After watching the video I started to think of my classroom and the technology I use. I realized this year I didn't write on the whiteboard as often as I did in previous years because I’m using the Apple T.V. more. I use iPad apps that allow students to work on their own and I can monitor them on my iPad. If teachers don’t make the change with technology then students will not be equipped to handle the problems we will face later on in life. It’s essential to teach ourselves how to use this technology and allow students to do the same. I see colleagues who struggle with technology daily and they do not use it with their students as often as those who do use technology in their classrooms. We all have to learn how to use technology and how to teach our students to use it no matter what level we are at. I look back to when I was in school which wasn’t that long ago (9 years) and I never had an iPad in the classroom or at home. My point is times are changing so fast that we don’t have time to waste by not using technology in our classrooms daily to engage our students in critical thinking that is needed for them to be ready for the real world. It will continue to change and we must continue to move with it.
I completely agree with your ideas that because the world is constantly changing educators need to adapt to the times and use technology in the classroom so that students are ready for the tech-heavy world. However, I also think the lesson of a good novel, the learning of emotional intelligence, and the figuring out of how to be a good person trumps any lesson an iPad or a computer can teach. Perhaps I am a relic, but I believe society is relying on technology TOO much, and it will only get worse as time goes on.
The video really hits home with the fact that students and teachers can be so disconnected even when the relationships a teacher builds are great. Thankfully, in the classrooms we teach, the class sizes are not 115 and we are able to know the name of each of our students, but what we don't often think about is what students are thinking about while we are "teaching". So many of the students in the video noted how much time they spent using technology throughout the day, so we as educators should be capitalizing on that fact. An old saying goes, "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" and I think that a lot of teachers are afraid of joining the technology revolution because it was not used when they were in school. However, we can't expect today's learners to achieve in a real world moving toward the future, when we are teaching using techniques of the past. If what we want is students to be able to transfer learning from the classroom to the real world, we should be facilitating that transfer in our classrooms.
I agree that I am thankful my class is not that big and can build those personal relationships with my students. When students know you care about them they care more about the learning. You also commented on joining the technology revolution. Although I feel it is important to incorporate technology, I do not agree with the video that Technology alone can save us. We have to create problem solvers and good communicators in our students.
I think the classroom in the video was portrayed in a very cold, prison-type way, showing how outdated a classroom with chairs and a chalkboard really is now. As shown by the students in the video, many of those classes are impersonal — teaching to a mass audience. A couple of the highlights that really hit me were “18% of teachers know my name” and “I spend $100’s on textbooks I never open” because I’ve personally experienced both of those things with my in-person college classes. I also think the video gave good examples of why it’s so necessary to integrate technology into instruction as we move forward. We’re reading way more websites and social media profiles than books and spending hours a day on our phones (the video said 2 but I think the average person spends more than that!) or tablets. I teach in preschool, so the communication factor is not as prominent, but for students who are old enough to use technology for learning and communicating, I think the best way to connect with students would be through utilizing programs that are designed to foster two-way communication between both teachers/students and students/students, as well as showing how collaboration, resource sharing and completing assignments can be made easier. Technology makes meaningful resources more accessible, and while some may argue that technology itself is impersonal, I think if we teach students how it can be used effectively and to share ideas it becomes more relevant in building community among classmates, and it creates a window for certain individuals to speak and contribute while they may not in a typical lecture class. As the video stated, students (and teachers) have to be multitaskers — we only have so much time to get everything done in a day. In my opinion, technology makes it easier to stay organized and complete tasks quicker.
I completely agree with your first comment and thought the same thing with how cold the classroom was. It made me think of how teachers are now changing their classrooms to have flexible seating. Even in college, flexible seating could be helpful to make them feel more at home. We do need to keep technology moving forward and using it to engage our students more than them just being on their phone to look at social media. Thanks for sharing!
It often seems like the whole world around us is changing, but many classrooms still look the same as they did fifty years ago. This logic just does not make sense. One of the stats that stuck out to me in the video was that we are teaching and training students for a job that does not exist yet. So, how do we prepare them for their future? I think we need to teach our students to problem solve. This is a skill that will be needed in any job. I will admit that there are still aspects of a traditional classroom that I still try to hang on to. Many teachers teach others how they grew up learning. Like the video said, technology can be the answer. Our students WILL be using technology in their future, so we need to be using it in our classrooms. My students are 100% engaged when they are using technology, but it has to be done the right way. I hope to be part of making the change to a more innovative classroom for our twenty first century students.
