The teacher of the future sure does have big shoes to fill, or perhaps we should say a big world to wrap her arms around. Well, that teacher I am referring to is me! I have learned so much already this semester in my EDM class that I realize I had not even considered as possibilities for teaching my students in this new age of advanced technologically based learning. I myself have learned to embrace the internet as my own personal world at my fingertips, no longer having to exchange the comfort of my own home with the cold unforgiving library. Many hours of research, reading, searching and questioning which I experienced in the past as a student, are now minimized to the comfort of my home surfing the web and discussing with various individuals on face book, email, twitter, etc. my thoughts and theirs. The process of learning has gone from impersonal to active. The ability to travel the world regardless of your finance has encouraged a way of experiencing life never before thought possible. This next generation of technology will no doubt release our imaginations beyond our wildest dreams. I am very interested in further developing my ability to network which I believe will assist my students to better use the web tools available to them.
Why then has the education system seemed slower to catch on to the idea of networking more than the computers in the building? The idea of students learning how to network for them seem to be a critical thinking skill our next generation adults will need more than ever before. As I said earlier, the information stream has sped to such an accessible rate compared to 20 years ago, that students need to be taught how to manage this process of learning and thinking. Teachers of the future are going to need to teach students how to navigate the world not just a textbook. Many teachers will need to move out of the ideology that the classroom needs to be teacher centered but rather student centered.
As I wonder about my capability to become a teacher who leads and follows my students lead, I can’t help but question my previous knowledge of the understood set up of an average classroom. Can I learn to teach my students to network outside of our classroom, our town and state? Can I engage my students In the process of learning and teaching one another with all possible available ideas? I am open to ideas and believe in education. I enjoy creativity of others as well as believe in the capacity of the human experience to influence the world for a greater good.
Thus my answer must be yes that I want to embrace the ideas of teaching and learning that foster a more complex existence than I have understood in my education. No longer can students maintain isolated learning completely separate from the availability of technology, classrooms need to expand and grow to encourage the professionals of tomorrow.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
You are so right. Teachers are going to have teach students to navigate the world not just a book. Technology is changing the way we teach. We are no learner teaching from the text books but we are teaching from web.
ReplyDelete