Blog Post 5

Scott McLeod: Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please?

In Dr. McLeod’s post, he lists many arguments that can portray the dangers of teaching kids how to use technology. His post is humorous and sarcastic as he asks adults not to teach their children how to use technology. At the end of his post he says that he is going to teach his kids the tools they can learn from technology so they can get ahead in the world. The kids that are taught how to utilize technology will definitely have a “leg up” as Dr. McLeod says, compared to the kids who are left in the dark about technology. Technology is crucial in our society, which is why we as future educators must teach our students how to use the internet and other devices so that they do not fall behind. I think it is also important to point out that there is a danger when using the internet, as Dr. McLeod points out. People do use the internet in ways that can be harmful to a child, but we cannot let the people who abuse the internet stop our children from exploring the wondrous benefits the internet can provide. Instead, we need to teach our children how to be safe on the internet. At schools and at home, adults can block hazardous online content. Adults must talk to children about the dangers of online predators and how under no circumstances, should a child meet with a person who they have met online. If we do our jobs and educate our children about the good and the bad that comes with technology, then I see no reason why we should ban our children from using these tools to get ahead in life.

To find out who Scott McLeod is, I looked at his twitter profile. On twitter, Scott McLeod says that he is a CASTLE director. I typed CASTLE into google’s search engine, and I found out that the acronym stands for UCEA Center for the Advanced Study of Technology Leadership in Education. CASTLE provides a variety of tools such as tutorials and boot camps on technology for school administrators to use. Scott McLeod is also an associate professor at the University of Kentucky.


Travis Allen: The iSchool Initiative and ZeitgeistYoungMinds entry
Traditional schooling revolves around using costly items such as books, paper, pencils, copy machines, scientific calculators, and much more. The iSchool Initiative is an innovative program that is all built around one thing; an iTouch. Travis Allen uses his creativity to provide an alternative way to reform the education system by suggesting the use of an iTouch in school. Travis outlines a variety of applications that students will download on their iTouch to use for educational purposes. I really like the iHomework application because it makes it impossible for the students to their lose syllabus. People can easily misplace papers, so this electronic file will be very beneficial. Teachers will also not have to worry about handing out a revised syllabus because the syllabus can be updated directly to the student’s iTouch. Providing fast connections between a student and teach is a very ingenious idea that Travis Allen focuses on in his program.

I like how Travis Allen’s iSchool Initiative focuses on saving resources and creating speedy connections between teachers, students and parents. Travis Allen also does a lot of research on how the iSchool Initiative can save money compared to traditional schooling. I do agree that we need to rethink and reshape our education system to be current, and to do so we should embrace the tools and technology laid out before us, but such heavy reliance does not sit well with me. I feel like there should be some moderation in Travis Allen's program. Relying so heavily on this technology does not seem smart. Teachers will need to have back up plans in case the technology does not work during lessons. What happens if a kid breaks their iTouch? What if it is stolen? What are strategies teachers will use to help those who do not have their iTouch with them in class? This seems risky. Kids are clumsy and break things rather frequently. The rain can destroy an iTouch easily and sometimes technology can glitch for no reason. What would a teacher do if a kid had to wait for their iTouch to be fixed? All of these factors need to be taken into account. I will say that Travis Allen has created a very impressive and well-researched alternative to reform the education system. I just feel that the program will need to be modified before attempting to place the program in an elementary school setting.


Eric Whitacre's Virtual Choir
This video left me awe-struck. Eric Whitacre collects videos of 185 singers and creates a compilation of their voices to form a virtual choir. I would never have thought to use the internet to form a virtual choir. Eric Whitacre puts the voices together in a flawless performance. I had a friend listen to audio of the video and they thought that the singers were practicing in a room together like a traditional choir. They were shocked when I told them that the voices were collected on the internet and compiled together to create a virtual choir. This is another example of how technology can be used in such creative and beautiful ways. I really enjoyed listening to the virtual choirs rendition of "Lux Aurumque."


Kevin Roberts: Teaching in the 21st Century
Roberts believes that in order to be a teacher in the 21st century, you need to teach children how to use technology correctly. In Robert’s video, he says that students now rely on technology to provide them with the information that they seek. Robert describes teachers as a “filter” meaning that it is our job to teach the children how to use technology correctly to provide them with the answers that they are looking for. I agree with Roberts that technology can provide the answers to many of our questions at the click of a button. Children can use search engines like Google to find the answers to many questions that they may have, but how will they know what answers are correct out of the possible answers that are provided? Teachers still need to teach children how to find the correct answers. Teachers should let their students know that Wikipedia is not always reliable because anyone can post on that site. Many libraries provide a list of websites and online resources that provide correct information provided by experts on given subjects. Teachers should let that list be available to children so they can find the correct answers.

Roberts questions if our curriculum should be focused on content and facts as it was traditionally centered on, or should our curriculum be reformed to focus on teaching children valuable skills? We as teachers need to teach the children the skills to use tools properly. We need to also lead by example by using tools in a professional manner so that our students will learn how to use blogs and other social networking sites correctly. Teachers need to use technology as a tool in the classroom to help teach their students and keep them engaged in the lessons. It is the job of the teacher to remain current with technology to find a way to engage the students.