BLog Post #2

Did You Know?

            This video is very eye opening because it shows how big the rest of the world is and the amount of work required of the United States to keep up.  Countries like India and China are so populous that their children will soon be taking over every good profession if we do not work to keep pace with them.  It is scary that the jobs that we are preparing our children for may not even exist right now.  We live in a world that is changing every day and the people who will be most successful are those who can adapt to those changes.  We take all modern technology for granted but it has greatly changed the landscape of American the last 20 years.  The population is growing rapidly and technology is getting better everyday which means that the competition for kids going to school is greater than it ever has been.

Mr. Winkle Wakes

            This video criticizes the education system for not keeping up to date with modern technology.  The work place and hospitals seem to always have the latest technology because it makes for a more productive environment but the school landscape has changed very little compared to those other places.  Personally I believe that some things in schools are more beneficial than modern technology.  For example, I think my calculus class would agree that having a full chalk board was very helpful in learning the difficult subject.  My teacher was offered a SmartBoard but it did not provide the same benefits.  Being able to all stand up and work out problems next to each other while erasing and changing mistakes allowed us all to get experience with the subject matter.  When problems were put on the SmartBoard we often ran out of room and had to scroll which then confused the class because the whole problem was not available to see.  I know for many classes the technology is very helpful and I think it is important for students to be literate when it comes to technology but, sometimes the traditional way can be better and more helpful than the new way.

Sir Ken Robinson: The Importance of Creativity

            This video talks about the amount of unpredictability in today’s world and the necessity for kids to be able to adapt to that unpredictability.  Schools today are suppressing students creativity because they make them afraid to try new things and be wrong.  If people live in the fear of being wrong or failing then they will never dare to try new things.  Our education stresses the importance of mathematics but not the importance of the arts.  When we don’t value the arts then kids who are good at the arts or enjoy it feel like they are not valued either.  We praise the kids that are good at math and science which we should, but we criticize the students who excel and want to focus on the art.  Also, the arts can help students excel in the other subjects we see as more important.  The brain is interactive and the arts can stimulate the brain and help us excel in other areas.  The arts need to be funded and supported in schools because they are often the only thing that encourage students to push them selves.

Sir Ken Robinson Interview

The United States is falling behind in the education competition.  Despite having funding and often less kids to focus on we still are behind many countries when in terms of education.  Our drop out rate is very high and our test scores are lower than a large percentage of our competition.  We need to push our kids to be creative because the creative thinkers are going to be the new inventors and scientists discovering cures to disease.  We can teach science and math all we want but if kids are not encouraged to push the limits of their learning then the current boundaries will never expand.  The arts are crucial in that sense if the equation.  The video also stresses that we can teach people and encourage people to be more creative.  We have to push the limits of the students while they are growing up.  They can not be afraid to make mistakes, they have to learn how to grow from their mistakes.

Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts

            This video shows how important and useful technology can be in today’s classroom.  Every student can learn but how we reach out to these children is an extremely important part in whether or not the children will learn or not.  Many children do not react well to pen and paper so we have to try to reach them in different ways.  Technology can be viewed just like the arts which we talked about earlier.  We have to reach students where they are coming from and allow them to try to things and push themselves.  When we only teach using one method we only reach out to one group of individuals.  It is important to create an environment in which the highest percentage of students can succeed.  By looking at students strengths and interests we can create a more productive setting for learning to take place and students will be more encouraged to put their highest effort in if they are enjoying what they are doing.