Chapter 1: Becoming an e-Teacher

Focus Question: How do new technologies create new opportunities for teaching and learning? 

Photo Credit to San Jose Library on Flickr

New and exciting advancements in educational technologies offer teachers the ability to engage more students in a learning environment. These innovative discoveries in the technological field give teachers and students the opportunity to explore the four corners of the universe without leaving the comfort of their classroom. With only a few clicks of a button these new advancements help students in the United States connect with students in South Korea and students in Finland connect with students in Brazil. Communication and information  is opened to a degree never dreamed about until now. Tools such as Web 2.0 have made it possible for teachers to engage their students in a more creative and highly interactive process that only enhances the ability for the student to learn.


Tech Tool:
How Stuff Works: Computer  
The How Stuff Works website and podcast is synonyms with information over-load. In some cases that can be a great thing. To know absolutely everything about a specific subject that one finds absolutely fascinating is a wonderful and exciting accomplishment. Adversely, being bogged down with information, video clips, podcasts, diagrams, images, and advertisements on top of advertisements when one is just trying to find out how to shuffle a deck of cards is over kill to the extreme. Within twenty minutes of clicking hyperlinks, suggestive articles, accidental adverts, tech topics, and sister web sites one can forget what the original search was for but know how to fold an origami swan. There is definitely very useful information to be found if you can navigate through the jungle of information (maybe How Stuff Works can create a manual accompanied by maps, images, video clips and podcasts on how to navigate through How Stuff Works).

Summary and Connection: 
Chapter one of Transforming Learning With New Technologies by Maloy, R.W., Verock-­‐O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S. A., & Woolf, B. P was chalked full of information for aspiring teachers learning to ingrain technology into the classroom. Before reading the chapter I felt that, as a up and coming educator I could forgo all the bells and whistles of what technology has to offer and teach how I was taught. Lecture the class for the majority of the period, only to let the students sit back from the edge of their seats and relax to a nice reel-to-reel movie or worksheet. After reading the chapter I quickly realized that half the class that is use to highly active and multi-media tools of learning will find my fascinating and intriguing lectures less than adequate. The chapter explained fully well that if a teacher wants to keep their students engaged they must embrace technology. The first chapter of the book also posed a question that every teacher must ask themselves prior to taking on such a responsibility as educating our youth; how will one teach? Will we be teacher-centered where we, the teacher, dictate when and where from the information will flow, where the lesson plan will lead to, and how to achieve the highest test scores possible? Or will we let the classroom be student-centered, where we work together with the student to answer open ended questions through group projects and discussions? The chapter had insightful information, thought provoking questions, and an abundance of information on technology in the classroom.

Food for Blog: 
Ethnic Digital Divide: 7% of African Americans use computers less than whites. 21% of African Americans use the internet less than whites.
Economic Digital Divide: 37% of students use a computer at home in households that earn less than $20,000. 88% of students use a computer at home in households that earn $75,000.
 What are we doing to close these digital divides when we all agree that technology is the driving force behind a well rounded education?  


Resources:   
Maloy, R. W., Verock-O, R. E., Edwards, S. A., & Woolf, B. P. (2010). Transforming learning with new technologies. Allyn & Bacon.