Not so tech, but

I found this to be an interesting article.
http://mobile.washingtonpost.com/c.jsp?item=http%3a%2f%2fwww.washingtonpost.com%2fFragment%2fSysConfig%2fWebPortal%2ftwpweb%2frss%2fmobile%2fblog-entry.jpp%3fuuid%3da6f98452-7232-11e2-a050-b83a7b35c4b5&cid=578815&spf=1
It turns out that the "old" stuff still has some appeal! It seems to me that this type of thing could be useful in teaching EFL, perhaps for vocabulary sets (if we do our own lyrics) or pronunciation skills (using pre-existing chants).

If you haven't seen it yet, check out the short clip from the "bit by bit" blog:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=2Y0Gm02XGis

For me, the main point here is that the technology (Google Docs) is not doing something "new", but rather just making it easier and more convenient to do something "old". If you saw the movie "The Freedom Writers", the teacher there did essentially the same thing as this one, but using old-school notebooks and pens, not "newfangled" internet tools. So my question is: is there something inherently different here, or just traditional communication and teaching methods making use of updated technology? How would the entries from this clip compare with the more open-ended entries in the film mentioned above? Does putting pen to paper cause a different, more deliberative type of cognition that filling out an on-line form? 

[For those interested in the many applications of this question, see http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2008/07/is-google-making-us-stupid/306868/]

The latest post in "The Innovative Educator" (http://theinnovativeeducator.blogspot.co.il/2013/02/an-unscholarly-professor-comes-out.html#more) is not about technology in education, but highlights a different issue: To what degree are we open to hearing suggestions and criticisms from outsiders who, although they might not have the technical and pedagogical training that we have (or will have), may have insights that we can gain from. This connects to the general issue of the democratization of knowledge. I find myself struggling with this when, after I read a news article, I scroll through the comments. Other than the obvious nonsense, there are often comments that can "make you go hmmm", and counter-comments that also sound right. Credentials are a good starting point for evaluating legitimacy, but sometimes it is specifically the non-credentialed outsider who can see things from a different perspective and achieve insight not available to those on the inside.

In the blog "Leaning With 'e'es" (wonderful title!) http://steve-wheeler.blogspot.co.il/2013/02/learning-is-changing.html, Steve discusses the issue mentioned above regarding the changes that technology is causing or our modalities of learning and thinking. Now, I know that tech is here to stay, and that we cannot get "off the train", but it is striking to me how we are now embarking on an irreversible, uncontrolled experiment, with no controls, no direction and no way out. I was approaching a friend on the sidewalk last week. A guy I wanted to touch base with, to connect to. I saw him from about 40 feet away (13 meters for some of you), but we did not have the eye contact needed to start the interaction, because (as I am sure you can guess), his eyes were on his phone from the time I saw him until he passed me. Not to be alarmist, but there is something in simple, interpersonal interactions that we are losing (very rapidly), and we do not know what the consequences of this will be. So, as a future educator, the question is to what degree do I embrace tech in order to help connect with the students, and to what degree do I try to keep the classroom as an oasis of face to face human interaction? No answers, just questions.

First Time, Here Goes

So, this is something new. Although I am a blog reader and podcast listener, I have, until now, held myself back from "producing". I have this quaint belief that not everything that goes on in my life needs to be shared (I know, sooo 20th century), but hey, everyone needs to do their thing, right? I am looking forward to learning new techniques/methods during this course. About the video on the 21st century learner, I think it was a bit simplistic. I am not sure that the only way to learn nowadays is with a device that has an electrical charge, and I do not think that the clip portrayed the complexity of what it means to teach and learn. On the other hand, it was only four minutes long (including credits). I would guess that I am in the middle of the pack as far as computer skills go, so I hope I won't be left behind in the dust. Either way, onward toward the future!