Today I learned that we should focus on what has not been changed in education rather that what has already been changed, and to integrate these two parts. Don't always pay attention on the negtive part of technology. Technology does not stand on an opposite side to the traditonal teaching. What we should do is to think about how to integrate it into the traditional one and to take advantage of it.

Chapter 2 & 3

Chapter 2

Chapter 2 makes me to think about will technology literally promote the quality of education, and dose technology become essential for education. Although I am defined as so called Generation Y, I used to be educated in an old-fashioned way. According to my experience of being educated, some old teaching methods should be definitely changed. As mentioned in chapter 2, student-centered, constructivist teaching must be the mainstream of education in the future. It also lists “five kinds of unique, powerful, and transformative learning experiences – visual learning, assessing and assessing information, student engagement and collaboration, feedback, and creativity” and declares that “technology accomplishes what other non-electronic materials cannot do”. If technology can be proper used as chapter 2 says, and teachers are well-prepared for how to use it, I’m looking forward to the influential effects it will make on education. But I cannot stop wondering that is technology the unique way to support student-centered and constructivist teaching? Will traditional teaching be totally replaced eventually? I am sure that technology will be used into education, and actually it has been, but I cannot deny that traditional teaching has its own advantages – it is more humanistic. Is it possible to make changes of traditional education to make it more appropriate for student-centered and constructivist teaching, instead of totally being replaced by technology?

Since technology education has not already been realized worldwide(as I know, at least in China, traditional education still plays a leading role), and both teachers and students are not well-prepared for it, we still can not conclude that technology education is the best way of learning and teaching. I would rather to consider technology as an instrument, but not an essential part of education. Teachers should learn to use technology, but they should also have the right to decide whether to use it or not. The best teaching style for students is to teach them in a way that is appropriate to them and to teach them what they need.

Questions:

1. Does technology education focuses on changing students’ learning behavior, like to make them learn more actively, or focuses on knowledge itself – to make the learning content different from traditional one?

2. From which grade can students accept technological teaching?

3. Is there any actual examples of technology education that can support this idea, and can detailed explain how it works well compared to the traditional one?

Chapter 3

Chapter 3 is about lesson development. It remains me what I learned from last class – teachers are designers. To be a good designer should consider 1) what to teach, 2) how to teach, and 3) how to know what students have learned. To be good designer can make learning more effectively.

I want to talk about syllabus first, it is something not exist in most classes in China. From syllabus, students can get the information about learning content of each lesson, the requirements and assignments of the class, and the standards of assessment. According to it, students can prepare their learning schedule correspondingly. I think it can be considered as a part of student-centered teaching, since what to learn and learning process is not just in teachers mind but is shared with students.

When to design a lesson, technology seems really helpful. There are a lot of useful information that can be searched online to support teaching content. Some useful software and websites can make teaching more interesting and functional. The two examples from chapter 3 – Ecological Footprints and Rainscapes are really perfect designed with technology. I’m sure it is more effective for children to understand the learning target than simply reading relative articles. I used to tutoring a 6-grade girl. She always had some interesting homework, like to download images of animals living in the North Pole, and to create a living circle for them by handmade arts. I noticed when she was asked to that kind of assignments, she always appeared so excited and could not wait to do that. It motivates me that when designing a lesson, teachers should try to find a way that is more effective for students to learn, not just follow the old rule. It is not only meaningful to a 6-grade student, but while facing up to high-school students or even undergraduate or graduate students, teachers should also think about is the way students are taught really appropriate and effective.

Questions:

1. If relies on online research, will it weaken teacher’s originality in designing teaching content?

2. If using test assignment, what kind of knowledge will be best assessed?

3. When assessments depending on technology, will it be fair for everyone, since someone might know how to use digital devices better than others.

I am quite interested about the topic that we discussed at the beginning of this class - technology has changed teaching styles. Since the use of technology, students have to participate into classroom more than the "chalks and blackboard" period. It changes the classroom type more or less from teacher centered to student centered. This idea is what I have not thought before.

Chapter One

     In general, Chapter one tells us how influential technology is in the lives of the children and adolescents, six key issues for technology-using teachers, and a brief introduction of using new technologies to create a highly interactive, inquiry-based learning environment in K-12 classrooms.

     It says that technology plays an enormously influential role in the lives of the children and adolescents who will be your students. The data in this part indicates that computer has become a major component of students’ media experience. Since the use of computers and other information technologies becomes more common, it seems hardly to notice their technology power or the changes they bring to the way we conduct our daily lives. Actually, computer and new technologies are everywhere in our life. In that case, our knowledge-based society demands that teachers and students should possess new and expanded technology “life skill”.

     For technology-using teachers they should think about six important questions, and each question addresses important issues with regard to educational technology in K-12 schools:

1)     What is your readiness to integrate technology into teaching and learning in schools?

2)     What are your reasons for wanting to use technology in your teaching?

3)     What are your views of the barriers that block teachers from using technology in their classes?

4)     What are your plans for the types of technologies you will use in your classroom?

5)     What are your goals for the kinds of teaching methods you plan to use in your classroom?

6)     What is your knowledge of the technologies your students are using both inside and outside of school?

The six questions are very important for both technology-using teachers and nontechnology-using teachers. When considering that, teachers can make it clear that why choosing to use technology, does it match your teaching philosophy, and is it truly helpful, etc. To think about these question can help teachers to make a full preparation before using technology into classes. Technology-using teachers should also ask themselves these questions periodically while teaching in order to evaluate how it works in practice and if your ideas has changed over time.

At the end of this chapter, it emphasizes that in today’s high-technology information society, students must become creative, innovative, flexible thinkers. To create a highly interactive, inquiry-based learning environment in classrooms can help students to gain skills as our highly technological, information-based society requires.

Questions:

1)     What is the role that technology acts in teaching? How to arrange a proper teaching process when using technology? Should technology be a main component of teaching, or just a useful tool?

2)     Is it necessary for technology-using teachers to receive extra training, since the teaching skills must be more or less different from ordinary teaching methods. I mean not only the technological skills but also something like teaching styles.

3)     When it is put into practice, is technology really helpful to students or just make classes more attractive?

  

Personal Learning Goals

When I was a child in primary school, teaching was quite normal – just chalks and blackboards. When I was an undergraduate student, Power Point was used by most professors. Now I am a graduate student in St. John’s, although just have been here for almost half a year, I feel like what technology has been used most here is still Power Point. Actually, technology is everywhere in our life - we use google maps to find ways, read e-books, and keep blogs instead of ordinary dairies, but it has not been used so much in class so far as I have already experienced. To be honest, the technology I know how to use in class is very basic. I even do not know how to edit a video(maybe to download some useful applications…), what I think is a necessary skill for the requirements of this course. I realize that if technology is proper used, classes can be more attractive to students, especially whom in grade Pre K-5. In that case I want to learn how to use  new technologies into teaching, except for regular ways, and how to use it properly to fulfill teaching goals.