Online apps

Google Docs

I have used Google Docs for word processing before, but I have not really messed around with its spreadsheets, so I figured now is as good a time as ever!  Being a physics teacher (and having taking numerous physics classes in undergrad) I have used Excel for a variety of things.  I even made a spreadsheet for my college job that would automatically update the needed orders and used conditional formatting to highlight when we were running low on filters.  From what I have been able to see so far, Google Docs spreadsheets seem to be quite capable of everything I typically use spreadsheets for.  Various equations work well, including basic if-then statements, and conditional formatting seems pretty easy.  One odd thing that I have found so far is if I want to subtract the value of one cell from another, I cannot simply click on the first cell, hit the “-“ and then select the second cell.  It just replaces the first cell!  Works fine for addition, multiplication, and division, just not subtraction.  Weird.

            Overall, it looks like a rather solid spreadsheet editor.  Have not been able to see if it can handle macros, but Microsoft Excel cannot handle them as well as it used to, either.

PicMonkey

            I do not believe I have ever used an online image editor before, so I didn’t really know what to expect.  I have used Photoshop a little before, and I also use GIMP, an open source Photoshop-replacement.  Most of the editing that I have done using Photoshop and GIMP could be done in PicMonkey.  That is, things like rotating, cropping, adjusting some colors, etc., were pretty easy in PicMonkey.  I like the overall layout of the site, with the left toolbar providing several different sub-menus.  Some of the tools were fairly common, and some were things that you would never see labeled as such in a professional editing program.  For example, to the best of my knowledge, there are no options for specifically highlighting your hair or giving yourself a spray-tan (though, may I say, it made a picture of me taken last winter look much more summery).  From what I can see, it kind of “dumbs down” some of the more common uses of professional programs so that we non-professionals can easily do the basics without having to know much or do much research.

I have had a chance to use GIMP for more complex uses such as merging layers, setting alpha levels, and adjusting transparency of layers.  From what I can tell, these options are not available in PicMonkey.  But, honestly, for the average user, how many of us really need to do these tasks?  The only reason I did these tasks is because I was bored in the summer and wanted to customize our school’s logo for my classroom site.  For the average user, such as myself, it looks as though PicMonkey can accomplish most of the tasks we would need.

E-Learning

            Having supervised students taking online classes, the “Technics vs. Trucks” section struck home with me.  Most of the online learning we have used at our school if for students who need to make up credits.  The authors quoted Clark as stating that forms of instruction through technology “do not influence student achievement any more than the truck that delivers our groceries causes changes in our nutrition.”  In some instances, this is true.  Some online classes are simply the digital equivalent of a teacher’s instruction, but without the option of interaction.  As a result, some students (often who did not perform well in the same subject in a normal classroom environment) do not perform well  in the online environment.  For such students, this type of online learning environment may only serve as the truck.  However, some students thrive in this learning environment.  They can set their own pace, and it is easier for them to review a topic as many times as they may need before moving on to the next topic.  Even though this style of online learning is more of a “truck” than others, it may be an effective method for some, falling in line with Kozma’s description of using media for learning.

            The description of  "The scenario of the solitary student working alone at her computer late into the night with little or no contact with her peers still exists, but many current and future learning systems will emphasize shared experience features" found on page 283 was what made me initially apprehensive about online learning.  One of the main reasons I went into teaching was for the interaction.  I enjoy working with students and seeing that “Aha!” moment when a student understands an aspect of the material because of something that they experienced in class.  Most of those moments that I have seen have been due to interactions between student and teacher or between students themselves.  I was worried that online learning would eliminate this option.  I have seen online learning where this is true, but I am beginning to see the value of online interactions.  As I am reading other people’s responses each week, it allows me to go back and re-read others views as well as allowing myself to take more time when working on a response.  While I do miss the opportunities the immediate back-and-forth communication of being in a physical classroom, I do enjoy that strengths of a flexible timeframe for online learning.

