I have read over half the book already, I got interested in it and couldn’t put it down. I highlighted the quotation when I read the statement. There is no way a teacher can keep up with current information, our drill and kill approach from the past has to be changed. I believe we need to teach students how to locate information, not how to memorize it. Who knows what the future holds for our students, jobs they will have still have not been created…we need to prepare them to be lifelong learners. AND, we need to model that for them.
I agree the drill and kill approach has got to be changed. This no longer how kids need to learn. I agree lifelong learners is our ultimate goal and learning thinking and coping skills is important as well. This world is fastly changing and we as teachers need to prepare our kids for what is coming to them.
I'd heard this before, but I remember it hit me that it would be an astronomical task to teach children all they need to know before they leave school. We need to teach them how to learn, how to research and find information, and how to evaluate the validity of the information they find. By the time children leave school, a lot of the content taught will be obsolete. Jerrie, I've gotten interested in this book as well, I really appreciate the author's perspective.
I haven’t had time to research this, but how does memorization help students? Are we making them memorize because of tradition, or because there are benefits to brain development? We spend so much time with young students memorizing things like math facts, should we be using that time to teach them the concept, and then move on to learning how to find information?
I cannot fathom it. There is a lot of information out there and to think that it will be doubling every year is unbelievable. How will we ever keep up with all the knowledge and information out there? Our teaching may have to change. I've read a little about flipped classrooms and they sound like an interesting idea. The students learn the lesson at home and then the teacher helps the students with the 'homework' aspect of the lesson along with expanding. The students learn how to find information and then in class work together or expand on what they learned. It will also target aspects that students may have troubles with. It sounds like an individualized teaching aspect for general ed classrooms. The teacher won't have to waste time on aspects that the students already know and can target aspects that are tripping the students up. This may be an interesting way to be innovative and keep up with information available out in the world. I've also thought taking on a Montessori type approach would be beneficial for students and expand problem solving, cooperation and creativity. It'll be interesting to see where this book leads us and what other schools are doing in the name of innovation.
I know of a Math teacher who has flipped all of her classes. She made videos of herself one summer teaching all of the math lessons for her Algebra II and Trig classes, which was a huge task. She sends students an e-mail each Friday to tell them which videos to watch for specific days and the assignments she will assign. Then during class time, students can work together on assignments and ask her for help. I think this is a great way to feel like you have more time with students than teachers have in the past.
I don’t think there’s a ‘may’ in our teaching having to change. I think it’s a must! Twenty-four hours in a day will not be enough time to teach all information that keeps being revealed. Instead, I think we have to look at innovative ways to teach students to be lifelong learners.
This concept is so very overwhelming and not realistic. I feel that we are being compared to China and our government wants us to be like them. At school there are not enough hours in the day to teach and teach effectively. We are micro managed with when and how to teach and for how many minutes and we are just throwing stuff at our students. The higher level thinking kids may barely keep their heads above water while the rest of our population sinks especially our special needs students. This concept will be the breaking point/burn out for some teachers for sure.
I totally agree. I think the basics are being lost and kids are supposed to just know it. Not realistic, especially with lack of parental involvement at home.
This is a scary statistic. I realize the way we teach needs to change. I think it is important to teach the students how to find knowledge. Nobody can know everything, but we can learn how to use our resources to find that information. We are going to have to use technology and in return teach it to our students. The students we work with are at a disadvantage because they lag behind in so many of the basic learning skills. I think the best thing we can do for our students is continue to expose them to technology and have them start to use the technology as we teach the material they need.
We were just talking about flipped classrooms in our staff meeting this morning. I think that it would take a lot of work up front and then it would work. I think this approach would work for some of my kids and others would never get anything done. It is something I need to research more and then be brave enough to try in my classroom.
Cara and Heather We had a junior high science teacher who used the flipped classroom method last year. I don't think very many of the eighth graders "caught on" to this method. The students on my roster especially struggled with it. For any student that does not feel that homework is a must and does not receive parental support to do that homework, it just didn't happen. Therefore they came to class without anything done and totally lost out. For one of my students the home situation is such that he really cannot do homework at home.
