Thinking about how our educational system can turn
away from a teacher-and-student classroom setting to, mostly, interaction
through technology is intimidating. I could not imagine that. I understand if
students conference through to look in on their class because of certain
situation (i.e. at home sick, out of town, etc…), but to engage in daily school
activity that way seems preposterous. However, it is possible that I am jumping
the gun by assuming that America is turning strictly towards this way of
teaching. Implementing technology and information systems such as http://www.googleartproject.com or www.books.google.com is great information to relay to and share
with students. Ms. Hart’s list of “50 Tools That Every Teacher Should Know” was
quite impressive. There is nothing greater
than expanding the horizon of a student by opening the door to the opportunity
to explore great literature or foreign art. Hargadon’s article is an eye-opener
as to why future teachers should be aware and how to prepare to include the
information system as a widely used tool for teaching.
School 2.0 means that preparing students to become teachers is more involved than ever. We not only have to study Piaget’s and Vygotsky’s lectures on cognitive development, the topics in which we will teach, and other child-development research based studies; we also have to become “hip” to social networks and useful gadgets that are believed to enhance a child’s learning experience. However, learning the different widgets and social sites that advocate teaching/learning will certainly benefit us as teachers. It means we shall relate to our students more conveniently and creatively encourage the desire to learn through a source that a majority of students spend a majority of their leisure time using anyways, the World Wide Web. As overwhelming as the concept of having to incorporate Web 2.0 into my teaching is, I realize that I am familiar with or actively use the first 10 or more tools for the “Top 100 Tools for Learning in 2012.” Therefore, I am excited and anxiously preparing for the day I utilize these tools and create or improve an existing widget of my own someday.
