Educational Technology

Blog #2 

Professor Dubusky 

Engaging the Digital Generation

Have you noticed that our students today are a more advanced digital generation than their educators? This is a limitation to those who are attending school because they have to, not because they want to. Today, we see that our world is revolved around technology, but we have never put that into the hands of the educational system and evaluated that changes needed in the classroom settings. Education and educators need to catch up, the whole mind must be taught by teachers, and solving this digital divide are three points that I believe are the most important to point out. Educators are still tied up with the past and it is keeping their students from being more engaged and excited to be there to learn. We need to allow our students to be focused on the future so they can be more successful in their endeavors. Critical thinking is something that needs to be taught by the time students get to elementary school all the way up to high school. The minds of our students are so focused and distracted on the outside world, that the way we allow them to think and analyze at a younger age will contribute to their studies as they progress and get older. The independence and responsibility will be taught if we teach at the levels of your students minds and advances that they have learned outside of the school system. This will broaden the concepts and material that the students will be learning, as they are evaluated through each grade and course.

This article poses two sides about what is right or wrong for the students and their lives. This digital world can either hurt or help this generation, but it is up to the educators to learn and excel in this type of material in the everyday classroom. We can also see that we can not rely on technology all of the time because you can’t predict when it will work or not. Knowing how to work it and advance the knowledge of your students will be beneficial with technology, but you may need to revert back to the old ways to have a backup plan when things aren’t working correctly. Engaging this generation with the new digital programs and topics will allow the students to grow in and out of the classroom. They will be able to learn at their own pace, choose what strategies work for their success, and the motivation to cooperate with other students through this new opportunity of the educational system. Technology in this digital generation can also be a challenge and problem in the classrooms. If educators and teachers aren’t up to speed with our society then they are not going to be able to prepare their students and upcoming students for the outside world when they graduate in the future. The fundamentals are being targeted to different ages than those who are currently learning in your classroom everyday. This is limiting the interest of those who are willing to learn new things and discover how our world is changing every single day without them knowing it. Letting this generation search and seek on their own for the certain material will better the way their mind will be processing the information. This new educational system and learning will increase the engagement of every students and they will want to learn not just because they have to. 

When will the educational system, the educators, and even the students be all on the same page again? This is a question I have about this article and our world because it is not benefiting anyone if the educators are playing catch up  and the students are discovering something new every single day. I do think that we will be able to set students up for success and prepare them better for their future endeavors because they will be more motivated to try something new that peak their interest. This article states that in order to understand and introduce new ideas, we will all have to try something new and change the approach taken for our students and our classrooms. 

Blog #1 Digital Natives and Digital Immigrants

Professor Dubusky

Madison Eyler

 

Have you noticed that our students are changing radically, and our educational design doesn’t fit this new way of learning? Teachers having to communicate in the language and style of their students, problems with outdated language that is needed to keep the students engaged, and who should be going back to the old or looking forward to the new are three things that are important to me in a sense of an organized schooling. Communicating in the language of new technology speeds up your lessons, less step by step help, and a lot of random off topic subjects. Students come to school but are not motivated because their brains are worrying more about who texted them, what game do I need to win, etc. As educators we need to be thinking ahead about not only past teaching skills, but the new ways the world is learning. This outdated language is creating problems with the way we are performing as teachers because we have no clue what engages our students if we aren’t up to date on what they love to do. Our society doesn’t know how to operate certain classrooms because no one can decide whether we need to keep up with the old habits of classrooms or keep everything in a new form.

Those who have grown up with this new technology their whole lives have no idea how to live on their own and not have to rely on phones, laptops, and other electronic devices. On the other hand, older generations didn’t have this luxury of google, Siri, etc. They know how to be responsible and do their own work because they didn’t have anything like this before. Digital natives have a head start when needing something first hand and, on the spot, but this can also be a problem because you can’t always trust the internet or technology in case it crashes or doesn’t work at that specific time needed. Digital immigrants know how to work through situations and succeed and it’s an advantage to some extent because if something doesn’t work they have a backup plan to fix it. A problem with not knowing or using technology as much is that you won't be as informed with what is going on, your classroom will not be as exciting for these students to come in every day, and communication not only with the students but with the parents as well. I agree with the fact that natives need to be introduced to how older generations were ran, but they also need to incorporate it into their lives now to learn responsibility and life skills to succeed. On the flip side, immigrants need to keep their older knowledge with them for the rest of their lives, but they also need to learn what technology and new findings will fit into their lifestyles now in the future.