I believe homework is another way students will be divided. The flipped classroom is an interesting idea, but if the home buy in isn't there, aren't we just setting up certain students to still fail or be behind?
This statement hit me as a reinforcement for many topics being discussed throughout several of my college courses. During one discussion, we talked about teachers preparing students for life in 1995, especially when it comes to the technology. I do believe that we should continue to teach basic concepts to children, such as memorizing math facts and exploring the base-ten concept. I also think that it is important to teach children basic comprehension strategies such as inferencing, predicting, and asking questions. I agree with the overall consensus that we need to move towards teaching children how to access information and how to evaluate the validity of the information they are accessing. With the limitless access to the web, teaching students to evaluate the validity of information may be one of the most vital strategies we teach. With this movement in mind, we will need to introduce new devices as tools, so that they are not viewed only as toys. Using devices as a toy may weaken the effectiveness of the tools we may bring to the classroom.
I debate about memorizing math fact, but using base ten is definitely a great hands-on way to teach math concepts. I believe that if there is something that the only way to know it is to memorize it - I wonder how valid is it to spend valuable class time on it. Should we instead be teaching students how numbers relate, introduce facts but then allow students to have calculators or charts?
As you point out, I thnk it is really important to note that even though technology is the new way of accessing and presenting information that using hand-on manipulatives to introduce ideas is still an important piece to a person's ability to interface with the world.
We have heard for years now that we need to prepare kids for jobs/careers that have not even been invented yet. How do we do that? It tends to be a monumental undertaking. The days of memorize and regurgitate information are gone. Now we have to teach kids to think on their own and problem solve where to find the info we need. I really wonder if schools are ready for this and if teachers can adapt fast enough.
No, I do not think that the education system overall is ready. I see over and over where classroom teachers don't believe their students will learn anything unless they are explicitly told.
The complaints about Common Core are at the enter of this knowledge growth because not only do Common Core standards expect more from students but it expects a lot more from teachers too.
I agree that this sets up a higher expectation for teachers as well. I believe this expect ion increase will separate the teachers within a building as those being able to change and grow and those, who like our students, resist and fight the change in demands. This learning curve will be just as hard on teachers as kids.
I am blown away by the thought of what we know doubling in 1 year. It's preposterous to think that we can teach our students everything they need to "know" to succeed in life. This is why 21st century skills are so important. We need to teach students how to use technology, how to problem solve, how to think critically, how to collaborate with others, etc. Some obstacles I see to this are the infrastructure of schools, current legislation, under-funding of schools, and the public mindset. However, we can still make changes in how we teach and work with students.
I agree its somewhat crazy to think about doubling what we know know in a year. I agree teaching students how to use technology is vital. The issues I see with this is that many teachers struggle using technology. Get frustrated and stop trying.
The statement actually scares me a bit. I see how much the children in special education room struggle to learn and accomplish basic academic skills. To double what they are trying so hard to learn now is going to be devastating to their self esteem.
I believe that what is doubling isn't actual knowledge but rather the ability to effectively and efficiently use resources to FIND what people need to know.
I had a professor of Geman history who once told me that he remembered some things but other things he "dumped" from his mind at the end of a lecture and just reminded himself of it when he needed it. This makes more sense to me. I believe that the human mind can truly only hold so much information. However the ability to search, find, evaluate, analyze and problem-solve is a more likely way that knowledge appears to be growing.
How does this effect my teaching? I know from early on that I have to help students think for themselves. In terms of students with special needs, it means I need to quickly find a student's strengths and build those so they can see successs and have confidence before trying to fill in the gaps.
I just attended a conference for Deaf Education. One of the presenters mentioned our minds are like file cabinets and we search those files for what we find, which sounds like your German history professor. However, for deaf children their system is a laundry basket. They have to search through all the stuff they know to find what they want. This can take a longer time. I wonder if that is the same as the rest of our special education children. How do we help them organize the info in their brain while changing to innovative teaching?
