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Jim Gates' Blog
[TIPS] Digital Natives? Really?
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When some folks argue as to why we need to be using technology in the schools they will say that “The kids are already doing this stuff”, or “The kids today are digital natives and they think differently” and even, “Their brains are different.” And, in the area of teacher preparation we used to say, “When the next batch of new teachers hits the schools THEN we’ll see the change we’re looking for.” But that hasn’t happened, has it?
I admit that I, too, used to say that. But then, about three years ago I began to question that assumption. I wasn’t seeing it. Nor was I hearing it when talking with teachers. In fact, I wanted to put together a survey (And Scott McLeod was going to host it) that would try to find out how ‘native’ the ‘natives’ actually were. Alas, it just never happened. And a part of me was a little reluctant to actually find out the truth. If it turned out that the kids truly were NOT al that tech savvy as we were assuming, THEN what would our rallying cry be? And, how much credibility would we have lost when forced to shift gears with our assumptions?
Yes, we can point to some kids who are phenomenal programmers, or who are creating some very clever mashups, or even some that ARE using the tools for personal learning. But, I can also point to some who can do NONE of those things. And I can point to a lot of others who can type and save and print but who cannot tell you what a blog is (“Oh! My Space is a blog? Well then I have one.”) or what a wiki is, unless they can point to wikipedia.
Regardless, check out these three articles:
http://www.openeducation.net/2008/09/22/digital-immigrants-teaching-the-net-generation-much-ado-about-nothing/
http://www.openeducation.net/2008/09/23/net-generation-nonsense-mark-bullen-discusses-teaching-and-learning/
http://www.openeducation.net/2008/09/26/though-net-generation-concerns-overhyped-integrating-technology-the-right-step/
I’d LOVE to hear what you think.
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| September 29, 2008 | 8:09 AM |
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[TIPS] Daniel Pink talks to students
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Yes, you CAN block ustream,tv and skype in your school. But if you do you prevent things like this from happening: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/cvsd
Congratulations to Chris Smith and mardy McGraw for puling this off for their students.
Here, Daniel Pink visits a classroom in PA via skype and the conversation is ustreamed out for others. Hurry up, now, see if you can find two people in your district who will tell you that this is bad education. Go ahead. I’ll wait.
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I didn’t think you’d find anyone. So, if it’s blocked in your school, find out WHY.
Ladies and gentlemen, I’ve said this before, but, “We don’t have time to waste.” We can’t lose one more day. We MUST make some radical changes in the experiences that we offer our students. This is SUCH serious business that if you’re in a district that won’t allow things like this, then you’ve GOT to press the issue. I can’t think of a single issue (save for this disastrous economy) that is more important – making sure our students are prepared for this ENORMOUS challenge that we in this country face. To stand here in the face of all those challenges and to continue to say, “We don’t DO skype” is, in my opinion, a crime.
Good luck! Fight the good fight!
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| September 29, 2008 | 8:09 AM |
[TIPS] webspiration
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Did y'all see this: http://www.mywebspiration.com/index.php The popular concept mapping program, Inspiration, has gone online in Webspitation. I just opened it for the first time this AM and haven't had a chance to test it with others, but this web version allows for kids to collaborate on the same document! Yes, others have been doing that, but this is especially nice since so many kids have used Inspiration in school already. Should be an easy move to this version. I don't know how many kids can collaborate on a document at one time, or any of the other particulars. But, this is one o check out, for sure, don't you think?
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| September 26, 2008 | 7:09 AM |
| September 24, 2008 | 9:09 AM |
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[TIPS] Do YOUR students write like this?
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http://students2oh.org/2008/09/21/tragedy-of-the-student/
Read that post. You’ll probably find yourself thinking a few different thoughts. Like, “How interesting that she would write about Oedipus.” And, “What an interesting comparison she’s making to her life and that of Oedipus.” And, “Wow. Very nice.”
Now ask yourself if YOUR students would EVER write something like that. Maybe they COULD, but WOULD they? DO they? Maybe they do, but in a smaller scale. Maybe they do, but their analogies aren’t quite as good. Maybe they do, but YOU never see it.
Why do you suppose that is? I think the answer might lie in this statement:
“I built my blog on the idea of exploration: expressing myself without limits and without a clear idea of what exactly I was expressing.”
“Expressing myself without limits”, eh? What? Not for a grade? Without fear of little, “Gotcha’s?” Without someone telling you to write so many words about a topic you couldn’t care less about?
This is NOT a slam on teaching methods. NOT AT ALL! I’m merely pointing out there the blog is a medium that allows a student to publish and be read by someone other than a teacher who is looking to give a grade. This girl is always writing, reading, and reflecting on her writing in order to improve herself. The medium is its own motivator. She’s MOTIVATED to write this post in which she reveals some personal vulnerabilities. Yes, she’s not your typical student, I’ll give you that. But, don’t YOU have a non-typical student who loves to write? What are you offering that student to help her/him develop that talent? Are you Ok with just letting him/her post to MySpace? Or, do you see that perhaps if this student had a blog for REAL, and some guidance (so as not to write about things that would give away identity, for example) that this talent could develop into something? And, even if it didn’t, when that student applies to a college and points the Admissions Office to the blog as evidence of her abilities, don’t you agree that it would make a MUCH greater impression?
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| September 23, 2008 | 8:09 AM |
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