Some of my views on class readings

Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants
By: Marc Prensky
I should just classify myself to be part of that group that is in-between the Natives and Immigrants. I agree that teachers need to accommodate to fit the needs of the students. However, we as teachers are charged with the duty of readying our students for the real world and jobs. If you text all day at your job when you are supposed to be working, won’t you get fired? So the same should also apply in school. We are here to teach them the rules of the world. Not just change the world to fit what the students want. It is their place to find out where they belong in this world and how to get there. It is our job as educators to prepare and guide them. Just because a student learns a certain way does not mean their boss or supervisor will placate to their needs. We ALL have to learn to compromise. I like the idea of the video games, but I like them better as supplemental material. They should not be used in a classroom to teach the students, only to reinforce it.

Understanding Digital Kids
By: Ian Jukes
I agree with Ian Jukes that kids speak ‘DFL’ where we speak ‘DSL’. They also often write and type it. In this I am referring to the little shortcuts kids have for texting and online chat. I find myself, this past week, trying to type papers with 1st and also using &. It is a very hard habit to break.
Neuroplasticity: He says that the brain is not fixed but constantly ‘rewiring’ or reorganizing itself. I agree. There are many people with head trauma and strokes that have regained functionality of body systems and parts because the brain remapped itself.
Says that world is predominately left brained and that left brain knowledge will eventually be turned into hardware, software, or outsourced. Therefore we need to teach the new generations of children to think with both hemispheres of the brain so they will be able to use a whole new mind. I don’t really know what he means. The right side of the brain contains pattern analysis, big picture thinking, intuition and things like these. Apparently using these characteristics along with the left-brains linear and logical thinking will allow them to enter into an entirely new realm of thinking? I have no clue. I’m not even sure what it has to do with technology except that I like pattern recognition video games. lol. See, hard habit to break.

Online Community of Inquiry Review
By: Garrison D. R.
I really like the idea of an online class being a community. The relationship must, in class discussions, stay focused on the task at hand. They must be able to communicate effectively and be open-minded to the other peoples’ points of view presented. The instructor helps to keep students on track so they can not only interpret the issues being dealt with but also come to mutually satisfactory solutions. The instructor needs to constantly guide the students to make sure they not only discuss issues but also solutions to those issues.