I read a research study comparing our brain’s capacity to remember to technology. Initially, it was compared to a pitcher pump. Then as technology improved it was compared to a computer floppy disc. The latest comparison of the brain’s capacity to hold memory was to a DVD player. If the brain recorded constantly for 24 hours each day for 300 years, that’s how much capacity our brain has. I wanted to put this in my research paper, but could not find a place where it applied. I have the article if anyone wants to read it.
That statement is overwhelming and I've been thinking about it the past week. Yet, I think teachers have always struggled with trying to teach their students all they need to know or "how to learn". I think about some eighty something friends I'm privileged to be around that have done MUCH adapting and use technology and keep up with all the changes in their businesses and their lives. A previous comment mentioned teaching/encouraging students to problem solve and think creatively. In my opinion students seldom know how to do those two things. They spend much time in front of technology: video games, the computer or the television and very little time experiencing the real world where they might be forced to problem solve or be creative. For example, when my boys spent time outside building a fort they naturally experienced being creative and problem solving. I agree with many others that we have to teach our students how to learn and access credible information
I think teaching students to locate and understand information they find is vital. There is no way these little minds that I work with will be able to remember all of the information available. I think the basics needs to be taught and then how to apply it through research.
This is such an overwhelming thought as we look at what we as special education teachers need to focus on with students. We not only have to keep up with the changes in technology but also the cultural, socio economic, and generational changes to help kids. How do we prepare teachers for these changes? The ones currently teaching and the ones entering into teaching programs? Common core is so much information now, what about adding more? How do we determine what is the information to focus on when there are these changes? Also will research be sound enough to establish beat practices to meet the needs of students to gain this knowledge? I think that there will be an even wider gap with the have and have nots when it comes to information.
Thinking back to when I was in school our knowledge was limited to what our teachers knew, books that were available including encyclopedias, magazines, and newspapers. So much knowledge was out there but limited to us by the lack of being able to "connect" with the world compared to today. With technology we have access to the knowledge that in a previous generation was unavailable. This is scary because that information is both good and bad. The challenge is not just teaching our students to access information but doing it in a way that is appropriate, digital citizenship is the common phrase. That leads teaching in a whole new direction. Funny though, classrooms are still being run the traditional way, despite the direction we as teachers know we need to go in. That is where the change is needed!
Exactly my thoughts! I do believe that it's our responsibility as educators to teach students how to find "real, researched" information and not believe everything that is in front of our eyes. One of my districts teaches Ray Bradbury in the English class, and it sure opens up kids' eyes that things are not always what they seem to be and that a person has to keep questioning and digging for answers.
When I first read this comment, I was also pretty astounded. However, as you take into consideration the shear impact that technology, google, chrome books etc has on the education of our children, it's not really that surprising. My 7 year old daughter was shocked when she saw my husband looking in the phone book for a number (that he couldn't find) . . she was like "dad, just google it". She didn't even know a phone book existed! I think the volume of knowledge that our children will have access to will double ....it will be up to us as educators/parents to inspire them to be researchers/inquirers and teach them to "learn" if you will!
I think it is such an interesting and scary concept. We have heard for years that what we are teaching our kids now won't necessarily be relevant for them when they are adults. I think about all that my personal kiddos have learned in their short lives and I am amazed...and to think about what they will learn in their lifetime, it's mind boggling. I think that we as teachers have to figure out a way to teach kiddos HOW to learn information and where to find information and how to solve problems that we are faced with. I think there will always be new curriculum and new technology. Our goal should be to teach the kiddos ways to figure out how to use the information they are taught.
