Student Exchange, Without the Jet Lag: Educational Collaboration in a Virtual World

Baedeker, R. (2007). Student Exchange, Without the Jet Lag: Educational Collaboration in a Virtual World. Edutopia. Retrieved from: http://www.edutopia.org/student-exchange-without-jet-lag

Summary:

Ever wonder what it would be liked to hang out with a student from Japan? Well, now you can thanks to the power of the internet! Turlock High School in California has started an ambitious program called the PacRimX, where students from all around the world interact with each other on Second Life, an online 3D virtual world.  The students will meet online first, and then will eventually travel to Japan to meet their virtual friends in real life.  The whole point of the exchange is to just interact with people from other cultures through the internet.  Students are collaborating on Second Life projects, such as creating a town in Second Life where students can hang-out.  There are many possibilities for Second Life to be used in the classroom-- it is particularly useful for math and physics lessons, as Second Life has a realistic physics engine built into it. Overall, teachers say they are just scratching the surface of what Second Life has to offer.

Reaction:  While it is certainly interesting that students are able to interact with people from all over the world, I believe the educational possibilities of Second Life are somewhat limited.  What are these students doing other than just playing a game with kids from Japan? It does not sound like the teachers involved are really trying to create any sort of new curriculum that is engaging or takes advantage of the technology. And what are they doing in Second Life that couldn't be done in a real-life classroom? I understand that interacting with other cultures is important, but I am concerned that projects like these are replacing curriculum that actually produces measurable results.

Digital Divide? What Digital Divide?

Nagel, D. (2008).  Digital Divide? What Digital Divide? The Journal. Retrieved from:

      http://thejournal.com/articles/2008/06/23/digital-divide-what-digital-divide.aspx

Summary:  For years, people have assumed that low-income students have had a technological disadvantage when compared to high-income students. However, this may not be the case.  A survey conducted by the University of Minnesota found that 91% of low-income students access the Internet at least once a week.  50% access the internet daily, and 25% access the internet multiple times a day.  Mainly, these students were using the internet to access social networking sites, but visiting these sites may have inadvertently helped these students develop 21st century skills.  Low-income students who visited social networking sites said they developed technology skills, creativity, being open to diverse views, and communication skills.  These are all skills that help one find a job in the 21st century.  However, the study did not look at if these sites actually had any affect on low-income students' ability to obtain a job.

Reaction: While it is encouraging to see that students of all socio-economic classes are accessing technology, I would be afraid that a study like this may give lower-income districts an excuse to not incorporate technology classes into their curriculum.  If students are already online, why should they bother trying to teach them 21st century skills?  Furthermore, being able to post on a Facebook wall doesn't really seem to correlate to marketable job skills.  Everyone can use social media nowadays, so what can schools do to help students compete in a globalized marketplace?  We cannot sit idly by and just hope kids will teach technology to themselves.  We need to proactive, not reactive!

New Technologies Link Ancient Cultures

Ellis, K. (2002).  New Technologies Link Ancient Cultures. Edutopia.  

      Retrieved from: http://www.edutopia.org/new-technologies-link-ancient-cultures

Summary: One of the biggest threats facing indigenous cultures is that younger generations are forgetting about their ancestry.  The First Peoples' Project aims to change that.  Indigenous students on five different continents are sharing their stories, poems, photographs and artwork on the Internet, though the First Peoples' Project.  This gives elders an opportunity to explain to the younger generation about their culture, and in turn, allows the younger generation to use technology to post these stories.  Not only that, but indigenous students are able to learn about other cultures around the world.  Just another wonder of the Internet age-- people sharing stories and learning about their own culture in the process.

Reaction:  While I am very happy that indigenous cultures are preserving their stories, I wish this program was focused a little more on helping students learn technology skills that could help them in real life.  Due to centuries of oppression and persecution, Native Americans have some of the highest rates of alcoholism and poverty in the country.  While the need to preserve their culture is great, these students also need to be given an opportunity to succeed in the market place.  If I were in charge of this program, I would increase the scope of its mission-- to not only educate indigenous people about their culture, but also teach them skills that could help them get a job in the computer industry.  Native Americans can remember the past while also looking toward the future at the same time.

Assistive Technology in the Classroom: Helping Challenged Kids Get the Most From Learning

Steele-Carlin, S. (2011). Assistive Technology in the Classroom: Helping Challenged 

      Kids Get the Most From Learning. EducationWorld. Retrieved from:

      http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/tech/tech086.shtml

Summary:

This article is mainly about assistive technology.  Assistive technology are devices that help disabled children learn and function more effectively. For example, hearing aids help the hearing-impaired, screen magnifiers help the visually-impaired, and voice-recognition software can help those who have a hard time moving their fingers.  It literally opens up the world of learning to the disabled. For example, the article talks about one student who was nearly blind.  She was having a hard time working in class because she couldn't read anything.  Then, she received a special reading machine that reads aloud text she scans.  It has allowed her to succeed in life and she is now a substitute teacher-- she credits it all to her reading device.  The article concludes with a caveat: teachers must be trained in how to use assistive devices, otherwise students may not use them to their full potential. 