I agree with you that the skill that seems to keep rising to the surface, above all other 21st Century Skills is the ability to problem solve. I think we need to start thinking about how technology can be and option for students to use to solve problems; if technology can be used as a medium to develop the skills needed for future jobs, rather than the tool used to further more direct instruction, then I think we are really on the right track for building 21st Century students.
I agree with you on teaching our students how to problem solve and collaborate with others. I have notice there are so many differences between when I was in school to right now. I use breakout to engage my students in learning and problem solving in groups. It's crazy to see my 1st graders working together to solve these problems that are standard based. They are using so many skills during this time.
I connected with many aspects of this video. As teachers we have a tricky job to do- students need to learn skills that might not even exist yet, while also teaching them to connect with people. My concern after watching this video is that with so much emphasis on technology- which I know is a must- that we are moving people further apart from each other. However, it was so exciting to see the way the students collaborated with each other- I have seen that same collaboration in the classes I have taken online in pursuit of my masters. As a 1st grade teacher, I think my role in preparing students is to teach them to have collaborative conversations, share ideas, and build on their technology skills- if only everyone had access to the same technology:/
I agree that technology use needs to exist on a continuum and cannot be the sole means of instruction. As you said, building skills to have respectful collaborative conversations and ensuring students have the basics of the ethics of technology use need to come before full technology integration. Regardless of the job our students seek in the future, conversation ability and ethics are surely skills that will transfer!
I agreed with the underlying logic of the video, and I disagreed with the underlying logic of the video. I know the world is changing and technology is the way of all things now. However, there is still some value in good ol' fashioned chalkboard - paper - worksheet learning. I'm not saying an educator should demand this type of learning every day - far from it. However, when one enters an occupation, does the employer create fancy projects so the employee can learn his or her job? No...they SHOW the employee how to do it, or, in some cases, the employee must figure it out for himself or herself. Not everything in life is a nice, fancy technology project. Sometimes life is gritty, with pen and paper in hand. However, as I said, technology is the way of all things now, so how do we adapt education to that? Using technology in the classroom is extremely important. Using applications like Flipgrid, Google, etc. is extremely beneficial to the student, but I don't think we can get caught up in it, because the more we rely on technology to teach us, the more we forget how to teach ourselves. There has to be a balance. Where or what is that balance? That is for us to figure out.
I do agree with you that a pencil and paper and a chalkboard is just as good as technology, in some cases. I know that I like to work out my math problems with pencil and paper and doing that through technology could be hard. We do need a balance, and I always wonder, who gets to decide that balance?
This video gave me a lot of different emotions and the thoughts on education. The classroom is the same as it has been and it comes off as old and not exciting. In an elementary classroom, we are able to decorate more, add our own fun touches that make our students feel welcomed, which is a great advantage. But using a chalkboard still is amazing (that it is still there) and old school (because it is still there). Students need different ways to learn than just a chalkboard or whiteboard and technology is something that we can use to increase their learning, communication and motivation. It was amazing to me that so many of these students spend so much time on technology but not for educational reasons. They sit in the class and are on facebook or their phones. That is showing that the way we are teaching isn't working if they are more interested in checking something else. If we include technology in a way that gets them invested and moving and growing with their help and us guiding them, we can help prepare them for the future and for a job, as said in the video, that isn't even created yet. If we are able to provide technology to all of our students, we need to use that to the best of our ability.
I totally agree with you! Students need to be have the best of both worlds and find a happy median with them to be able to prepare them for the future and for the job that has not been created yet! I agree as an elementary teacher our classrooms are always so inviting then hen they get older it goes away and I think that the upper classrooms should be able to decorate as well to their extent of their content maybe!
I felt sad after watching this video of this sterile classroom and the facts that were presented by the students survey. Those that did do the reading felt that only a small percent was relevant to their lives. It was astonishing how much more was read (2300 web pages & 1281 facebook profiles) than actual books. I think that says a lot about our society. Some feel that "technology alone can save us." I disagree I do feel it is important. However, it is more important that we build our students into problem solvers, good communicators, able work as a team as well as independently, and good multi-taskers. We don't know what the future holds and we should be preparing them for jobs that do not exist today. I look back at what I learned in school. Most of it is not relevant today. That means we need to help todays children become life-long learners and engineers of thinking to apply what they have learned.
I wholeheartedly agree with you that we need to be teaching these students to become life-long learners and engineers of thinking and being able to apply it to what they have learned and transfer it to real world situations.