WMAA Tech Page

WMAA Tech Page
This is actually a page that I created in August, but I had not done anything with it until now!  I had (and still have) hopes that this will be a source of information for my students regarding their tech questions.  That way, students won't interrupt class if they have a problem.

Lessons in IDT

            Lesson 11 stuck out to me as something I need to look into more.  Becoming a part of professional organizations for me, especially considering that I am in the very beginning stages of my career.  By joining professional organizations, I would have access to a wide variety of people who have different and, simply put, more experiences than I do currently that can help me develop as an educator.  Professional organizations are useful to build a stronger network of resources and, in turn, a wider network if I choose to look for a different position.

            I also found Lesson 18 to be fairly relevant to me.  When I first interviewed at my school, I interviewed for a math position.  I was dead-set on being a math teacher, and did not even look for positions teaching physics (which was my minor in college).  A few days after my second interview, my now-principal called me and asked to verify that I was certified to teach physics, and I, somewhat reluctantly, admitted that I was.  Soon after, I was offered a job to teach physical science with the intention of me moving into a math job as our school grows (I am now teaching 4 math classes and one Physics, so the transfer is almost complete!).  Though this may not be as directly related to this lesson as I initially thought when I started this paragraph (oops!), what I learned from that situation is that flexibility is key when searching for a job.  Though you may not always be as fully qualified as the employer may like, or, in my case, part of the job may not be what you want to ultimately do, a willingness to make changes and learn new things is valued.

Concept Mapping Motion in 1 Dimension

 

In my Honors Physics Class, we have been talking about the relationship of the measurements that we can take in one dimension.  We can easily measure distance and time, but we need to calculate velocity and, in turn, acceleration.  Students would make their own concept maps of the relationships to demonstrate how one measurement leads to another.

Connection ID in Business, P-12, and Higher Ed

            One theme that seems to be consistently coming up in these readings about business, P-12 education, and higher education is the inflexibility of some.  In the business world, it is seen in the stubbornness of those providing the services and/or the client.  If the instructional designer is not willing to take the clients need into consideration and instead just plod along with their plans, their end goal will not be effective.  Likewise, if the client is not open to new ideas or any sort of change, the work of the instructional designer will be for naught.  The same can be seen in education.  P-12 teachers (typically those with more experience) are often resistant to change because they see what they have been doing is working fine.  Higher education experiences the same problems, whether it is inflexibility regarding to new practices or working well with other staff.

            This is something I have witnessed in my brief teaching career.  Some teachers have come up with good lessons that they use year in and year out.  However, these lessons do not change with the times and though they still may be effective, they may not be as relative and/or effective as they once were.  Being in a relatively new school in our 3^rd years, our teachers, thankfully, haven’t had the time to develop such habits…yet.  This is something we should address before we get to a point where we become too comfortable, so that we constantly push ourselves to improve, grow, and work with each other.

            Another common theme in these three fields is time constraints.  Businesses are always facing a deadline for their product or service, and even the instructional designers who may not have a direct hand in the end product are under time constraints to help employees effectively do their jobs.  P-12 and higher education instructors are also under similar time constraints. P-12 teachers are pushed to accomplish a certain number of standards in each year (often a mile wide and an inch deep) and higher education instructors are also expected to accomplish certain tasks (research, publications, etc.) within a short period of time in order to be considered effective.

            My own experiences in this are very consistent with descriptions in the book.  I feel the pressure of helping my students meet the standards every year, and it seems like there are more standards every year!  With the time restrictions and high expectations, we all need to prioritize well so that our end goals (products, services, standards, research, publications and the like) are effective and useful as opposed to just being “done.”

Screencasting the iPad

I decided to make this screencast showing how to set-up iCloud and an email account through Microsoft Exchange because it is very relevant for me and my school at the moment.  I cannot tell you how many times I have walked through these steps with students, on an individual basis or even in large group settings.  Even with all the times I've gone through this with students, I haven't done this with all students at my school.  So instead of doing this over 200 times, I figured this short and sweet lesson would work well as a screencast, allowing those viewing it to pause as necessary.

