Your first assignment:
After reading the article Bringing School to the Information Age (hyperlinked here) browse through the previous postings and comments on this blog.
Is this format and classroom structure suitable to your learning style?
What benefits can this format present to a classroom?
What drawbacks do you foresee?
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30 comments:
Bringing school to the information age would be suitable towards my learning style because I plan on working with computers in the future. With access to the internet for research, as opposed to a textbook, is faster and more efficient. Information on the internet has easy accessibility, while books may not have the right information you’re looking for. The downside to technology in school, as said in the class discussion, is the lack of focus while on the internet. People would rather do what they like on the internet rather than do research for work. The internet is also not always reliable. As Mr. Brown said, you may be looking up George Washington, but not find George Washington you wanted. Sometimes, if what you are looking for is not widely known, you may find scarcely any information, if any at all.
Is this format and classroom structure suitable to your learning style?
I believe that as students, we are capable of adapting to many different learning styles, due to our ever changing mentors over the course of our educational career. This change however, is, in my opinion, more "necessary". As implied in class today, many of the jobs we will acquire in the future center around computers and other aspects of technology. Without the needed exposure to such technology during our "sheltered" schooling days, it will be very difficult for many to make the transition. In other words, even if it is not a suitable style for some, this may be one of the skills you need to allow to flower in order to have a prosperous and fruitful lifestyle.
What benefits can this format present to a classroom?
To this question, the list is as limitless and the internet itself. With no leash from textbooks or workbooks, students can flourish in the vast knowledge the internet has to offer. Political squabbles, economy issues, and current events relating to or addressing the topic at hand would only increase a students thirst and curiosity for knowledge.
What drawbacks do you foresee?
As unfortunate as it is, there will be students who take advantage of the "freedom" of the internet. However, personally, I am not all together that worried. Not to be stereotypical, but I believe it's these same students that are calling out and disrupting class, so it's not so much of a bother to me if they laugh silently to themselves instead of causing a commotion in the room.
After reading "Bringing School to The Information Age" it made me think. I love technology so I would be the first to say this would be a excellent format and classroom structure for my learning style.I say this because its easier, better, and a funner way to get me into school work and it works for me.
The benefits that this format can present itself to the classrooms are bringing different point of views form all over the world and not just 'old white mans' views and beliefs. As for drawbacks, the only thing I can see happening is students fooling around and not really pay attention to whats going on in the classroom. Hopefully this can happen for the future generations.
Hello, I guest I’m the first to comment! Reading the article,”Bring School to the information Age” was an eye opening passage. As I stated in class I believe that technology may not be the best tool to assist a teacher while their teaching. Being in Mr. Swetten’s American History class is a prime example of what success comes with learning from a text book. Many students think because we weren’t told by Swetten to “turn to page…” we weren’t learning from a textbook. But we in fact were, he took the information from the textbook, and simply put it on the board. Technology is great, it’s what we as teenagers use frequently for everything. But the more I think about it the “Board of Ed” makes a negative association with technology. Were told not to bring them to school, and were censored from half of the websites when given a computer. So to place a laptop in front of me after eleven years of learning from a text book, I’m not saying is the wrong method of teaching me something . It just might be the hardest!
Bringing technology into the classroom could have both advantages and disadvantages. I think that a combination of both learning styles would be best for me. Having a computer in front of you can be very useful, however it could also become distracting at times. I think that if we were able to use computers in the classroom more often, but not all the time and still have a little bit of the traditional structure would be most ideal. We would have a wide variety of resources, while still staying focused on the task. Having more technology in the classroom environment can help tremendously. As students we would have way more resources available and be able to learn in whatever way we choose. Like what Mr. Brown was saying “Why not use all the resources we have available to us?” I think that the only major drawback would be students not using the technology for educational purposes. There are almost infinite amount of things to do on the internet such as games, aim, myspace, facebook, twitter etc.
The format and classroom structure mentioned in the article would be suitable to my learning style, but I believe that the most suitable way for me to learn is the combination of both the learning through textbooks and the use of technology. Textbooks are filled with great information with main ideas and points that would help you pass exams, but that's about it. Technology on the other hand can give us everything we need to know to pass exams and more. There are no limits tot he information we can access through the internet while textbooks can only tell us so much. In the world we live in today we are given so many different types of resources to learn from but schools limit these resources. If we had the choice of the way we wanted to learn, from textbooks, to laptops, and even phones students might be more interested in the topics which are being taught. However, the use of technology in school can have its drawbacks. With all the different networking sites that are available on the internet students can easily become distracted. Another drawback with the use of technology is that information that students have access to might not be correct.
