This chapter began with an issue between state and federal policies and school officials. Basically, state and federal policies are putting more emphasis on the accountability of the schools. If students do poorly on standardized testing, it is the teachers fault. The chapter then goes on to state some ways in which technology can be used to take some of the pressure off of school officials. The first topic discussed was assessment. The chapter offers a different type of assessment then our traditional ways off assessing. Basically, students find the certifications they need to graduate, on the topics they want, on the computer. Students would end up having several credentials and certificates before they could graduate but they could make a plan that would fit their lives and interests. The chapter also talked about new curriculum designs. Here, students would be able to focus their curriculum and goals on their own interests. Students would get certifications in areas they were interested in. And, the last section of the chapter discussed equality. We all know that there is a digital divide, but if we somehow found away to bring technology to all regions, there would be an equal chance for everybody.
Personally, I found this chapter pretty unrealistic. I do like the idea of giving students some freedom to study, and become expert, in fields they are interested it in but I don’t agree with some aspects of the idea. I don’t think students should be able to graduate with just knowledge on one field they are interested in. I think it helps students to be exposed to several different areas to become better learners. In the real world, we will need knowledge in more than just one area whether we want to or not. Also, a lot of students in high school have no idea what they want to do, therefore, they need to be exposed to all kinds of fields because they really don’t know where they will end up. Also, I think we all know that when it comes to the digital divide and the issue of equality our problems would be solved if we could get all regions to have access to technology. Unfortunately, I just don’t see that as very realistic. I think it would be great if all regions could gain from technology but I don’t see it happening anytime soon.
Chapter 9: What Does It All Mean?
As you can see in the title this chapter brought together all the concepts throughout the book. So we have learned all about technology in today's education system but what does that all mean? One quote that I think sums up this chapter pretty well is this one: "For the first time, cchildren may know more than us which is why we need to learn more so we can integrate it in our classrooms. In order to do this we need to study what they're learning through technology." I think this is a great quote to sum up, not only the chapter, but the book so far. It's true, many children know more than us about technology which is why we need to understand it so that we can help them learn through it. Its obvious that children are learning through technology why is why we need to understand how, and figure out what we can do to help them learn even more . One of the ways the chapter states that children are learning is through video games. Although, video games are often thought of as addictive or corruptive, children are actually learning problem-solving skills as well as communication skills through video games. Another resource children can use to learn is online communities, children can share what they know as well as learn about what others know about things they have a passion for. Adults may think this is a waste of time but in reality this could be building on children's literacy and research skills. These are just a couple examples the chapter shared about ways in which children are learning, on their own, through technology. The last section of the chapter states that although technology innovations are breaking through in administrative offices, schools are still behind. With all this evidence that children can learn through technology, teachers need to switch from traditional practices to more modern (technology integrated) practices. This chapter didn't really change my views on technology since it was kind of a wrap up of the rest of the book but it did reinforce the idea that technology needs to be integrated into classrooms. In the future, I plan to use technology in my classrooms because I truly believe that technology can be a powerful tool and, when used the right way, can help students learn!
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