The statement means to me is that teachers are going to have to increase their knowledge base to keep up with giving knowledge to students. That means most of the teachers will have to go back to school to learn more in order to teach to our students which in turn will cost money, time without our families, and even less time teaching students because we have to go back to school and learn more. In the long run it will help some teachers out and it may not help with others . On the plus side of it it will give students that much more of a chance to go to College and be a success in their own lives.
I had highlighted this as well as there is no longer "in the good old days" thinking needed in education. I feel for those veteran teachers who are unable or unwilling to learn about technology and all the different uses that can be applied to their classrooms, because it's detrimental to their students as well as causing stress to themselves. I'm fearful of how quickly our technological knowledge has grown and how our schools/education leaders are sometimes not willing to change with the times. IMHO there possibly will no longer need to be teachers at the higher levels of education as students can and will take classes online and not need to sit in a traditional classroom.
With online classes, it is a scary thought to think that education can be done behind a computer screen. But, education is to prepare students to be positive, democratic members of society. Without a public learning environment, like school, that would not be possible. We would have a society of home bound, anti-socials. There may be advancements and accommodations made to the traditional school model, but school itself will never go away.
This is both a fascinating and terrifying thought -- in my opinion. I was discussing with our 5th grade history teacher how American History was being "re-written." They had decided to make it more "user friendly" by including current, newsworthy events and people and by taking out information which is no longer relevant. For example: Removing Thomas Jefferson and including Oprah Winfrey. While I am all for current events and popular culture, I am not one to diminish the importance of historical events and people. It is not, in my opinion, something we can erase. Thomas Jefferson was a founding father and an important figure in American history. To remove him from discussion undermines the very principals this country was founded upon and will further inhibit the future of our children. Yes, access to the internet has allowed for an expanse of knowledge to be shared and if promoted in the proper way can be made readily accessible for learners to explore. But, if we only teach what is important to US, we will quickly become obsolete in the world around us.
This part of your post: “For example: Removing Thomas Jefferson and including Oprah Winfrey,” was almost more shocking to me than reading that the sum of all our knowledge will soon be doubling every year. Seriously??? I think I kind of have the same mindset you do regarding that I’m not against current events or anything, and to me, that’s why we have a Current Events course that’s separate from American History, right??? In my mind, there’s no justification in basically saying that a celebrity is of the same importance to our country as one of our nation’s founding fathers. Call me ‘old-fashioned’ or whatever, but for people to actually be considering something like this is SCARY to me.
That statement is crazy to me, just mindboggling. When I first read it, I thought about a YouTube video one of my college professors showed us called ‘The Evolution of Technology and the Human Race” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcSzqm5Whwc). Ironically, this video is from 2008, so even it’s pretty outdated now (Haha!). I agree with a lot of the other comments regarding that we’re going to need to start teaching our kiddos HOW to find and access information, rather than just trying to get them to memorize as much as they can while in school. I think this also kind of relates to the saying, “Give a man a fish, and he’ll eat for a day; Teach a man to fish, and he’ll eat for a lifetime.” Ultimately, we need to be teaching our students skills that are going to help them be successful when they get out on their own in the real world (And who knows what’s going to be in store for them by the time they actually get there.).
Lichtman writes: “The sum of all human knowledge will soon be doubling every year, a frightening concept even if you are not good at math.” How does this statement “hit” you and what does it mean to you as a teacher?
I feel this a powerful statement for all teachers. This world is vastly changing to a technology world and no longer consist of being able to get through school memorizing facts. It is about the knowledge base and being able to find the information to back it up. It is about giving the kids the knowledge to be successful out in the real world. Teachers need to be ready for this changing world.
I have read over half the book already, I got interested in it and couldn’t put it down. I highlighted the quotation when I read the statement.
ReplyDeleteThere is no way a teacher can keep up with current information, our drill and kill approach from the past has to be changed. I believe we need to teach students how to locate information, not how to memorize it. Who knows what the future holds for our students, jobs they will have still have not been created…we need to prepare them to be lifelong learners. AND, we need to model that for them.
