After reading the two articles my opinion about using technology in the class room did not change. The problem of unequal outside access can not detour a teacher from using what they believe to be the best educational tool for a given lesson. I feel that I would be doing a disservice to my students if I failed to do anything based on the particular problems of just a few students. I will always do what I can to help my students including the ones that are having trouble with access to technology outside of school.
There are many things available at school to students that are not in there private homes. The argument that because a student may not have access to some thing at home, should exclude it from being used in the class room is logically flawed. The whole point of going to school is that it is a place where you will have access to things you would not otherwise have. For the student that can not afford a computer, it is better that they have the minimal exposure to such technology at school than to have nun at all. School should be a place where the best of all aspects of education come together not where the lowest common denominator is the standard.
It is definitely a big disservice to the students to not use computer technology because a few of the students may not have the same access. There are plenty of computer labs, libraries, charities, and other solutions for the small minority of house holds without computers and internet.
I will always make sure my students are aware of the many places and ways they can access technology out side of school. One good thing may be just to spend a little time on Craig's list or at second hand stores and get a few extra computers that can do all of the basic functions. The computer I am writing this essay with was built out of spare parts from my friends and my old computers I did not spend a dime on it. I feel that if a teacher is sensitive to the particular needs of there students they should be able to teach them all at the highest levels and never hold back.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Reflection on Games
I am shocked and amazed by this man Gee, I usually find so many fallacies of logic and down right stupid ideas coming from these academics that I can barely bring my self to read the entire essay. I could not find one thing that I could disagree with or even play the Devils advocate with in Gees essay. He’s right on the money, the only problem is that the rest of his generation doesn’t have a clue what he’s talking about.
My father is hands down the smartest and wisest person I know. He is a practicing lawyer, published author, holds a doctorate of philosophy and religion, and is a part time university prophesier, among many other achievements. He hates video games, cant understand why I waste my time playing them and would probably never make it past the first level of Mario Brothers, no mater how much time and effort he pout in to it. He is incredibly intelligent and always willing to learn new things but I truly believe that his brain is fundamentally different than that of a digital native.
This is most likely the case with most of our teachers from the aging baby boomer generation. Its not really there fault, but that won’t save them from falling away into history, pushed aside by the next wave of brain power. Don’t get me wrong, I loved my teachers and I probably am more like them than I would like to admit, but it’s clear that there are irreversible changes taking place in the way people learn and unless one is part of it they probably don’t even know that they are out of the loop.
So to answer the three questions 1. Yes I believe that video games should be used in schools. They should compliment not take the place of traditional instruction. Education should always have an entertainment value; I have never understood the people who force students to suffer through torturously boring stuff. If you can’t explain it clearly you don’t know what you are talking about, and if you cant make it exciting than you should not be a teacher. 2. “what learning principles that Gee claims video games incorporate have you personally agree are lacking in education?” ,Don’t know what this means, so I will move on to question 3. As I will be teaching art, most likely ceramics, there probably are not any video games that would apply. The practice of creating art with your hands and manipulating the material would be very hard to reproduce in a video game but I would not pout it past the geniuses that create such games. The real advantage I have as an art teacher is that I and my students get to actually do all the things that we will be learning about. Un like a history teacher who can not take the class to 1066 to watch the battle of Hastings, I get to take my students to the kiln, and potters wheel, and create thing right there and then. Video games are amazing and wonderful tools for learning and entertainment, I am not sure how to bring them in to teaching art other than the obvious application of teaching students to be the artists that create the video games, but I will keep thinking about it.
My father is hands down the smartest and wisest person I know. He is a practicing lawyer, published author, holds a doctorate of philosophy and religion, and is a part time university prophesier, among many other achievements. He hates video games, cant understand why I waste my time playing them and would probably never make it past the first level of Mario Brothers, no mater how much time and effort he pout in to it. He is incredibly intelligent and always willing to learn new things but I truly believe that his brain is fundamentally different than that of a digital native.
This is most likely the case with most of our teachers from the aging baby boomer generation. Its not really there fault, but that won’t save them from falling away into history, pushed aside by the next wave of brain power. Don’t get me wrong, I loved my teachers and I probably am more like them than I would like to admit, but it’s clear that there are irreversible changes taking place in the way people learn and unless one is part of it they probably don’t even know that they are out of the loop.
So to answer the three questions 1. Yes I believe that video games should be used in schools. They should compliment not take the place of traditional instruction. Education should always have an entertainment value; I have never understood the people who force students to suffer through torturously boring stuff. If you can’t explain it clearly you don’t know what you are talking about, and if you cant make it exciting than you should not be a teacher. 2. “what learning principles that Gee claims video games incorporate have you personally agree are lacking in education?” ,Don’t know what this means, so I will move on to question 3. As I will be teaching art, most likely ceramics, there probably are not any video games that would apply. The practice of creating art with your hands and manipulating the material would be very hard to reproduce in a video game but I would not pout it past the geniuses that create such games. The real advantage I have as an art teacher is that I and my students get to actually do all the things that we will be learning about. Un like a history teacher who can not take the class to 1066 to watch the battle of Hastings, I get to take my students to the kiln, and potters wheel, and create thing right there and then. Video games are amazing and wonderful tools for learning and entertainment, I am not sure how to bring them in to teaching art other than the obvious application of teaching students to be the artists that create the video games, but I will keep thinking about it.
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