I strongly agree with you on how it is important to build our students into problem solvers. We don't know what jobs are going to exist or be created. We can only plan to have our students be good citizens that are equipped for this high technology world. I didn't have an iPad when I was in school and now pre school students have iPads. We have to keep up with technology and teach our students the rest of the skills they need.
Since I am a millennial and I grew up with the technology advances this video hit home for me. Growing up I did a lot of things with computers in class and at home whether it be the computer or video games with my siblings. Then when I got older I did a lot of things on the computer for high school classes but a lot of my classes looked exactly like this one that was in the video. When I was in college it looked like that and it was so bland that I didn't want to go to class because all of the professors did was just talk and talk and talk! As a teacher I decided I wanted to integrate more technology somehow into my lessons and do I agree with the statement on video, not at all! I do think that there can be a happy median because the students today all have technology of some sort and are used to the instant gratification of it. I don't think that technology alone will save the world like it said in the video but I do wholeheartedly believe that man kind has advanced for a reason and this is most of what these students today know but I do think the good old paper, pencil, and book is great to because it also helps with the other side of it they will need in life. They do need to so still know those skills because what if something happens to the technology later on in life and we are right back at the beginning of it all.
I am the exact opposite...I enjoyed the college atmosphere, where I went in and was excited to hear what the professor had to say about a certain subject. Now, don't get me wrong, I agree that some professors could be bland, but give me a good, engaging professor talking for an hour any day over technology, especially social media.
After watching this video, I felt a real connection to my own college experience. I felt I was just going through the motions in huge classes like the one in the video. We were in huge lecture halls with rown and rows of seats. I couldn’t tell you half the classes names and I’m sure the instructor couldn’t either. Until I started going to my degree specific education classes, I did not want to go and often time was bored and not as engaged as I should be throughout the class. When I reflect on my own classroom, I try to incorporate technology several times throughout the day. I want my students to be engaged without it also. I feel that sometimes they will get more out of a lesson by completing it hands on without the use of technology. I have struggled finding a way to incorporate technology for my students without making it something they rely on constantly. Especially since I teach younger students, I want to teach them the social skills and problem-solving skills they need to be successful in school. I want them to know how to use different technology and know how to access it, but I do not want them to depend on that.
After watching the video I started to think of my classroom and the technology I use. I realized this year I didn't write on the whiteboard as often as I did in previous years because I’m using the Apple T.V. more. I use iPad apps that allow students to work on their own and I can monitor them on my iPad. If teachers don’t make the change with technology then students will not be equipped to handle the problems we will face later on in life. It’s essential to teach ourselves how to use this technology and allow students to do the same. I see colleagues who struggle with technology daily and they do not use it with their students as often as those who do use technology in their classrooms. We all have to learn how to use technology and how to teach our students to use it no matter what level we are at. I look back to when I was in school which wasn’t that long ago (9 years) and I never had an iPad in the classroom or at home. My point is times are changing so fast that we don’t have time to waste by not using technology in our classrooms daily to engage our students in critical thinking that is needed for them to be ready for the real world. It will continue to change and we must continue to move with it.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with your ideas that because the world is constantly changing educators need to adapt to the times and use technology in the classroom so that students are ready for the tech-heavy world. However, I also think the lesson of a good novel, the learning of emotional intelligence, and the figuring out of how to be a good person trumps any lesson an iPad or a computer can teach. Perhaps I am a relic, but I believe society is relying on technology TOO much, and it will only get worse as time goes on.
DeleteThe video really hits home with the fact that students and teachers can be so disconnected even when the relationships a teacher builds are great. Thankfully, in the classrooms we teach, the class sizes are not 115 and we are able to know the name of each of our students, but what we don't often think about is what students are thinking about while we are "teaching". So many of the students in the video noted how much time they spent using technology throughout the day, so we as educators should be capitalizing on that fact. An old saying goes, "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" and I think that a lot of teachers are afraid of joining the technology revolution because it was not used when they were in school. However, we can't expect today's learners to achieve in a real world moving toward the future, when we are teaching using techniques of the past. If what we want is students to be able to transfer learning from the classroom to the real world, we should be facilitating that transfer in our classrooms.
ReplyDeleteI agree that I am thankful my class is not that big and can build those personal relationships with my students. When students know you care about them they care more about the learning. You also commented on joining the technology revolution. Although I feel it is important to incorporate technology, I do not agree with the video that Technology alone can save us. We have to create problem solvers and good communicators in our students.
