Kaiser Foundation Media Report

The recent Kaiser Foundation report on Generation M2: Media in the Lives of 8- to 18-Year-Olds has got me thinking about the appropriate use of IPods, cellphones, PSPs and other entertainment devices in the classroom. To be honest I was about to jump on the bandwagon of why we should be using these devices for educational purposes in the classroom, and then I came to my senses. Students do not see these devices as educational devices. They are purely meant to be devices for entertainment and socializing. We never tried to incorporate the ATARI into our classrooms in the 80s so why are we going down this road? Nor did teachers of the 50's and 60's put on an Elvis jump suit hoping to lure the attention of their students by singing the lesson of the day. The big challenge is that entertainment is so portable and convenient that it interferes with everyday learning. We are educators, and we are the experts in our subject areas. Do not replace yourself with a cell phone that can browse the internet, play music, take pictures, and play movies. Students are already spending 11 hours a day being entertained with technology, so lets spend six hours of their day helping them learn. A good hands on exploratory lab, or a trip to a museum is a more authentic learning experience than trying monitor "the appropriate use of technology" in your classroom. If John Grieson were alive today he would tell our students to put your cell phones away, and go out and experience life.

A Modern Documentary

I really enjoyed the Grierson documentary. I can honestly say it was up there with one of my favorite movies The Mighty Wind. Here is a timely "mocumentary" on the late night war.



Don't worry I will post something of substance after I get some sleep!

The Cave Revisited and the Educational Technology Definition

The class discussion on Plato's Allegory in the Cave helped me better understand the message on resistance to change. The prisoners only knew their world of shadows and would resist the message being delivered by the returning prisoner. To gain a deeper understanding of the the Allegory I read it again and another message resonated with me. The message that it is the duty and obligation of the returning prisoner to enlighten others. Socrates speaks on the happiness of the "Whole State." The founders must "continue to ascend until they arrive at the good," but then "they must made descend again among the prisoners in the cave..."

This quote reminded me when I was at an MSIP conference, and the speaker whose name I forget said "With leadership there is always opposition. It is a given. If you do not like opposition become a curriculum consultant!" We are leaders in our schools and we must understand that when introducing new technologies there will be opposition. It is our duty to continue to work with those who are resistant to technology in order to benefit our schools and students.

The second thing the I remember from class was the 2008 AECT definition:

Educational technology is the study and ethical practice of facilitating learning and improving performance by creating, using, and managing appropriate technological processes and resources.

I am not a big fan of this definition. Perhaps, because I can not see past the technology as a "tool" definition which I eagerly proclaimed during my first class introduction, " My name is Paul and I try to use technology as a teaching tool every day." Hopefully I will become more enlightened as the course progresses, but let me state my case. I do not consider myself to be educational technology. I am a teacher. It is my role to create, use and manage appropriate technological processes and resources. I guess I do not see educational technology as a study and ethical practice but rather as a thing. And using and mastering this thing called technology is just an indicator of good teaching.

Teachers facilitate learning and improve performance by creating, using, and managing appropriate technological processes and resources.

I know I am getting the definitions of technology and educational technology confused so please enlighten me!

Welcome to Educational technology

The short film Opening Speech by Norman McLaren reminded me of being back in primary school. The struggle the announcer was having with the microphone, was reminiscent of my primary teachers trying to figure out how to use the VCR. In the 80's my fellow students were masters of the VCR and it was very entertaining to see our teachers struggling with all the cables, buttons, and easily damaged tapes. After several frustrating minutes my teachers would finally get the VCR working and they would be rewarded with being able to sit and relax while the TV did the teaching for them. Not a bad return!

In the movie the announcer was effective in delivering the message of "Welcome" but it took him all of seven minutes. The idea of technology having a mind of its own is not new, but the announcer did not submit to this frustration, rather he found a better way to deliver the message using newer technology. From the perspective of the people in the auditorium I think that a loud "Welcome" without the microphone would have been sufficient to introduce the rest of the program. However, by using technology McLaren's "Welcome" made a far reaching message that would not be forgotten by the audience. McLaren's video was also used to welcome us to the course. Not surprisingly this video is available on YouTube where McLaren's message lives on.