How are we going to incorporate technology in future generations, but also not let old learnings become extinct as we lose more and more of the past? This question is important to think about because if we keep forgetting about past lifestyles, future students and teachers will never know how education came to be, and how the designs to teach have changed over time. As Dr. Bruce Perry says, “different kinds of experiences lead to different brain structures”, I believe this statement because technology is making younger brains develop at different rates and their motivation is not there to learn anymore. More and more are coming to school because they have to, not because they want to, and it shows as they grow up. To me there are a lot of benefits to new technology but I also think earlier generations could teach a lot too.

Educational Technology

Blog #3 Technology and Intellect

Professor Dubusky 

Is it true that technology can make students more intellectual as they move forward in their lives? Educational systems are relying now on technology to influence and inspire their students to be more engaged in the learning environment. Technology is a learning process that deals with a lot of hands on experiences to get a more immediate result with the students knowledge. In a typical classroom, students are not going above and beyond to get the specific information because they don't have the drive to learn something they don’t have an interest in. With technology now, students want to be there and learn because they are getting to do their own research and find something that connects and relates to their life to remember the concepts being learned about that day. Independent work is more visible and it creates a more responsible learning environment inside and outside of the classroom setting. We can see throughout different levels of school that contemporary problems are present everywhere you go. Allowing students to see that even though people compare our generations with the past, it doesn't mean that their opinions are true. Students now are getting smarter with the advancement of technology and it is noticeable when they are out in the workforce to display their knowledge to the rest of the world. Intellect is being portrayed throughout the educational system and it is boosting the work outside of the school to be captured quickly. Having a technology background and working through different programs given can allow students to engage in more activities that they feel will lead them to be more successful as adults as they get older. Academic breakthroughs will occur as students realize the power of how their minds think for themselves and to show them that challenges will occur but it is up to their new techniques to lead them to the answer.

Introducing this technology into the educational program can be a difficult transition from what rules and regulations are already laid down for certain materials. Traditional teachings will have to be revised in order to change the way students are learning and how their minds work. Advancing the knowledge of our students will be done at different speeds because some people learn slower or faster than other people. It is also a problem when some people don't want to rely on technology and they want to learn both ways of learning in order to have a backup plan to succeed in any way possible. Educators may also have doubts about these new technological advancement because they never had the opportunity to be trained ahead of time to influence their students in this way. Both the students and the educators will have to learn at the same pace to catch up with one another and to be on the same page as everyone else. Having technology everywhere in the world, students are more dependent on on getting the answers handed to them instead of figuring out what they believe is true beforehand. Allowing students to think for themselves before piling on technology, can lead to a better understanding of why they are learning certain materials and concepts. Technology can be beneficial to everyone because you can get it anywhere you go. Questions, comments etc. can be broadcasted and answered all over the world at the tips of your fingers. You are able to be more sociable because if you can not figure out what you are learning, you can reach out to other people in order to discuss and evaluate new ideas that are presented. Research becomes easier for educators and students because it is fast and gives you lots of points of view instead of one idea that has been portrayed in every book across the world. 

Can we always rely on technology to change the way we think?  I can conclude that technology is a great way to get students to think about what they are learning and allow them to be more engaged with this new form of hands on learning. The minds of students and educators will be more advanced and diverse and it will create a better understanding of our world today. Being able to research at the tips of your own fingers allows students to connect more with the material being taught. 