Integrating Technology in P12

            One aspect of this chapter that really stuck out to me was the possible reasons for the mixed results of integrating technology into P-12 education.  Specifically, the reason of “The intensity, focus, or amount of professional development may not have adequately prepared the teachers to effectively develop and implement lessons that fully support achievement of curriculum standards” (p. 212).  From what I have seen, this is all too true.  In most cases, professional development days are never long enough for how much the staff wants to accomplish.  As educators, we are constantly required to adjust our curriculum, and trying to change too much at once leads to very little change overall.  What we need to focus on is not drastic changes, but effective, well-developed changes.  Establishing good foundations for integrating technology will allow us to more easily integrate technology in a more complex way in the near future.

            Additionally, this chapter seemed to lament the use of technology for low-level tasks.  I agree that such high-level technology needs to be used to a higher capacity.  We want to make effective use of our technology so that we are not wasting our resources.  That being said, there is still benefit to using technology for low-level tasks.  With the near-constant access to technology, it seems that it is assumed that students know how to use these tools for their low-level tasks.  However, these assumptions can lead to students not developing the basics skills such as effective and efficient typing, research, and formatting documents.  So while we need to strive for higher-level uses, we need to make sure we do not ignore the low-level basics.

Google Maps Activity

Being a math teacher, I could not help but think of a Geometry lesson using maps.  I have done activities similar to this, but using the customizable Google Maps allows for some more flexibility.
My initial idea would be for the students find the perimeter and area of the footprint of the Gerald R. Ford Airport Terminal, since our school in on the property of the Airport.  Students could use the scale on the map to calculate the perimeter and area of the main terminal.  This would be an activity integrated into a lesson about composite shapes, since students would have to break up the terminal building into a bunch of different shapes, find the area of each, and add all the areas together.
As a challenge, I would have them approximate the area of our school's property, as I have already outlined.  Since there are many curves to the property, students would have to come up with strategies of approximation.  Additionally, I would give extra credit for students who decide to approximate the footprint of our building.  This would be far more challenging, since the images on Google Maps are not up to date.  Our newest addition was finished in August, and you can see that addition being built in satellite view when zoomed in.  When zoomed out, there is no indication that we have even started to build!


View Areas of the Airport in a larger map

Applying Business ID in the Classroom

            The role of the team member/leader in the business and industry world is something that can easily be applied in the classroom.  The description in this chapter discusses the “increased globalization and decentralization of organizations” (p. 179) that has been occurring recently in the business world, and the school setting is also experiencing the same thing, so far on a smaller degree.  As we want to give more educational opportunities to our students, we need to provide more options for acquiring that education.  This, as we are currently experiencing, is becoming more prominent through online classes, but there are movements in the education world that also allow for the decentralization.  With the prominence of social media and communication technologies such as video chat, students can work with each other from afar.  This works great in schools like mine, where we have students coming from around 20 districts prior to coming to our school.  This provides situations where students that are working on a group project together may live over an hour apart.  Some of our students have overcome this by using iMessage and Facetime on their iPads to collaborate.

            Another aspect of ID that is extremely applicable and extremely useful to the classroom setting is cross-cultural training.  As educators, we need to have a good understanding of the factors that influence our students outside of school.  Again, since our school serves students from a wide variety of geographical locations, it also, in turn, means we are serving students from a wide variety of educational experiences, socioeconomic backgrounds, and ethnicities.  As a result, we need to focus on how to best serve all students, and realize that what works for one of our “clients” may not work for the “client” sitting next to them.  This can be challenging for teachers that do not come from the same culture as a students, so teachers need to put in a lot of effort and be flexible as they figure out how to best serve their “clients.”

Podcasting

TED Talks: Education Podcasts

            I have watched many TED Talks before, mostly for only my own enjoyment.  In my searching, however, I found these TED Talks that were focused on education that I had never seen before.  One of my favorite things about TED Talks is that the ideas are usually quite revolutionary, but also practical (for the most part).  This holds true for their education podcasts.  Even though some of the podcasts that are from several years ago (the first one I watched was from 2006) still provide inspiration for the future of education.

