Online Learning: Growing up Digital

This week my tech class had an online learning week in which we were instructed to watch two Frontline documentaries concerning growing up online and how our country has become a digital nation. Both videos were informative and relevant to our recent class discussion on digital citizenship and teaching in the digital age (both of which you can find on my blog). We were also given some questions to think about while watching the video; ideas to guide us in writing about them. I thought about these questions beforehand and thought that I could give just my opinions and easily answer most of these questions. Even so, I knew I had to sit down and watch these videos, and to be honest I suggest anyone reading this to do the same.

In the first video, Growing Up Online, I met some people, teens and their parents, teachers, and writers that had a lot to say about how it is growing up in this digital age. For most of the video I was nodding my head in agreement with the teens, after all I did grow up online. As I continued watching the video I started agreeing with the parents, the ones that were concerned about internet safety and about how their children were totally unaware of how much information they were putting on the internet. I had never thought about these issues when I was a teen; I was too excited to get online, to have an excellent new way to chat with my friends (I didn't have a cell phone and neither did my friends). It was so wonderful to use AIM (AOL Instant Messenger) to chat with friends and to meet new people.

My parents never knew what was going on when I was at the computer, much like the parents of the teens interview on the Frontline video. Like my parents these parents were ill-informed and without the know-how to really control me online. And they trusted me, that kind of trust that you have as a child until you abuse and lose it. The parents in this video probably trust their kids too, thankfully though this video was put out almost a decade after I was a teenager online. Parent's are getting smart, they are learning that there is a need to educate your teen to be safe online. They are teaching their kids to watch out for online predators and bullies. This video opened my eyes to ways I should have acted online, as compared to the way I did act online.

Digital Nation didn't seem to address as many of the discussion questions we were given but it did address, in minute detail, the concept of multitasking. We were asked if we could multitask, if we agreed with the research presented on the video or if we disagreed... I was definitely on the side of the students, after all I can totally multitask. Right now I am typing this blog, checking my sources online, looking for images when I remember to, and listening to Law and Order: SVU.  I've been multitasking since 2002 when I got away from the dining room table (where I used to do homework) and into my dorm room (where I had a TV one foot away and all the music I could find online). I don't think it's hindered me in completing assignments to get the maximum credit, in act I find that when I am not multitasking I have a harder time staying on task.

Here is a short YouTube video about multitasking

I do agree with Professor Nass though, from Stanford University, who says that my generation is no longer writing essays, we're writing paragraphs. I won't go so far as to say I write one paragraph and then do something else, normally I write and take notes and then go back and look up things, like images. One of the students from MIT, that was interviewed for Digital Nation, said that he was always doing something while he was doing something. I have to admit to agreeing with him, I'm always busy, even when I'm sitting still.

Another question that this documentary addressed is how quickly we're moving into this virtual world. Some of the educators interviewed were concerned, they stated that we (as people, I presume) need to slow down, to deplug I suppose, and that schools were one of the places we needed to do that. He preceded this statement by saying that he didn't believe we needed to move at the pace of our students, it was "hogwash" to think that. I was astounded that an educator felt that way because as educators it is our job to move along with our students, to stimulate them in ways that will enhance learning, not disengage with them.

Funny, but true?

One of the questions posed to us concerned the internet being an addiction, this is the one question I thought I could give an opinion on without watching the videos, and my answer would be yes. The internet is an addiction, I don't think it's as detrimental as say...cocaine, but it is still an addiction. Many people, myself included, find it hard to sign off. There are detrimental side affects of Internet Addiction, problems with staying connected to your family, issues with getting schoolwork done efficiently, these are very real concerns. However, I think that we are going to be finding a lot more people to suffer from this affliction. The internet is not going away, it's not going to become illegal (hopefully), and it's going to get better. It's an ever changing medium to gain knowledge.

The internet is not something to be feared, by parents, or teachers, or students, but is something to be informed about, to know how to use it properly and effectively. Have your fun, play your video games (educational or otherwise), Google to your hearts content, but be safe, be smart, and use this excellent technology wisely. You wouldn't use a gun without proper instruction, this is no different.