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteI agree the drill and kill approach has got to be changed. This no longer how kids need to learn. I agree lifelong learners is our ultimate goal and learning thinking and coping skills is important as well. This world is fastly changing and we as teachers need to prepare our kids for what is coming to them.
DeleteI'd heard this before, but I remember it hit me that it would be an astronomical task to teach children all they need to know before they leave school. We need to teach them how to learn, how to research and find information, and how to evaluate the validity of the information they find. By the time children leave school, a lot of the content taught will be obsolete. Jerrie, I've gotten interested in this book as well, I really appreciate the author's perspective.
ReplyDeleteI haven’t had time to research this, but how does memorization help students? Are we making them memorize because of tradition, or because there are benefits to brain development? We spend so much time with young students memorizing things like math facts, should we be using that time to teach them the concept, and then move on to learning how to find information?
DeleteI cannot fathom it. There is a lot of information out there and to think that it will be doubling every year is unbelievable. How will we ever keep up with all the knowledge and information out there? Our teaching may have to change. I've read a little about flipped classrooms and they sound like an interesting idea. The students learn the lesson at home and then the teacher helps the students with the 'homework' aspect of the lesson along with expanding. The students learn how to find information and then in class work together or expand on what they learned. It will also target aspects that students may have troubles with. It sounds like an individualized teaching aspect for general ed classrooms. The teacher won't have to waste time on aspects that the students already know and can target aspects that are tripping the students up. This may be an interesting way to be innovative and keep up with information available out in the world. I've also thought taking on a Montessori type approach would be beneficial for students and expand problem solving, cooperation and creativity. It'll be interesting to see where this book leads us and what other schools are doing in the name of innovation.
ReplyDeleteI know of a Math teacher who has flipped all of her classes. She made videos of herself one summer teaching all of the math lessons for her Algebra II and Trig classes, which was a huge task. She sends students an e-mail each Friday to tell them which videos to watch for specific days and the assignments she will assign. Then during class time, students can work together on assignments and ask her for help. I think this is a great way to feel like you have more time with students than teachers have in the past.
DeleteWow! I think that’s amazing. How do the students like the switch?
DeleteI don’t think there’s a ‘may’ in our teaching having to change. I think it’s a must! Twenty-four hours in a day will not be enough time to teach all information that keeps being revealed. Instead, I think we have to look at innovative ways to teach students to be lifelong learners.
ReplyDeleteThis concept is so very overwhelming and not realistic. I feel that we are being compared to China and our government wants us to be like them. At school there are not enough hours in the day to teach and teach effectively. We are micro managed with when and how to teach and for how many minutes and we are just throwing stuff at our students. The higher level thinking kids may barely keep their heads above water while the rest of our population sinks especially our special needs students. This concept will be the breaking point/burn out for some teachers for sure.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree. I think the basics are being lost and kids are supposed to just know it. Not realistic, especially with lack of parental involvement at home.
DeleteThis is a scary statistic. I realize the way we teach needs to change. I think it is important to teach the students how to find knowledge. Nobody can know everything, but we can learn how to use our resources to find that information. We are going to have to use technology and in return teach it to our students. The students we work with are at a disadvantage because they lag behind in so many of the basic learning skills. I think the best thing we can do for our students is continue to expose them to technology and have them start to use the technology as we teach the material they need.
ReplyDeleteI agree the students now need to find knowledge and teachers must change with it. Sometimes I think that the change is hard for teachers to take.
DeleteHeather:
ReplyDeleteWe were just talking about flipped classrooms in our staff meeting this morning. I think that it would take a lot of work up front and then it would work. I think this approach would work for some of my kids and others would never get anything done. It is something I need to research more and then be brave enough to try in my classroom.
Cara and Heather
DeleteWe had a junior high science teacher who used the flipped classroom method last year. I don't think very many of the eighth graders "caught on" to this method. The students on my roster especially struggled with it. For any student that does not feel that homework is a must and does not receive parental support to do that homework, it just didn't happen. Therefore they came to class without anything done and totally lost out. For one of my students the home situation is such that he really cannot do homework at home.
