Week 6 Video Reading

Changing Times

It's pretty ironic that we finish up this week with a summary of the ten "Big Shifts" in the classroom. Will Richardson's article neatly summarized the big changes in education but it was something that had particular meaning for me already. As a student again after many years, I was struck by how different this learning experience was for me this time around. Certainly the technology has exploded since I was last in class (getting an electric typewriter was huge, never mind a laptop!) but it was more than that. One thing that has struck me during the past few weeks is how few notes I have taken. Though we covered vast quantities of material in all four classes, very little of has through the traditional lecture-based classrooms. Also, the content does not come from one textbook or one instructor but instead from myriad sources that seem to come from many different perspectives. Instead of tests and papers, we engage in project learning, most of it group orientated. And, yes, technology leads the way across the whole process.

Richardson's Big Shifts are evident in our other classes as well. In Learning Theories, for example, we've talked a lot about integrating hands-on, technology-driven teaching practices as the best way to reach our multi-tasking, high tech youth. The idea of student-centered instead of teacher-centered was also looked at critically. Collaborative, social learning was also explored with theorists such as Vygotsky extolling the virtues of relationship, interest based teaching. All of this falls into what Richardson says is the result of the Age of the Read/Write Web. (Richardson, W. p.153). With online information, reading takes place 24/7, inside and outside of the classrooms and from millions of different contributors.

This is very exciting but there are some uncertain consequences for educators. For me, the sheer volume sources available is a little intimidating, though exciting. With this vast treasure trove of information and knowledge at our command, will we have time to access it all? Will it become overwhelming to decide the "what" to teach when the "where"is so easy to obtain? Or maybe it won't be the teachers, but the students who will call the shots. We have already seen how the balance of power, so to speak, is changing, where more and more producers and editors are out there. Interesting to think of what learning will look like in 5 years. For me, the transformation has already been monumental.

Week 6 Video Reflection

Wow. I was totally blown away by what some of my classmates produced in their movie editing projects today. Some of them really have a good grasp of how to use the technology. I thought it was a fun project once I became comfortable with imovie. I spent a lot of time fiddling with small details but I was pretty happy with my effort. I would definitely have added more text and broken up my footage more and would do a better job of adding music of my own instead of from iMovie. Like all the other projects, onceI became more adept at using the tool, I could spend more time on the creative end. I would love the opportunity to edit another movie.

It amazes me what iMovie can do. My efforts to the contrary, it really is a pretty straight forward, powerful program. When I coached my kids teams, my husband took tons of footage of them playing. I wished I knew then what I know now, I could have made some pretty cool movies.

Week 6 Wiki Reflection

I will certainly plan on including a wiki in my future classroom. I love the interactive nature of it and the fact that the readers/students can participate in the content. This are the first courses (Tech and Learning Theories) that I have taken where the syllabus, "handouts", outside sources, and working docs are all on the wiki. I found it incredibly easy to access information and having the ability to create links on the fly gave the instruction so much more freedom in formulating course content. I would like to have that same flexibility with my future students.

I think students in general would really enjoy creating their own wikis. For many special education students, pencil-to-paper work is a huge challenge. Wikis would be a great to assessment tool and would facilitate learning for many of these students. In addition, it gives the students some autonomy in their learning, being able to access sites they are interested in and link to all kinds of information. It really is portfolio learning which is a great method of differentiation.

As usual with my technology projects, the nuts and bolts of the tools wore me down so the content suffered. I especially felt that with my wiki. I feel there were many things I wanted to include but just ran out of steam and time. However, the good news is that I truly feel that this was a course I took away a huge body of knowledge, even if that was represented in my work. By the time I got to the end of the project, and was up against it, I was just beginning to feel as though I was getting a handle on my skills. While this didn't bode well for most of the work I turned it, I do feel as though I am taking skills with me into my own classroom and I feel that perhaps in this case, that matters more.

I came into this course a little intimidated and very, very unsure of my tech skills. I left realizing that my fears were proved correct!! Seriously, I developed a thick skin, always a good thing, and I persevered. My comfort level is improving and I look forward to the day when I can catch up my tech skills to my creativity and really produce some amazing things. At the very least, I definitely have a new found appreciated for technology in the classroom; in fact, its hard for to me to imagine good teaching without it in today's world.