Perspectives

I spent the last four days in New York City on a mini vacation. I was inundated with digital technology. From the electronic check in at the airport to the giant streaming billboards in Time Square, I was definitely aware of the impact that digital technology is having on our world society. I encountered a group of teens intently reading the CNN news feed stream. It occurred to me that if this information was coming to them in the form of a lecture or print, they would not have been as connected. Romano's perceptions that all human activity is driven by information and that all learning is perceived by the senses was very apparent.
But without the benefit of a giant teletron, we as teachers must be able to inform our students in a way that makes the learning intrinsic. The perception that how a teacher manages the information has a great impact on the learning process is one that I see everyday. Teachers who rely solely on lecture and print are losing their students interest and therefore not making links to the information. I am working with teachers to help them manage their technology use to create interest and encourage learning by showing them the different skills, programs, and tools I am learning in this course.
The perception that information technology can be used by teachers to plan, communicate, guide, and evaluate more effectively has been amplified to me in the form of video conferences. I have had the pleasure of helping facilitate video conferences with the University of Michigan science department in the last few weeks. The students observed crickets in a habitat while learning the scientific process. This was a very effective lesson due to the teacher's planning, guidance, and communication while using the video conference. She was also able to evaluate her students effectively by monitoring their responses to the scientists questions and their observations.
This experience also follows the perception that a verbal description alone compromises the learning experience. If the students were only told the steps of the scientific process their learning would have been compromised. By conducting the observation with a scientist, watching video, and having hands on experiences, a greater "sensory impact" was accomplished.
The perception addressing fidelity, relevancy, and accessibility were also seen in the video conference lesson. The live crickets used in the observation and the expertise of the scientist meet the issue of fidelity. Understanding and being able to use the scientific method are relevant in most problem solving situations. The crickets are to remain in the classroom and the students will have access to the information through websites and videos.
Through the use of video conferences, blogs, webquests, online video, skill development, etc... I hope to continue to find ways to help teachers and students acquire and manage information effectively.
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