Why+should+teachers+learn+about+Web+2.0?

= Why should teachers learn about Web 2.0? =

After watching the video, click on the discussion tab at the top of this page. Post a comment answering the essential question. Include your name, content area, and grade level(s) that you teach. There are some comments from previous visitors to the wiki posted below for you to browse. When you have finished, return to the home page.

media type="youtube" key="dGCJ46vyR9o" height="405" width="500" ==

== Comments

== __Robyn Wolfe (Algebra II and Math Analysis, 9-12)__ Watching the video, I was particularly struck by the statement "When I graduate I will probably have a job that doesn't exist today. Filling out this scantron won't help me get there." Even though I couldn’t agree more, the reality of my students is that they will not graduate from high school unless they can demonstrate proficiency in basic skills on a standardized test. To prepare them for that test, I have to teach them both the content and the test taking strategies they need to meet the expectations set by the state. But to prepare them for life in a global economy that is being constantly reshaped by new technologies, I need to learn the technologies myself and figure out how to harness their power to give my students as rich and meaningful an educational experience in mathematics as I can.

__Matt Fahnestock (English II and Creative Writing, 9-12)__ The way many teachers teach doesn't match the way many students learn. We teachers must evolve with the students to best reach their needs and we need to stop thinking about our own.

__Rich Morda (Accounting & Business Edu 9-16)__ I’ll be honest.I have become a bit weary of hand-held, shaky videos of sad-faced college students looking for more entertaining forms of communication in a classroom full of desks and chairs with walls covered with black boards.I am curious how this class, and my new awareness, will affect my attitude toward the good-ole’ blackboard and a well-spoken, entertaining presentation with live interactive discussion without all the recorded, flat-screen multimedia.

__Robert Barrick (Physics 11-12)__ I'm ready to retire!

__Peggy Jennings (ACT, high school)__ I am sure you have seen "Did you Know?" [] which was one of the most thought provoking and life (as an educator) changing videos I have ever seen. If we want to be successful in educating the students of the future, we MUST look at the future in our methods and approaches. We can no longer afford to prepare students for a nineteenth century agrarian, factory-worker life. My daughter majored in creative writing in college, and now works as a "social media marketing specialist" for a company in Pittsburgh. As the video says, it was a job that didn't exist when she began college.

__Leslie Frey (4th Grade LeTort__) As I was watching this video, I thought about the students I had this past school year.The one comment that particularly struck me was the one about the students reading 8 books,2300 webpages, and 1281 facebook profiles.In order to prepare my students for the future, why I am making them read chapter books and do worksheets to go with them.Shouldn’t I be teaching them more non-fiction reading?

__Walt Bond (U.S. History, 8)__ Multitasking is a skill that students know how to do, and yet at times it is frustrating to me when they are not completing the one task assigned to them.

__Mark Alwine (Pre-Calc and Algebra 1)__ I find it interesting that this generation for students (so far unnamed) is supposed to be so more technologically advanced than the previous generations, but when you give them an assignment to find a particular piece of information, or one that asks them to research, they have absolutely no clue how to start. As the one girl put in her message in the video, she uses facebook during class...that's all these kids can do, facebook, myspace, twitter...social networking. They have very little knowledge on how to actually use the power of the web beyond a specific set of websites!

__Whitney Baker (Grade 6 Math; LMS)__ Videos like these stress me out because I’m afraid I won’t be able to keep up with the kids.I have seen “Did you Know” in just about every graduate class I’ve taken and I get the same feelings each time.Even though I consider myself fairly tech-savvy, I know there are tons of things I don’t know about, and I wonder where I’ll find the time to figure them all out.I always feel behind when I see stuff like this.

__Sarah Deitch (Honors Chem 10 and 11)__ I think it mirrors a lot of questions and comments I get from my students. The problem though I think may be some teachers unwillingness but stems from the system itself. There are some requirements set up by individuals beyond our control that we need to meet. Until the system itself changes, we are preaching to the choir. Also, to have a full grasp of where we are and where we are going we have to have a grasp on where we have been. Without an understanding of history we are doomed to repeat it. That's one of the biggest complaints. Lastly, I think we are somewhat restricted by limitations of access to students technology. I had a huge issue with one student in particular this year that "couldn't access a computer." It threw a huge monkey wrench in his ability to participate in some activities. The problem was his lack of willingness to try.

__David Gilbert (Social Studies, High School)__ I think that it is hard to balance the current technological proficiency required of students and the need for solid, basic information. How many of things are fads or distractions from actually producing things. You can not say that facebooking for 2.5 hours a day adds to the economy in any significant way. We need to be teaching students to be prioritizing their technology use and how to distinguish between things they need to do and want to do. Teachers should be showing them how to create a balance between the use of technology and obtaining a solid basis of information.

__Rob Thompson (Emotional Support Teacher 9-10)__ Technology is expanding so fast that new, previously unknown devices, will always be the "next new thing." Those with the ability to afford the technology will far outdistance those who cannot afford it. I fear this will help create a new stratification in our society.

__Lauren Tustin (LeTort Elementary, Grade 4)__ This video showed the hardships and problems our students continuously face from problems within the schools to worldly problems. My students are young but by the time they are ready to graduate high school the statement "When I graduate I will probably have a job that doesn't exist today," is very true. But for them to eventually get the job that is not created they need to learn how to take standardized tests and pass with proficiency to get accepted into college.

__David Appleman__ Most of what they talked about was the fact that they were not on task. They spend more time networking than anything else.

__Stephanie Weimer (Librarian WMS/LMS)__ I agree that is seems most of the students in the video were stating they were off task. The new software that allows you to monitor their computer use, I think, will help with students staying on task more while allowing them to still have some of the freedoms of using the newer technologies that we want them to use.