I just completed a walk, no more of a run, through several websites demonstrating teachers’ use of technology in their classrooms and content.  I am out of breath from the endless opportunities I see my educational colleagues around the world providing their students.  I am beginning to wonder if I am big enough for the task of breaking through the abstract barrier of fear that my school and my district have created regarding the use of technology in the classroom.  

In the first course of the Literacy and Technology program, I learned the effect of technology on society.  That is, I learned that our world is no longer defined within the boundaries that I grew up understanding:  community, state, country, and other places to which I traveled (Prensky, M., 2001).  Today’s technology has created a global awareness and boundaries are perceptions; they are no longer physical, but rather they are broken down by the advent of the information technology and the Internet (November, A., 2008). 

In this course, the second course in the Program, I have learned the importance of this societal and informational globalization on learning and education.  Technology and literacy became real, not something that affected others.  I became keenly aware of the global impact that technology has on learning, specifically literacy.  Technology in education is not a choice; it is occurring.  As an educator, I must provide my students with the comprehension skills and ethical skills to survive and succeed within this informational environment.  It is not a matter of “it will happen,” because it “is happening.”  

The recognition of technology and literacy became most blatant to me when I was reading the chapter in the course text on reading comprehension strategies (Eagleton & Dobler, 2007).  I thought to myself how familiar all of the strategies were based on my previous experience as a reading teacher and a reading coach, and today as I co-teach struggling readers.  Then it occurred to me that what I was reading was an application of the same metacognitive skills but in a very different medium. 

My understanding and appreciation grew as I remembered how my younger son had learned how to read fifteen years ago, not in a first-grade primer, but the subtitles in a role-playing video game.  When I recognized the strategies that I knew how to teach and the spatial thinking that my younger son had so aptly demonstrated as a young child, I truly realized that my thinking of differentiated instruction needed a complete overhaul.  Differentiation wasn’t about changing instruction to meet the diversified needs of students.  Differentiation was about letting go of the instructional reins and facilitating the students’ learning as they needed to solve problems and become true self-learners. My insecurities and lack of ability was holding back my students!  

I now realize I need to get out of my students’ way. My job is to work diligently to get the bureaucratic system out of their way so they can do what they truly need to do to learn, really learn. The video of Vicki Davis in Camilla, Georgia, which is a rural area slightly smaller and south of where I teach, really hit me.  I thought to myself, “Here is a teacher who has refused to allow negativity and restrictions keeps her from taking her students outside the barriers that will keep them small.” As an educator, I must have the forward thinking to the extent of providing my students with sufficient skills to participate in the learning today, the workforce tomorrow, and the vision to parent their future generation. 

References: 

Eagleton, M. B., & Dobler, E. (2007). Reading the web: Strategies for internet inquiry. New York: The Guilford Press. 

November, A. (2008). Web literacy for educators. Thousands Oaks: Corwin Press. 

Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants. On the Horizon, 9(5). Retrieved from Proquest Central database. doi: 1074252411 

Vicki Davis featured in Edutopia located at:  http://www.edutopia.org/digital-generation-teachers-vicki-davis. Retrieved October 31, 2009.

As I finish up my experience in EDUC 6710, I realize just how much I have learned in such a short period of time.  I began with stumbling my way through my first blog, jumped on the collaborative Wiki bandwagon with dragging feet, begged for mercy as I botched my first pod cast, and last night found myself posting a photo album on a social network page and contacting people that I have not thought of in years.  These are major changes for a simple middle aged technology “WannaBe” who still fights using a cell phone over a land line.  I believe the major by-product of taking this course is the level of confidence I have in technology resulting in a newly developed passion (yes, I do mean “passion”) for Web 2.0.  I do not feel that I have learned another tool or strategy, but more like another world.  Better still, I have learned another language (Prensky, 2001) and as a result, my ability to travel globally has increased exponentially.  Not too bad for an old lady!

I think one of the greatest effects of this course is how I view and feel my classroom learning environment.  I have always tried to maintain a humble attitude with my students in terms of I have not purported to know everything when it comes to content, etc.  In fact, I have capitalized on that “don’t know it all” perception as a means to teach my students about the life of language, i.e. historical and social linguistics.  However, now that I feel I am a part of their language, and not just an outsider looking in, I am very comfortable letting go of the perceived control of my classroom and learning this Knowledge Age language with them.  I am reminded of my foreign language instruction, whereby the instructors and students alike would experiment with sentence construction, vocabulary or lexicons, and pronunciation without fear of ridicule or error because it was recognized that this was all part of the learning process to absorb and immerse ourselves in the acquisition of the new language.  Good foreign language instruction meant that there were good laughs and a real comfort zone for learning.  Now I want to let go of the control of the learning process not just because I believe it is good instruction, but because I can see my own growth resulting from the collaboration I will have with my students.  Do not misunderstand me.  My classroom will still remain something of a democratic autocracy.  However, as a result of this course, I can feel my ears listening to my students differently and my movements more in sync with theirs.  I believe the result will be one of mutual learning with ramifications beyond anything that I can get from a pedagogical strategies text.  My students and I will be learning to speak and dance together. It can only result in a win-win for all.

I really liked the epilogue in the text (Richardson, 2009) as a model to strive toward in terms of fully taking advantage of technology to increase my instructional effectiveness and lessen the burden of teaching.  Also, I really want to learn how to use games in my instruction; this is not something with which I am even close to feeling comfortable.  Two goals that I intend to implement to keep myself professionally and personally growing and motivated in technology and the Knowledge Age are:

1) All students’ writing will be completed in a Web 2.0 format using Wiki’s and/or blogs resulting in writing with a purpose for real audiences, student-peer editing, and portfolio maintenance.  

