Is It Okay To Be Technologically Illeterate?

The blog written by Karl Fisch addresses the need for technological savvy among teachers in today's education world. He compares technological literacy in the 21st century with reading literacy back in the 20th century. According to Fisch, one could get by with illiteracy in the beginning of the century, but as time went on, it got more difficult to navigate in society and especially the job market without it. By the end of the 20th century, he noted, no one could function without literacy in everyday life. He contends that the same will be true of technological literacy. Frankly, as much as I as a forty year old pride myself with being "old school", even I have to agree with him. I have noticed that computers are incorperating themselves into everyday life and we all need a degree of literacy in it to keep up. I was talking to a friend of mine who is eleven years old and I was surprised to find out all that she has learned about computers in school. I learned power point three years ago. She told me that she learned it in the third grade. She already knew how to do spreadsheets. I was dumbfounded to say the least. We didn't move this fast when I was in school!
Technology makes communication of knowledge and ideas faster and more effective. That's why it is so popular and widespread. Who doesn't want to save time and be more efficient at the same time. Face it, this is an appealing idea.
It enhances teaching to the degree that knowledge can be transferred more widely, more organized, and at a faster pace. I agree with Mr. Fisch in that we as educators need to be technologically literate in today's society. We are competing in a global market where every advantage that we can give our future is crucial. Therefore, I am willing to do what it takes to become more technologically literate and pass the tool on to future generations.

The iTunes Store

I have downloaded and perused the iTunes Store website. I found it very interesting, especially the wide array of educational podcasts available. I was able to review SmartBoard Lesson 150 as well as KidCast, Teachers Teaching Teachers, EcoGeek, MacBreaK, and This Week in Photography. I also discovered that in the iTunes Store, one can download music as well as movies. My husband was very excited about this and said that he was glad at my discovery of the website.
First of all, I enjoyed the overall quality of the podcasts. For the most part, they were easy to download and understand. Many of thenm were very conversational especially in the beginning and took a while to get to the subject at hand. I also found that for some of the podcasts such as MacBreak and This Week in Photography, the scrub bar did not work and I had to listen to a lot of idle talk before I learned anything new. For the most part, though, I enjoyed the podcasts and can see their merits both to students and to teachers.
SmartBoard Lessons and Kidcast were relatively easy to find. I think that the SmartBoart hosts, Ben Hazzard and Joan Badger were a little too conversational diverging from the subject frequently and being a bit wordy. The KidCast was interesting. It was hosted by the students from Willowdale Elementary School. This particular podcast should appeal to children because it is presented by their peers. I found this to be quite refreshing. I also checked out EcoGeek. This podcast can be found under More Education, K-12 in the large middle section of podcasts. This "untamed science video" was my favorite. Its topics ranged from reptiles to fungi. The presentations are short and to the point. They were information packed, and this is what I liked about it the most. Children should appreciate this effect also. MasBreak was wordy but interesting, if you are technical minded and love computers. This Week In Photography was okay, but I would have liked to have seen the host, Alex Lindsay, get to his point more quicky.
Overall, I have developed somewhat of a feel for what podcasts are like. They are very informal, some taking place in the host's living room or den. Often, co-hosts are in different areas or cities. They are personal to an extent and conversational, much like chat among friends that we, the audience, just happen to b privy to. Some of these elements I will use in my own podcast. I want to put my audience at ease, but I think that the challenge will be to keep the audiences' attention throughout the audio. This strategy, I will contemplate.

Teachers Using Blogs in the Classroom

In a wonderfully eye opening article entitled Using Blogs in the Classroom: A New Approach To Teaching Social Studies With The Internet, C. Fredrick Risinger does a great job of breaking down just what a blog or web log is and how it can be used in education. Like him, I was amazed to learn the many ways that both educators and students can use the versatility of the web to broaden their horizons.
One particular link in his article was the web log of Eric Langhorst, an American History teacher at South Valley Junior High in Liberty, Missouri. His blog is entitled "Speaking of History" (www.speakingofhistory.blogspot.com). Mr. Langhorst's web enhanced information site contains a classroom homepage, course description, a teacher's resource page, and his own podcasts. He has web links to relevant sites such as Smithsonian's Interactive Gettysburg Address and several links to USA Today with relevant articles to his subject matter.
In a different kind of web log, history teacher, Dan McDowell at West Hills High School in San Diego, California, has established a teacher information blog. Information includes personal articles with his views on teaching as well as lesson plans, projects, and teacher workshops. Other teachers may log on to share personal views and professional information. His blog has links to other work related blogs and news. I enjoyed this blog because it gives teachers an opportunity to share ideas as well as vent to each other about personal and professional issues in teaching. The idea sharing aspect of it was rather reminiscent of our ALEX or Alabama Learning Exchange.
If you would like to visit the Speaking of History website, click on the link icon. CLICK HERE