Blog Post #10

I'm a Papermate. I'm a Ticonderoga.



I found this comic strip very humorous. Obviously, it reflects the PC and Mac commercials that appear on tv. I personally always loved the PC vs Mac campaigns. In this cartoon, the Papermate pencial states he is less expensive that the Ticonderoga pencil, but breaks all the time. The Ticonderoga pencil admits that he is more expensive, yet he will last longer than the Papermate. If one is familiar with the Apple commercials, one can clearly see the Papermate represents the PC and the Ticonderoga represents the Mac. I completely agree that sometimes buying the more expensive item is the best choice. I have a Mac, but a lot of my friends have PCs. I can honestly say that I will never switch from an Apple computer to a PC. There is just no comparing the two. The Macs are faster and more durable. I've had my computer for three years now and have never had any trouble with it. My friends, however, are always complaining about computer problems. Although I clearly see the resemblance to the Mac vs PC commercials, I believe this cartoon can go far beyond just pencils and computers. I can see how it is an argument between paper and technology, maps and GPS, and many other things.


Why Were Your Kids Playing Games?

In Why Were Your Kids Playing Games, John Spencer creates a dialogue between a teacher and his principal. The teacher is using a game as his teaching technique instead of a lecture. The teacher had his students involved in a mock stimulation and the students were very engaged in this game. The principal, however, did not see the positive effects of this teaching style because the goal is for the students to be able to pass the remote memorization test. He stated that the kids were not doing anything educational- they were just simply playing a game. The teacher goes on to illustrate how soldiers play games and surgeons do stimulations in the learning process of their craft. Though the teacher makes a valid point, the principal still disagrees with his methods. In the end, the principal recommends a technique for the teacher to use instead of his game. However, Mr. Spencer outwits the principal and turns the recommended methods into a game.

I really enjoyed this post because I really don't think people realize how effective using games as a teaching technique is, especially with young kids. I have found that when I make things a game with my classes, they retain the information better and also are more engaged and participate more. One thing that really stuck out to me was how the principal stated "If we want students to pass the rote memorization test, we need to focus on rote memorization skills." I hate to say it, but this is how our school systems view success these days. Simply memorizing something is not going to help kids in the long run. I can easily memorize some information, but that does not mean I understand it or that I can apply it to anything. I believe we should treat our students like future soldiers and surgeons. We need to start teaching our students how to fully comprehend and apply information to build their skills, not just teach them how to repeat information back to us.

The second post from John Spencer I read was Avoid Social Networking. In this dialogue, a HR representative explains to a school staff that they must avoid any site that allows for teachers to have social interaction with their students. Although some of the teachers name circumstances that allow them to have a positive influence on the kids (volunteering at church, teaching baseball teams, family-friend dinners), the HR representative still insists that there be no interaction with the kids if it is not school related. Finally, at the end of the dialogue, the HR representative suggests that the Board might pass a rule that states teachers can have no interaction with students outside of school.

I found this dialogue hilarious, but sadly true. There was one comment left that stated " It's a shame that satire is based on reality, because I think many, many teachers have been there." I fully believe that teachers should have as much interaction with their students as possible. In many cases, kids see their teacher more than they see their parents. Some kids get more love and care from their teachers than they get from their parents. Asking a teacher to have no interaction with a student outside of school is simply cruel. What will that student think if during school his/her teacher invests time in him, yet when he sees the teacher at Walmart, the teacher acts like they are strangers? I believe that will create problems with a child's self worth which in turn will negatively effect how they act and perform in school. I loved this post, but at the same time it makes me very angry because I know this is the case in many schools. All I can say is if I wanted to pretend like I don't know kids, I would not be going into education.


Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please?

In the post Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please?, Scott McCleod argues to not let kids use technology because of the dangers they could potentially be exposed to. He also sticks his nose up at students learning to read and write things on the internet. Towards the end of the blog, he stresses once more to not teach your children these things. His reason? He states he is teaching his kids about all the things he listed and ends with the statement that he can't wait to see who has a leg up in a decade or two.

Let's be honest, the world has changed a lot over the years as far as our children's safety goes. Technology has given creeps another way to prey on children. I can see why parents want to shelter their children from all the bad in the world. However, if we shelter our kids from all the bad in the world, how will they be the good in the world? How will they recognize they are being preyed on? How will they learn the way to conduct themselves on and offline? If we want our kids to be knowledgeable about how to recognize and defend themselves from online threats, we have to expose them to the web. If we just keep them in a safety bubble, once they do start using technology, they will have no idea how to safely conduct themselves. Children are less likely to abuse the privilege of technology if parents would just take the time to educate them in it. Technology is our future. A child will more than likely use technology no matter what field he or she goes into as an adult. The longer children are shielded from technology, the harder it will be to get them familiar and comfortable with it.

Dr. Scott McCleod is one of the nation's leading academic experts in K-12 school technology issues. He is currently serving as Director of Innovation for Prairie Lakes Area Education Agency 8 in Iowa. He is also the founding director of the UCEA Center for the Advanced Study of Technology Leadership in Education (CASTLE) and co creator of the Did You Know? series.