Blog Post #2

What Will Teaching in the 21st Century be Like?

Mr. Dancealot (4:20)
The central message of the video, "Mr. Dancealot" is to show how the way a class is taught really matters. This video is of a teacher instructing a dance class but does not properly teach his students. All the teacher does is present to the students a power point presentation and talks the entire time. There is no feedback from the class, no chance for the students to engage in the learning process, much less actually get up to practice the dance, and there is no enthusiasm. Nevertheless, this video is simply showing how important it is to teach a class the proper way and any way that the subject requires to be taught. I agree that this is not the correct way to teach any class.

Teaching in the 21st Century (10:45) by Kevin Roberts (John Strange version)
Kevin Roberts thinks that teaching in the 21st Century needs to be brought more towards technology. Kevin Robert believes that teaching in the 21st should in fact be different from years prior due to all of the advancements associated with technology. Students now are constantly using technology on a daily basis and rely so much on it that the teacher now is not the only way they are gaining knowledge.

>Role as teachers
>Where students get information
>The filters
>How to teach students to handle these resources
>what creation means today
>Change in the classroom

If the only role that teachers have is to provide facts, formulas, stories, etc. to the students then Kevin Robert says that role is obsolete. Students get information from all sorts of technology sources such as blogs, Google, twitter, and so on. He says that teachers are now considered to be the filter instead of the main source of knowledge. Robert lists examples of how students may not know how to use these technology resources. Within this video Robert lists different forms of creations that people today use such as, blogging, designing, animating, and recording. Robert says, "we need to rethink the tools we use and the type of problems we ask students to solve." Kevin Robert wants the classrooms today in the 21st century to be the most that they can be for the students ans also for the teachers. He believes that with utilizing the technology available and teaching the proper skills to students will be the most effective way to better the education process. Teaching students how to analyze, research, validate information, synthesize information, are all important for teachers to teach students.
If classrooms are changed to this new form of teaching and learning then as educators things will be different as well. The format of teaching will change significantly. It will certainly be different from what I grew up in within the classroom. I do believe that this is a great idea and that it will have such positive and aspiring effects on students and teachers within the education process.

The Networked Student (5:10) by Wendy Drexler
After viewing this video I realize just how much I as a student can do with the use of technology. There are so many opportunities and resources right here at my finger tips. The way the video demonstrates just how broad one student can go throughout using various websites and blogs to further his education and contact other people is pretty cool. I completely agree with the video when the question, "Why does the networked student even need a teacher?" is asked. The response is right on target. Having a good and caring teacher is always a good thing. A good teacher is always willing to help his or her students out with whatever it is that they be struggling with.

Harness Your Students’ Digital Smarts (4:49) by Vicki Davis
The thesis for Davis' video is to demonstrate and explain how she is able to teach her students to learn for themselves and how having a digitized classroom enables them to connect to the world. My reaction to the video's argument is that I believe it is a great way to teach students to expand their horizon and that it helps them to become independent learners. With her not defining everything it teaches them to look up and research things for themselves, instead of being dependent on the teacher.

John H. Strange, Who’s Ahead in the Learning Race?
The question in John H. Srange's video is, "Who's ahead in the learning race?" and the answer is very surprising. After watching and listening to how he went and observed the classrooms in Gulf Shores the answer is elementary students! How awesome is that to hear that children of such a young age is able to use these wonderful works of technology. It is amazing how they are actually learning some of the same things that I am currently learning and even more. My position in which the video is referring to falls in the undergraduate.

Flipping the Classroom (3:49)
Flipping the classroom is definitely new to me. I never had a classroom that was like this in any way growing up. I definitely believe that this new way of instructing a classroom will be helpful to me as future educator. I like how this new way of teaching will allow more time for the teacher to help students and, like the video puts it, for the teacher "to serve as a facilitator."