I am really interested in the new course management system. While I know very little about it, I think that providing a way for teachers to create 24/7 learning will inprove learning. Angel won’t instantly get teachers involved on-line, but it will get us all moving that way.
If you get the chance, go there and play.
Now for the big question, if we are going to have 24/7 learning, how can we make sure that it is 24/7 learning for all? How do we bridge the digital divide? While it is important to move forward, it is also important to make sure that we don't leave anyone behind. I'd love to hear any ideas, suggestions to overcome this concern.
4 comments:
I realize that many schools have extended hours for the library to provide access to students. Maybe we will have to offer extended hours for computer labs so that students can take advantage of some of the technology that is available to them. We have all of these wonderful computers sitting idle all night. I am not advocating that the students come to school and use the computers for their non-educational socializing, but for the purposes of growing and learning... exploring. I need so much time on the computer just to understand what I am learning and to explore the possibilities. I am sure that the students need this time too.
Right now, some students are going home and using the computers on their own and without much guidance. Imagine if we gave them assignments that they could learn to explore another aspect of their technologies! They are natives and should be encouraged to grow...
I guess if they don't have computers at home they probably don't have transportation. Maybe just stay late and ride the activity buses.
I think it might be naïve to think that most students would want to use the computer for educational purposes. They are natives, and they know the lay of the land, and what they have in their heads they would like to have in their hands. This is not to say that a number of students have the self-discipline to have a bifurcated focus – one on themselves and their place in the world, on one which takes a broader focus. For those who lack self-discipline, we might be able to teach them how to use Web 2.0 technologies to create an efficiency of scale, to help them understand the biological transformation they are experiencing, and to help them find their way in the world.
Educators and administrators alike seem to want to squelch this source of digital/electronic freedom. Has that much time passed that we are unable to see what “matters” to them? Where are the voices of biology and chemistry teachers? They “know” the underlying factors in human development, don’t they? Why aren’t they on a band wagon to change the starting time for high school student, to stop the excessive use of standardized tests as a measurement of intelligence/success, and to engage young adults in a dialogue about what it means “to love” and “be loved?”
In his closing remarks to the graduating seniors of the class of 2007, my principal remarked that we all need to “love” each other more. His remarks reverberated in my mind. I hope that they had a similar effect on our recent graduates.
Let’s talk about love.
Angel.....I think there will be a digital divide...I doubt that we will be able to make sure all students have access...but enough students do that there is probably a way to get all kids the opportunity to log on.
In the next ten years I am hopeful things will change enough that all kids will have access...because they won't be able to live without it...
I do think that kids have to have time to experiment and use the ocmputers ofr their purposes too.
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