Teaching the IGeneration

For my computers course, I was to read yet another interesting article about teaching the techy generation.  The article requires a password in order to read which is unfortunately for you readers.

Anyway I will explain it a bit.  This article was explaining how the new generation of children are becoming more and more involved with technology.  How we (older generations) view technology as an aid in our daily lives, these young-ins see it as a constant, having never been without it.  While full of statistical information, the article moves on to say that teachers are using different forms of media in the classroom, but that they should be careful that by providing technology, it should not be solely for "technology's sake".   Older generation teachers, are not quite up to speed with the ever changing mediums and that although they want to relate to the kids, not having the skills nor time to play/search around for apps high in educational value will hinder them from offering useful apps/sites which could help teach the students.

One of the things that I found to be most surprising was that my generation (the net generation 1980-1989) are those who use media the most at 21 hours/day.  I think for the most part, because we were alive when internet just came out and we do know how to live life without constantly needing to be surrounded with media, we appreciate it more.  I also contribute this statistic to our employment and how our generation started the internet and so we know already so much about it and how to use it.  Most jobs use some form or another on an hourly basis and that contributes to our high usage.  I can only speak from experience by watching my mom with technology but the older generations are reluctant to get the grasp of technology because they know that in a couple of days, it will change and they will have to learn something new.  Seeing my mom with a blackberry is hilarious.  First of all, the font is way too small for her eyes.  She squints when she looks at it even after having changed to the largest sized font.  She gets frustrated when she doesn't know what to do next.  She sees all these buttons (on the desktop) and it intimidates her.  When someone writes her (and I admit, I do this to bug her), she can't figure out how to read the message if its not in an email.  Don't get me wrong, a lot of people do not fit into this mould but I would imagine that the vast majority of older generations are hesitant in moving on with the ever changing future.  The younger generations are online all the time but I would probably think that the lessor amount of usage is due to parental controls or extra curricular activities.  If these children had their choice, they would be online a lot more often.

The second thing which surprised me is the encouragement to send students home with homework to prepare for the next class rather than to practice their learning.  I like the idea of sending students home to watch a youtube video because each student will spend a different amount of time to understand the video.  The problem with this is: the parents and the language.  Parents these days sign their kids up in soo many extra curricular activities because they need to be concentrating of something at all times.  This creates a problem for teachers as parents start to call and say that their child didn't have enough time to do the work.  This child then comes in to class already behind and you need to make accommodations for him/her.  The language:  As you know, I teach French Immersion and as I would love to have online resources to send home with my students, they are extremely hard to find thus making my job all that more difficult (I have since made a delicious account to bookmark all the resources which I can find in French although some are in English for the students to use at home to complement their learning.)  The reason this part shocked me was that it seems as though we are moving into a more university way of running a class in that we giving the resources and expecting the students to learn on their own.  Good way if thinking, but are they ready for that yet? I'm not too sure.

Thats all for today!

9 things that will disappear in our Lifetime

I read this interesting article in which the author made a list of 9 things in our day to day life which will cease to exist in the future.
For the most part, I wholeheartedly agree with the authors picks.  I found myself nodding my head with each topic.  There are some comments that I wanted to express based on this article.

1. Post Office:  I agree that people are using the post office less and less and that it may be losing a lot of money.  I do think there are certain essential services in which the government will continue to fund despite a lack of profit.  The article states that ups and fed ex are taking over and while it may be true, there are some cheaper people out there (like me) who refuse to pay their fees.  I am one of few people with friends abroad and so I use Canada Post a couple times a year to send packages.  I also believe that with the invention of certain websites like ebay and etsy the post office is getting quite a bit of business so that it will be able to continue running for a long period of time. 

The check, the book, the newspaper and the land line.  Will they fail to exist during our lifetime? Yes and No.  I mean these 4 things have already begun a new generation of their genres.  The check is fairly nonexistent already with the help of online banking and being able to pay for things with your bank card.  In reality that's exactly what its purpose was and now it has adapted.  The book and newspaper have both been revamped so that you can read them online.  Its the same thing, only now you read it from a screen.  I do believe that newspapers will start to charge a subscription because after all, the people who produce them need to get paid and we don't necessarily want to see ads posted all over our screen. The land line has been replaced by the cell phone.  It is the newest thing for younger adults to move into a house without needing a land line.  The only reason to vote for it to stay would be because when you call a family dwelling, you can get anyone answering the phone and that may be a source of excitement for you.  Otherwise, no reason to have it because every other feature is available on your cell phone (unless you have an archaic one and are reluctant to move into a modernized world!).

Music and Television going away is just rediculous.  These two sectors in the entertainment industry are far better paid than most other choices of employment.  Will actors and singers take a pay cut because their art form will be easier to produce and distribute among their avid followers? Yes of course! Can we be realistic here? They are severely overpaid as it is and maybe with a pay cut, will we have less people trying out for these sources of entertainment. 

Privacy hits home with me, maybe because Ive watched far too many movies about the future and sense that we are always being watched.  Call me paranoid but everytime I look around, there are cameras who are taping our every move.  If someone really wanted to follow us, they could easily.  Do i think that my life is under a microscope? Not particularly. I just dont want to ever do something bad that might have someone needing to find me because they will succeed with the right connections! 

So there you have it, my opinions on the article.  If you have some of your own, I would love to hear from you!