Week 2: So Now What?

I really enjoyed the content in this past week's readings because there were many of the points that I could easily relate to, and there were other points that gave me pause to think.

The Oblinger and Hawkins (2006) article was a very easy read.  When I asked myself the question that they posed, "Difference in what?", it made me think of the SAMR model, that was also referenced during the presentation.  When we look at way that teachers are using technology, it can show us the depth of the difference we are making.  When we are only using the Substitution and Augmentation levels of the model, we are enhancing the learning.  What we really need to strive for is the transformation of the learning, which corresponds to the higher levels in Bloom's taxonomy. 

To be honest, I found the Selwyn (2015) article much more challenging to process.  I did enjoy the questioning of the "buzz words" and "tag lines" because this language is so prevalent in our everyday discussions about technology.  I doubt I will change the terms I use right now, but I will give it some thought.


I very much enjoyed digging into the Zhao et al. (2016) article, which is why I choose to present that one.  The article justified my own thinking that computers or technology can never "replace" teachers.   When I reflected on how technology has changed since I began my teaching career, there are many areas where technology has been able to save me much time: booking parent/teacher conferences, report card writing, grade tracking, communication with families, attendance keeping, etc...  None of this has actually changed the "learning" for the student, but it does allow me more time to focus on my students and their learning. 


One of the takeaways from the article was when I read, "In an ecosystem, each organism has its own role to play" (pg. 13). I realized that I need to remember what my niche is, and to focus my efforts there and allow technology to take over in areas that would be considered in the niche of technology.

This report by Winthrop, Williams and McGivney (2016) https://www.brookings.edu/research/skills-in-the-digital-age-how-should-education-systems-evolve/  on Skills in the Digital Age discusses how the education system must evolve in order to transform education.  These authors would agree with Zhao et al. who stated that, despite all of the advances in technology, the impact on education has been extremely limited, "650 million—The number of children globally who have not reached key developmental and learning milestones".


So what do we do? We (as in each individual teacher) need to take a critical look at what we are doing, and why we are doing it.  What is it that our students need in order to grow and learn, and in what ways can we use technology to support them?  Let's take one step at a time and work up way up that SAMR ladder.