Teaching with Technology
Teachers, DARE to "Re-Invent the Wheel"!
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Curriculum 21 gives a refreshing take on instructional pedagogy and addresses concerns towards today's education: - Are we REALLY preparing students for the future? Jacobs looks back at how our educational instituion came to be, and points out grossly outdated systems and ways of thinking in place. She argues that we MUST update our practices because education is too focused on the "now" - test scores, data, how to be successful TODAY. We as educators fail to acknowledge that the job market, economy, technology, college entrance, vocabulary, beliefs rapidly change, and we are not teaching students how to adapt to those changes. - Re-thinking the term "Technology Integration": As Jacobs analyzes this phrase, she realizes that it misleads teachers into thinking that "technology" and "teaching" are two seperate entities, in which one can combine with the other. The danger of this is that if technology is mearly "integrated", out-dated pedagogies remain the same. It is the whole instruction, curriculum, and assessment that need to be "re-vamped" or even replaced all together. - The Global Trend: We need to bring in various international perspectives into our instruction. It will not only make student more well-rounded thinkers, but it will prepare them to work for companies that are continually growing internationally. We as educators can help by sharing current events, photos, videos, guest speakers, literature, opinion articles from various sources to give insight to students about different experiences. - The Global Market: If employers cannot find people with the skills they need in the US, they can easily find people abroad. Therefore, the job market continually becomes competitive. (External Link: Connect a Million Minds - a movement to promote math, science, and technology education)
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More on the latest educational news via ASCD Smartbrief:
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Consider these resources for your instruction and organization
| Resources | Description |
| 21 Classes | Easy to manage blogs that students can maintain with teacher supervision. |
| Slide Share | Store and share your powerpoint presentations online! You can also upload other powerpoints to gather ideas. |
| Online file storage | Go USB free. Store your files online and access them from any computer with working internet. |
| Free Rice | Bored? Play vocabulary games and donate rice at the same time! |
| Google for educators | Docs, Sites, Reader, Gmail, Calendar, Tasks - there are so many things that can hep you stay organized! |
| iPods | Encourage your students to create a "Study Mix" or have them put together a soundtrack for a novel you are reading. |
| Texting Polls | I am looking forward to the day that cell phones are welcome in the classroom... think about the power of instant polls! (Already HEAVILY, and successfully, used in sports arenas!) |
| JayCut | Free online video editor |
| Free Photoshop alternatives | Various free online photo editors |
| CNN Student News | Daily 10-minute news reports created by CNN for students |
Demonstration Lesson: Utilizing Blogging to Teach Writing
Cal State Northridge Writing Project, Summer Invitational Institute, 2009 Presenter: Lisa Kim (me!) Description: This is a demonstration lesson where I show teachers the value of utilizing blogs when teaching writing. I begin with a short lecture, quickly move into having my colleagues try it for themselves, and end with reflection. Retraction: Towards the end of the video, I state "You don't have to re-invent the wheel." However, it is something that I have come to disagree with after reading Curriculum 21 (see above) |