Remember how I told you about my love for infographics? Well two more are about to be plastered below this line of text. Take some time to digest them for a moment before continuing on. (click the second one to open it in a larger preview on a separate page)
Now, many of these facts mirror those seen in the "Do You Know 4.0" video I discussed in the previous post. However, these also tie into another piece of reading we did for class this week. Alan November writes a brilliant article about how the internet has changed our culture. What I took from this article in particular however, was the way it discussed learning on the internet.
The article opened with an anecdote where November's son blames him for the loss of his soap box derby race. His son tells him that the first place team won because they looked up "hot racing tips" on the internet. This is a similar gap seen between my parents and my brother and I. We were raised on the internet- albeit not completely (the infographic will tell you the internet first came to be in 1991, at the time I was 2. My first encounter with the internet wouldn't be until 1999 in the heydays of AOL). Whereas my parents fall into this so called "paper age" that November discusses.
While he acknowledges the power of the internet as a research tool, Alan November also questions it and rightly so. One of the questions that stuck in my mind is "How do we know this is true?" this is a question that faces us everyday, even outside of the internet. While heavy on the philosophical tones, questioning reality and what is real is something we should be doing every day as learners. While this brings up a deep philosophical debate that could rage until the end of time, there is something that we as educators can do to help students in the "internet age."
As teachers, it is our responsibility to know the technology just as well as the students, if not better. But we must also subscribe to the tennets of proper scholarship which heavily involves research. While wikipedia is a great tool for initial research, it can often mislead students to believe false information. It is important now so, more than ever, to teach our students how to properly use the internet for research. We are now in an age of digital library catalogues and online databases where paper used to exist.
What do you feel the other responsibilities of educators are regarding technology in the 21st century?
Also feel free to reflect on the Alan November article and I'll be happy to discuss!
~Chelsie
2 comments:
I think as teachers it also our job to be sure not to forget the simple way of things. I personally feel that completely relying on technology isnt all that good for us and that is where I feel the younger generations are going.
Agreed. I think there needs to be a balance. Technology is great but we should know how to do things by hand too. Especially in the case of math. I always remember my teachers pounding it into our heads about how we needed to learn how to not rely on a calculator. Even if I wasn't very good at it, I still understand its importance.
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