Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Technology in Classroom Observation
Yesterday I took my 3 health classes to the computer lab to do a research project on Mental Disorders. Students were put into groups and assigned a specific mental disorder to research and present to the class at a later date. During the time in the lab I sat back and observed how proficient the students were on the computers and how well they were able to accomplish the task. Out of the 102 students over the 3 classes that I took to the lab not one student asked me a question that was related to utilizing the computer. Some asked questions specific to the project but every student was proficient with utilizing the computer. Also I was amazed with how quickly the students were able to find all of the information and complete the task. Within 10 to 15 minutes students were able to define the disorder, find signs and symptoms, treatment methods and a true life story of someone with the disorder. After that they were already discussing amongst the group members what their skit was going to entail and what visual aids they were going to utilize. Within 20 minutes they were already done and watching highlights of the Super Bowl from the night before! It continually amazes me to see what the internet has done for education! The amount of information that students have at their fingertips is astounding. However, what really amazed me is that everyone was proficient in using the computer and no one needed any help! I believe that is part of the problem with educators today in their fear of technology. Teachers who are uncomfortable utilizing technology do not want to fumble in front of students who know how to use the technology much better than them! We as teachers like to stay one step ahead of our students and many teachers will not use technology because of this fear.
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I, too am consistently amazed at how quickly students are able to gather information and use that information to complete assigned tasks. I often find that I have "empty" time at the end of a lesson, because all of my student finish the assignment in much less time than I had allotted. After discussing this problem with other teachers in my school, it seems that I am not alone! The speed with which students use computers to complete assigned tasks underscores just how outdated the linear, task-oriented education model has become. The NJCCCS guidelines about layered assignments & multitasking are clearly necessary in the modern, technologically equipped classroom, to keep students engaged relevant activities.
ReplyDeleteThis is exactly what I want to see on the blog. I like to see the theory and also what is *really* going on in classrooms.
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting this!