            Podcasts can be useful in the classroom because students can have access to a wide variety of professionals as resources.  In many cases, podcasts provide a concise look into a topic, and is usually quite focused.  Podcasts allow easy access to a topic that is more than just words on a page, becoming a useful resource for students who are strong auditory and/or visual learners.

            One thing that does need to be considered is quality control.  The first TED Talk I listened to for this assignment was called “Open Source Learning,” and the speaker, Richard Baraniuk, emphasized this in our learning tools.  I have seen a wide variety of podcasts out there, and there are some things that would not be appropriate for classroom use (including some of the podcasts that were labeled as “educational”).  Additionally, we need to be mindful of the source of the content, paying attention to the credibility of those making the podcast as well as making sure credit is being given where credit was due (i.e. no plagiarizing).  The sources we provide to our students should live up to the same standards we set for the students themselves.

Embedding Media and Discussing Learning Theories

Behavior Learning Theory:

            Using this theory of learning, I would bring in several different brands and sizes of the same serial.  I would cover each box with a general cover, but label each box with the correct price.  Next, I would have students measure the mass of each box, and then come up with a unit cost (such as dollars per kilogram).  Since there will be several brands and at least two sizes for each brand, they would get varying unit costs.  After they calculated the unit cost of each item, I would have them check their answers with me.  If they have them all correct (or if they go back and make the corrections), I would have them predict which different size boxes were the same brand.  After all groups had guessed the pair, I would reveal which boxes were which.

Situated Learning Theory:

            For this theory, I would have students come up with a simple meal (5 items or so) that they would like to prepare for several people.  Each student would need to decide how many people they want to feed.  Based on this information, they would need to calculate the unit cost of each item in the various sizes that they are sold.  Based on the unit costs, they would need to decide what sizes they would buy.  They would also need to consider that though the larger sizes usually have a lower unit cost, is it worth buying more than you may use?

Constructivism:

            My procedure for this would be similar in nature to my activity for the Situated Learning Theory, with students figuring out what and how much they would buy to make a simple, 5-item meal.  They would do the initial stages of selecting the items and calculating unit costs together, but then they would individually decide which quantities they would buy based on the number of people they intend to feed.  After making these individual decisions, the two students would get back together and discuss what they chose and why.  I would also have them come to an agreement after this on which sizes to buy, and the pairs would share their results with the rest of the class.

Piper Cub hanging in the commons of West Michigan Aviation Academy

View Larger Map

Not Always Picture Perfect

 My Flickr

Technology initiatives can be ineffective for a variety of reasons, including the descriptions described in chapter 3 regarding the technologies implemented throughout the 20^th century.  In our hypothetical situation of giving students and teachers constant access to laptops and the internet, the first possible reason that came to mind was lack of proper training, both for the students and especially for the teachers.  I have seen it happen many times in schools (and have experienced it myself) where new technology is pushed out before everyone is fully prepared, and the tools are used only for the most basic functions as a result.  Proper training is needed all around.

            Another reason that came to mind is the quality of the product.  In my own experience, I have worked with tools such as digital versions of textbooks and have been underwhelmed by their quality and complexity.  From what I have seen, many textbook publishers are still placing the vast majority of their efforts on the hard copy editions while not dedicating much time to the digital version.  Some use the fact that they have a digital version of the textbook bundled with the hard copies as a marketing tool to influence potential buyers, but, so far, most of the digital textbooks are just digital images of the hard copy.

            The resistance to change is another issue that has plagued many advancements in education, not just regarding technology, and my guess is that is what happened in our hypothetical situation as well.  Teachers work hard and spend a lot of time developing their curriculum to best fit the learners’ needs.  Pushing such a drastic change on teachers is not always well received, especially by those who do not want all of their previous work to go to waste.  As a result, many teachers simply use technology to present the material in almost the same way they always have, just now with some more visuals.  This is really quite a small overall change considering the huge amount of possibilities for incorporating modern technology into the classroom.