DeleteStephanie Hunt-Espy
DeleteI think the classroom in the video was portrayed in a very cold, prison-type way, showing how outdated a classroom with chairs and a chalkboard really is now. As shown by the students in the video, many of those classes are impersonal — teaching to a mass audience. A couple of the highlights that really hit me were “18% of teachers know my name” and “I spend $100’s on textbooks I never open” because I’ve personally experienced both of those things with my in-person college classes. I also think the video gave good examples of why it’s so necessary to integrate technology into instruction as we move forward. We’re reading way more websites and social media profiles than books and spending hours a day on our phones (the video said 2 but I think the average person spends more than that!) or tablets. I teach in preschool, so the communication factor is not as prominent, but for students who are old enough to use technology for learning and communicating, I think the best way to connect with students would be through utilizing programs that are designed to foster two-way communication between both teachers/students and students/students, as well as showing how collaboration, resource sharing and completing assignments can be made easier. Technology makes meaningful resources more accessible, and while some may argue that technology itself is impersonal, I think if we teach students how it can be used effectively and to share ideas it becomes more relevant in building community among classmates, and it creates a window for certain individuals to speak and contribute while they may not in a typical lecture class. As the video stated, students (and teachers) have to be multitaskers — we only have so much time to get everything done in a day. In my opinion, technology makes it easier to stay organized and complete tasks quicker.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with your first comment and thought the same thing with how cold the classroom was. It made me think of how teachers are now changing their classrooms to have flexible seating. Even in college, flexible seating could be helpful to make them feel more at home. We do need to keep technology moving forward and using it to engage our students more than them just being on their phone to look at social media. Thanks for sharing!
DeleteIt often seems like the whole world around us is changing, but many classrooms still look the same as they did fifty years ago. This logic just does not make sense. One of the stats that stuck out to me in the video was that we are teaching and training students for a job that does not exist yet. So, how do we prepare them for their future? I think we need to teach our students to problem solve. This is a skill that will be needed in any job. I will admit that there are still aspects of a traditional classroom that I still try to hang on to. Many teachers teach others how they grew up learning. Like the video said, technology can be the answer. Our students WILL be using technology in their future, so we need to be using it in our classrooms. My students are 100% engaged when they are using technology, but it has to be done the right way. I hope to be part of making the change to a more innovative classroom for our twenty first century students.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that the skill that seems to keep rising to the surface, above all other 21st Century Skills is the ability to problem solve. I think we need to start thinking about how technology can be and option for students to use to solve problems; if technology can be used as a medium to develop the skills needed for future jobs, rather than the tool used to further more direct instruction, then I think we are really on the right track for building 21st Century students.
DeleteI agree with you on teaching our students how to problem solve and collaborate with others. I have notice there are so many differences between when I was in school to right now. I use breakout to engage my students in learning and problem solving in groups. It's crazy to see my 1st graders working together to solve these problems that are standard based. They are using so many skills during this time.
DeleteI connected with many aspects of this video. As teachers we have a tricky job to do- students need to learn skills that might not even exist yet, while also teaching them to connect with people. My concern after watching this video is that with so much emphasis on technology- which I know is a must- that we are moving people further apart from each other. However, it was so exciting to see the way the students collaborated with each other- I have seen that same collaboration in the classes I have taken online in pursuit of my masters. As a 1st grade teacher, I think my role in preparing students is to teach them to have collaborative conversations, share ideas, and build on their technology skills- if only everyone had access to the same technology:/
ReplyDeleteI agree that technology use needs to exist on a continuum and cannot be the sole means of instruction. As you said, building skills to have respectful collaborative conversations and ensuring students have the basics of the ethics of technology use need to come before full technology integration. Regardless of the job our students seek in the future, conversation ability and ethics are surely skills that will transfer!
DeleteI agreed with the underlying logic of the video, and I disagreed with the underlying logic of the video. I know the world is changing and technology is the way of all things now. However, there is still some value in good ol' fashioned chalkboard - paper - worksheet learning. I'm not saying an educator should demand this type of learning every day - far from it. However, when one enters an occupation, does the employer create fancy projects so the employee can learn his or her job? No...they SHOW the employee how to do it, or, in some cases, the employee must figure it out for himself or herself. Not everything in life is a nice, fancy technology project. Sometimes life is gritty, with pen and paper in hand. However, as I said, technology is the way of all things now, so how do we adapt education to that? Using technology in the classroom is extremely important. Using applications like Flipgrid, Google, etc. is extremely beneficial to the student, but I don't think we can get caught up in it, because the more we rely on technology to teach us, the more we forget how to teach ourselves. There has to be a balance. Where or what is that balance? That is for us to figure out.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with you that a pencil and paper and a chalkboard is just as good as technology, in some cases. I know that I like to work out my math problems with pencil and paper and doing that through technology could be hard. We do need a balance, and I always wonder, who gets to decide that balance?
