I really like my e-learning metaphor! 
It is a painting by John Harrington from www.artsforge.com/visionforge/brycelander/subgallery/hope….
This image is symbolic of “Where the River Meets the Sea”. To me this saying describes the tools needed to search the internet. You begin with a whole load of information (the ocean) and then have the opportunity to branch off in a number of directions (rivers). If you are not careful though, the current will take you to places you don’t want to be (the snake).
The week six activity required us to analyse some websites and rank them according to their level of active engagement. A lot of the sites would not load on these Macintosh computers however I did manage to explore two contrasting websites.
Crocodilian - I would rank this at 1 maybe 2 because the only time the students are engaged are when they are working on the crossword and find-a-word, and this isn’t really what I consider to be “deep learning”. To view this site go to http://library.thinkquest.org/04apr/01293/
Pinture Art Detective – I would rank as 4 maybe 5 because the students can determine the path they travel. They are the actual detective and their decisions will affect the outcome. This enables the student to learn! To view this site go to http://www.eduweb.com/pintura/
Gerry that table is an absolute goldmine, although I would have to say that perhaps it is a bit too broad, and I do hope that somewhere in the 2nd chapter they acknowledge this (I still haven’t got around to reading it).
My parents fit into the ‘Me Generation’ and that table pretty accurately describes them. On the same hand I know some of their friends that wouldn’t fit and the same can be said for the characteristics of the ‘Millenials’.
With this in mind though it is still an amazing resource for upcoming teachers. It will really allow us to get into the pyschie of our students.
To see Gerry’s response click here: http://gerry.edublogs.org/2005/09/03/some-thought-on-the-net-generation/
I absolutely love the terms used in this article to describe each students. Baby Boomers for the over 45’s, Gen-Xers for over 24’s and Millenials for students born after 1982. Whilst we do have to be careful in labelling students, it is important as this article points out to be aware of the different learning styles of students, no matter what their individual differences and similiarities may be.
I find this really important and not just as an upcoming teacher but also as a student. I find that alot of the lecturers I have and have had really stress this point but don’t seem to be actually doing what they are preaching. I suppose it’s the age old saying “Do as I say, not as I do”.
The other thing I love about this article is the way Oblinger compares the lives of Millenials to other generations. For example today the Nintendo is a problem-solving tool, the computer is no longer technology it’s a part of life, and multitasking is habitual not a learning curve.
Article is located at http://www.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/erm0342.pdf
This book looks extremly interesting and relevant to today’s teachers. I tihnk that teachers in the schools now, the ones that have been teaching for twenty years, or even five years, would benefit the most from this book because it may help them to understand their students more because IT is a major influence that they have never experienced.
I love the fact that you can download the whole book from the internet. This makes it really accessible to students. Unfortunately my computers playing up and Adobe reader just isn’t working but perhaps I’ll get the chance to try again at a later date.
Leila, I fully agree with you about the article being interesting and relevant to us and other teachers (or soon to be) today.
I am beginning to get tired of the old question “Is the internet relevant today?” I believe that in today’s society that is an absolutely ridiculous question given that we are so technology orientated. Perhaps are more relevant and appropriate question, particularly for our purposes, is “How do we use the internet in todays classroom?” because (again I agree with you) the internet is an invaluable asset in the classroom.
This article by Soloway, Norris, Blumenfield, Fishman, Krajcik and Marx explores the benefits of using the interent in schools. Whilst it rasies some very interesting ideas it only briefly explores some of the negative aspects and I felt these arguements were perhaps insubstantial – empty, particlary about the safety issues the interent poses. There were a lot more arguements against the interent that could have been mentioned, or at the very least it could have covered the few in more depth.
The following points are the issues/ideas that really stood out for me:
This articles briefly mentions the safety aspect of using the internet, but it only mentions accessing inappropriate websites. What about protecting students privacy, keeping them safe from unpleasant individuals. In today’s society accessing a medical site that mentions the word ‘breast’ hardly seems like a number one priority when they can wlak down the street or out into the school yard and hear much much worse.
I do like the idea however of using librarians, or other individuals, to review sites for a school and make recommendations to teachers. This would save allot of the teachers time, prevent any student from wasting time surfing or from accessing any inappropriate websites.
One very good point raised by this article comes from the need to evaluate the necessity of the internet. It should not be used to deliver/complete an activity that can otherwise be completed just as easily using paper and pen because this is a waste of time and effort, not to mention money.
After reading this article, I discovered a lot of interesting facts and relevant ideas. Whilst there are far too many to share with you in this short paragraph I have included a few of my more personal favourites.
The internet allows for two way interaction with materials, whereas books and other standard learning materials only permit one. This encourages students to learn because they are actively engaged and are able to contribute to their own learning as well as to other students learning (discussion boards).
The internet, due to its diversity, is able to acknowledge multiple intelligences – abstract, textual, visual, social, musical and kinesthetic. This is very important for teachers and students today as it allows the learning material to cater for more students needs without consuming a lot of the teachers energy and time.
Children today take on a much more active approach to learning. Present teachers and even to some degree the student teachers used to learn new things by reading a manual, textbook or attending a course. Today however children and young adults prefer to tinker with the new object and learn through trial and error and by imitating other people. Teachers needs to cater for this active role in the classroom to engage their students.
Children need to be their “own librarian”. With so much information on the internet and coming from so many different sources, children need to be able to sift through it all to find the relevant information. This is a skill that teachers have to give students if they are going to be able to survive in todays society.
The information contained here originates from:
Seely Brown, J. (2000).Growing Up Digital. Change, March/April , 10-20. Last accessed on 28th July from: http://www.usdla.org/html/journal/FEB02_Issue/article01.html
