Michigan professor, suggests that motivation can also be increased when technology is implemented into lessons (Kiedrowski, Smale, & Gounko, 2009). Tools like the internet can be used to link students to the real world (Linking the real world, 2002).  These tools make teaching more effective and interesting by better illustrating concepts and help appeal to the imagination and creative minds of students.

Technology is a bigger part of the world than it has ever been in the past.  In the 2004-2005 school year, there was over $7-billion spent on technology in the United States (Leonard & Leonard, 2006).  However, most technology still sits and collects dust (Leonard & Leonard, 2006).  When I was a high school student, technology was a large part of my everyday life, but never a part of my education.   Perhaps my teachers weren’t confident or educated well enough to effectively use the tools available to them.  According to Leonard and Leonard, many teachers have struggled to advance past the initial stages of using technology and ultimately have difficulty seeing its potential to boost their teachings (2006).

Some people argue that technology is not needed in education.  Some say the best teachers use very little technology while others argue that it disrupts the classroom environment (Leonard & Leonard, 2006; Kiedrowsk et al., 2009).  This may be true; however, technology is here to stay and is currently transforming our world (Leonard & Leonard, 2006).   Should education not reflect this worldwide trend?  Teachers need to begin finding ways to use technology for educational gains instead of ignorantly banning it (Kiedrowsk et al., 2009).  New technology needs to be used to its full potential because students will be using it for the rest of their lives (Leonard & Leonard, 2006).  For example, if a student is capable to accurately and professionally T9 text message a colleague in the future, they will have one more essential workplace skill than a peer who did not have the opportunity to learn this skill in their education (Kiedrowsk et al., 2009).

From Flickr (click to enlarge)

As a teacher, I plan to utilize technology to its full extent.  I do not intend for it to compensate for my shortcomings, but rather for it to complement my abilities.   It will be my responsibility to use technology appropriately and to ensure that my students are educated on how to use it safely and effectively (Kiedrowsk et al., 2009).  In the United States, the Congress’ Office of Technology Assessment believes that integrating technology into classrooms is the most important step for developing students to live in the future (Leonard & Leonard, 2006).   If a class can be made more exciting through the use of multimedia or projects made more fun with technology, why not use it to do so?  Teachers should be doing everything in their power to make learning more exciting and interesting for students.

I do not want my students to have a discouraging education experience like I did.  I want to make their schooling fun, exciting and practical.   My students will be prepared to live in the real world outside the walls of my classroom.  By encouraging my students to connect what they have learned in my class to their real life, they will be better prepared to handle real world problems on their own.  I will give my students the tools to succeed by exposing them to the incredible technology of the world and encourage them to use it in a safe, effective, and creative manner for their entire lives.   I want to be the teacher who makes school relevant to the real world.

References

Burden, P. (2000). Powerful classroom management strategies: motivating students to learn. Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publications Inc.

Curtis, D. (2001, 11 1). Real-World Issues Motivate Students. Retrieved October 18, 2009, from Edutopia: http://www.edutopia.org/start-pyramid

Kiedrowski, J., Smale, W., & Gounko, T. (2009). Cellular Phones in Canadian Schools: A Legal Framework. Education Law Journal , 19 (1), 41-62.

Leonard, L. J., & Leonard, P. E. (2006). Leadership for Technology Integration: Computing the Reality. Alberta Journal of Educational Research , 52 (4), 212-224.

Linking the real world to the classroom. (2002). Retrieved October 15, 2009, from Teaching Today: http://www.glencoe.com/ps/teachingtoday/educationupclose.phtml