Comments on: Technology – You Better Find Room for It

By: My Word Press Comments « Kim’s Writing Ed Blog

My Word Press Comments « Kim’s Writing Ed Blog — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 21:26:22 +0000

[...] Comment Seven [...]

By: fritzki

fritzki — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 20:17:09 +0000

Wade,

This is a very interesting article. I think that as teachers we have to be very careful. It seems that everything cool that we want to do with or for kids comes with potential harms. Kids are so smart and when they want do naughty things it is amazing what their little minds can come up with. Perhaps I should not say little minds, I do not mean it that way. I do think that teachers need to be up on what kids are doing. We cannot reach them if we do not go to them.

I have enjoyed all of your comments in class also. You have some very thought provoking things to say, I think it is a value to the class.

I am sure you are going to make an excellent teacher and a very key component to the staff of whatever district you choose to join.

Kim

By: Comments (310) « That Dark Space Between When You Wake Up

Comments (310) « That Dark Space Between When You Wake Up — Tue, 17 Apr 2007 09:22:32 +0000

[...] and have to do it again! Linking this stuff is for the birds, let me tell you! Comment 1 Comment 2 Comment 3 Comment 4 Comment 5 Comment 6 Comment 7 Comment 8 Comment 9 Comment [...]

By: thedarksideofdan

thedarksideofdan — Tue, 17 Apr 2007 08:36:25 +0000

I’m not going to lie, Wade, I too find myself being like “Where does technology fit in with me?” Not so much as an english teacher, since I have not really given that like a huge amount of though (it’s my minor), but more as like where is it going to fit into my life as a teacher period. I do not want to be one of those fifty-something teacher’s that does not know how to do stuff (I can’t even imagine what kind of tech there is going to be when I’m fifty). Anyway, I think after the ideas that flew around at the conference, I bet the best way to keep in touch about using the tech is through blogs, just like this. Just weighing in on it.

Dan

By: Those lucky enough to receive my opinions: ;) « “Colorless green ideas sleep furiously.” ~Noam Chomsky

Tue, 17 Apr 2007 02:28:28 +0000

[...] Comment on Wade’s blog “Technology – You Better Find Room for It” [...]

By: tesslynn

tesslynn — Tue, 17 Apr 2007 01:39:27 +0000

To add on to what you and other commentors have said, we, as teachers, have to integrate ourselves into the world of our students, not vice-versa. Our world has become a technological one, and as a country, we are lagging behind others because we are not keeping up. Our students are bound to fall even further behind if they are not given the opportunity to apply technology in their everyday lives.

I know that before taking this class and other technologically-based classes like ED 205, I was terrified at the idea of trying to bring technology into my classroom. But after some of the things we have learned, it really isn’t difficult. It is not as though we are teaching our students how to use technology–they already know how to do that. What we are doing is enhancing their learning by integrating things they are accustomed to. In turn, we are also making learning more fun and interesting. Put yourself in their situation: Would you rather write a five-paragraph essay or make a MySpace account for a character in Shakespeare (like some of us witnessed at the Bright Ideas conference)? There is just no competition, is there?

By: canknight

canknight — Mon, 16 Apr 2007 14:47:56 +0000

You couldn’t have been more accurate. I think that teachers who either do not know how to use technology or teachers who are not sure how to incorporate it in their classrooms find multiple reasons to get out of using it. I think that with a little work any teacher can use technology without coming close to have it taking over in the classroom. Now, I do think that the technology should tie in with what is being taught but this is not as hard as one may think.

Sometimes I think teachers may be intimidated by the technology and the fact that the students are more familiar with it than they are. If your a twenty year teacher and you can’t figure out this computer program and a ten year old comes up and does it in a minute flat you may feel a inadequate. I think this would be a sign of the amount of intrest the students take in the area of technology. They may not have read the selection out of their book the night before, but they did look at that new clip on Utube. You have to use this to connect with them at their level. The use of technology often allows students to connect things on a visual level or if they are using it themselves on a hands on level. This is a way to make sure all students in class are engaged.

Technology is here to stay and there is no way to get around it. Teachers must look at it as a tool and not as a hassle. The possibilities are endless when it comes to the use of technology. The internet is the name of the game.

By: ENG 310 Comments « The Mechanic’s Daughter

ENG 310 Comments « The Mechanic’s Daughter — Sun, 15 Apr 2007 21:15:33 +0000

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By: stephcj

stephcj — Sun, 15 Apr 2007 21:13:41 +0000

I agree with you Wade – current teachers need to stop being so afraid of technology coming into the classroom. From the examples given in the article you wrote about, it is easy to see that technology can enhance the learning experience. When I had to read Othello for school, I would have appreciated some technology input. Though I had a general idea of how far Venice and Cyprus were from one another, I could have used a teacher like the one in the article, who used google maps to show his students the actual distance. After having gone to the breakout session at which Bethany and David presented, I really have seen how afraid teachers are of using technology with their students. A few of the teachers at the breakout session kept complaining to Bethany and David that their schools wouldn’t allow the use of myspace, that not all students would have access to the internet, and that it would take up too much class time. These may be valid reasons for not using myspace for some of these teachers, but I have the suspicious feeling that they were more like excuses to not have to change their teaching styles.