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I think the point of the computer lab was that it's "old fashioned" to schlep your class down there to do computer work vs having computers in the classroom and integrate that into your daily classroom routine. I think computer labs are still necessary for kids to do work outside of the classroom or for kids that might not have a computer at home, etc.
When our kids were in high school (college students now) they integrated a lot of smart phone apps, etc. into their overall learning. Their school was not one to give Ipads to everyone or whatever but 97% had access to a computer/internet at home so it wasn't really necessary. Those that did not had use of 100's of computers at school. Most of their textbooks were online, they submitted homework online in most of their classes, teachers had websites to post homework assignments, a syllabus, etc. It was sure nice not having all that paper floating around at home
I think our kids' school took a good approach to cell phone use--teachers could allow/disallow use in class, most did not allow use in class except for during assignments that required it but kids were allowed to use phones between classes, at lunch, etc. Not that it stopped everyone from using their phones during class but it wasn't a major issue and those that still tried to skirt around the rules got their phones taken away for however long.
Marigold and Ted Bear, you are both right. One group has been entirely dropped; the other is being carelessly taught. Why those three are being so carelessly taught, I do not know. After years of watching, I still can't figure out what they have replaced it with. Or, why. The students do seem to be busy at something.
That is virtually all that schools teach now. Even my wife's orchestra classes were required to teach vocabulary (not orchestra vocabulary, testing vocabulary from a list set by the district).
The real "obsolete" disciplines in school right now are Art, Physical Education, Science (yes, science), Social Science, Language, and Literature. The most expensive it is (and expense is the big reason science is dying fast in schools), and the more time it takes away from tested areas (PE's killer), the faster it is dying.
my father told me back in '99 not to major in PE b/c in 10 years kids would be doing their state PE credits via independent study. meaning = there will be no PE jobs. 15 years later and i see PE job openings EVERYWHERE. my school of 1,600 kids employs 5 full-time PE teachers.
my father told me back in '99 not to major in PE b/c in 10 years kids would be doing their state PE credits via independent study. meaning = there will be no PE jobs. 15 years later and i see PE job openings EVERYWHERE. my school of 1,600 kids employs 5 full-time PE teachers.
My local district just cut 2.5 positions health & PE positions, eliminated some of the required HS requirements for PE, and has some HS students taking health online.
The point of this article is many of the "Best Practices" are already obsolete. The world is moving at a faster pace than our educational system.
Ask any teacher about how valuable those inservice day trainings are to their work in the classroom.
Now think of system where teachers who are running into problems could access information, training and mentoring via online resources, webinars, Skype...
I have to agree here. Our school system rolled out a 1:1 laptop initiative five years ago where every middle and high school student was issued a laptop. It was hell the first year.
This year we rolled out new chromebooks for middle and high school students and gave the old laptops to the elementary students. At this point I can't imagine teaching WITHOUT my students having that resource. We got rid of our computer lab years ago, the classroom space was too valuable.
While technology isn't the focus of what I do in the classroom, it has become a integral part in how I teach and how my kids learn.
my father told me back in '99 not to major in PE b/c in 10 years kids would be doing their state PE credits via independent study. meaning = there will be no PE jobs. 15 years later and i see PE job openings EVERYWHERE. my school of 1,600 kids employs 5 full-time PE teachers.
One thing bout discontinuing PE - the PE teachers were made principals. Over and over we saw it. PE teacher becomes a principal and has no training for that job at all.
Good to hear those jobs are coming back. Maybe we've started a new circle?
The point of this article is many of the "Best Practices" are already obsolete. The world is moving at a faster pace than our educational system.
Ask any teacher about how valuable those inservice day trainings are to their work in the classroom.
Now think of system where teachers who are running into problems could access information, training and mentoring via online resources, webinars, Skype...
We do use webinars and online resources to get training and access information now. Those are the worst kinds of inservices, although they are good for solving IT problems. The good inservices from an administrative view point are the ones you attend and are held captive in a room and are forced to be engaged. That's the way to implement a school wide program. The best inservices from a teachers view point are the ones that involve actual students showing how new ideas work and are implemented.
I like the computer room with a set schedule for doing online student testing, and I like checking out laptops for every student to use in the classroom. The computer room can be set up with a program and i can just walk the kids in and not have to set things up. It works great for testing. The laptops are good for students to do projects and independent study/ work. I also had 4 computers in my classroom permanently, which I rotated the students through daily. Those were great for projects, games, daily learning etc...
All had their place in my curriculum, and I taught PK-2.
Last edited by Meyerland; 03-20-2014 at 09:03 AM..
The problem with giving students laptops is the fact that they never fully pay attention. Imagine having the choice between browsing the internet and listening to a boring lecture. You're obviously going to chose to browse the internet.
Some teachers tell their students to put the laptops away during classwork time, but let students have them out during instruction time so they can take notes. 90% of the time the students are checking on their Facebook, typing an email, and occasionally looking up at the board to see if there are any notes (I would know; I do this myself all of the time). The result is the fact that the students never fully absorb the information, and they end up failing tests, not knowing how to do classwork, and not being able to do homework.
In order to stop us from texting in class, we have to keep them out on the desk and turn them off (but some people still manage to type a message out if they turn the volume on their phone off).
I don't think integrating technology in class will really work.
The problem with giving students laptops is the fact that they never fully pay attention. Imagine having the choice between browsing the internet and listening to a boring lecture. You're obviously going to chose to browse the internet.
I don't think integrating technology in class will really work.
So the problem is that school is boring and the classroom method is probably obsolete.
Khan Academy videos could do as well as most teachers giving lectures. Our educators have the problem of figuring out how not to be eliminated.
But in the mean time children have the problem of getting educated. Many actually do want to learn things but the educational system does not teach what they are interested in. Memorize how to spell ANTIDISESTABLISHMENTARIANISM. I actually got that in grade school.
What general said "Nuts!" to the Germans at the Battle of the Bulge? I got that in high school.
A lot of teachers can't seem to figure out what is important and children just go to school to create jobs for teachers.
The problem with giving students laptops is the fact that they never fully pay attention. Imagine having the choice between browsing the internet and listening to a boring lecture. You're obviously going to chose to browse the internet.
Some teachers tell their students to put the laptops away during classwork time, but let students have them out during instruction time so they can take notes. 90% of the time the students are checking on their Facebook, typing an email, and occasionally looking up at the board to see if there are any notes (I would know; I do this myself all of the time). The result is the fact that the students never fully absorb the information, and they end up failing tests, not knowing how to do classwork, and not being able to do homework.
In order to stop us from texting in class, we have to keep them out on the desk and turn them off (but some people still manage to type a message out if they turn the volume on their phone off).
I don't think integrating technology in class will really work.
Watch out for the boy who comes in with a big bandage on his arm. Hidden underneath is a calculator. :-)
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