Reaction:  This is one the greatest effects that technology is having in the classroom. It is so wonderful that students who may have been marginalized 20 years ago are now able to participate fully in class. The benefit is two-fold: not only are students better able to learn, but it takes pressure off of teachers to create diversified lesson plans when they have a student with a disability in their class.  My visit to the CEED center at WWU really opened up my eyes here-- I had no idea that there were so many technologies that kids could use.  I will have to make sure to keep myself abreast about the latest assistive technology.  I don't want to put my kids at a disadvantage!

The Virtual Classroom Redefines Education

Wood, C. (2005). The Virtual Classroom Redefines Education. Edutopia. 

        Retrieved from: http://www.edutopia.org/high-school-dot-com

Summary:  A growing number of students have decided to move all of their high school classes online.  Some students find the flexibility of online course suitable for their busy lives. This is especially effective for athletes who would like to be training during the day instead of attending classes.  Additionally, online classrooms can be very effective for children who live in remote rural areas. These places don't always have all the electives that students want to take, and online classrooms allows rural kids the same access to classes that urban kids already enjoy.  Florida has taken the lead in virtual classrooms-- Govenor Jeb Bush signed a bill in 1997 that created a 1.3 billion dollar budget for Florida Virtual High School, where students all across the state could take classes online.  North Carolina tried to start a similar program, but without state funding like Florida's, it failed.  Students find that online classes sometimes offer more direct instruction than teachers can, since each lesson is tailored specifically for them.   However, not everything is rosy.  Teachers now much spend more of their free time working with online lessons as well as prepare for in-class activities, and not all teachers are trained to use the technology that is offered to them.  Furthermore, not every student is self-motivated enough to complete online courses.  A lot of students only respond to real human-to-human interaction.  The answer appears to be blended learning, a combination of real teachers with online tutors and programs.

Reaction:  I chose to read this article after I read another article about the rise of online learning.  I was surprised to learn that so much money was placed into online learning in the 1990s, and I wonder how much online learning Florida still uses today.  I really think that online learning has a great potential to alter education greatly for kid who live in rural areas.  My cousin is from west Texas, and I know she was not able to take AP Biology because the only school that offered the program was 100 miles away from her house.  With online learning, maybe she could have done it.  I am glad that this article mentions blended instruction-- I believe that this is the future of teaching and that, one day, every teacher will use blended instruction.  I just hoped that administrators give teachers enough planning time to work with both online lessons, as well as real-life lessons.  We all know how busy teachers are during the school year already!

Education, Unplugged: Schools Make Cable-Free Connections

Fortmeyer, R. (2007). Education, Unplugged: Schools Make Cable-Free Connections.
       Edutopia.   
       Retrieved from:http://www.edutopia.org/school-wireless-devices-networks

Summary: 

While the idea of a technology ready school sounds great, the logistics behind creating one can be quite complicated.  Specifically, integrating both wireless and wired networks into a school can be particularly daunting. Most older schools were not designed to incorporate the kind of wiring, server closets, and electrical outlets needed to have both wired and wireless networks running simultaneously at the same time.  School tech support workers are having to turn old custodial closets into server rooms, and many old schools do not have the kind of walls that allow wireless connections through them. Furthermore, it is hard to put physical wires though concrete supporting walls.  Additionally, lots of students are being offered laptops in schools now.  This adds the headache of creating VPN networks so students are able to access school computers away from school. Finally, the article points to smart phones as being the next big thing in technology education.  Students will be able to access email and the internet from their own phones, parents will be more connected to their student's online homework, and administrators will be access student data straight from their pocket.  The future is now!

Reaction:

I believe that many of the issues in this article will disappear over time, as more and more schools will be rebuilt to specifically accommodate an increase in technology.  My old high school, Shorecrest, used to have many of the problems listed in the article. Now, however, the school (built in the 1960s) is being torn down and replaced with a state-of-the-art school.  However, not every district has the resources that mine does.  Technology adoption will still be a major issue for some inner-city school districts.  Also, I have some reservations about using smart phones in school.  Since they are privately owned by the students, how can teachers be sure their students are not just texting their friends throughout class?  It is not like they can install security software on a private device.  Only the future will see where the smart phone revolution is headed.

Tech Without Support: IT Snags Hamper Schools' Technology Use

Moses. A. (2008). Tech Without Support: IT Snags Hamper Schools' Technology Use.
       Edutopia. Retrieved from:
       http://www.edutopia.org/ikid-school-technology-support

Summary: 

While adding technology to the classroom is great, if it not done correctly, it can be a disaster. Many schools are adding computers, but the schools don't have anyone who knows hows to use them.  A recent survey by the National Education Association found that half of educators said they faced insufficient technology support.  Ironically, it may not be technology that is limiting process, but a lack of people. In San Francisco, there is one tech support person for every 3,000 students!  With no one to turn to, school districts are actually employing some of their own students to work as after-school tech support.  Some administrators are nervous about this, since these students now have access to confidential school files.  Ultimately, this issue will eventually disappear, as more and more computer literate teachers come into the work force.

Reaction:

An article like this shows just how important classes like IT544 are.  We need our teachers to be computer literate, especially in the 21st century.  Schools should not have to hire students to be their tech support. Once teachers are fully comfortable with computers, they can focus their energy on their students. Furthermore, I believe that districts should spend more money on tech support.  One tech person per 3,000 students does not seem like nearly enough. My high school had 1,000 students and we had two technology professionals! I guess I was lucky to be in a district that was so proactive about introducing technology into the classroom.