The skills students need to cultivate today are changing to reflect our technology rich world. The ability to learn and be able to access information is more important than just receiving information. Traditional methods of teaching such as lecturing no longer prepare students for the 21st century participatory culture. The Media 21 Initiative designed and implemented by Buffy Hamilton with co-teacher Susan Lester focuses on the teacher as a “guide on the side” rather than the “sage on the stage.” Integrating technology through cloud computing, social media tools, and personal learning networks provided students the framework to facilitate their own learning. Hamilton and Lester collaborated to teach students digital citizenship, effective use of information, evaluation methods, writing skills, all taking place in an inquiry based learning environment. Students involved in this project transitioned from learning in isolation to learning as part of a community.
Background
The Media 21 project began in 2009, as Buffy Hamilton the librarian at Creekwood High School in Georgia, wanted to provide students an opportunity to create their own learning. Having studied connectivism, inquiry based learning, and participatory literacy; Hamilton envisioned putting the theories and methods into practice with high school students in a collaborative environment where she could be embedded as a co-teacher. She saw students using digital tools to make their own connections and collaborating with others. Major influences in Hamilton’s formation of this Media 21 project such as Michael Wesch and Harold Rheingold forced her to think about what she wanted to see in her own students. Wesch is the Digital Ethnography professor at Kansas State Univ...
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...ion, have the same attitude toward students and what they are capable of learning, and share equal responsibility. It is also necessary to be flexible and not be afraid of failure. They did not accomplish all of the lessons they set out to do but modified them according to the needs of the students. This is what good teachers do, in my opinion, as being regimented and sticking to lessons that aren’t working don’t benefit anyone. Hamilton states in reflection of the Media 21 project, “At the heart of any successful learning environment are meaningful relationships and a building of a sense of community and connectedness.” This is what students today will be expected to do in the working world and global society in which they will enter as adults. The students in the Media 21 project learned how to learn and cultivated skills that will stay with them for a lifetime.
As an administrator, I have the opportunity to mirror this same attitude in my performance. Through classroom visits, I have to take advantage of the lessons and instruction I see to what the most effective teachers do. Regular teachers and students are often enclosed in a box and don’t always have this opportunity to see the world outside those four walls, but it is important for them to see this as well. The transparency that social media and today’s technology brings us allows the teacher and student to be innovative in how they approach lessons, not only for ourselves, but for kids and adults all across the world. Ultimately, it’s important as a leader and building administrator to remember “what is best for kids” and to allow them to experience growth from everyone around them, even if it’s from the negative
Palmer’s theory requires minimal investment of money, but requires time and effort. Palmer’s theory intuitively resonates with teachers whose actions have far reaching effects. Parker (2015c) wrote his words are not his legacy, as they are inert and a legacy is a living thing. He described his legacy as a shared legacy. Ever the teacher, he sees his role as offering ides for others develop visions and make the world a better place. He values the way people have put his words into action in communities, institutions and the larger
Jones-Kavalier, B. R., & Flannigan, S. I. (2008). Connecting the digital dots: Literacy of the 21st
“The teacher is the one who gets the most out of the lessons, and the true teacher is the learner.” Elbert Hubbard. The most important thing about
For many phones, laptops, and tablets have become a new appendage. Without our connection to the internet we feel lost and unaware of ourselves, completely unable to function. The growing reliance on technology has turned into a major challenge throughout educational settings, even if the class is technology driven. Throughout the article Why I Just Asked My Students to Put Their Laptops Away, Clay Shirky address the issue of multitasking interfering with development and learning in the classroom. Being a professor of theory and social media, Shirky has always promoted use of technology in the classroom. However, he came to realize that social media and the internet have developed into resources that are created to pull your attention away
