Saturday, July 4, 2009
Is There Really Anything New?
Defining and deciding on just what the "new" skills/qualities of the teacher/learners are in this new computer age is and has been a topic of great discussion. Can you imagine, right now, just what they are. Not just the words, but whole sentences defining what is important for teachers to possess and students to be learning these days. Is it any different that it was ten years ago? Twenty years ago? Has the workplace changed in a way that we need to educate students in a different way? The role of the textbook, the role of the learner and teacher, have they changed? I found this discussion recently and it made me try to explain all of it to myself. Below is a presentation from Chris Lehmann on the "new" learner and the new teacher.
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5 comments:
The Human-Being has not changed – Its needs, wants, and etc. But the tools It uses to communicate, interact, and LEARN have changed. This is just a FACT! This is what’s different from ten or twenty years ago within education and within the world in general.
So if a teacher is teaching like its 1998 to a 2008 student then something is just plain WRONG! Because the tools have changed.
One more thing!!! There is a technology gap between teacher and student. The gap is no longer a generation thing like different music, different manners, and etc. I mean, there’s still these types of gaps, but the technology gap is the biggest gap between teacher and student that has ever been.
I would say teachers that have been teaching for 7 years or more face the sense of this technology gap with their students. I would even say these teachers face an ego challenge that their students do not depend on their learned knowledge when they can click the google-button to find out the same information.
So maybe the role of a teacher has changed to only a facilitator, guiding the student through the technology, double checking on the information the student is getting, and making sure they are putting it together properly.
Last thing!!!
You can even see this technology gap at our own school by simply looking at our TELS Webletter - zero comments out of our entire YC --- OUR ENTIRE YC!!!
Even if it's not interesting; it's so easy to post a comment that it only shows that maybe we think it's too hard or we don’t take the time to navigate through our YC website because we still think our job is only onsite.
I mean, zero comments out of our entire YC. Just Interesting!!!
I agree. I agree. I agree. It is like going to a dance I suppose. Some folks just dance because they love it. Some because it is expected. Some because they want attention, and some because it is required. Then, the dark side. Some do not dance because they are afraid or because they have no one to dance with, or so they imagine. Some do not dance because it is beneath them. There are many reasons, no doubt. As far as this blog goes, I think that two things are happening. One, no one knows where the dance is. Two, when they do find it and show up, they are afraid to dance. In this case "comment" and click "publish your comment."
And it’s just professional courtesy to find the dance, go to the dance and dance when you are at the dance.
Is a dance a dance if no one dances?
Now that's the question!
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