Final reflection at the end of the semester

This blog and all of its posts have revolved around different forms of technology and their connection to learning. Before starting this blog, I felt as if I had a good knowledge of the Internet tools and applications that are available. After all, I teach teenagers every day, and who is more “in the know” than today’s techy teens, but I must admit, I was surprised by how much is out there. While I had heard of some of these sites like Twitter before, I had no idea of their true potential. As I begin to actually use the apps and websites that I was required to use, I also began to see how these tools could be used in the classroom. Suddenly, I imagined myself incorporating Internet tools as a part of nearly every assignment. Blogs could replace reflection journals and students could use Animoto to create book trailers.  That does not mean that my time spent using these sites and apps went well 100% of the time. There were times (when updates were needed and preferences had to be changed) that I wanted to pick up my laptop and throw it across the room.

After the frustration passed, and I began using the Internet to find sites and blogs that would aid me with updates and the other problems I encountered, I was once again smiling and amazed by the capabilities of the Internet. The key (at least in my experience) is to continue to seek answers and not be afraid to experiment with these tools. The more I used the sites and apps, the more features I discovered, and the more I felt comfortable using them. I am excited to see where this new sense of Internet adventure will lead me. Ultimately, I hope to become knowledgeable enough to teach my high school students about the latest in social networking, apps, and other helpful Internet sites. I intend to continue blogging about new sites and apps, so stay tuned. 

Reviewing "How Do [They] Even Do That?": How Today's Technology is Shaping Tomorrow's Students”

Reviewing "How Do [They] Even Do That?": How Today's Technology is Shaping Tomorrow's Students”

This presentation focuses a new college student named Elizabeth. Throughout the PowerPoint, we see how technology has changed and grown along with Elizabeth.  Here, I highlight some of the more important points and make some of my own conclusions.

For the full PowerPoint presentation please click here - http://www.pewinternet.org/2013/04/09/how-do-they-even-do-that-how-todays-technology-is-shaping-tomorrows-students/

As Internet and technology have evolved, more people are becoming “connected”- connected to information in many different formats.

In the time span of 12 years, usage of the Internet connectivity and electronic devices has increased greatly.

According to the presentation, in 2012, 82% of adults reported regular use of the Internet. Compare that to only 46% percent in the year 2000. This may be a result of faster Internet speeds and availability. Users are now more likely to own cell phones and other electronic devices. The number of users who connect wirelessly has also increased as advances in technology and connectivity have been made.

Shifting back to today’s teens, it is becoming increasing clear that they are using social networking to build relationships. These relationships include local people as well as people they have never before met and are not close to in terms of physical location. In many cases, new college freshmen will research their prospective roommate(s) to determine whether their personalities will be compatible. Others use Facebook to build relationships with potential friends that will be attending the same college before the school year has even started.  Incoming freshmen connect with potential “friends” to ensure they are part of a social group that shares the same values and ideas as themselves. In this way, they begin to separate themselves from other students. These students also look to Facebook and social media sites to connect with their family and friends back at home.

Teens are searching for ways to learn independently, thus turning the Internet into their preferred educational tool. The Internet provides learners with an unstructured learning experience that allows them to modify learning to their own needs.

Schools are beginning to adapt to meet the growing need for technology in the classroom. Many school encourage students to bring their own devices to connect to the Internet. Students are using cell phone, tablets, and e-readers to complete class assignments, participate in discussions, and record video or take photos.

The flipped classroom is further spurring changes in the way students learn. A flipped classroom is one where the learner is at the center of instruction – often creating a product or participating in an activity. This puts the teacher on the sidelines as more of a guide to learning.

Many teachers are concerned that this mass amount of information available on the Internet is overwhelming learners and creating a generation of easily distracted students. However, learns will continue to dictate how they receive information, and it is up to teachers to instruct students how to correctly use these power tools and sort through information.

Personal thoughts

Today’s teachers have a choice. They can either fight new technologies and the Internet, or they can embrace the positive aspects of these changes and attempt to adequately prepare learners for the future. I personally, want to adapt and evolve along with technology and my students. Teachers must guide students in developing best practices and 21^st century skills. To not change would truly create a divide among learners and teachers.