Discussion Questions:

1. Compare and Contrast each documentary. What has changed from the first one (Growing Up Online) made in 2008 and the newer one (Digital Nation) filmed in 2010?

  In the first video, Growing Up Online, I met some people, teens and their parents, teachers, and writers that had a lot to say about how it is growing up in this digital age. They really showed the dangers and misconceptions about the internet. In Digital Nation they talked about the positives of the internet, they discussed other issues, such as the gaming situation around the world, but for the most part I think it was far more positive and informative.

2. Your thoughts on multitasking? Do you agree? Can you multitask? Do you disagree?

 I've been multitasking since 2002 when I got away from the dining room table (where I used to do homework) and into my dorm room (where I had a TV one foot away and all the music I could find online). I don't think it's hindered me in completing assignments to get the maximum credit, in act I find that when I am not multitasking I have a harder time staying on task.

3. Is there an addiction happening in society today with technology or is it just a new way of living? Should we be concerned?

  The internet is an addiction, I don't think it's as detrimental as say...cocaine, but it is still an addiction. Many people, myself included, find it hard to sign off. There are detrimental side affects of Internet Addiction, problems with staying connected to your family, issues with getting schoolwork done efficiently, these are very real concerns.

4.  Do video games serve a purpose in education or are they a waste of time?

  I think that video games are sometimes detrimental for children, not as learners, but as active children. If the game is educational than it should be used in the classrooms. This is good for the children, it engages them in the new technology, which stimulates them. On the other hand, games like Call of Duty, seem to be pointless for young children. They are rated 17 and above for a reason.

5.  Do you believe that digital tools such as Google tools can save schools that are struggling?

   I think that while Google tools can help a school, they can't save it. The tools are simply that, tools. It would be like giving a hammer to a so so carpenter. If the teachers and administrators don't know how to teach or administrate then the tools will be worthless. There is no point in introducing tech to teachers that don't know it, and can't pass on all the benefits to their students.

 6.  Do parents of today have any idea what their kids are doing online?  Whose job is it to teach them the safety and digital responsibility?  Parents/Teachers/Community/Government?

  My parents never knew what was going on when I was at the computer, much like the parents of the teens interview on the Frontline video. Parent's are getting smart, they are learning that there is a need to educate your teen to be safe online. They are teaching their kids to watch out for online predators and bullies. It is the job of the entire community to inform and teach children about digital citizenship and internet safety, there should be no area of learning which starts and stops at home or at school.

7.  Are kids and adults today ruining their digital footprints by sharing too much information online without realizing that it may be detrimental to their future? Should they care?

  I think that we are definitely expanding our digital footprints, but I don't know if we are ruining them. In an increasingly digital world I think it's an inevitable issue. We're doing more online, so we're leaving more behind online. It's like our carbon footprint, instead of going green, we need to stop using the internet. Until we can "go green" on the net we will be constantly expanding our digital footprint.

8.“Stranger Danger” and predator fears are often overblown by the media on shows such as Datelines “To Catch a Predator”.  What are the real dangers of technology in this day and age?  

  I think the dangers from before are still real, but the children online are getting more intelligent so it's making those dangers not as ... dangerous. I met my husband online, I was 15, totally uninformed on the dangers of the internet. He was 17 when we started chatting online...I asked my Mom if he could send me "snail mail". She emailed him, but in all actuality we trusted that he was who he said he was. And we got lucky. That's it, luck. And I don't think that's changed. There are bad people out there that will prey on the weak, innocent, young and old, it's all about how you deal with these people, be it online or offline.

9.  Share your overall reactions and thoughts about each documentary here.  Please relate it to your views as a teacher/parent/coach/etc... What did you learn, find interesting, find disturbing, relate to, did not relate to, etc...from watching either documentary that you would like to share with others?  

  My whole blog is basically the answer to this question. I really feel like the internet, gaming, virtual training, parent/child trust and sharing, they are all tied together. And if we learn the benefits of the internet, and teach what we learn to those around us, then I think the internet is totally beneficial. If we don't educate those around us, our parents, spouses, children, students, administrators, etc..then we won't use the Internet for all it can be used for. 