I believe homework is another way students will be divided. The flipped classroom is an interesting idea, but if the home buy in isn't there, aren't we just setting up certain students to still fail or be behind?
DeleteThis statement hit me as a reinforcement for many topics being discussed throughout several of my college courses. During one discussion, we talked about teachers preparing students for life in 1995, especially when it comes to the technology. I do believe that we should continue to teach basic concepts to children, such as memorizing math facts and exploring the base-ten concept. I also think that it is important to teach children basic comprehension strategies such as inferencing, predicting, and asking questions. I agree with the overall consensus that we need to move towards teaching children how to access information and how to evaluate the validity of the information they are accessing. With the limitless access to the web, teaching students to evaluate the validity of information may be one of the most vital strategies we teach. With this movement in mind, we will need to introduce new devices as tools, so that they are not viewed only as toys. Using devices as a toy may weaken the effectiveness of the tools we may bring to the classroom.
ReplyDeleteI debate about memorizing math fact, but using base ten is definitely a great hands-on way to teach math concepts. I believe that if there is something that the only way to know it is to memorize it - I wonder how valid is it to spend valuable class time on it. Should we instead be teaching students how numbers relate, introduce facts but then allow students to have calculators or charts?
DeleteAs you point out, I thnk it is really important to note that even though technology is the new way of accessing and presenting information that using hand-on manipulatives to introduce ideas is still an important piece to a person's ability to interface with the world.
We have heard for years now that we need to prepare kids for jobs/careers that have not even been invented yet. How do we do that? It tends to be a monumental undertaking. The days of memorize and regurgitate information are gone. Now we have to teach kids to think on their own and problem solve where to find the info we need. I really wonder if schools are ready for this and if teachers can adapt fast enough.
ReplyDeleteNo, I do not think that the education system overall is ready. I see over and over where classroom teachers don't believe their students will learn anything unless they are explicitly told.
DeleteThe complaints about Common Core are at the enter of this knowledge growth because not only do Common Core standards expect more from students but it expects a lot more from teachers too.
I agree that this sets up a higher expectation for teachers as well. I believe this expect ion increase will separate the teachers within a building as those being able to change and grow and those, who like our students, resist and fight the change in demands. This learning curve will be just as hard on teachers as kids.
DeleteI am blown away by the thought of what we know doubling in 1 year. It's preposterous to think that we can teach our students everything they need to "know" to succeed in life. This is why 21st century skills are so important. We need to teach students how to use technology, how to problem solve, how to think critically, how to collaborate with others, etc. Some obstacles I see to this are the infrastructure of schools, current legislation, under-funding of schools, and the public mindset. However, we can still make changes in how we teach and work with students.
ReplyDeleteI agree its somewhat crazy to think about doubling what we know know in a year. I agree teaching students how to use technology is vital. The issues I see with this is that many teachers struggle using technology. Get frustrated and stop trying.
DeleteThe statement actually scares me a bit. I see how much the children in special education room struggle to learn and accomplish basic academic skills. To double what they are trying so hard to learn now is going to be devastating to their self esteem.
ReplyDeleteI believe that what is doubling isn't actual knowledge but rather the ability to effectively and efficiently use resources to FIND what people need to know.
ReplyDeleteI had a professor of Geman history who once told me that he remembered some things but other things he "dumped" from his mind at the end of a lecture and just reminded himself of it when he needed it. This makes more sense to me. I believe that the human mind can truly only hold so much information. However the ability to search, find, evaluate, analyze and problem-solve is a more likely way that knowledge appears to be growing.
How does this effect my teaching? I know from early on that I have to help students think for themselves. In terms of students with special needs, it means I need to quickly find a student's strengths and build those so they can see successs and have confidence before trying to fill in the gaps.