            Two possible strategies for mitigating such issues are additional training and additional time.  As noted above, it is important for all users of technology, meaning both teachers and students, are properly trained so that their uses go beyond just the basics.  We have been able to do the basics for years, and if we are not doing more than that, we are underutilizing our resources.  In terms of time, easing into such an initiative, even more so than just limiting it to four teachers in the 7^th grade, is preferred.  Such quite and drastic changes make it hard to adapt quickly, even with proper training.  My recommendation would be to use the laptops only for a few hours a day at school to start, and gradually incorporate it more and more as the year goes on until eventually allowing 24/7 access.

Social Bookmarks Apparently Taste Good

http://delicious.com/dbrasser

            I have had a little experience in social bookmarking in the past, but I was more of a viewer than an active user.  When I first started teaching, our curriculum director shared links about my content and potential textbooks with me via Delicious.  I found this quite effective, considering the only alternative I could think of would be for her to send me links in emails, which would get annoying considering most people don’t find all the links they want at the same time and, thus, there would be many emails.

            One use for social bookmarking that would work well to my school specifically would be posting articles about our school and about our theme of aviation.  From time to time, especially considering we are a young school with a unique theme, there are news articles posted about our school and the changes we are making, so it would be nice to keep links to those all in one place.  Additionally, since most of our teachers come from a non-aviation background but are expected to integrate aviation into our classes as much as we can apply, social bookmarking would be a good place to post interesting resources that could relate to our theme and our content.

            I feel that probably the easiest and most natural use of social bookmarking in schools would be between teachers and student.  As I am looking more into the idea, I am finding that social bookmarking may be a very useful tool for my honors physics class.  Most of what we will be doing in that class will be the same as the regular physics sections, but there will be a lot more reading and writing relating current events to the topics we are studying.  Social bookmarking would allow for me to post options of articles that students can select to read and respond.

           

            More or less, the definitions laid out in the chapter on defining and naming the field line up with my views coming in.  There was really nothing that stuck out to me that made me think “That’s exactly my view!” or “That’s not at all what I’m thinking.”  Most of my feelings were more along the lines of “Yeah, that’s a good representation of (at least part of) my definition of instructional design and technology,” though I am going to have to force myself to get used to IDT title instead of IT.  I was quite pleased with the progress that has been made in the definition, moving from simply the processes and systematic approaches of the field and more toward involving the philosophies of using technology and the importance of the design of the uses of the tools as opposed to an emphasis on only the tools themselves.

            Additionally, I believe that even the most recent definition is nowhere near being the final definition.  Looking at the older definitions, the words used and the focus of the definitions was appropriate for the times and the resources available.  So too is the most recent definition.  As time goes by, and as technology and the needs of schools change, the definitions will continue to be reworked and shaped to better fit the situations at hand.

Wiki, Wiki, Wiki, can't you see? Sometimes your links just hypnotize me.

The Brasser Tech Wiki

 

I see a variety of ways I could use wikis in both my professional life and my personal life.  The first ways would be for students working on group projects.  Students could use the wiki to organize what needs to be accomplished in their project.  Similar in nature to how the friends in one of the videos organized who was bringing what on their camping trip, students could use a wiki to organize who was doing that various components of the project.  Not only would they be able to easily designate tasks, but they could also identify when components were done and also display the digital components of their work on sub-pages that can link to the original list.

After they have completed all the necessary work, the students could present their work on their wiki (if the project is conducive to being posted on a wiki).  This would allow them to easily link parts of their work to other resources for additional information, especially if that additional information would be distracting if it were included in the main context of their project.

            Wikis seem like they would work well for teacher collaboration as well, especially in settings like team teaching.  Similar to what students would do in the paragraph above, tasks could be easily organized and important info added by each teacher.  Additionally, teachers could use wikis to submit links to resources that can be used in a wide variety of classes.  Such wikis would not have to be limited to teachers within the same school, but could broaden the community of teachers to other schools all over.  The wiki would be a living document, and resources could be added and removed as they gain or lose relevance.  A parent wiki could be set up to serve a similar purpose.