Week 3: Citizen's Exist Online?!

This image is perfect for describing a child (or adult, let's be honest) learner. Many people do not understand what it means to be a digital citizen. ISTE (International Standards for Technology in Education) says this about digital citizenship, "Students understand human, cultural, and societal issues related to technology and practice legal and ethical behavior. Students (a) advocate and practice safe, legal, and responsible use of information and technology; (b) exhibit a positive attitude toward using technology that supports collaboration, learning, and productivity; (c) demonstrate personal responsibility for lifelong learning; and (d) exhibit leadership for digital citizenship."

The student in the image above is clearly not following ISTE's definition. To be honest, I haven't really been following ISTE's definition; mainly because I was clueless as to what digital citizenship was. Digital citizenship is, in layman's terms, simply a way of navigating the internet in a safe, polite, and productive way. It's not writing a paper using as many websites as possible without knowing if that site is legitimate. It's not signing up for a facebook account to bully some kids in your school, or some kids that are bullying your kids. It's not randomly giving out your bank account or credit card information without checking to see if the site is secure. 

Awesome, now we know what isn't digital citizenship. So... what is?

For teachers, it's knowing how to use the internet in a productive way, a way that will allow you to create excellent relationships with your students. It's a way for you to teach. You can use the internet to make class wiki's. Class wiki's are excellent teaching tools. If a student misses class you can send him or her to a website, which will allow them to go through the lesson or lessons they missed. This is not to say that teachers need to stop teaching, but it's a good alternative to kids getting the wrong notes from another student that wasn't really paying attention. (In fact, I used this wiki to get the image above, and also to peruse some websites that defined digital citizenship.)

For students, being a good digital citizen means not engaging in cyberbullying. Cyberbullying is defined by StopCyberbullying.org as "when a child, preteen or teen is tormented, threatened, harassed, humiliated, embarrassed or otherwise targeted by another child, preteen or teen using the Internet, interactive and digital technologies or mobile phones." This is an improper ways to tell someone your opinion. An example of proper "netiquette" is reading other students, or adults, blogs and Facebook timelines and leaving positive comments. It's using your knowledge of the English language (or perhaps Spanish, French, Indian, etc) to effectively let a person know that you agree or disagree with their thoughts and beliefs. You can disagree, but you don't need to bully. For students, being a good digital citizen means researching your assignments, not plagiarizing by stealing from websites without siting them. It means starting at Wikipedia and using it as a jumping off point, rather than the end-all-be-all of a research paper. 

Essentially digital citizenship means behaving properly online, knowing how to use the internet for the wealth of knowledge it can be, and contributing to the online community in positive ways. In my opinion, humble though it may be, if you can't "go online" without being a good digital citizen, you shouldn't go online. 

Literature Review 1- How to make Thomas Jefferson Interesting

How to Teach with Technology: Social Studies

Sarah Bernard

The most interesting aspect of this article, which seems to be to be exactly like a high end blog, is that Sara Bernard covers several different types of technology. She moves swiftly from explaining how her students blog while she's teaching, using an excellent website that allows for live updates and commenting, to going a bit stone age on us and suggesting that kids make videos of war battles.

Another interesting idea that Bernard puts out there is creating Facebook (though when the article was written, she also used MySpace as an example) profile out there using historical figures. Instead of making a profile page you can make a private group, that details the persons life, and then you can "friend" them with other historical people. It's a lot of work if JUST the teacher is making these pages, but say you had one student make one page for one relevant figure. They can get start up information from Wikipedia  and use that site to move on to more … accurate sites or articles.

https://www.facebook.com/snhutjpage

This is one that I just created. It took me 10 minutes and that included blocking out my name in Paint, the most ancient of all the ancient standard software. If you click on the picture and you're logged into Facebook, it'll take you to the page. They are super easy to create and a fun way for kids to learn about the presidents, or anyone.

