As the old culture of learning is giving way to a new one students are becoming more engaged with and connected to technology than ever before. As the authors state, “The old culture of learning is no longer suited for a world of constant change, current efforts are geared toward trying to fix the system by refining and perfecting it.” My question is in regards to my own teaching. Am I properly assessing students’ learning by the question I pose and the activities in which they participate? I think that it is essential to keep education relevant and engaging. Students are connected to their technology on a continual basis, but are too often discouraged from engaging with it in their schools. I want to more deeply think about the activities I do in class and the assignments I give. I want students to engage with technology in a thought-provoking and intensive manner. I can connect this thought to my ED 530 class where we are developing our 20% projects where we document our research using online tools, blog about our progress, and reflect on our learning. When students are able to accomplish learning through interacting with what they already interact with daily. The authors give an example of students being told locate Iraq on a Middle Eastern Map. Then younger students were sat in front of a computer and told to “Find Iraq.” Students used the technology to not only find Iraq’s location but asked how the map should be formatted and provided with further details. I thought much about this point because students are learning through newer tools today and the outdated methods for measuring learning are no longer relevant. As a teacher I want to keep this in mind to keep students engaged in their learning.
Chapter 8
This chapter discusses an environment where students must learn to function in a digital environment. The authors state, “Participation in a digital environment requires a sense of “learning to be… Which is more about acquiring certain social practices that give meaning to experience.” Students today must know how to interact academically in a digital atmosphere. What I question is, does forming digital networks increase student engagement in the classroom? I am prone to think that it does. Students are very competent in using technology and know what social practices are appropriate and what are not when engaging digitally. However, they must learn this is the academic environment. I think technology is often engaging in and of itself, but integrating it into the classroom will make the classroom more engaging too. I would create this digital environment in much of the same way as we did in our Tech Class, ED 530. We were given assignments and we monitored our progress by earning badges in the class. I would implement the same strategies because I have personally witnessed the effectiveness. It has allowed us as students to engage inside and outside the classroom. As I thought about this chapter I reflected on how I desire to give students more opportunities to explore technology and integrate it as a fundamental function of my classroom through using a wide variety of options that students can use.
Chapter 9
An overall theme of this book is the effectiveness of tacit learning. The authors say, “ Tacit learning functions most effective when students discover their own learning techniques.” I think this quote is the impetus behind the entire chapter. Students must learn through experience and taking active participation in the learning, and they operate effectively when they are given the freedom to discover the techniques that work best for them and are conducive to their progress and learning. The question I have for myself is how can I facilitate students’ finding their own learning objectives? I think one of ways I can do this is similar to what I did in my Tech class. We had a 20% project where we had to identify ten solid inquiry questions that we did not know the answer to. We had to research and find techniques that worked best for us to produce learning. In reading this text I thought that 20% projects tied and students finding their own learning objectives is something I could implement in my classroom. I really am thinking about this more and I think moving forward I will have at least one project a semester that is similar to the 20% project where students are given freedom and liberty. The freedom to acquire knowledge, to make things, and to play. These are essential themes found in this chapter and the book that allows students to thrive the new culture of learning.