Hola all! I’m Deon Goggins, a 20-year-old English Subject Matter major, dance minor. I’m an aspiring dancer, choreographer, English teacher, and writer extraordinaire. When I graduate in May, I want to pursue a master’s degree in education from Stanford, while simultaneously obtaining credentials to teach Dance and English at the High School level.
I don’t know about you, but I remember the “good ole days,” when we all sat in a classroom. Peering at the teacher, shoulders hunched over, seemingly bored, but we were so drawn into the teacher that we sunk into ourselves, completely surrendering to the fantasy the teachers were creating around us. The teacher would read from a book, or write on the chalkboard, and we had to jot down notes quickly while still remaining engaged. I feel that a complete surrender to media technology in the classroom is more than just making my sense of nostalgia extinct; it promotes a sense of near laziness. When students have to attentively write down notes, rather than just being able to rely on “the teacher putting the notes on the overhead,” or “quickly typing the notes down and then checking their facebooks”, they engage more in the subject matter.
Personally, I feel technology has stripped away my ability to retain knowledge at an accelerated pace. The facts that I remember the most are the ones that I’ve learned using my auditory sense in the classroom, or things that I’ve read from a book, or printout. When I read things on a computer screen my mind strays and wonders, and I constantly think about text messaging, my facebook, or a hilarious gossip blog; most of all, my eyes hurt.
I agree, I think too much technology "feeds" instead of encouraging students to think critically. It's like Plato's "allegory of the cave". We have to stop DEPENDING so much on web videos, PBS specials, and PowerPoint.
ReplyDeleteI think as teachers our main goal is to instill in students the basis for thinking critically by first finding out what they already know, but they're so wrapped up in technology and pop culture and media (TV, Gossip Girl, 50 Cent, Facebook, Myspace) that we sometimes need to delve into the basics or tap into their lives to find out how much they already know (what happened a 100 years ago? What was life like 200 years ago? How is it the same? How is it different? How is it relevent?). BUT we cannot expect them to fully comprehend anything outside their "everyday lives" without tapping into the only mediums they are familiar with, if even a little bit from time to time, we absolutely must utilize screens and video images and auditory aids.
Viktoriya of
http://VixiewithaVengeance.wordpress.com
Because of the budget cuts as CSUN, professors have been asked to go ‘paperless’ in the classroom. In theory this means that syllabi, handouts, and writing assignments should be online, and that photocopying of any sorts should be at a bare minimum. Although environmentally this sounds like we’re taking a step into the right direction, I feel like this new practice of ‘going electronic’ will thrust the university into the direction of using media as a main, if not sole, source for information and teaching.
ReplyDeleteDeon, I totally agree that having hands-on material, like handouts, helps students retain more information. I also think that the high-volume of media-use in the classroom might induce passive (a fancy word for lazy!) behavior from students, but I feel like television has more to do with this phenomenon. I do think that media-use in the classroom has its perks—although I am aware of its potentially negative effects when used in excess in the classroom, I do believe that a balanced use of any form of mass media can help students relate to and engage with classroom activities...
Vixie, I wholeheartedly agree that some medium of technology must be introduced into the classroom, without it students wouldn’t possess the skills necessary to write papers, know what MLA citation is, or be able to find information to supplement their thoughts.
ReplyDeleteSevan, I have a question: Why can’t they put our text books online then? I think each textbook we have to buy not only kills a tree, but my dreams. Each book I buy puts me one step further away from my dream car. As a future teacher I know that I will have to get over my hesitation in regards to media in the classroom. There is no way I can avoid it in the upcoming decades and still hope to be a good teacher.
ReplyDeleteHi Deon!
ReplyDeleteI for the most apart agree with your post. I was just talking to my sister, a fellow English major, about how addicting media/internet tools can be. I also agree with you about how if students have access to the internet during their lectures, it could greatly take their attention away from the lectures. However, one thing I would like to point out having , for example, a lap top for class, does help students take faster, sometimes more detailed notes. Today, I found myself still trying to figure out my teachers expectations/lecture style and where I normally would be lost fighting to take notes, it was a lot easier being able to type his lecture verbatim by verbatim of what he was saying so I could go home and read through them for a better understanding. Also, as I noted in Silver’s post, I think being able to download notes, syllabi etc on Webct is great because it is information made more easily accessible thus helping us be more prepared for class. Although, I do remember the days where a teacher’s voice and the enthusiasm it contained could elicit such excitement about the subject matter and hope as future teacher I am still able to provide that service to my students.