The more things change, the more they stay the same.
What this means is that whatever fashions change from day to day, or whatever teaching methods are applied in a school, no matter what, people will always need some kind of clothing, just like students will always need some kind of an education. However, we might not really need what the authors of Digital Literacies are proposing…
The research briefing called Digital Literacies by Julia Gillen and David Barton is all about digital technology, and how the technology age is wildly changing the landscape of education. As mentioned by Richard Noss in the Preface, "All levels of our education system is seeing the need to change to meet the exciting challenges of a rapidly evolving, increasingly digital society."(Gillen and Barton, 2010, p. 2)
The authors go on to say, "The distinctive contribution to the approach to literacy as social practice lies in the ways in which it involves careful and sensitive attention to what people do with texts, how they make sense of them and use them to further their own purposes in their own learning lives" (Barton, 2010, p. 9).
This is true.
We need to be careful with technology.
As a 6th grade humanities teacher, I've found that technology can be very, very useful, but only in small doses. Let's be honest. I love that I can go on Youtube whenever I want and show my students how to harvest grain, or animations of ancient Greek gods, or what ancient Egypt might have actually looked like. It's extremely visual and relatable to their already technology-infused lives. In fact, throughout my curriculum, I pepper in technology whenever I can: a powerpoint here, a computer-based research project there, or even an iPad recording of group-debates for future review.
None of this is essential to my lessons. The core of my classroom isn't technology - not even close. The core is getting to know students, and helping the students get to know me and the world around them. No computers are needed for that. I don't need a program to talk about honesty or hard work, the human condition or how to write an A+ paper. That never changes.
Although much of what the authors of Digital Literacies are saying is very true - about how important it is to incorporate technology into the class and how careful we need to be in doing so - I was turned off by the underlying feel of the briefing. It felt like a sell instead of a helpful guide for navigating all the new technology out there. Much of it read like a pitch the authors might give to a school education board, and in fact they offer multiple technological programs for consideration. However, as a teacher, I found none of what they were offering to be very timely, or relevant.
For me, the core of my class is the students and myself. Everything else is just dressing. And for now, I don't need yet another program (like the very cool but completely unnecessary online resource the authors call Edwardians: 'Family Life and Work Experience Before 1918) because I can already get what I need when I want and still keep my class focused on the kids, the discussion, and social communication instead of constant digital interfacing.
Resources
Gillen, J., & Barton, D. (2010). Digital Literacies. ESRC Teaching and Learning Research Programme. London. Retrieved from http://eprints.lancs.ac.uk/33471/1/DigitalLiteracies.pdf
Resources
Gillen, J., & Barton, D. (2010). Digital Literacies. ESRC Teaching and Learning Research Programme. London. Retrieved from http://eprints.lancs.ac.uk/33471/1/DigitalLiteracies.pdf
Hi Josh - I often wonder if the age of the students plays a role. I tend to believe that older students and adults depend more on some degree of technology in the classroom - especially for certain subjects. Although technology is not essential to the lessons, I think it does help to enhance the overall learning experience. I don't think you can or would ever want to eliminate the interaction between teachers and students. The discussions and explanations are priceless. I do think it is a balance of both old and new worlds. I sometimes struggle with the balance in corporate training as well. I believe that certain subjects lend themselves more to a certain delivery method. As a company, we tend to lean towards a more blended approach by incorporating some degree of technology either as pre-work, demonstration or follow-up purposes to almost all offerings at a minimum.
ReplyDeleteHey Josh,
ReplyDeleteYou brought up a lot of great points about technology is not the foundation of your class room, however, it is a great tool to have. I read Cathy's comment above and am wondering if technology would be used more in the upper level classes like at the high school level. I think at the college level is it greatly used to deliver the course material and am wondering where the transition starts to go from the tradition class like your to the more technology based college classes.
Hi Scott,
DeleteI'm a New York public middle school teacher, and in my school the teachers mostly decide how to deliver the materials we teach. There are curriculum maps and specific areas of interest, of course, but everyone can plan their own lessons. This is good…and sometimes bad. Some teachers only use worksheets and minimal technology. Others are taking trips and going on computers all the time.
JoAnna said something interesting below. Kids today lack focus. They are bombarded with Internet and iPhones and iPads and everything else, and it's hard for them to just sit in a class…and listen (like they used to). This means (at least for me) that a Good teacher is the one who can recognize when the kids need a change (by being aware and reflective), and making those adjustments (with or without technology). The key is to keep it moving, engaged and rigorous.
Hi Josh..like your rap...you must be a fun 6th grade teacher. With entertainment like that, who needs digital entertainment?
ReplyDeleteI am teaching high school art, foundations level, which means that most of my students are the younens...9th graders.What I am seeing is a real inability in the student population to slow down, to focus, concentrate, and to articulate what they are seeing...even descriptively.
They are certain that everything should happen in a few minutes and they are always ready to move onto "the next thing". Development of their fine motor skills are ridiculously retarded and their familiarity with materials, textures and perceptual experience and/or ability to articulate it is nominal. In my classes we spend a lot of time creating a group knowledge base through observation, critique and through comparison. Students sharing their personal associations to a prompt, an image or an idea is imperative to building community, and the creation of "voice". Like yourself, I use technology to support what I do.
Looking at a shadow dance troupe was a great entry to a lesson on silhouettes/ negative/ positive space. Students could refer back to the experience of seeing a narrative in dance, to inform their own art making.
Bringing an artist to life through a u tube interview makes a huge difference in introducing students to contemporary art...someone talking about how their ideas are expressed in materials and through their process.
Students see the computer as a tool generate an image rather then them trying to work from observation or creating through imagination.They use the computer as a constraint rather then seeing its affordances.It seems they are also so attached to the "Discourse".It is difficult for them to even momentarily "step out" or to consider a different perspective.
I think the possibilities of digital technologies are endless.Students should be introduced to them by directing them to create meaning for themselves and to communicate with others. Unfortunately, digital technologies are used in an uninspiring way, that duplicates the outcomes of older methods. A research paper is still a research paper if Google is used to retrieve information rather then using the internet and resources in a more trans formative way.
My school is in a pretty large inner city district. There are resources available.We recently received a 3-d printer, we have tech liaison in place, PC's and Macs in our computer labs.During teacher training we are taught how to test with clickers, evaluate to create data, create teacher web sites to post homework,and how to use e-school to record grades, absences and how to create data driven spread sheets. (A. boring, B.time consuming,C. to sure whose purposes?)
We need to teach for creative and imaginative thinking, flexibility and nuance, with and without technology.
Skills will make us work, creativity will let us play and will be what changes the possibilities.
Oh my! A 3-D printer, I'm so jealous… I know how to use the laminating machine, does that count?
DeleteLove your post. I teach 6th grade and I see the same things with my kids - jittery, moving, can't stop - just like the world. My wife is an Art teacher K-5 at a special school in NYC. She's been having a lot of success with Choice Based Art.
Very good point, technology cannot replace good teachers, but neither can study books or textbooks, or other tools we use as educators. The problem is when companies try to sell new technological tools as educator replacement as if they know how to do the job better than us. The best I've ever done in situations like these is do exactly what you said, "pepper in" some of the elements into MY daily practices. So thanks for this blog, I'm in whole hearted agreement.
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