random thoughts about technology

So here's a random thing that happened today...I was searching for educational blogs and said to myself, I need a piece of paper to write these down and grabbed my mouse and opened Word! So, Word has become my virtual piece of paper and a mouse and keyboard are my 'writing utensils'. I agree that the energy use to run computers can impact our carbon footprint. So how do we find balance between using computers and paper? Is there a balance to be found?

I find that I don't read books and get my news from the internet. I hardly ever write using a pen anymore (I worry I will forget cursive!) instead use my computer to write notes to myself, email reminders to my home email, and generally use it for almost all of my communications. I even started texting my family lately. As someone that was born at the end of the baby boom, I am fascinated and terrified of technology. My husband, an old hippie barely knows how to use his cell phone. A co-worker of mine hates technology and says he only uses his computer when he has to. I am fascinated by this because he tends to be introverted, one would think a relationship with a computer would be comfortable for him. As someone that tends to prefer extroversion, I love to use technology. One would think that an extrovert would not enjoy the solitary pursuit of technology. Although, blogging could be a very extroverted exercise.

a new pedagogy

Questions!

Will Richardson’s most recent blog post provides a list of thought provoking questions. As I read down the list and the subsequent comments from readers, I could not help but reflect on my own schooling. I attended a public school kindergarten and first grade. My parents pulled me out of the public school (that was right next door!) and shipped me off to a private Catholic school 10 miles away so I could get a ‘good’ education from the nuns. I will say, this is where I learned to speak French, but the rest is a blur, except of course for the ruler that was used to ‘control’ unruly children. Three years at that school, and my family moved from the big city (the great white flight) to the suburbs, where I again attended public school. It was the late 60’s, the summer of love. Public school was a little more relaxed than what I was accustomed to. After high school, came college. Although it was college and we could actually smoke (amazing, eh) in the classroom, we were still being taught in the same old way: teacher talks, you listen. Not very different than being with the nuns, except of course for that ruler!

Over 30 years have passed since I attended college and one would have thought that the institution of education might have made a giant leap forward. I am not sure it has. Richardson’s questions started me thinking about why education has remained the same all this time. My thought is because up until recently, it worked. The US was at the forefront of education, other countries followed our lead and went so far as to copy our educational systems. We set the world standard, but now we’re slipping. If we don’t ask and then answer the question ‘do we need to change how we educate our citizens and what does that look like’, how can we expect to compete in the world economy when other countries are surpassing us in science, math and innovation? The assignment was to answer the question, is there a new pedagogy emerging. I would like to say I think there are some new thoughts happening in education, but we have to actually make the transition, implement and see what happens. Given Richardson’s questions, I don’t think there has been a pedagogical shift. Reading further on his blog, he posts a quote from Neil Postman (Teaching as a subversive activity), written in 1968. In the quote, Postman posits that education must change to prepare students for a “rapidly changing world”. How is it that we’ve changed how we educate our citizens, if over 40 years ago it was a concern and we are still talking about it today?

My teaching philosophy

My Teaching Philosophy

Gioia Goodrum                                                                                                           EDU255

Definition of TEACH

                transitive verb

1a : to cause to know something  b : to cause to know how c : to accustom to some action or attitude d : to cause to know the disagreeable consequences of some action

2: to guide the studies of

3: to impart the knowledge of

4a : to instruct by precept, example, or experience b : to make known and accepted

5: to conduct instruction regularly in

intransitive verb

: to provide instruction : act as a teacher

(www.m-w.com, 2010)

As for the definition above, my philosophy applies more to number four: to instruct by example. For me, teaching is not just about providing information, it’s about learning, for me and for my students. I want to be engaged along with my students. I don’t want to be the expert, but the person helping the students become the experts. To me, to learn is to grow, to step out of what’s comfortable into the unknown. Encouragement, determination, skill development and humor are tenets of my teaching philosophy. A student should be guided by the instructor, providing information but also encouragement to find the answers on their own. Students will stay engaged in topics that are relevant to their life. If the instructor can bring those things to the class, the students can then make a direct connection between the learning and their life. I like to use humor to stimulate and engage the class. Secretly, I wanted to be an actress, and teaching provides a stage where I can perform.

From the time I was a child, I enjoyed teaching. As the oldest of three, it fell to me to show my siblings the way. As a career counselor and academic advisor, my job includes teaching students the ‘ropes’ of college, navigating the website, locating transfer information, and determining a college major, among other things. I also teach cooking classes where I encourage my students to go beyond what they know and try something new. In my online Career Discovery class, I want my students to engage in their own self discovery, giving them a chance to see how they can push through the limiting thoughts and barriers they have created for themselves. Looking back on my life, I have always been teaching, using the knowledge I have, to help someone.