Blog Assignment #3

"It's Not About the Technology" by Kelly Hines

I really enjoyed Kelly Hines' post, "It's Not About the Technology". She made some really valid points such as that "teachers must be learners" and "technology is useless without good teaching". I truly believe that sometimes teachers get complacent in their teaching patterns and styles. But as teachers I feel that it is our duty to be aware and up to date with all of the technology that is available to us. If not we could be doing our students a real injustice. If there are tool out there for our use to help us teach students in the best way for them, why would we not use them to our advantage? Though, in order for us to use these tools to our advantage we have to be learners. We have to be willing to learn technology to the best of our abilities or will not be able to give our students the tools they need to succeed in today's society.

Another point that Mrs. Hines made that I thought was really helpful is that for all the technology that we learn if we don't turn around and teach it just as well to our students, it becomes useless. We also need to realize that our students may not grasp the technology in the same way that we did so we might have to go about teaching it in a different way. Mrs. Hines said in her post that, "if a student has not learned, no matter how much effort has been exerted, no teaching has been done." and I don't think this could be any more true! We have to teach each child in a way that they can understand. Not just in the way that the majority of the class understands. So, I agree with Mrs. Hines it's not all about the technology, its about how we use it and teach it in return.


My comment that I sent to Kelly Hines:

I enjoyed your post for many reasons, one of them being your comment that "Teachers must be learners". This is so true and I truly believe that not all teachers see it this way. I have been in so many classrooms that the information being used to teach seems like it is years old! I actually had on teacher tell the class I taking, that the handout "goes along" with the old book but it'll be fine. I was astounded! Isn't our job as a teacher to teach our students the most current and up to date information we can? I think so.

Another part of your post that I found interesting was when you said, "if a student has not learned, no matter how much effort has been exerted, no teaching has been done." Very well said! I couldn't agree with you more. Our job as teachers is to figure out how we can relate to ALL of our students, not just the majority. And with all of the technology that is available to us, I feel that we should be able to relate to all of our students and help them learn whatever way is best for them. Like you said, we can do this by learning ourselves and using the technology that is becoming available to us so rapidly, to better the learning environment for all students.



Karl Fisch: Is It Okay to Be A Technologically Illiterate Teacher

I loved Mr. Fisch's post, specifically, his writing style I though it flowed wonderfully and was easy to understand. Mr. Fisch made some really valid points in his post and for some people they may have seemed pretty extreme. His main point, "If a teacher today is not technologically literate - and is unwilling to make the effort to learn more - it's equivalent to a teacher 30 years ago who didn't know how to read and write." was extreme but in my opinion, very valid. It is getting (or some people may think it already has) to the point that if you are going to be a teacher, in which one of your main jobs is to prepare children for their futures, you need to be up to date with what the future holds. Obviously, the future holds the use of technology.

Another point of his that I really liked is when he was talking about people almost being "proud" of their technological illiteracy. Instead of trying to learn they automatically just say they aren't good at using technology or they just don't understand. Therefore if the parents or guardians and the teachers of children all feel this way, where is the child going to learn about technology? They won't! It is our job as adults, teachers, and role models to teach children in all the areas that can be beneficial to them in their futures, and the use of technology is one of them.


My comment I sent to Karl Fisch:

First, I want to thank you for bringing this subject to light. I feel that some teachers in today's society are trying to sweep this subject under the rug. Why? I'm not really sure. Maybe they don't want to give in to the pressures of society and technology. Your question, "If a teacher today is not technologically literate - and is unwilling to make the effort to learn more - it's equivalent to a teacher 30 years ago who didn't know how to read and write." might be a little extreme but then again maybe not. I'm sure some people would completely agree that it is extreme but I personally can't decide. I defiantly think that if you are going to be a teacher today you need to be technologically literate. If you are not I think that you are doing an injustice to your students.

As far as people being "proud" of their technological illiteracy I can totally believe that. I have family members that are "proud" of it, constantly using the phrase, "You know I don't know how to work all that computer stuff." Or, "Will you just do it for me? You know I don't know how to work that stuff." And as rude as they may think that I am my answer is usually, "NO." I am not going to just do it for you. We all need to buy in to the fact that technology is here to stay and it is going to be a part of our lives. Thank you again for letting us read your post.




Gary Hayes Social Media Count

Gary Hayes's Social Media Count is amazing! I never really took the time to stop and think about exactly how much people use the Internet. Of course, I knew it was a lot but Mr. Hayes Media Count really puts it into perspective. From looking at how much is going on with each of the sites on the Social Media Count, it really makes you realize what a big part of our lives sites like Facebook, Google, and YouTube have become. It has become more of a way of life than just something that young people do for "fun" like I think so many people looked at it as in years past.

Its interesting to think about that whether we are on the computer using these site or not, people around the world are on them, updating them, uploading things to them and then when we log back on those things are there for us to see. There is so much information on all of these site and it makes me think, what did we do before them? We have become so used to the idea of everything being so instant. Being able to find out an answer to a question right now or talk to someone right this second its just funny to me to think about a world with out these things. I know that there have been a couple of times I have been without my computer or Internet and I have to admit I do feel a since of being cut of from the world!


My comment I sent to Gary Hayes:

Hello, my name is Kristen Phelps and I am an Elementary Education major at the University of South Alabama in Mobile, Alabama. I am currently in Dr. Stranges’s EDM 310 and a part of our assignment this week was to look at your post. I want to start out by saying that the Social Media Count is really truly amazing! It’s almost hard to fathom! I think this is such an awesome way of showing people just how much technology is becoming a staple in our lives. Thank you for doing this!
Kristen Phelps



Michael Wesch: A Vision of Students Today

I really enjoyed this video, I thought it was very informational and interesting to see all the different stats. I can only imagine what those stats are now, considering that the video was uploaded 3 years ago. The video had some of the same type of information as the video we watched last week but,it still shocks my every time to think about the amount of time we spend on the Internet in a day/week/month. Another fact that I find really interesting is that a lot of the jobs people will get once they are out of college or any type of school, don't even exist yet.

That goes right along with the argument that teachers need to be technologically literate. If we are preparing students for jobs that don't even exist, we need to be up to date on all of the latest technology to help them better their futures. Also in the beginning of the video it says that, if we learn by doing...what are we learning by sitting staring at a blackboard? Sure there are certain things that you can learn that way but, for the most part the world we live in is interactive. Therefore, students need to be interactive with the world and one another!