chapter 3 optional post #C

Digital Blog #C/Chapter 3

Chapter 3, Transforming Learning with Unique, Powerful Technology, focuses readers on the point that technology in and of itself is not beneficial to student learning. Technology offers opportunities but those opportunities must be met with the proper guidance, and that is where the teachers’ roles come in at.  Three areas of interest made in this chapter worth further exploration as a future teacher are: the new role of a teacher when technology is included, various resources and applications available for critical thinking and problem solving, and the social aspect of technology and its role in education.

Firstly, the role of teachers has changed over the years. With the incorporation of technology, educating has moved from teacher-centered delivery of information to student-centered transmission of learning. Within this delivery of information, teachers tend to follow one or more of four dominate learning theories: behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism, or constructionism. I think the point most important to understand is that technology cannot replace teachers and teachers cannot let technology work alone. Indeed, technology offers students a wider array of information almost instantly, but students still need to be guided on how to best compose, evaluate, and utilize that information. Can you imagine having your students look up healthy dieting plans and tips without guiding them? With an unlimited collection of ideas of what works best out there, students will be overwhelmed with finding reputable, reliable information. Technology and teachers must work hand in hand.

Secondly, the chapter outlined very well some of the various resources and applications available through technology that promotes critical thinking and problem solving skills for students. From educational games to interactive simulations students thinking and problem solving techniques can be explored. Of the resources presented, the one I found most interesting to explore the actual site of was the American Museum of Natural History Presents Ology. The resource contains many different disciplines and offers different things that can be done within the program. Teachers can use it to have students do things from explore to take tests and quizzes. I found ‘The Gene Scene’ to be the most applicable. I liked how it took a topic as complex as understanding genetics and simplified it so that every student can become their own detective of information. I could definitely see using this program to have students understand how and why their bodies, eating habits, medical aliments contribute to their overall health and fitness.

Finally, the social aspect of technology and its role in education cannot be overlooked as the chapter outlined. Social media is out there everywhere. From emails to blogging, immediate communication is there. So, why not use it to advance learning? What was neat to read was how teachers can take those social media technologies and use them in the classroom to provide immediate engagement and instantaneous feedback. Through social media technologies, students that are less likely to get involved in classroom discussions, can have a voice. As important as the use of social media has become for teens and pre-teens, it doesn’t have to always be met with opposition from educators. In fact, it can also offer opportunities to teach students how to become a digital citizens. It can be used as an opportunity to explore the proper do’s and don’ts, proper netiquettes, and user responsibilities. Education doesn’t have to be limited to just information contained in books.

In conclusion, technology allows students to connect to learning on a larger scale. It is up to teachers to guide students in that learning process.  Former U.S. Senator Nancy Kassebaum summarized the relationship between technology and teachers best through her quote “There can be infinite uses of the computer and of new age technology, but if teachers themselves are not able to bring it into the classroom and make it work, then it fails”.

Resources

OLogy for Kids. (n.d.). Retrieved September 18, 2016, from http://www.amnh.org/explore/ology

Rao, B. A. (2012). 10 Educational Technology Quotes. Retrieved September 18, 2016, from https://teachbytes.com/2012/03/01/10-educational-technology-quotes/

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.