James Daly hit a topic that I never really thought about, but makes absolute sense; the educational system needing to be updated in the department of technology. It is what is going on and being used in the real world today. Using technology in schools and in the classroom environment would definitely be suitable for my learning style because it will be preparation my classmates and I for the future in mostly any career field. Using technology in a classroom would be something that I will have to get adapted to because it would be something that doesn’t happen on a daily basis.
The article that we were reading in class gave me and a lot of students to actually think what is better for our education,technology or textbooks. To my personal belief I feel that schools should give students technology for learning but still have what we've been using which is textbooks. Why I say we should have technology because I just feel that you can learn a lot more from a world-wide web than a 500 page textbook. I feel that you are limited to your way of study and knowledge with just a certain amount of lettering. It benefits us students to have more sources and not stick to just one thing. Of course there will be a downfall within the technonlogy in schools due to disruptions with kids. But once schools know what to do with the technology within schools there probably won't be as much of a set back within education.
So far the comments have been clear well written and concise. I am wondering why textbooks are seen as structure and the internet is seen as freedom?
I agree with C.Reyes on the fact that technology can have disadvantages and advantages. Tecnology is in our new era. In class while we were discussing our teacher Mr. Brown hit some great topics and facts about technology: "Why can't we vote online but we can use our credit card online?"He made me go home and wonder about our society -Having a computer in school is wonderful but at the same time its not because since were so focused with the internet(facebook, Myspace, twitter...ect) it can distract us. However having access to a computer in school can give you more privileges to have more access to information you need to look up.
The Article “Bringing School to the Information Age” was an interesting topic that I can agree with in some ways, yet disagree.
As far as the format and class structure go, they are pretty suitable for my learning style, and I’m pretty sure any other teenagers learning style, because in today’s world, everything we learn basically comes from the internet, and as Mr. Brown said in class, to us “Google it” had become a verb.
I feel as if everyone on this blog as been saying that using technology in classrooms can have a drawback because of the distractions such as “Facebook, MySpace, aim, etc”, but I strongly disagree, it can be a distraction to us right now, because we aren’t taught how to use the internet for something useful, we aren’t taught how to search the web for the stuff we need. The internet is a “distraction” to us because we make it one. Also the benefits to using this given technology in the classrooms are endless, especially now when 90 percent of the kids have internet on their phones and don’t even need the laptops or computers in the school. Like everyone else said, when you have a internet provided to you with all the information you need, why read a textbook that had limited information that come from only one point of view?
Aren’t schools suppose to be preparing us for real life, well when in real life am I going to be told to algebra in my head? When in real life am I going to be given a time limit to write a proposal without spell-check?
I personally don’t see any drawbacks to this, expect for the one point that never occurred to me until Mr. Brown pointed it out in class. Technology advances everyday, and all it does it leave a generations behind. As more advancements come out the more people are getting left behind.
After reading “Bringing School to the Information Age”, I realized that I never thought about this topic. I agree and disagree with the article. Personally I wouldn’t have a problem with always using a computer in school but I wouldn't want to use it all the time. I think the Board of Ed. should create a balance between textbooks and technology. Honestly I would grow bored with always being on the computer just as I would with always using a textbook, which is why I think I balance would be useful. I think if we use computers in a classroom all the time everybody wouldn’t be on the same page. Some people will become board of the lesson and venture off into other things like aim, facebook, etc. On the other hand using computers might make the lesson more interesting and enjoyable. Using the computers will also allow us to access more information.
The article read in class has given me a different view in learning, but I don’t think it’s the best way. The use of technology in classrooms has its benefits but I believe the drawbacks are much greater. As said in class, being so dependent on the internet as a source of learning/getting information will make us so illiterate that we won't be capable to function by ourselves and not look elsewhere for information. Not everything on the internet is a reliable source. I feel that textbooks are seen as structure because everyone with the same textbook is learning the same little amount of information. Textbooks limit your knowledge to the information on those very few pages on a specific topic, whereas the internet can give you a vast variety of different educational sites to expand in detail on the same specific topic.