DeleteThis video gave me a lot of different emotions and the thoughts on education. The classroom is the same as it has been and it comes off as old and not exciting. In an elementary classroom, we are able to decorate more, add our own fun touches that make our students feel welcomed, which is a great advantage. But using a chalkboard still is amazing (that it is still there) and old school (because it is still there). Students need different ways to learn than just a chalkboard or whiteboard and technology is something that we can use to increase their learning, communication and motivation. It was amazing to me that so many of these students spend so much time on technology but not for educational reasons. They sit in the class and are on facebook or their phones. That is showing that the way we are teaching isn't working if they are more interested in checking something else. If we include technology in a way that gets them invested and moving and growing with their help and us guiding them, we can help prepare them for the future and for a job, as said in the video, that isn't even created yet. If we are able to provide technology to all of our students, we need to use that to the best of our ability.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you! Students need to be have the best of both worlds and find a happy median with them to be able to prepare them for the future and for the job that has not been created yet! I agree as an elementary teacher our classrooms are always so inviting then hen they get older it goes away and I think that the upper classrooms should be able to decorate as well to their extent of their content maybe!
DeleteI felt sad after watching this video of this sterile classroom and the facts that were presented by the students survey. Those that did do the reading felt that only a small percent was relevant to their lives. It was astonishing how much more was read (2300 web pages & 1281 facebook profiles) than actual books. I think that says a lot about our society. Some feel that "technology alone can save us." I disagree I do feel it is important. However, it is more important that we build our students into problem solvers, good communicators, able work as a team as well as independently, and good multi-taskers. We don't know what the future holds and we should be preparing them for jobs that do not exist today. I look back at what I learned in school. Most of it is not relevant today. That means we need to help todays children become life-long learners and engineers of thinking to apply what they have learned.
ReplyDeleteForgot to login: Stephanie Hunt-Espy
DeleteI wholeheartedly agree with you that we need to be teaching these students to become life-long learners and engineers of thinking and being able to apply it to what they have learned and transfer it to real world situations.
DeleteI strongly agree with you on how it is important to build our students into problem solvers. We don't know what jobs are going to exist or be created. We can only plan to have our students be good citizens that are equipped for this high technology world. I didn't have an iPad when I was in school and now pre school students have iPads. We have to keep up with technology and teach our students the rest of the skills they need.
DeleteHeidi Brown
ReplyDeleteSince I am a millennial and I grew up with the technology advances this video hit home for me. Growing up I did a lot of things with computers in class and at home whether it be the computer or video games with my siblings. Then when I got older I did a lot of things on the computer for high school classes but a lot of my classes looked exactly like this one that was in the video. When I was in college it looked like that and it was so bland that I didn't want to go to class because all of the professors did was just talk and talk and talk! As a teacher I decided I wanted to integrate more technology somehow into my lessons and do I agree with the statement on video, not at all! I do think that there can be a happy median because the students today all have technology of some sort and are used to the instant gratification of it. I don't think that technology alone will save the world like it said in the video but I do wholeheartedly believe that man kind has advanced for a reason and this is most of what these students today know but I do think the good old paper, pencil, and book is great to because it also helps with the other side of it they will need in life. They do need to so still know those skills because what if something happens to the technology later on in life and we are right back at the beginning of it all.
I am the exact opposite...I enjoyed the college atmosphere, where I went in and was excited to hear what the professor had to say about a certain subject. Now, don't get me wrong, I agree that some professors could be bland, but give me a good, engaging professor talking for an hour any day over technology, especially social media.
DeleteAfter watching this video, I felt a real connection to my own college experience. I felt I was just going through the motions in huge classes like the one in the video. We were in huge lecture halls with rown and rows of seats. I couldn’t tell you half the classes names and I’m sure the instructor couldn’t either. Until I started going to my degree specific education classes, I did not want to go and often time was bored and not as engaged as I should be throughout the class. When I reflect on my own classroom, I try to incorporate technology several times throughout the day. I want my students to be engaged without it also. I feel that sometimes they will get more out of a lesson by completing it hands on without the use of technology. I have struggled finding a way to incorporate technology for my students without making it something they rely on constantly. Especially since I teach younger students, I want to teach them the social skills and problem-solving skills they need to be successful in school. I want them to know how to use different technology and know how to access it, but I do not want them to depend on that.
ReplyDeleteLauren Smith