Without thinking or realizing, I have been cultivating my online presence over the past several years and even more so in 2019. I in no way would consider myself an expert, there are times I wouldn’t even consider myself comfortable with IT, but the amazing thing with technology is we all have the ability to learn. Some of the readings in activity 2 brought up some of the same roadblocks I have been encountering with teaching and integrating technology into the classroom. At some points, it was like a light bulb was going off and it was refreshing to see that there are so many instructors and educational facilities experience the same type of lull when integrating technology. Knowing that sometimes “progress is linear” and “the real IT revolution in teaching and learning won’t happen until each student builds a personal cyberinfrastructure” (Campbell, G. 2009) was almost cathartic to read.
Web infrastructure has changed drastically from our first personal computers with the dial up internet connectivity in the home/at school to now. I remember being in a room with 25 students learning how to send an email, and now we assume everyone knows this “basic skill”. There are times in the classroom where my students will be telling me about presentation tools that are “way cooler” to watch or software that helps cultivate the learning experience more than what we are currently using; this in turn makes me do a little extra homework outside the classroom to keep up with their comments. Keeping the students interested and engaged has always been my goal and there is no better way to do this other than leading by example. I realized early on in my teaching career that I need to continue to be an online presence (even if it is to post a job on LinkedIn), it shows that I am still maintaining contacts, staying relevant and following up with the online world. Taking the MALAT program is the first step to help me achieve my goal of obtaining higher education within the technology realm. This will allow me to integrate the knowledge and technology back into my classroom and continue to invigorate and motivate the students.
As I was going through some of the readings, it was a confidence boost at times and showed where my deficits were at others. My confidence came when I saw that I am quite well versed in more technologies than I thought. I was very comfortable with the vernacular and I was able to distinguish some of the software’s discussed, especially when identifying digitization mapping: “the difference between bits and atoms as architectural building blocks” (Boyd, D. 2011). Last year, I would not have understood a word of this, but after teaching some new technology courses this year and joining a VRARA group which has clearly boosted my knowledge. With that being said, I noticed how much I was searching/looking up meanings of other things, like “digital citizenship” and “distributed cognition”. It was interesting to fall down this rabbit hole and I was left wanting to understand more and apply this new information to “expand mental capacities” (Jenkins, K 2009.). Seeing these knowledge gaps did not deter me, it only left me with the hunger to learn more and discover where more deficits are within the technology sector and how we can integrate this within a classroom environment.
I think the only way to close these gaps is to become more active and engaged within the technology community. I feel that we all need to start talking more and instead of shying away from new ideas within technology, open the floor for these conversations and embrace the inevitable future. I always measured my success from my student’s feedback and I realize now that this was the wrong approach. I should measure my success from watching their growth and what they have taken away, not what they think of me as an instructor. “Intelligence is accomplished rather than possessed” (Jenkins, K 2009.) – How empowering.
References:
Boyd, D. (2011). Social network sites as networked publics: Affordances, dynamics, and implications. In Z. Papacharissi (Ed.), A Networked Self (pp. 39–58). New York, NY: Rutledge.
Campbell, G. (2009). A personal cyberinfrastructure. Educause Review, 44(5), 58-59.
Jenkins, H. (2009). Confronting the challenges of participatory culture: Media education for the 21st century. MIT Press.
Watters, A. (2015, July 15). The Web we need to give students. Bright.
May 1, 2019 at 7:07 pm
Lead by example is the best way. I am sure you have sat in classes where it was obvious that the instructor had not opened the software in ages, or maybe ever. As a student, there is nothing more frustrating. Good for you for taking this program to help your students see that learning does not end just because you finish the current program.
I also found some of the articles comforting to read and they addressed some of my thoughts and fears as being common when someone is leaving their comfort zone, and it was nice to know that I am not alone.
Technology will always change. I like your plan to work with this program to help motivate your students. The little that I have taught made me realize that I can learn as much from the students as I can teach them. It is important to keep that relationship alive!
May 2, 2019 at 6:06 am
Thank you for your reply Kathy, it is always refreshing to know that we are not alone when we have been taken out of our comfort zones.
I totally agree with what you are saying regarding learning just as much from the students. Every semester I see that growth and I try to adapt for the semester ahead based on feedback and comments. I’m stealing your quote and using it in the classroom “learning does not end just because you finish the current program” ☺ I love it.