Blog on Blogs. RSS in your RSS Feed.

            The idea of using a blog is not a new one to me.  I created my first blog back in high school on a site called Xanga.  This was in the pre-Facebook and Twitter days, but one could argue that the way a high-schooler uses a blog such as Xanga was/is essentially the same as using Facebook or Twitter just a little more long form.

            My first real attempt at a blog was a few years following, and what a mighty attempt that was.  It was intended to be an analysis of the correlation of professional sports teams getting new uniforms and those same teams finding new success (yes, I realize this seems weird and you may judge me for it, but you should look into it sometime).  I made one thorough post, with all the good intentions of following it up with another solid post…but that second post never came.  Yet.  I’ve still got the same ideas in my head.

            My first REAL real blog came as part of an assignment for a technology class in college.  My class partner and I were to create a blog discussing a variety of topics related to the use and missuse of technology in our modern world.  We made some good posts, but once that class was over, so was the blog.

            I have dabbled in other blogs over the years since, but none too seriously, must just an attempt at procrastination.  Though I have too much experience in half-baked blogging (note: all of my old blogs still exist somewhere in the vastness of the internet), I see the definite benefit, especially for educators.  It provides a way to share experiences in a not-so-condensed setting as you may find on some social networking sites.  Allowing for more long-form posts allows for thorough posts that give full descriptions of experiences.  Blogs also allow for a wide variety of feedback from a wide variety of sources, not just “friends” or “followers.”  Blogs can be a medium for the community of learners that is so important to education.

            The RSS feed is something with which I am familiar, but I haven’t had a chance to play around with it in a while.  So far, my re-introduction has been enjoyable, allowing for a wide variety of sources to be streamlined in one location.  Though an RSS feed does eliminate some of the visual elements that may have contributed to the original article, the main messages are easily and efficiently conveyed.  I do, however, wish there was some way to shrink and expand posts on Google Reader so that it would be more efficient to just get a preview of articles in order to decided if I want to read them instead of having to scroll all the way past a full article that I don’t want to read.

            Blogs and RSS feeds seem to fit best at the top of Dale’s Cone: Verbal Symbols.  With the exception of pictures that may be included in a post, blogs and RSS feeds are a very abstract method of communication, even more so that Dale states that “spoken words belong lower on the Cone than written words” (p. 127).  One aspect that I wish Dale had spent some time discussing is the fact that written word, such as blogs, allows for more processing time.  When conversing with someone verbally, immediate response is expected.  Immediate response necessitates immediate processing of what had been said, and sometimes that prevents ideas and thoughts from being fully developed.  But with written word, the reader can read at their own pace and can easily go back as many times as they want to make sure they did not miss part of the written conversation.

            This leads easily into the “imaginative” uses of blogs and RSS.  Blogs can allow for effective communication between teachers and students and also among students.  Students can process the information at their own pace and can review the material easily as necessary.  It also allows for students and teachers to provide feedback to each other in a less formal (and, for some, a more comfortable) environment.  Not only does it allow for students to process at their own pace, but also to respond at their own pace as well.  Replies can be written and edited as much as desired, allowing for not only the original posts to be well developed, but the response of others as well.

            RSS can provide a condensed, efficient source of information for students.  With all of the distractions around, both in terms of technology and non-technology, any means of reducing distractions in today’s world is welcome.  By putting necessary information in on place, RSS, in a way, provides an online “convenience store” of information and news, eliminating some of the need to venture into the unfamiliarity of some areas of the Internet world.

            Now Postman might argue that some of the “problems” that tools such as blogs and RSS “solve” are caused by technology itself, I would rebut by saying that they may not be full solutions to any problem, but instead are good alternatives that can facilitate learning and communication.  Providing alternatives, and, thus, differentiating, allows for learning to happen in a variety of ways.