In earlier times, the acquisition and spreading of knowledge was not used to improve society. Instead it was used to have control and to exclude certain groups. As one could imagine, there needed to be a change in the way that the education system was set up. In her essay, “Project Classroom Makeover”, Cathy Davidson discusses how the “one size fits all” model of learning hinders students from learning in a new and modernized way. She suggests the notion that using technology to teach and learn can be effective in many ways. Davidson shows that using technology presents the opportunity for a traditional classroom to become more inclusive and creative. The “democratization of knowledge” is the improvement and modernization of how information is taught and learned. Having a modernized and advanced learning system is a vital point for students because they gain insight and experience with what is considered a society dominated by advanced technology. Technology has become a dominant resource in the 21st century which makes it a relevant and essential factor needed to succeed in the world of education and
However, think about the evolution of literacy and the different ways in which children and people learn and retrieve information; this definition could also include interaction with the digital text. There is a wide range as to what counts as literacy such as blogging, social networking, emailing, digital storytelling, online chats and even shopping online just to name a few. Not everyone will agree with what counts as literacy, but if students are not enlightened on the many aspects of what could make them valuable assets in the future; that would be negligent. In Rich’s article digital literacy is being discussed which is the topic this response will focus on. Learning is not restricted only to the classroom. Just like books, the Internet can take you places, on advantages without having to leave home. Digital literacy can be beneficial with the proper guidance of teachers, educators and
Children today are growing up in a digital world where their surrounding environments are rich with popular culture, leading teachers to reconsider and respond to new pedagogies for teaching literacy in the classroom (Beavis, 2012; Hall, 2011; Petrone, 2013; Walsh, 2010).
With an emphasis on STEM education, I am able to implement many forms of technology and new literacies into everyday lessons. Defining New literacies as “the skills, strategies, and insights necessary to successfully exploit the rapidly changing information and communication technologies that continually emerge in our world” (Reutzle & Cooter, 2015, p.21),lends to many of the programs I offer being highly effective in exposing students to such literacies. The use of computers is a way in which I connect students to 21st century technologies. Using software to create and play video games just seems like fun to students, when really they are learning about literacy and technology while engaging in fun
Straubhaar, J. Larose, R. Davenport, L (2009) Media Now: Understanding Media, Culture, and Technology Wadsworth: Cengage Learning
Turkle, Sherry. "Cyberspace and Identity." Writing and Reading Across the Curriculum. Ed. Laurence Behrens and Leonard J. Rosen. 8th ed. New York: Longman, 2003. 271-280.
College students in the 21st century are a part of the so-called digital generation. Technology has...
Furthermore, adult learners in the 21st century are changing. They want it all. “Adults are beginning to demand that their learning take place at a time, place, and pace convenient to them.”17 There are multiple ways to accommodate adult learners; the 21st century educator must strive to engage students through multiple methods of delivery, with technology leading the way. Technology itself can be an obstacle to overcome. Many educators of today were not taught using technology; however, digital media is foundational to the learners of today and must be integrated into curriculum.
Throughout history technology has been the driving force of change. From movable type, to television, to the Internet, technology has been embraced and incorporated into our daily lives. Within the constructs of civilized society, the vast rewards of technological innovations have far outweighed the negatives. The digital revolution has altered conceptions of time and distance. It has created a wealth of information that is available at the stroke of a key. Not since the invention of the printing press has the distribution and consumption of information been so democratized. The rapidly changing technological landscape has put students and teachers in the cross-hairs. Can students be positively impacted by this digital revolution? Has the wave of technology that has swept through in recent years improved teaching and learning in the classroom? Utilizing various research tools such as Boise State University's Albertsons Library database, Google Scholar, and other online tools to access peer-reviewed journals, this paper will demonstrate that technology in the classroom results in increased student performance. great intro, Evan. -Barbara Schroeder 5/6/10 7:51 AM
The Library Commons at Olathe Northwest is a natural extension of the secondary library’s traditional mission in a digital world. My library offers a wide range of elements to foster student learning in new and creative ways. My goal is that this space fits the need of every student. Students who need to complete an assigned task that calls for collaboration can meet in the library and plan, discuss and complete their assignment. At the same time other students can be searching for a great book or looking online for sports scores or prom dresses. The forty computers in the library offer access for any student who walks in the door. And just in case more computers are needed, a wireless laptop can be called into service.