Digital Blog Post #C - Chapters 5 & 7

Although chapter 7 was equally as engaging and informative as its predecessor, chapter 5’s focus on digital citizenship struck a chord with me. I have had a few not so positive experiences in the past with younger family members, children I babysat, and even close friends messing with my online activity and impacting my digital identity. Granted, this was not an educational setting and they were not expected to act responsibly, I was still affected by what little damage they had done and instantly had to make attempts to repair it and have since had trust issues with anyone near my laptop.

I think it’s vital that our students are properly prepared to engage in the digital world. Just as in the real world, there will be consequences to their digital actions. Whether that be losing device privileges, in or out of school detention, or suffering from the overwhelming embarrassment of creating a website at 13 filled with embarrassing pictures of themselves and all their friends then forgetting the account information and never being able to remove it from the web, there will always be a price to pay for irresponsible actions. The encouragement from schools to aid students in avoiding making these mistakes can also provide parents a sense of confidence that their children are safer on the internet than most and they won’t soon have to do damage repair.

To continue with chapter 5, I have zero tolerance for cyberbullying. The damage it does to its victims hits a new level of severity, the reasoning behind the attacks is unjustifiable, and in some cases, the reactions are unbelievably tragic. Not to say face-to-face bullying doesn’t share the same results, but the anonymity of attackers is scary. The things they can do via web-based attacks is terrifying, especially those who are well trained in the realm of computer hacking. I have the highest hopes that with further integrating technology in the classroom this horrid form of harassment will come to an end. Yes, please, let’s demonstrate empathy and compassion any and every chance we get. Let’s continue to encourage our students that differences make us unique and that is a beautiful thing and we should embrace our differences, not degrade them or belittle them. I have always wanted to make a word cloud, so I was very excited to make this to exemplify a way I would personally try to encourage positive reinforcement amongst students and steer them away from cyber-bullying. 

(Tagxedo.com, 2016)

To touch on a more positive not in chapter 7, I love the segment on visual-thinking and concept-mapping software! Even today, I still love the aid of a good mind map or brain storm. The visuals comfort me and allow me to layout my thoughts in a manner that I can physically see to confirm it’s exactly what I want to express in my work. I never would have thought to look for an app that could allow me the same peace of mind without the paper trail on my bedroom floor, there is literally an app for everything and it’s amazing. But to imagine the ease of being able to create the layout or foundation of your assignment with the endless supply of media and information on the internet is mind-blowing! I envy all who knew of this technological wonder before me and can’t believe this is the first I’m hearing of it. I feel like what takes me sometimes hours, may take me mere minutes because I won’t be fumbling around with my pen waiting for just the right image to come to mind to get me started.

Lastly, I am full supporter of learning with computer games. If not for Number Munchers, I don’t know if I would be as confident with my knowledge of the multiplication table. I definitely remember more about geographical landmarks thanks to Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego over the textbooks we read in class and al . The Magic School Bus was not only the best show to watch during or after school, but the PC games were the icing on the educational game cake. I’m sure today’s students have far more advanced games at the ready in the classroom, but I can still relate to the enjoyment they must get when they know they’re about to partake in some awesome game play in class.

To wrap this blog post up, both chapters were great reads as per the usual. I got a bit over my head with the talk of creating software and I can’t lie, when the moment comes that I have to do so, I imagine I’ll be very overwhelmed. Although, that doesn’t mean I’m not up to the challenge! I would love to go down in history as the educator who came up with the next hands-down, all time, most entertaining and scholarly approved app or game! I would also love to be a part of the force that ensures cyber-bullying is a thing of the past. With each passing lesson I feel less intimidation and insecurity, and more confident and curious of what is yet to come.

Resources:

Giallanza, B (2016, February 21). “Word Peace”. Created with Tagxedo. http://www.tagxedo.com/

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

Digital Blog Post #B - Chapters 2 & 3

Chapter 2 was a great read and I was so relieved to see that my fear from chapter 1 was addressed, which is the barriers we are bound to encounter. Lack of access is my main concern, whether it be in the classroom, at home, or both. As I read through this section I was hoping to see some information on how we can work to avoid or overcome this obstacle, sadly that was not addressed. I did not fret though, because as a mother of a student fresh in the school system I am seeing how proactive the schools are being about this issue and the steps they are taking to ensure no student is left behind. I have seen handouts about affordable internet services provided by local cable companies specifically for families with students enrolled in school, fundraisers have been held specifically for obtaining up-to-date devices, there is also a program they encourage parents to consider, BYOD, Bring Your Own Device. All of these are great strides in the right direction to overcome one of the greater obstacles we will encounter. With proactive faculty, family, and community members we can continue to brainstorm new methods of ensuring our students have the means they need to succeed.

As stated right in the beginning of chapter 3, simply adding the technology to the schools won’t be enough to change education. In my opinion, encouraging more active learning would be highly beneficial to the classroom. I was always and am still a hands-on learner, I like to fully immerse myself in the material at hand and I find it to be the easiest method to allow me to focus my attention. Sheryl Nussbaum-Beach couldn’t have explained blending technology and active learning better when she said “The technology helps them with connecting, creating and sharing data and becomes an electronic pencil that allows them to share and collect ideas with others around the world” (Nussbaum-Beach, 2015). Nussbaum-Beach goes on to say that the devices are not the main focus here but still needed for students’ progress. The information students are able to gather and the conclusions they are able to form from the knowledge they previously had and the new bits they discover are going to make more sense to them because they found their own way to make connections. I found this diagram useful as it compares how information is processed through various classroom approaches.

(Powerful Learning Practice, 2015.)

When the topic of digital literacy arose in chapter 3, I couldn’t agree more that it needs to be focused on for both the natives and immigrants of the digital age. It has become too easy to find a cornucopia of information thanks to the simplicity of a google search, but how do we know what we’re reading is factual information? It can become overwhelming at times to try and sift through webpages and articles, I often have to take a break while researching for projects because my brain feels as if it’s swelling from information overload. The many means available to educate ourselves through digital literacy could do more harm than good if we aren’t taught how to do so properly. Once instructed on how to decipher useful, credible, factual information from opinion-based, non-credible sources, the internet can prove promising in educating us on any topic our heart desires.

I nearly feel the information overload effects from these two chapters, but it’s a positive, beneficial overload. It’s great to see the pros and cons addressed and comforting to know that we as hopeful future educators are being fed all the information needed for proper preparation. I unfortunately find myself worrying about the level of job-security there is in this field and wonder if with further technological advances, our positions will become obsolete? I was washed over with a wave of relief to read that we are still much needed and will continue to serve a great deal of purpose in the classroom and realm of academia and will now remain optimstic as I continue on my journey. 

Resources:

Giallanza, B (2016, February 7). “All for one and one for all!”. Created with Bitstrips http://www.bitstrips.com/r/1HMXK

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

Nussbaum-Beach, S. (2015, March 10). The key to making the shift to active learning (and why technology is not enough). Retrieved February 07, 2016, from http://plpnetwork.com/2015/03/10/shift-active-learning-technology-answer/

Powerful Learning Practices. (2015). Cone of Learning [Image]. Retrieved from URL (http://plpnetwork.com/2015/03/10/shift-active-learning-technology-answer/).