2) Each unit (not lesson), will have some sort of game either for formative assessment, practice, or review.

I believe the completion of this course has given me sufficient knowledge to directly implement the first goal with stumbling blocks and a huge learning curve, and adequate resources to begin learning the second goal (Prensky, 2001).

Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants. On the Horizon, 9(5).

Retrieved from Proquest Central database. doi: 1074252411.

Richardson, W. (2009).  Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web

Tools for Classrooms.  Thousand Oaks:  Corwin Press.

http://flashattack.podOmatic.com

1.     Reaction to the website:

I was surprised that it had been around as long as it has…2002.  It made me realize just how far out of the loop I have been.  I was also extremely surprised at the variety of its board members.  However, not surprised that they were “heavy hitters” in terms of technology interests and the interests of the future.  It did surprise me that they have actually gone to the extent of participating in an organization looking to the future of education.  I have often lamented that no one really cares in business, they just complain…this has made a liar out of me.

2.     What information on the site surprised me?

I was very impressed and interested in some of the articles I found in the press releases, especially THE Journal.  I subscribed to its RSS feeds because I think it will of tremendous value to me in the future.

I got totally lost in the link with Primary Source which I found when I followed the information regarding Global Awareness themes under Skills Framework.  I had no idea that there were such organizations and so active.  It is very fascinating to see the world become small and available to all.

The list of states with initiatives for 21^st century skills did not include Georgia and yet Georgia standards include technology literacy.

Unfortunately some of the links in the frameworks sections were outdated and missing.  However, I was really surprised at the scope of information and participation in general in the frameworks explanation and links.  I will certainly be back.

Huge surprise that the website “21^st Century Literacies”  (http://www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/21stcent/index.html) is sponsored by AT&T.  I am seeing a trend here where private business is in fact mounting a presence in public education.  For a long time, the publishing companies have directed the curriculum…it appears that there is now a paradigm shift to the informational/technology companies directing the curriculum.

Another surprise…content/literacy map for English for my grade level.  Too cool that it overlaps with many things I am already doing and many things I want to do.

Wow!  Just stumbled onto the ICT and Literacy website…it’s sponsored by the Church of England…but the resources are phenomenal!

There were no links or resources for the framework Life and Career Skills

3.     Did I disagree with anything on the site? Why?

I didn’t find anything that I disagreed with.  Perhaps, I was just too taken aback to think beyond “Wow!”

4.     What are the implications for my students and for me as a contemporary educator?

As Ken Kay said in his podcast, we do not have time for dialogue…

One of the most profound things I read/heard was Ken Kay in his videocast say that we don’t have time for a prolonged dialogue regarding content versus 21^st century skills, or business versus civic, or the validity of incorporating these outcomes in our children’s education.  He is so right.  If we look at how quickly technology is developing and where it has taken us in just a short amount of time, we cannot afford to talk; we must simply DO and believe that the path is already determined. 

As an 8th grade langage arts teacher I see an incredible amount of potential for blogging.  Even the name Read/Write Web starts the pedagogical brain juices flowing.  After watching the video with K. Martin as a 6th grade teacher, I now more fully understand the potential in engaging and directing student writing. 

I have long used writer’s workshops to teach writing in my classroom.  However, there has always been some difficulty in simply getting to each student in a timely manner.  I have had students journal to develop and record ideas and techniques to put in their writing portfolios.  However, once again, I simply do not have the time or resources to do justice to my students’ endeavors. 

I am enthused about the idea of initiating blogging in my writing instruction.  I really liked the idea of the blog perpetuating itself as the students continued to progress in their education beyond the experience in Ms. Martin’s 6th grade class…specifically, she had ex-6th graders continuing to write as 7th graders to the rising 6th graders, etc.  I would like to do something similar, but perhaps initiate it with a blog audience in another part of the country, or even the world.  Since I teach 8th grade students, I would like to get my students to journal their thoughts, fears, insecurities, triumphs, as they progress toward high school matriculation.  I would really like to match my students up with a group of 8th grade students in a very different cultural environment so these adolescents could see that they are different, but the same.  We just finished reading The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton and upon completion, I realized that it would be a great activating strategy to initiate blogging because of the reflective “theme” the protagonist writes at the end of the novel.  Now, I see where I could take it a step further and have my students not only blog about the book and the theme of the book, but also use this as a means of introduction with fellow 8th grade bloggers in another state or country.  Perhaps we could even invite Ms. Hinton herself to join us in the blogging.

Regardless, I am excited about this adjunct to my writing instruction and am eager to share my ideas with my colleagues at my school, my district, and anyone else that would like work with me on this new medium.

Okay, so I am new at this… What I am rapidly discovering is that this “thing” is far larger than I ever dreamt. I have been so lost for the past three days surfing blogs, stumbling through webinars, registering for RSS feeds, signing up for this and that. I don’t have a clue what I have done, what I will be receiving, or what I will be billed for (OMG!). What I do know is that all the nagging I have been giving my husband about his overly cautious attitude with firewalls, spyware, mail washers, etc. etc. is for a really good reason. I am now available to the world, and I do mean the World. I also believe that I have to just jump in and roll with it to really learn. I am reminded back to 1986 when I took a course in Lotus and Word Perfect thinking that was the way to learn software and “computing”. I forgot everything I learned because I didn’t use it and then when I did begin using the applications, the instruction I had received earlier was so outdated that it was useless. The world is changing faster than I can keep up with it, but I don’t have a prayer of even getting a glimmer of it unless I just jump into the game and run… I will be able to pick myself up and flounder with a few scrapes and bruises once I have an idea of what the track looks like and where I might be headed! (How was that for an extended metaphor???)