As Samaroo said you may need technology as our skills to our future life and to others many don’t know how to use it to their ability. To what I read the article in class I believe technology would be a great usefully information to use in schools and classrooms. Each day our use of technology is being upgraded more and more and it’s our jobs to keep up with it. Many students are best skilled to working with these tools of life style. We need to keep up with technology to be able to compete in the work place. A person not having those skills set will not be able to work in office of any corporation, will not be able to communicate as many as much are done by cell phones and computers . Technology is also improving our medical health as most equipment use in hospital.
While I do agree that there is a place for technology in the classroom, I don’t understand all the hate for textbooks. Textbooks are not hiding anything from us. They have the information and points that you would need to have an understanding of a subject. There is only so much they can put into one book, so it is not deliberate that you can explore a topic deeply in a textbook.
That is where using the internet comes in. It gives you the resources to search for information not able to fit into the book. The problem is that there is so much information and that information is all over the place. So for technology to be used effectively in the classroom, I believe there has to be some sort of limit in how everyone interacts with it.
As an example, this summer I took classes at Pratt Institute, and two of the classrooms I was in were being renovated into a ‘tech” rooms. The teacher’s desk had a computer attached which was wirelessly connected to a projector in the ceiling. The desk also had controls for a DVD player and audio speakers throughout the room. In one class during our discussions, the teacher would use the computer to bring up pages about the topics we were talking about and often refer to them to keep the conversation moving. In my art history class, when we were reading our final papers out loud, our teacher brought up images of the piece we had chosen as well as others by the same artist so the class could better understand our subject. While this exact setup would be expensive for the average public school, it would not take much to connect a few computers to a projector.
And to respond to the idea of each student having laptops, everyone in my classes had laptops, and I am not ashamed to admit that about 90% of the time we were all on facebook chatting with each other.
Technology in the classroom has the potential to be an invaluable instrument. Using the internet can bring information in the form of videos, pictures, and written word. Bringing tech to the classroom can grasp & envelop students in ways that textbooks and worksheets couldn't. Some who are normally turned off by the same old in class might become immersed in learning from a new media. Properly utilizing tech would take a teacher that has the ability to properly manage & engage their students to stay on task, instead of diverging. In the end, whether someone likes or dislikes tech in the 'room is irrelevant to whether they can benefit from tech. I would stand behind using tech in the classroom.
After discussing the article, Bringing School to The Information Age, it made me think about a few things. Many people in our society, would say that the Internet would be a better choice than textbooks. It can be but sometimes, the Internet cannot provide you with accurate information. Meanwhile, textbooks can. The Internet's reliability has undoubtly been questioned; anyone can access the Internet's database. The web's strongest point in the debate, is its greatest weakpoint.
After reading the article in class I felt that our school should utilize the technology that is available to us today. When the teacher is teaching something that someone doesn’t understand why shouldn’t we be able to look up it on the Internet without stopping the teacher from the lesson? Not only would laptops make for more efficient learning process it will also prepare us for the future. I doubt in whatever job you get your boss is going to ask you to read this textbook and handwrite a report. Mostly everything you do in the future will be with technology from paying bills to looking up civil war information. The downside to this will be people will stop thinking for their self why would we think for ourselves if the answer were one click away. To everyone saying that people will get distracted there are ways to prevent that you can have one computer monitoring all the laptops and if the teacher is paying attention catching people should be easy.
I agree with Christan because I think that along with advantages technology in the classroom has it's disadvantages also. Kids would be very distracted with other game sites or sites such as or myspace. The advantages of having technology in the classrooms is that we can find information on anything at all form the smallest thing to the biggest thing. Like said in our class discussion why not have cell phones to look up information? if teachers allowed cell phones in school some students may actually do the right thing by using it for the cause its meant to be used for, or they would just text there friends.
In agreement with the reading, I feel that technology would be beneficial in classrooms. Unlike the internet, textbooks tend to be bias and based on few perspectives. A positive aspect about the internet is that there's an unlimited, world wide perspective on anything. There's always going to be those few people who take advantage of the privilege but for those who want to learn will learn. If you notice, technology has become so important that our society is built around it. Why not take advantage and use it to its fullest extent? Maybe this advancement would even capture the attention of those who don't like school and bring about a new way of learning for them to be interested in.
