Digitial Blog C

The students in today's classrooms are really quite lucky with the technology available to them. Most likely the child has access to computers both at home and at school, resulting in information being obtained at any given point. Figure 3.1 on page 47 shows the five main areas of focus a student may use technology for learning: expressing creativity, thinking critically and solving problems, developing new literacies, communicating and collaborating, and building digital citizens. These areas are basic standards used throughout today's schools and help students prepare for the advancing technologies they may encounter next (Maloy, 2013). Each is an important factor that helps shape the student and further their individual collection of knowledge and may or may not be developed only through computer usage. Building digital citizens, of course, would be one only accessed through the use of technology but the others differ from their offline counterparts immensely (i.e. creating digital art is very different from say finger painting).

To me, student-centered instruction seems the most difficult to organize. I highly enjoy being active with the kids and showing them I am also doing my best. Stepping back and letting a class truly sink their teeth into the material in a way that seems 'non-traditional', however, also seems to me to be how my students might learn the most someday. If students feel welcome and as if they are truly the purpose of the activity, they will more likely to retain the information and dread disliked tasks less frequently. Giving the students something they can connect the lesson to will further their understanding of the content and help them build on that information later on.

photo credit to Madalin Calita on Pixabay

Information literacy is a term I found interesting in this section. Knowing how to find, source, use, and interpret information is essential for enhancing learning. Students need to remember that not everything they read may be entirely true. I remember in high school learning of a website that was about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. This site, instead of being informational and peaceful, actually bashes Dr. King and provided many racist remarks, links, and advertisements. While I can't remember the exact site, it was at one point the number one search result on Google, therefore, many researching this historical figure would flock to it right away only to find misinformation. This example shows just how important it is to be able to pick up on the publisher's point of view and how to avoid obtaining incorrect information.

This chapter has definitely furthered my understanding of some different teaching styles as well as some tech tools. I'm finding out about a lot of 'techy lingo' that I did not realize existed in the massive world of technology and am able to sort different types into categories because of it. Knowing what to look for and how to use it effectively will impact my ability to teach and grow the minds of my students.

Resources:
Maloy, R., O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S., & Woolf, B. (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.

Smith, K. (20 September, 2015). eBooks. Created with ToonDoo http://www.toondoo.com/cartoon/9264215