I really enjoyed being able to listen to a podcast and take in some critical ideas about technology from a medium other than words on pages. I think having someone in a studio responding to questions and having to react in the moment can be a lot more telling than a prepared book or essay. So I love the human element of it.
One thing that really resonated with me is when Danah Boyd talks about when the internet really started becoming mainstream and the impact that all of these developers and "tech nerds" thought it would have on society and humanity: essentially that having immediate access to all of this information and having the ability to connect and socialize on a worldwide scale would result in a far more egalitarian society. Obviously, their hopes and dreams for how the internet might influence society and the world didn't work out exactly as they had hoped. This got me thinking about this scenario in a broader sense; that we can plan and try to control how our creations will be received and how they will affect the world, but in reality we have very little control at all.
In a more controlled environment, let's say our classrooms, we do have more control over how the things we implement will impact our lessons and our students, and this podcast reminded me that I need to be aware of how I am using technology and committed to maintaining control over how my students are using it in relation to the curriculum. There may be an assumption that technology is going to make it possible to accomplish more in less time and provide a more efficient educational experience for our students. But to me, this sounds very much like the assumptions of those who helped create this technology and how they thought it'd impact the world.
This segues into the Hicks reading about digital literacy. In the early pages, Hicks points out
"In the districts where technology is plentiful,
and access to the Internet is reliable, teachers
and students report that they are not using
the technologies available to them to create
and consume texts in critical, creative ways.
Technology is an add-on, rather than an
opportunity to develop digital literacies."
I agree with this, but I want to add that I think the lack of training and experience that teachers have with a lot of the technology that is being implemented is resulting in hesitation to use the technology, limited use of the technology, and/or incorrect use of the technology. A class I took at RIC last semester was in a classroom that had a Smartboard, and the teacher had no idea how to use it. Not only did this put the professor in an awkward situation, but it showcased to students that the college was investing money to modernize the campus but not investing the time in the teachers to make it useful. Essentially, it showcased that money was being wasted.
I think there needs to be in-depth training with new technology for teachers and professors before they are available for use in the classroom. But in reality, I think a critical lens needs to be placed on all technology that is being considered for classroom use. Part of digital literacy, in my opinion, is knowing when it is a useful tool and when it's just a useless spectacle. There is a lot of research about methods that work without being in a rush to use technology that hasn't had time to be fully researched and proven effective.
Dustin,
ReplyDeleteI think we can all agree that no one could have ever predicted just how drastically the internet would affect our society on so many levels. It has become a part of us, and our reliance on it is very real. If someone had told me back in the early 90's that one day I would be able to use my mobile device to answer any question I had at any given moment...I probably would have thought they were nuts. But now, I can't imagine living any other way because it's been my reality for so long. I definitely think the developers had much grander goals in mind but didn't fully take into account the character of people in general...and how much that would play into the big picture.
Dustin,
ReplyDeleteI agree with where you're coming from about technology training for educators. As a teacher candidate, this is something that I'm concerned about moving forward into my career. While the use of Google and its role in the classroom seems like it being effective in schools, how have educators who grew up without it been able to adapt? For me, I still like I'm learning new things about Google Drive and all of the different programs the company provides because I was conditioned around Microsoft programs. It is important for us to raise the question as to how we are going to develop not only into excellent educators, but proficient teachers of technology and insightful ways to use it in the classroom.