FutureWatch 2

The first article I read was, "What Does School Reform Look Like?" by Andy Carvin. Andy's blog was his thoughts of the upcoming EduCon conference he was to be attending, which focused on education reform. While reform comes in many shapes and sizes, EduCon's focus was:

• Schools should be inquiry-driven
• Schools should focus on creating 21st century citizens
• Technology must serve pedagogy, not the other way around
• Technology must enable students to research, create, communicate and collaborate
• Learning must be networked

My initial AHHH was on the concept, "technology must serve pedagogy." While conducting a case study in my EDTEC 690 class, my group came up with this question: How does a teacher's perceived knowledge/skill with TCPK, which involves the intersection of technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge within a teacher (see diagram below), predict success with technology integration?

The findings in our case study concluded that professional development for technology integration is most effective when it content driven, allows for group collaboration, and includes follow-up evaluation with mentors. It sounds as though we are not alone in coming up with this conclusion. This is especially important to me as a social studies teacher because my discipline is often the least prioritized in this world of math and reading test scores or scientific advancement. Social studies is a reading class, a citizenship class, a cause and effect class, and I am thinking it should be among the favored technological courses. Social studies teachers, however, need to have more training on technology integration and access to more real-world simulation software.

I also read, "Creating a New Culture of Teaching and Learning" by Alan November. I was really glad this was in PDF so I could print it out and get outside to read it. One UGGH that I have run into with the advent of all this technology is that I can't just grab a book, head to the beach, take notes in the margin, and discuss my findings in a live seminar setting. Having to sit at the computer to do my readings and then write up a formal reflection has definitely changed the way of scholarly learning, and I'm not sold yet. I mean I hate to waste paper, but being confined to my computer is getting old.

November's approach is that information, communication, and community relationships are a valid way for teachers to decided which technology is needed for implementation in his/her class. November spent the first page of his article discussing the digital natives vs. digital immigrant idea which I thought was a bit old, at this point. Then, he broke the article down to points, some of them good.

1. "If it's not on the internet it's not true." (November 2009). He brought up an interesting point about the Holocaust and that a student came across a website that had a very logical explanation for why it never occurred. His point was that we, as teachers, need to teach students critical thinking skills so that students can decipher truth from non-truth. An "Ah-ha" moment occurred for me with November's suggestion to use Alta Vista as a search engine. He mentions that teachers can teach students about the "link" command, which gives a backward map of where a site is "hot-linked" to. As it turns out, the Holocaust denier, Arther Butz, who's site the student found, links up to a "Hate Directory" that was formed by the Maryland State Police Association. Unfortunately, however, November's article did not describe how to use the command link feature, and I could not figure it out.

2. November discussed that live video cameras should be in class rooms. I certainly wonder about the legality of such an endeavor, however, legality aside, it could enhance parent engagement.

3. Automating vs. Informating--a strange use of terms, indeed. November's concern is that certain technology only automates the learning environment, but doesn't enhance the actual learning. One example he used was the concept of word processing. He thinks this is a $2,000 pencil and therefore doesn't enhance learning. I disagree with him, however, because I have seen students acquire 21st century skills by word processing. Students need to learn to type, spell/grammar check (which helps student learn writing conventions), design principles, creating tables, using graphics, and learning MLA or APA format which most university professors require of their students. I think over time, word processing does improve learning, but the use must be regular and consistent.

4. The last point I wanted to discuss is "collegiality." November is a supporter of team-based teachers, a notion that my colleague and I have been trying to advocate for the 8 years I've been teaching. His idea is that if teachers focus on their needs for information, communication, and community relationships, then they will end up with more technology that will be implemented for student learning.