43 pages

Lenhart, A. (2013, April 9). ‘How do they even do that?’: How Today’s Technology is Shaping Tomorrow’s Students. Pew Research Centers Internet American Life Project RSS. Retrieved June 25, 2014, from http://www.pewinternet.org/2013/04/09/how-do-they-even-do-that-how-todays-technology-is-shaping-tomorrows-students/

Reviewing “Social Networking and Privacy for Teens” PowerPoint

Reviewing “Social Networking and Privacy for Teens” PowerPoint

This is only a brief summary of the PowerPoint. For the full presentation please follow the link - http://www.pewinternet.org/2013/11/07/9-things-you-need-to-know-about-teens-technology-online-privacy/

According to the Pew Internet research center fact tank, there are 9 things the public should know about teens, the Internet, and privacy. While the majority of teens value their privacy from adults and others, their settings on social networking sites do not necessarily reflect so.

On Facebook, a large percentage (60%) of teens have their profile set to private. While another 25% of teens have parts of their profile blocked to the public.

Meanwhile, 64% of Tweets posted by teens are public. This varies greatly depending on how many friends the user has on the social networking site. The more friends, the more posting and sharing takes place. This sharing includes posts of personal photos, school name, hometown name, email address, and cell phone number.

Teens also appear to frequently alter comments, photos, or the entire profile to ensure their reputation is an accurately represented. This seems to be extremely important to teenagers.

With regards to advertisesr and third party companies, parents are the group that is most concerned with sharing too much information on social networking sites. Teens reported have little to no concern about advertisers who may have their personal information, although, teens do seek advice from parents and peers regarding their privacy setting on social networking sites.

Personal thoughts

Teens need to be educated about the consequences of over sharing information on social networking sites.

12 pages

Lenhart, A. (2013, November 7). 9 Things You Need To Know About Teens, Technology & Online Privacy. Pew Research Centers Internet American Life Project RSS. Retrieved June 25, 2014, from http://www.pewinternet.org/2013/11/07/9-things-you-need-to-know-about-teens-technology-online-privacy/

Reviewing "Teens and Libraries in Today’s Digital World"

Here I review a PowerPoint presentation by the Pew Internet Research Center. This presentation focused on the future of teenagers who use the Internet regularly for learning as well as their interactions with their local library. Below I highlighted some of the most important points of the presentation. There are quite a few questions posed in this presentation that do not have a clear answer yet. I leave it to you to make your own judgments. Although I will provide my opinions as well. Enjoy.

The original PowerPoint is available here 

 http://www.pewinternet.org/2014/04/09/millennials-and-libraries/

The report begins by emphasizing that teachers view the Internet as equally helpful and detrimental to students’ research. While many teachers reported that the Internet offered students access to information at a faster rate (preferable by teens), teens often do not know how to deal with the mass amounts of information available to them.

With the wide variety of information available to teens through the Internet, they can find a large amount of electronic resources. That being said, overuse of the Internet when researching can lead students to use only electronic resources and ignore print or other valuable sources.

Nearly all teens access the Internet, and about 1/3 of them have a broadband connection. Teens access the Internet through desktop computers, laptops, tablets, cell phones, and gaming devices.

Moreover, teens use the library and read almost as often as adults do, however, they do not feel a sense of loyalty or commitment to the library itself. Many teens reported that the closing of the local library would have little to no impact on their lives. However, teens that do use library services prefer services that include some form of technology.

The study goes on to argue that 16 years or so in the future, teenagers will have developed a strong ability to multitask. Because of the Internet, today’s teenagers will be able to move from task to task while remaining efficient in the future - ultimately benefiting from their use of the Internet. On the other hand, the study also suggests teens could become overwhelmed by information on the Internet, and use the resource as only a means of entertainment and distraction. Opinions on which outcome will occur in greater numbers is still being debated.

While teachers and researchers cannot confirm the future of today’s Internet savvy teens, they do agree that Internet searching skills must be a part of the curriculum taught in schools. Likewise, most agree that local schools should provide some form of technology literacy training to prepare students.

Personal thoughts

In my opinion, today’s teens are in danger of becoming hyper focused on the Internet, and maybe not for the right reasons. In my experience, most teenagers use the Internet as a means of entertainment. It is arguable that economic background and race/ethnicity change the outcome, but overall, I think teens are gaining a valuable resource in the Internet, at the expense of under developing other important skills.  Yet, if teens do not utilize the Internet for the right purposes, they will end up losing at both ends. As educators, it our responsibility to ensure that students of the future have a balanced skill set.

41 pages 

Rainie, L. (2014, April 9). Teens and Libraries in Today's Digital World. Pew Research Centers Internet American Life Project RSS. Retrieved June 25, 2014, from http://www.pewinternet.org/2014/04/09/millennials-and-libraries/