Saturday, February 22, 2014

Blog 2- Chapter 2&3

On the first page of Chapter 2,  I finally find the most appropriate description(as far as I have seen) of the tendency or we can say transition in education during the past few decades. Here Mark Yim addresses the distinction of those two push model and pull model. Have a review of Prensky's article  we've discussed on the topic for online discussion, the traditional push model is based on what our generation as "digital immigrants" has been taught the way of being imparted by the teachers. Whereas the pull model may better fit our students who are considered as "digital natives", they grew up in the context full of technologies, thus, they think and process information in a different way. As teachers, I think it’s our job to appropriately use technologies as tools to teach in the classroom, and we can help our students to find the most efficient way to learn.

Good teachers can take good advantage of information to promote visual learning. I like the examples such as using technologies in content areas presented in Chapter2. Some websites like Pinterest and Youtube also provide large amount of primary visual sources for teaching and learning. What's more, technology can be used to create activities so that students can to the large extent get involved either individually or in groups in their learning process.  

Now the question is how can we as teachers to develop lessons efficiently with technology. At the beginning of Chapter 3, an interesting vignette of a teacher designing lessons as prepares dinner reminds me that we can find some inspirations at any place and any time in our real life.  Reading through the Chapter, I was attracted by "visual thinking". I had no idea what does it mean, then I googled it. It came out as "visual thinking strategy", which is designed to build students' background knowledge and develop thinking skills that use detail to enhance understanding through asking a simple question: "What's going on in this picture?". As we can see, technology can provide visual resources such as pictures when we plan what to teach and when we apply strategies in the classroom. As for me, I have less experience of teaching. Therefore, personally speaking, I need lesson plans as an outline when I am still a "beginner".

Question1: Is it right for schools to maximize the impact of technology? 

Question2: How can we help our students to control their amount of time to be exposed to "technology"?

6 comments:

  1. Hey Lily,

    I too access the internet for all source of informations, I take full advantage. I love using pinterest it gives me so much inspiration and ideas, I just love looking at the pictures too. It's so convenient to use! I do think that schools should maximize the impact of technology. I think students should be exposed to technology because its all around them already. And I think every classroom should have computers so the students can have access to it especially for the students that do not have computers at home, they'll be able to use it in school. It's good to show the students how much we can do with technology, so later on they can also do as much with it.

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  2. I do believe it's right for schools to maximize the impact of technology. As Michelle had mentioned, students are constantly exposed to technology in the everyday world. Teachers and students need to feel comfortable using technology in and outside of the classroom. I am fairly new to teaching and I am still learning how to use technology professionally and personally. Everything is a learning process.

    Teachers and Educators provide students with guidance. In the classroom, teachers control the amount of technology used within a lesson. Teachers can incorporate "traditional" teaching methods into the class to show students concepts of logical thinking and why it is still important in society today. If students do not understand the past and how we've evolved, then learning is lost. Teachers can also work with parents and/or guardians in controlling the amount of technology used at home.

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  3. I believe schools and teachers should utilize technology to the max. they are so many great resources on the computers and internet alone that can enhance the lessons that are being taught today. i think for the teachers to use technology to the right extent they have to be given the right amount of resources. if this is what the principals are wanting they they have to provide their teachers with computers and smartboards within the classrooms.

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  4. Lily, I do not believe it is necessary to control the amount of time a student is exposed to technology because we now live in a world where technology is a part of survival. I think that students should be exposed to technology as often as possible. Technology helps students explore the whole world without even leaving their house. I think schools should focus more on teaching students about informational literacy and how to understand the information being presented on the internet rather than limiting them.

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  5. I agree with lisa when she says that schools and teachers should utilize technology to the max. I also do believe that either teachers and/or parents should be in control of how much technology children are using a day. I have seen technology be used overboard where there are children who lack exercise and fresh air. Using it for homework and in the classroom is a great way to exercise their brain but they must not forget to exercise their bodies as well.

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  6. Very interesting questions. When it comes to controlling the amount of time being exposed to technology, I'm not sure that's our responsibility as teachers. Students are in school six to seven hours per day. We can assign them work utilizing technology, but it is up to them and/or their parents regarding how they use their time otherwise.

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