Blog Assignment # 8

Richard Miller :  This Is How We Dream

     I enjoyed this lecture by Richard Miller. He talks about how the world is changing and how we need to adapt. There used to be books everywhere and that was the way most people learned. Today people are using the internet way more than they use books. There is so much more available to us because of the internet. I think people were limited in what they could learn in the past. People could only learn from books they read or by going to a library to do research. Today people with the click of a button can find valuable information on anything they want to learn about.
     I believe we have to teach our students how to use technology if we want them to be successful. If we try to hang on to the past and teach them the way we were taught, we are neglecting them. We have to teach them the new way of learning. In order to teach them the new way of learning, we have to be able to do it ourselves. If we as teachers do not stay updated with evolving technology, how will we expect to teach our students this new way of learning.
     Am I prepared to write with multimedia? The honest answer to this question is no at the moment. I do feel like I am on my way. Taking this course (EDM 310) has helped me a lot. I am more prepared than I was a few months ago. I do think my students will be able to write with multimedia. I think they will be more prepared than students in the past to write with multimedia. I believe that in a few years it will be necessary for every student to write with multimedia or risk the chance of falling behind their peers. This makes it vitally important for me as a future teacher to stay updated with the newest technology and to learn something new everyday that may one day help me teach my students.


The Chipper Series

     This video is about a young lady who is searching for the easy way do things. She is in Dr. Strange's EDM 310 class and wants to turn her work in late and procrastinate all the time. She eventually drops out of school after making bad grades. She thinks she should be able to turn her work in whenever she wants. She starts her own flight school. She lets the students make their own schedules and come to class whenever they like. The Flight school is not a success and it is quickly shut down by the FAA. Chipper then decides to get an online degree and Dr. Strange helps her get a job at a school. She is not responsible and misses class all the time. She is eventually fired by the school. She then gets a job as a waitress. This does not last long either and she is fired. Chipper decides to be a nanny next. She thinks this will be easy and she can do her own thing all day instead of watching the kids. She is never offered this job. She finally decides to be a garbage collector. This job does not last long either. She finally comes back to Dr. Strange and tells him that she had a "cleansing" of her mind. She decides to come back to school and get her master's degree in education. This time she is determined to not procrastinate and to study hard.
  

EDM 310 For Dummies

     This video is about two girls who are frustrated and hate EDM 310 in the beginning. Their attitudes change quickly when they are introduced this book titled "EDM 310 For Dummies". They find in this book many helpful things and tutorials that help them with the class projects. They start enjoying EDM 310 and start looking forward to doing their work now.


Learn to Change, Change to Learn

     This video is pretty much encouraging us to change the way we are learning. We are sticking to the same way of learning when the world around us is changing. We need to change the way that we teach in many aspects. If we continue on this path, our students will not be ready for the real world that awaits them when they leave school. We should teach students things that are important for them in the future.
     Many jobs in the future will be dependent on us knowing how to use technology. The old way of teaching is not going to enable our students to be successful . Most jobs in the future are going to be computer and technology related. It is not easy to change our old habits sometimes, but I believe we have to adapt to the world around us and give our students the best opportunity to succeed in life. I agree with the gentlemen in the video that says we need to get away from requiring students just to learn facts. We need to teach our students how to find useful information. We should encourage students to learn independently and by working with others.


The Secret Powers of Time

     This video was a good demonstration of the changing world around us. I think Professor Zimbardo is trying to point out that we are more past oriented in our thinking when we should be more future oriented. We should embrace the future way of learning things and let go of the past. I think it is sad that so many people are more worried about being successful than spending time with their families. I agree with Professor Zimbardo when he says " There is a disaster recipe developing for boys in America." The amount of time that boys are spending on video games and on the computer are staggering. This means that they will never fit in a traditional classroom. They are expected to sit back and be quiet in a classroom. They control nothing and are being taught nothing that interests them. I think this is why so many boys are dropping out of school. It is not challenging them and they are not in control of anything. I think we could do better as teachers to try to incorporate some new ideas and make learning more fun and more interactive. We can still teach the necessary things, but make it more interesting and challenging.


Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us

  
     Daniel Pink discusses what really motivates us in this video. Most probably think that money is the leading motivator for why we do something. Pink talks about a study at MIT where they took a group of students and gave them a group of challenges. The students were given monetary rewards based on their performances. The result was a strange finding. Once the task called for rudimentary cognitive skills, a larger reward led to poorer performance. This is opposite of what most people believe would happen. The point MR. Pink is making is that people perform better when they are allowed to be creative and think for themselves. When people are just told what to do and how to do it, they are less creative and are not challenged to learn independently. I think this is what is happening in a lot of classrooms. Students are just being forced to memorize material so they can pass a test. If we let students be creative and force them to find answers for themselves, I think we will see better results and positive attitudes toward learning.