I just attended a conference for Deaf Education. One of the presenters mentioned our minds are like file cabinets and we search those files for what we find, which sounds like your German history professor. However, for deaf children their system is a laundry basket. They have to search through all the stuff they know to find what they want. This can take a longer time. I wonder if that is the same as the rest of our special education children. How do we help them organize the info in their brain while changing to innovative teaching?
DeleteI read a research study comparing our brain’s capacity to remember to technology. Initially, it was compared to a pitcher pump. Then as technology improved it was compared to a computer floppy disc. The latest comparison of the brain’s capacity to hold memory was to a DVD player. If the brain recorded constantly for 24 hours each day for 300 years, that’s how much capacity our brain has.
DeleteI wanted to put this in my research paper, but could not find a place where it applied. I have the article if anyone wants to read it.
That statement is overwhelming and I've been thinking about it the past week. Yet, I think teachers have always struggled with trying to teach their students all they need to know or "how to learn". I think about some eighty something friends I'm privileged to be around that have done MUCH adapting and use technology and keep up with all the changes in their businesses and their lives. A previous comment mentioned teaching/encouraging students to problem solve and think creatively. In my opinion students seldom know how to do those two things. They spend much time in front of technology: video games, the computer or the television and very little time experiencing the real world where they might be forced to problem solve or be creative. For example, when my boys spent time outside building a fort they naturally experienced being creative and problem solving. I agree with many others that we have to teach our students how to learn and access credible information
ReplyDeleteI think teaching students to locate and understand information they find is vital. There is no way these little minds that I work with will be able to remember all of the information available. I think the basics needs to be taught and then how to apply it through research.
ReplyDeleteI agree Deanna!! We have to start teaching the kiddos how to locate the information and then how to apply that information.
DeleteThis is such an overwhelming thought as we look at what we as special education teachers need to focus on with students. We not only have to keep up with the changes in technology but also the cultural, socio economic, and generational changes to help kids. How do we prepare teachers for these changes? The ones currently teaching and the ones entering into teaching programs? Common core is so much information now, what about adding more? How do we determine what is the information to focus on when there are these changes? Also will research be sound enough to establish beat practices to meet the needs of students to gain this knowledge? I think that there will be an even wider gap with the have and have nots when it comes to information.
ReplyDeleteThinking back to when I was in school our knowledge was limited to what our teachers knew, books that were available including encyclopedias, magazines, and newspapers. So much knowledge was out there but limited to us by the lack of being able to "connect" with the world compared to today. With technology we have access to the knowledge that in a previous generation was unavailable. This is scary because that information is both good and bad. The challenge is not just teaching our students to access information but doing it in a way that is appropriate, digital citizenship is the common phrase. That leads teaching in a whole new direction. Funny though, classrooms are still being run the traditional way, despite the direction we as teachers know we need to go in. That is where the change is needed!
ReplyDeleteExactly my thoughts! I do believe that it's our responsibility as educators to teach students how to find "real, researched" information and not believe everything that is in front of our eyes. One of my districts teaches Ray Bradbury in the English class, and it sure opens up kids' eyes that things are not always what they seem to be and that a person has to keep questioning and digging for answers.
DeleteWhen I first read this comment, I was also pretty astounded. However, as you take into consideration the shear impact that technology, google, chrome books etc has on the education of our children, it's not really that surprising. My 7 year old daughter was shocked when she saw my husband looking in the phone book for a number (that he couldn't find) . . she was like "dad, just google it". She didn't even know a phone book existed! I think the volume of knowledge that our children will have access to will double ....it will be up to us as educators/parents to inspire them to be researchers/inquirers and teach them to "learn" if you will!
ReplyDeleteI think it is such an interesting and scary concept. We have heard for years that what we are teaching our kids now won't necessarily be relevant for them when they are adults. I think about all that my personal kiddos have learned in their short lives and I am amazed...and to think about what they will learn in their lifetime, it's mind boggling. I think that we as teachers have to figure out a way to teach kiddos HOW to learn information and where to find information and how to solve problems that we are faced with. I think there will always be new curriculum and new technology. Our goal should be to teach the kiddos ways to figure out how to use the information they are taught.