May 4, 2019 at 2:22 pm
Hi, Kerry. Several of your comments resonated with me as I, too, am a teacher. I also do not consider myself an expert in technology and, at times, encounter roadblocks integrating technology into my classroom.
I remember when there was a concern that technology would replace teachers. It is comforting to know that this is no longer believed to be true and it is now recognized that “the teacher’s role [remains] integral to the educational process” (Hershman, 2019). It is also recognized that the teacher’s role is changing. We are no longer the primary source of information in the classroom. Some say the new role of teachers should be as “enablers” (Hershman, 2019) while others say we should “model and demonstrate” (Downes, 2011). Further sources say the old adage of a teacher as the ‘sage on the stage’ is now the ‘guide on the side’ (Morrison, 2014) with varying interpretations.
I agree with you that, whatever new role teachers are transitioning to, we need to stay relevant and lead by example. As you mentioned, we need to step into the role as learners ourselves – learning about and trying new technologies to demonstrate learning. We need to demonstrate creativity and a hunger to learn, open the floor for conversations (with experts in our field, our peers and our students), and embrace the unpredictable future. I find myself often returning to Sir Ken Robinson’s TED talk from 2006, one of the most watched TED talks of all time, where he points out that the students we are educating today will be retiring over forty years in the future, but we don’t even know what the world will look like in 5 years’ time (Robinson, 2006).
“Clearly, with a shift in roles of teacher and student, both parties, not just the teachers, must be actively engaged in such transformational processes” (Morrison, 2014). I believe that the MALAT program will help us prepare both ourselves and our students for those processes whatever the future may bring.
References
Downes, S. (2010/2011). The Role of the Educator. Huffington Post Education. Retrieved from https://www.huffpost.com/entry/the-role-of-the-educator_b_790937
Hershman, J. (2019). How will edtech affect the teacher’s role in the classroom? Retrieved from https://www.hottopics.ht/17980/how-tech-will-affect-the-teachers-role-in-education/
Morrison, C.D. (2014). From ‘Safe on the Stage’ to ‘Guide on the Side’: A Good Start. International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 8(1), https://doi.org/10.20429/ijsotl.2014.080104
Robinson, K. (2006, February). Sir Ken Robinson: Do schools kill creativity? [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity?referrer=playlist-the_most_popular_talks_of_all&language=en
May 6, 2019 at 9:53 am
Hi Sherry,
I am not sure why your comment needed approval and the other comments didn’t. I am sorry to keep you waiting as I saw your posting on Moodle. Thank you for your reply, it is nice to hear that we are on the same page when it comes to hitting those roadblocks. I remember the “buzz” going around that we would no longer have a use for teachers, doctors or even people in the service industry. It is interesting to see as time has gone on that we have worked alongside and incorporated the technology, opposed to see that replacement. It is crazy to think of how different time will be in 5 years, let alone 40 year (Sir Ken Robinson’s TED talk from 2006)- fascinating though.
May 6, 2019 at 3:36 pm
Hi Kerry,
No problem at all. I’m glad to see I sent it correctly! That’s very true: the technology even in 5 years’ time may be part of today’s science fiction. It’s humbling to think of preparing students today for jobs and lives that will exist in ways we can’t even begin to imagine!
May 5, 2019 at 10:45 pm
Hi Kerry,
I share an experience with you – that of taking home things to research based on student suggestions. This has been a bit of a mixed bag, at times, sometimes bringing very useful and engaging tools, and sometimes not! One of the more useful ones that came to me through students was Adobe Spark for student digital presentations.
I wonder, too, as technology is incorporated into classrooms in somewhat idiosyncratic ways, if a central theme or core of skills (like sending an email) will emerge as specifically relevant to prepare our students for their future. Some of the readings in Unit 3 are interesting in that regard, specifically the Helen Beetham Blog about Framing Digital Capabilities ( Retrieved from https://digitalcapability.jiscinvolve.org/wp/2015/11/10/framing-digital-capabilities-for-staff-deliverables/) and the links to the Jisc work. Will we be teaching conceptual competencies? Or ensureing that students can do a list of tasks (like sending email, or perhaps building a report about the environment in Augmented Reality)?
May 6, 2019 at 9:49 am
Hi Lisa,
It is always refreshing hearing that others can share in your experience, so thank you. I agree, sometimes it leads down a path with a dead end and sometimes I come away learning. I agree, I am curious to see what pre-requisites are going to be expected from students moving forward and how they are going to be tested on this prior to even attending a class. It is a very interesting time indeed.