Reflections On The Course

The presentations on Thursday were well done. The tools that were introduced seem to be very useful and I am looking forward to playing with some of them during my month off. The Cuban book was insightful. He shared a lot of the same views as Oppenheimer, but I think he did a better job of backing his claims with sound research. We really have to stop using technology as a vehicle for ``transforming`` teaching practices. The tools may keep changing but it is ultimately up to the teacher to change their teaching practices. This can be accomplished more effectively through PD, learning networks and more prep time rather than spending money on the latest and greatest technologies. Many gains in student achievement that are attributed to technology are actually the result of a change in teaching practice. For any new initiative to be successful, sufficient training is most important. Having an Smart Board in my classroom does not make me a good teacher; just as having lips does not make me a good kisser! Knowing when, and how to use your tools (or tool) appropriately is what counts.


Now for my thoughts on the course...

I will be honest in saying the first few classes intimidated me a little bit. I didn't quite understand where Denis was going with the course. The philosophy and the readings where foreign to me. I was an expert in my school who knew all the tools, but I did not have a broad picture of what technology was really about. Over time, Denis and the whole class environment really did enlighten me. Again I thank all of you for you bricks. Now, I have a much broader view when it comes to technology. In order to grow as a professional I really did have to trust Denis, and I am glad I did. This is the first course in my program and it put me back in the role of a student; something I have not experienced for 10 years. I never appreciated how much trust a student puts in a teacher until now. For trusting us, we owe our students a great deal; to start we should trust them with technology by minimizing filters and implementing creative way of using hand held technologies in the classroom.

Heidegger taught me many things; The most important being that the essence of technology is nothing technological. In education, technology should be infused with the main purpose of helping students succeed. Technology does not and can not replace good teaching. Good teachers use technology appropriately, and in a manner which allows students to explore curricular content in context. The second thing I learner from Heidegger is that when you are not an "expert" in the field, shift the debate to a field in which you are the expert. I apologize for sharing with you my passion of mathematics education!

The blogs and the class discussion were a blast. I truly enjoyed class, and the reflection time that followed. I commented on everyone blog at one time or another. I would have liked to comment on more blogs but life and family got in the way (as it should).

A "Word map" or "World Cloud" with the 75 most common words that appear in my blog is shown below. The larger the font the more it appeared. I am proud of how my word map turned out. The two most prominent words were students and technology. In reflection I truly believe that all the technology that we use in our schools has to benefit our students in one way or another.



click on the image for a larger view
Created with http://www.wordle.net/

Convenience and Technology

I am back from my trip to Minneapolis. It was a pretty smooth trip. My old car held out, and we made it back safe and sound.

Before I went on my trip I bought a new laptop computer. I had good intentions of writing my blog when I was down there but I never got around to it. Although I choose not to write my blog, I did have the option of writing my blog from the convenience of my hotel room. Without the laptop I am sure I would have said to myself "If only I had a laptop I could write my blog." I am not upset with myself for not writing the blog, for I was having too much fun with my little girl, but it was still nice having the laptop. While I was at the mall I also bought a GPS receiver and some trip routing software. I have been to Minneapolis several times and I really didn't need the GPS, but I was nice having it in case I got lost. Technology these days seems to be more about convenience than necessity. I see one big difference between technology in Heidegger's time and now. In Heidegger's time technology such as the hydroelectric power plant served and continues to serve society well by making electricity affordable, and available for everyone. (But at what cost?) Technology such as the motion picture helped the allied forces win the war (Recognition of a Japanese Zero). Today technologies such as GPS, laptops and I-phones are used more for entertainment and to keep us connected. Essentially we can live without the fancy toys but we cannot live without electricity and the technologies of the past. Take away my I-phone but don't take away running water and electricity!

The truth is today's modern technologies are going to evolve into something that we cannot live without. In 50 years from now someone will look back and see the technologies of today as essential building blocks to our new way of life. People managed before hot water was in the homes, but today we cannot live without it. A convince becomes a necessity when we incorporate that technology into everyday use. Network technologies are already controlling heating and air conditioning systems, controlling refrigerators, traffic flow, and making sure our water in drinkable. I am no futurist, but these seemingly innocent entertainment type technologies are going to evolve and control our lives so much that they become necessities.