I agree with my classmates that there are disadvantages and advantages with advance technology in classrooms. Some students learn differently. Some need pictures or images to help them understand and some can hear it once and remember forever. We have to teach everyone, so computers in classrooms wouldn't hurt. The title is " Bringing School to the Information Age", the writer is basically trying to tell the board of education that we (the people) are trying to move forward.. so if your classrooms aren't up to date... it will be left behind. In our last class Mr. Brown was trying to expound on how everytime there is a change someone gets lost in the mist and I also agree on that. So that will be the drawback for a change in class.
I feel that technology can be a window to a whole different world of opportunity, and I'm responding to this blog on my cell phone. I think that technology can help people as far as they allow it to. For example our school...Our school passes off the computers and internet access as a way of rebellion but it should be used as a research mechanism to further our educational progress.
This format and classroom structure is suitable to my learning style, since i am always on the computer playing with something. Being on the computer is my life, and so is being on any other of my technological device that i own. The benefits that this format can present to a classroom is that it could bring the world's knowledge to us. Also you can easily refer to common examples in a very quick matter instead of sometimes assigning it for homework. These days kids are more into the technology than they are into reading from an old textbook that is hundreds of pages long. Any thing that they need help with, can come straight from there computers or there cellular phones. the drawbacks that i see are some kids misusing there devices for there own personal reasons and getting side tracked.
This technology has gotten us where we are today but who says that is a good thing? We don’t know where we would be if it weren’t for the webcams, DVDs, and all the new bigger and better technology. Technology is useful in many ways. In school we should use the computers only when we need to because its faster to research we can still use textbooks and read other things. We know that sometimes the internet would let us lack a little because we have other important things to do like Homework.
Technology is the key things that surrounds the world of a teenager. Teenagers now are so into technology that whatever we want to know is on the internet. This learning process won't be suitable for me to learn. If this was a learning process in our school now, I'm sure i wouldn't learn anything because i know I would stray off and go on aim. I most likely take advance of the freedom. Instead of making technology a learning process in every class, they should make it one class like computer class. They should do this becuase technology is something where going to need to use in the near future. This format of learning can be benefical to students because the internet sums up information that are important rather than the textbook giving you information that are needed. The drawback to technology in school that when we look for information on a website, it may not be as accurate like it is in the textbook. Sometimes the internet has false information. If technology was out into classrooms I would need to get use to it for me to learn.
After reading “Bringing School to the Information Age”,I through about how we always use technology so that we can do research and use the internet.The internet has more information that we need then using textbook and the teachers giving us paper everyday.The internet is faster then using textbooks or books in the library.
After reading this article “Bringing School to the Information Age” I have a new appreciation for textbooks. Although technology is a real advantage when it pertains to doing research for projects, it's place in the classroom isn't fully utilized- which isn't really a bad thing. As Elizabeth said if we were to use computers in school my mind would wander, the same way it does at home. I'd find myself on facebook procrastinating to get assignments done.
Textbooks are revised numerous times where as the Internet isn't always correct. Anyone can post ANYTHING on the Internet. For example sites like Wikipedia (I forgot how to do the hyperlink :[...) can be easily altered and give students the wrong information.
Yes the Internet has it's benefits most of which make us lazy anyway. We have access to more views and opinions, and most topics are explained it greater detail. But not everything on the Internet can be trusted as a reliable resource.
Wouldn't a computer eliminate the need for a teacher anyway? All the information you'd need would be right at your fingers? Is this article implying that we should just burn all of our textbooks and use our new and improved resource? The Internet.
I agree with Christina when she stated that bringing technology into the classroom can have advantages as well as disadvantages. I agree because technology is very distracting for me personally because in most cases when I'm supposed to be studying or doing homework my phone is buzzing or someone just left me a comment on facebook or my favorite show is on and that will just through me off track. So to bring technology into the classroom such as a laptop may cause me to roam off topic and do other things other than the given task. But technology can also be an advantage because it helps you get facts fast. Now you can type just about anything into google and thousands of websites will pop up. This technology upgrade also depends on the type of person you are, like if you're focused under any and every circumstance or if you give into distractions easily.
I agree with Kendra when she said that technology may not be the best tool to assist a teacher while their teaching. If all my teachers were to give me a laptop to read an article ,I'd probably be on facebook checking my messages or on airaim.I think we should stick to the old fashion method, textbook.
- Jessica R.
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