Posts Tagged ‘Technology’

Web 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0 revisited…

July 24th, 2009
Listen to this Post. Powered by iSpeech.org

In a previous post, I gave simple definitions of Web 1.0, Web 2.0, and speculated on what Web 3.0 might hold for us (realizing of course these are unofficially recognized and ambiguously overused terms).

But now with all the hoopla about Web of Things and Internet of Things, I find further evidence for my original definitions.

Web 1.0 was about information. Web 2.0 is about communication. And Web 3.0 (Or Web 0, depending on your views), is about connection. However, I don’t mean connection in a superficial sense. Rather, like the post-human view, the electro-chemical carbon-based life forms merge with the electro-mechanical micro-sensing world. The connection is a cross-reality (M.I.T. term) linking virtual with real-time.

It will be interesting to see what happens next. Until now, virtual reality overcame space-time barriers but real life remained subject to them. Cross-reality bridges this gap to create a new experience. Rather than one or the other, both are merged: A post-human, cyborg (cybernetic organism) view.

What is possible is no longer limited by human imagination. The new paradigm is emerging with the mashup of imagination and computerization. The future is not merely an internet of things as much as the connection of… (you finish the sentence).

  • Share/Bookmark

Technology Integration in the Elementary Classroom

July 1st, 2009
Listen to this Post. Powered by iSpeech.org

“Without deep reflection one knows from daily life that one exists for other people.”
– Albert Einstein –

As noted by Physicist Albert Einstein in the quote above, we inherently figure out that we exist for others. Spouses exist for one another. Parents exist for children. Children exist for parents. And as educators, we exist for learners. Since our existence for others is a given fact that should be concluded by reasonable folks, the only variable becomes the nature of our relationship to those others for whom we are existing. Do we exist to control, manipulate, dominate, or rule over others? Or do we exist to share, serve, and sacrifice for others? It seems to me the aftertaste of one’s education depends upon whether they were shepherded or merely herded; nurtured or merely driven to market. » More: Technology Integration in the Elementary Classroom

  • Share/Bookmark

Democracy in the Classroom of 1945 … and today!

June 18th, 2009
Listen to this Post. Powered by iSpeech.org
Official Portrait of President Ronald Reagan.
Image via Wikipedia

“Democracy is worth dying for, because it’s the most deeply honorable form of government ever devised by man.” – Ronald Reagan

If, as Ronald Reagan said, Democracy is the most honorable way for people to govern themselves, then it makes sense that Democracy in the classroom would offer the best way for educating future generations to become responsible citizens. It also follows that promoting democratic ideals in the classroom would constitute best practice among teachers. My definition of best practice is the focus on procedures known to produce optimum results. Therefore, based on Reagan’s quote and my definition of best practice, we could conclude that a teacher’s best practice would focus on teaching procedures that » More: Democracy in the Classroom of 1945 … and today!

  • Share/Bookmark

How to Connect with Digital Native Students…

June 6th, 2009
Listen to this Post. Powered by iSpeech.org

Recently someone remarked about digital natives being goal oriented which caught me off guard. I’m not sure about ‘goal’ oriented. I think this is why there is a disconnect between teachers and students today. Digital immigrants are ‘work’ oriented but this new generation of digital natives is ‘play’ oriented. If teachers emphasize education’s goal is to make productive and useful ‘workers’, » More: How to Connect with Digital Native Students…

  • Share/Bookmark

Differences Between Digital Natives and Digital Immigrants

June 6th, 2009
Listen to this Post. Powered by iSpeech.org

1. What are the characteristics of students in the digital age?

Hi, My name is Cyborg. You may call me Cy for short. I, like you, appear to be a typical carbon based life form. My electrochemical CPU comprises 20% of my total energy output. As I say, like you, we appear to be quite similar. However, I am a digital native. Digispeak is my native tongue. I understand best when your tweets are 140 characters or less and your SMSs are 160 characters or less. And don’t bore me with your linear lectures thinking you are making things clear to me. I need lots of variables thrown at me at one time; visual, verbal, tactile, you name it. Just please, » More: Differences Between Digital Natives and Digital Immigrants

  • Share/Bookmark

Journal 5: “History is a race between education and catastrophe”

April 10th, 2009
Listen to this Post. Powered by iSpeech.org

I like this quote from H.G. Wells. Education is that function of society which is nurtured in order to perpetuate the dominant culture. As pressures from inevitable change mount, causing society to face imminent catastrophe, education is typically forced to research a solution that leads to a paradigm shift warding off the catastrophe. » More: Journal 5: “History is a race between education and catastrophe”

  • Share/Bookmark

Games in School are Nothing to Toy with…

April 3rd, 2009
Listen to this Post. Powered by iSpeech.org

Clearly research supports the conclusion that computer games enhance student engagement. The question remains however whether standards-based learning actually takes place. The outcry for more research is loud and clear: Where is the evidence that curriculum standards are met “more efficiently” using computers versus traditional teaching methods? Note the operative word is “efficiently.” » More: Games in School are Nothing to Toy with…

  • Share/Bookmark

Journal 4: The Secret of the Third View…

March 29th, 2009
Listen to this Post. Powered by iSpeech.org

Let me define the third view and then give some examples to illustrate how I discovered it during my advanced studies to become an educator.

Generally, debates are two sided with dialogue arguing the benefits of one side and the detriments of the other. Historically, this thesis versus antithesis has been used to find a synthesis that can be compromisingly agreed upon by both sides. However, paradigm shifts occur when a third view is presented that is neither a synthesis nor compromise among opposing views. Rather, the third view theory I am discovering lifts us out of the » More: Journal 4: The Secret of the Third View…

  • Share/Bookmark

The Matrix is already here…

March 11th, 2009
Listen to this Post. Powered by iSpeech.org

1/2 million people are plugged into the medical matrix now (according to news report on NPR today). They are tethered via portable medical devices using cellular phone access to stream data to medical files for emergent use as needed. Could be weight related data or insulin data or blood pressure, heart rate, etc. And the docs anticipate ‘smart’ pills that relay data via microchips while inside the body. The matrix is coming. Get hooked.

  • Share/Bookmark

Technology is Progress but towards What?

March 3rd, 2009
Listen to this Post. Powered by iSpeech.org

Toys, Tools, and Teachers (TTT) presents the three-way tug-of-war between the elements itemized in the title and the technology arena. The three elements represent three different perspectives, needs, and valuations of technology. Keeping these three differing paradigms in balance is the challenge investigated by the authors. However my question is: Will future technological innovations reduce the playing field from three to just two by eliminating ‘Teachers’ altogether. In other words, will technology eliminate the specialized role of ‘teacher’ by enabling families or even individuals to guide their own education? Two reasons for this question are hinted at by the authors’ own conclusive remarks.

First, technology allows for ‘individualized’ learning (p156). As processing speeds enable human » More: Technology is Progress but towards What?

  • Share/Bookmark