Week 4 Blog

I have been having some technical difficulties at the house, but my posts will be coming live earlier in the coming week. Sorry for the delay.
This week’s reading was very interesting to me. I found that the two authors had very different writing styles and I believe the articles were written for different reasons. In Strauss’ article he seems to be writing to persuade the reader into thinking this new generation will be the saviors of the world. One of many comments Strauss writes states, “Their life mission will not be to tear down old institutions that don’t work, but to build up new ones that do (2001, p. 7).” He really paints a picture of a super generation that is growing out from the ruble of mediocrity. I really could not connect any of the kids I teach and see on a regular basis in this article. I felt that this article was written through rose color glasses to say the least. Don’t get me wrong, I believe he had some great points, I just wish he would have put in more data that showed some of his conclusions.
On the other side of the spectrum was the article by Prensky. I believe he wrote this article to inform and educate the reader. This piece of work depicted a more realistic view of this new generation of children. Prensky was able to capture the disconnect between the adult and the students they teach. I see this struggle everyday and for that reason Prensky’s article felt very familiar to me. I hear the teacher’s complain about how distance the students are and how they can not seem to engage them at all. I have gym teachers that are unable to get the kids to take sports seriously and the kids seem almost too lazy to try anything new. Most the time you will catch almost half the class on the sidelines talking and socializing. This is of course very disheartening to the coaches and gym staff.
If you stand in the hallway at my school it seems like you can see walking zombies moping around the building. The only time I see anything different is when technology is being used in the classroom for instruction. The kids seem to perk up and get interested. Unfortunately, computers are not always a regular in every classroom. I agree with Prensky when he says there has to be a change in the way education is delivered if we are to ever get the kid’s maximum involvement. My questions would be how can we take the State’s technology initiative and change the way we deliver instruction throughout the state? Is it really feasible to believe that something this massive can happen? Do we have a choice? If change does not occur what will happen to the children that grow up in this era?

Lessons

One of the biggest things we are trying to get the 8th and 9th graders to do is learn how to research. I would design a unit around a mandatory research paper. I would use blogger to help the kids brainstorm on different topics. I would also give writing prompts to help the children analyze their references. Something like this would get the children in the habit of thinking before they write.

Reaching the Masses

Educational blogging is a great way to share ideas and get insight into different concepts. If I was teaching in a classroom I would certainly have a educational unit that incorporates the blogging concept. I think it is a great way to get kids analyzing, writing, reading and comprehending. Google is a program that I will be introducing to my teacher's because it is free and it is a great learning tool.

Introduction

Hello my name is Nicole and I am excited to be a part of this class. I am currently working as a Technology Coordinator at Chandler Park Academy which is a K-9 district. I look forward to learning about different ways to incorporate computers in the classroom. I find that there are so many different things to do that it becomes overwhelming! I hope this class will help me focus in on a few different things that will help me hone my skills.