ReplyDeleteThe statement means to me is that teachers are going to have to increase their knowledge base to keep up with giving knowledge to students. That means most of the teachers will have to go back to school to learn more in order to teach to our students which in turn will cost money, time without our families, and even less time teaching students because we have to go back to school and learn more. In the long run it will help some teachers out and it may not help with others . On the plus side of it it will give students that much more of a chance to go to College and be a success in their own lives.
ReplyDeleteI had highlighted this as well as there is no longer "in the good old days" thinking needed in education. I feel for those veteran teachers who are unable or unwilling to learn about technology and all the different uses that can be applied to their classrooms, because it's detrimental to their students as well as causing stress to themselves.
ReplyDeleteI'm fearful of how quickly our technological knowledge has grown and how our schools/education leaders are sometimes not willing to change with the times. IMHO there possibly will no longer need to be teachers at the higher levels of education as students can and will take classes online and not need to sit in a traditional classroom.
With online classes, it is a scary thought to think that education can be done behind a computer screen. But, education is to prepare students to be positive, democratic members of society. Without a public learning environment, like school, that would not be possible. We would have a society of home bound, anti-socials. There may be advancements and accommodations made to the traditional school model, but school itself will never go away.
DeleteThis is both a fascinating and terrifying thought -- in my opinion. I was discussing with our 5th grade history teacher how American History was being "re-written." They had decided to make it more "user friendly" by including current, newsworthy events and people and by taking out information which is no longer relevant. For example: Removing Thomas Jefferson and including Oprah Winfrey. While I am all for current events and popular culture, I am not one to diminish the importance of historical events and people. It is not, in my opinion, something we can erase. Thomas Jefferson was a founding father and an important figure in American history. To remove him from discussion undermines the very principals this country was founded upon and will further inhibit the future of our children. Yes, access to the internet has allowed for an expanse of knowledge to be shared and if promoted in the proper way can be made readily accessible for learners to explore. But, if we only teach what is important to US, we will quickly become obsolete in the world around us.
ReplyDeleteCourtney-
DeleteThis part of your post: “For example: Removing Thomas Jefferson and including Oprah Winfrey,” was almost more shocking to me than reading that the sum of all our knowledge will soon be doubling every year. Seriously??? I think I kind of have the same mindset you do regarding that I’m not against current events or anything, and to me, that’s why we have a Current Events course that’s separate from American History, right??? In my mind, there’s no justification in basically saying that a celebrity is of the same importance to our country as one of our nation’s founding fathers. Call me ‘old-fashioned’ or whatever, but for people to actually be considering something like this is SCARY to me.
That statement is crazy to me, just mindboggling. When I first read it, I thought about a YouTube video one of my college professors showed us called ‘The Evolution of Technology and the Human Race” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcSzqm5Whwc). Ironically, this video is from 2008, so even it’s pretty outdated now (Haha!). I agree with a lot of the other comments regarding that we’re going to need to start teaching our kiddos HOW to find and access information, rather than just trying to get them to memorize as much as they can while in school. I think this also kind of relates to the saying, “Give a man a fish, and he’ll eat for a day; Teach a man to fish, and he’ll eat for a lifetime.” Ultimately, we need to be teaching our students skills that are going to help them be successful when they get out on their own in the real world (And who knows what’s going to be in store for them by the time they actually get there.).
ReplyDeleteLichtman writes: “The sum of all human knowledge will soon be doubling every year, a frightening concept even if you are not good at math.”
ReplyDeleteHow does this statement “hit” you and what does it mean to you as a teacher?
I feel this a powerful statement for all teachers. This world is vastly changing to a technology world and no longer consist of being able to get through school memorizing facts. It is about the knowledge base and being able to find the information to back it up. It is about giving the kids the knowledge to be successful out in the real world. Teachers need to be ready for this changing world.