I must say, out of all the courses I've taken at Walden, 8823 has been by far the most useful in providing technology resources that I can use in my classroom. I can proudly say I'm a blogger, a twit, and a skyper. I feel I can connect with as few or as many people as I like with the click of a button.
Although my course work is now complete, I'm just beginning my journey towards social change. First on my list -- to help conquer the 'kill and drill' epidemic that is being forced upon our children in order to pass the annual standardized test. This is not teaching, nor are the children learning how to critically think. I'm tired of seeing students pulled from their electives, spending countless hours afterschool, and even coming in on teacher workdays in order to pass a multiple-choice test.
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3 comments:
Cyndi - I would have to say that I couldn't agree with you more! This class has taught us practical applications for all the theories that we learn about! Good Luck with the rest of your classes!
Jody
Greetings Cyndi,
and it has been a pleasure. You have really opened my eyes to a lot of new ideas, especially the cell phone. I was about to disagree with you concerning the drill and practice thing, especially since I am a language teacher with a 55 minute class period to do culture, writing, reading, listening, and speaking. Sometimes drilling and repetition are the only ways for me to get the information to stick in their heads; however, this was not your point.
I find it disturbing when schools become "academically" oriented and they remove all art, music, and language courses (usually in that order). These tools help students learn the other course materials and can help prepare them for standardized tests just as well as any math or science course. Critical thinking and problem solving are a part of the art curriculum: how to get the color desired, the process of creating a sculpture, procedures and routines help develop reflection and critical thinking skills as to what worked and what did not.
Devaluing electives and drilling on specific multiple-choice questions does take away from the learning process. Perhaps some of the tools used in this course can help students better prepare for standardized tests by helping them develop the skills needed for test taking rather than just trying to get the right answer.
Tamyra
Cyndi,
This was a great course, and it was fun to have you in it with me! I hope you keep posting to the blog, as I've enjoyed reading your posts and the comments. We'll be keeping in touch. It sounds like Joe may be gearing up for graduation about the same time as you (and Wendy?), so maybe we'll see you in Dallas next year!
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