If this didn't pique my interest enough, Bernard went a step further. I was intrigued just from the title, given that I want to teach Social Studies and don't want to be one of those teachers that spends 45 minutes just blathering on about dates no one cares about. Even worse would be if I had to have students learn about other countries from a map on the wall. Other countries have so much culture that some children will never be exposed to and Sara Bernard gave me a new way to teach about them.

SKYPE.

In case any of my readers don't know what Skype is, I'll give you Sara's take on it. "Skype is a way to communicate with people all around the world. All you need is a computer, a special camera that you can connect to the computer, a speaker, an address on Skype, and the other person's address."  That's all well and good for personal business but it's also excellent for teaching about, say, South Africa. All you have to do is find, preferably, for me, another teacher that is willing to chat with you. Another option would be to have their students Skype with your students and then have your students give a short report on what they've learned. I can assure you it'll be more informative and interesting creating a trifold tourism pamphlet.

In this article Bernard gives another excellent example of how Skype works in the classroom, this one using elementary school students.  One elementary school teacher in Michigan, Mrs. Lykowski, is having her fifth graders chat with kids in Colombia.  I think that this is excellent, because she's exposing her students to another culture, and she's doing it with the technology they already know about. Another interesting and very forward thinking strategy Lykowski has is having her students make podcasts and write blogs, both of which are available on her class wiki.

As I noted in my last post, I was a bit throw back by all of the new technologies being used in classroom, I used to be a big proponent of lots of lecture time and less time doing hands on activities. I think that had to have been before I realized there were TONS of hands on activities that aren't, for lack of better word, boring. I have to say though, if I was 100% against tech in the room before, I am 100% for it now.

Learning Outcomes Addressed:

1. Demonstrate the understanding of how technologies can effectively promote student learning.  This article gave several ways of teaching with tech and I only chose the ones that struck me as informative and interesting.

2. Evaluate and use a variety of current technologies to enhance content instruction and to advance students technological literacy.  Both Podcasts and CoverItLive, the blogging tool, are ways to evaluate student learning.

3. Design meaningful and authentic digitally based learning experiences with multiple and varied assessments. The fact that I could create a Facebook page in under 15 minutes shows me how easily students could create one.

Week 1- Tech in the Room

Why should we integrate technology into the classroom?

Having never encountered a class like the one I am currently enrolled in, this question intrigued me. I thought, at first, why shouldn't we? Technology is sometimes the bane of my existence. Isn't all this technology ruining children's creativity? Where are the games that are played with running and balls and by the way, do kids still jump rope? Aren't all students already over stimulated with iPads and Kindles and Gameboys? Halfway through a video I was assigned to watch (linked to at the end of this post) I was more convinced then ever. One young student, a female I believe, noted that she watched 16.5 hours of TV a week. Of course, I kept watching, working my way through the 4 minute 30 second video and my opinion changed. I went back to a website that was mentioned in class and I took a poke around. Free Technology for Teachers is an excellent resource for teachers to "get into technology".

There are a ton of excellent ideas on this website, but the one that caught my attention is Draw It Live. Did you know that you can use online whiteboards? No more messy, smelly, over inked white board markers. Never again will you use paper towel after paper towel, or even worse, replace dry erasers. And, they can draw, the kids will be using their minds. This isn't some mindless application or game found on a phone or a Kindle Fire, it's real learning, put into today's world. Just to give you a small preview, and in case you...dear reader...are unable to click on links from your classroom I'll let you see this awesome application.

Not only can the students doodle and express themselves, but the teacher can get on the action and they can do everything from tutor a student in math, or draw a time-line of the American Revolution (something more near and dear to my heart than long division). 

Can it get better than this?

After I posed this question, to myself, I thought...It sure can. In fact, it will, it is. Every day, or month or year, there is some new piece of technology. The best part of this ever changing technology is that the youth are getting these new products when they are young enough to understand it. For some educators it's not easy to come around to the thought that computers are the future. It's new and sometimes frightening to learn things you don't understand.

The question I have now is... Why aren't we integrating technology into the classroom? Just for the record, I think I'm going to get the answer to that question in the next 11 weeks.

Chew on this video until next time.