Educational Techonology

Blog #4 Assistive Technology

Professor Dubusky

Did you know that assistive technology is a way for students with disabilities to progress towards goals on their specific education plan? Assistive technology is technology that can be low tech or high tech to fit the specific needs of an individual. If that individual needs more practice to advance their motor skills then no technology is needed to achieve this task. Portable and lightweight technology makes it easy for students when moving from class to class. The organization that is built onto the different devices makes it easier to take notes, type what is on their mind, and advance the way the students brain is thinking for every new task they come upon. Assistive technology can be used in a lot of different ways but two ways can improve that abilities of your students. It supports learning in a more mature way and it passes challenging task such as handwriting that may be difficult for some students in your classroom. Finding the best material to teacher you classroom so everyone is benefiting from it can result in a more functional and advanced way of teaching. Text to speech is a great tool that can increase the communication level when the disability of a students involves the misunderstanding of certain words or can’t fluently form sentence structures out loud. Items such as; communication boards, Wikki Stix, Easy Grip Scissors etc. are a few examples of items that don’t need electronics, but are a form of technology in a way they will advance each students based on the difficulty of their disability. For assistive technology to be beneficial everywhere you go, the proper instructions have to be embedded into classroom in order to work more efficiently to meet the needs of each individual. 

I believe that assistive technology is a great advancement, that allows students to be themselves and not have to worry about being behind because they have this new form of learning, that can increase the way they learn more then they could before. This system of learning is great when you need to find a solution for someone who isn’t able to communicate or is slower at certain task such as writing. The thoughts of students are able to be written down fast with the form of technology because it is meeting the needs to the individual more in depth. I think that assistive technology uses a lot of creativity when trying to find the best form of learning of every students whether they have a disability or not. Being able to research and learn more about assistive technology can be a lot of fun when incorporating each new task into your classroom. There are a lot of benefits to assistive technology but there are some bad points to it as well. When finding a technique to benefit a student you have to go through the process of trial and error because the first form of technology might always work for some students, so having patience and working together will create success in the future. It will be difficult for educators who aren't used to including this type of learning into their everyday lesson plans because assistive technology doesn't come easy. It won’t come easy for a student either is their teacher doesn't understand the correct purpose f instructions need for it to work properly. 

Can assistive technology be used throughout the classroom even if some of the students do not have disabilities? Will it be beneficial to those students? The reason I ask this question is because some students might notice that their classmate is doing something they aren’t doing and would be interested in learning the same way. If assistive technology won’t benefit everyone then how would you explain or instruct your students without calling out individuals who need this technology to learn and be at the same pace as their classmates? 

Educational Technology

Blog #5 Digital Citizenship

Professor Dubusky

 

 

            Can the limitation of social media benefit the way students’ progress as they become adults? What kinds of citizens are there in this world? Personally responsible citizens, participation citizens, and justice-oriented citizens. These are the people that are shaping our generations and setting our lives up for success as adults. Social media is a topic that is limiting our outputs and careers by creating a bandwagon that finds followers instead of allowing individuals to follow their own dreams. Social media is causing an outbreak of those who have their own path in life, but they aren’t taking that path because they want to be like someone else instead of being unique. I liked this article because it makes you step back and realize what you need to do to become an individual and live your life for yourself not because you saw someone else live it too. Political activities are also arising on social media and it is causing fake news to be spread around, and no one knows what is the truth and what isn’t. I believe that us as citizens have the right to use social media to help us find resources fast and efficiently 

            Social media has a lot of great outcomes, but there can be a lot of bad that can be released through the form of comments and opinions. Social media can allow individuals to get facts and resources they need when learning about a certain topic. It is something that is at the tips of your fingers when needed. I also think it is a great way to stay connected with other and even form bonds in the real world, with your co-workers or your own employees. The use of social media is what this generation is running on. Everything that we have to use in this world to succeed is focused on social media and it is difficult to cut that out in any way. Believe it or not, social media is also bad. It can create rumors that no one knows the truth too because the whole world knows to sides of the story, but others have their own opinion about it. It is also a distraction to those in education or the school system because they are relying on their phones and devices to find the answers instead of using what God gave them, a brain. I think that social media is limiting the skills and gifts that we are given because when you see something on social media that you like, you want to try and strive for the same thing. 

            When asking a question, I would ask, why does this world have to revolve around social media and electronics? I still haven’t found the answer to this because social media gives you a lot of reasons why, but also gives you opinions and explanations on how to limit and get it out of your life. It is at the tips of everyone’s fingers, everywhere you go so the temptation of seeing everyone have this resource creates everyone else to follow in their footsteps as well.