Reformers and Luddites

            As the name of Charles M. Reigeluth and Roberto Joseph’s article, “Beyond technology integration: The case for technology transformation,” implies, they discuss the progress and importance of using technology in the classroom to transform how we teach.  With the change in the needs of our society, especially in terms of the types of jobs available, there is an obvious need to use our technology in ways to facilitate these needs efficiently.  As Reigeluth and Joseph describe, “assembly-line jobs have largely disappeared, and employers, even in the manufacturing sector, are now looking for people who can solve problems, take initiative, and offer diverse perspectives as part of teams.”  They relate this to the previous need for specializing in what (and, in some cases, whom) we teach to meet the specific needs of our culture to changing our schools to help shape all students to meet their full potential and not limit them to one specific path.

            I could not agree more with this aspect of Reigeluth and Joseph’s article.  With our every changing society, especially considering drastic changes seems to be happening at a higher rate than ever before, we need to help our students develop skills that can help them in a wide variety of areas.  Because we don’t know what the future will hold for our students, both years down the road and even next week, we cannot pre-sort our students for specific vocations.

            I do, however, tend to disagree with the apparent abruptness (or at least apparent to me) of their suggested transformation.  By saying “educators must recognize that using technology to support what they are already doing is not a productive course of action when compared to using technology to transform their teaching to a paradigm that is attainment-based rather than time-based,” they give off the feeling that some of the current actions teachers are doing have no benefit and their teaching needs to be totally transformed.  Other areas in the article are a little softer, and they may not have meant it as blunt as I am reading it, but I feel like the authors may be placing too much faith in the full application of technology in the classroom.  With the constant progress of technology, it can be hard to fully develop and implement effective uses of new technologies in the classroom.  I am hesitant to say that our old practices have no use in our current classrooms, and instead I feel that the old and the new should supplement each other.  Maybe that was the intended message of the authors and I lost that message as I neared the end of the article, but this more blunt statement toward the end makes me think that some may be jumping the gun and fully depending on some technologies that are still being developed.

            Neil Postman’s article “Of Luddites, Learning, and Life,” he puts a more negative spin on the progress of technology.  One sentence that I believe epitomizes his feelings states that “because the technologies are there, we often invent problems to justify our using them.”  And at the risk of sounding like an old curmudgeon (note: I am only 24 years old), I tend to agree with him…to a point.  I have experienced a variety of ways in which we use technology in the classroom for the sake of using technology, not necessarily for the sake of improving learning.  In addition, I’ve actually seen the overuse of technology harming our students’ learning.  I am a math teacher, and I tend to be an opponent of the use of calculators in the classroom.  Don’t get me wrong: calculators can do awesome things.  They make things easier to do and thus make efficient use of our time.  But I have come to find that the prevalence of calculators in the classroom has prevented students from learning some of the basics.  The calculator was invented by those that wanted to make a machine to reduce the time they spent solving problems on paper.  However, they could still do such problems on paper if they needed.  I have seen a scary number of students that immediately do any math problem they can on a calculator, which not only can slow them down for some of the simpler problems, but it also prevents them from actually knowing what is going on.  I even notice the effects of this in my own abilities.  My mother, a retired history teacher who admits to having difficulty in the math classes she took, can do a variety of math problems in her head faster than I can.  I graduated with a degree in mathematics, yet my history teacher mother can do head math faster than I can.  My guess: I used calculators early on in my learning process while she didn’t.  The calculator solved a problem of time, but may have also created a problem of not truly understanding concepts.  So before people begin to question why I am in the Educational Technology program, let me say this: I believe using technology is important for our progression as educators, but we also need to be sure we are not using technology in place of learning and understanding.

            I do find Postman’s question of “What is the problem to which the new technologies are the solution?” overly pessimistic.  Does every advancement have to solve a problem?  Is it really so bad if we make something that is already fairly fast faster?  Not every form of progress can or needs to solve a problem.  In fact, even if a new technology does not solve any problems currently, who is to say it won’t solve any future problems, or even lead to other developments that can solve any current or future problems?  Even if a new technology does not seem to have any apparent benefit at the moment, as long as it