Mmiller25's Blog

Distance Learning: Benefits and Drawbacks

mmiller25 — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 23:59:01 +0000

Distance learning has many benefits and can be an effective tool for educators. The major advantage distance learning has is its flexibility since many students’ schedules do not allow for traveling to a traditional classroom for various reasons. This flexibility can be beneficial to many groups of people including those who have families or are single parents, work full time, are athletes, and those with mobility concerns. Bringing the classroom to the student can enable these types of people to further their education when they otherwise might not be afforded the opportunity. Another benefit of distance learning is, if implemented correctly, the interaction among students. Chat rooms were identified as being confusing when used with so much text going by but this itself illustrates the increased participation by students as opposed to a traditional classroom where many students would be too shy to participate.

Distance learning however is not without its drawbacks. The interaction of students with other students and with the instructor can be as big a draw back as it can a benefit if not implemented correctly. This interaction is a vital part of the education process providing different ideas and points of perspective that would not be generated otherwise. Another drawback to distance learning is that it is not a good choice for all students. Distance learning requires a great deal of self motivation and organization to learn the material and complete assigned tasks independently. Students that lack self motivation or rely heavily on personal instruction from the teacher may want to consider the traditional classroom setting as opposed to distance learning.

As someone from a generation when distance learning consisted of correspondence courses through the mail I was very reluctant and quite anxious about the thought of taking an online/hybrid class when I returned to school this semester. After my initial technological phobias were overcome I have found that I actually enjoy this method of education. The flexibility it allows my busy schedule has eased some of the burden I feel and the fact that I can do most, if not all, work at home allows me more time to spend with my daughter helping with homework or just spending “quality time.” Distance learning is something I would recommend to an self motivated student and something I will continue to take advantage of throughout the rest of education.

Technology in the Classroom

mmiller25 — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 00:00:20 +0000

Our society is experiencing a technological explosion that has created a digital culture that we as educators must recognize. There is no denying this will disrupt the classroom but with the push of this new culture and new technologies coming from the bottom up trying to stop it would be like “sticking your finger in the damn”. Whether this is a positive or negative disruption will lie in great part in the hands of the schools as a whole and specifically teachers. With embracing this new culture and new technologies schools can equip their classrooms with tools students will need to communicate and succeed now and in the future. The teacher’s embrace of this technology can lead to many new and exciting avenues to deliver information instead of relying on the antiquated system that has been in place for so many years.

Although not a native of this new culture I have seen it and the technologies that drive it evolve from their infancy. This gives me a great understanding of how powerful this shift in culture is and how important it is to recognize the need to embrace it as an educator. Technology, just like life, is ever evolving and the need for the schools and teachers to keep up with this evolution is vital in providing the best education possible to our students. Gapping the digital divide that exists between student and teacher has to be initiated by me, the teacher, giving the student a clear sign that I understand what is important to them. I can do this by using technologies familiar to them to deliver a particular lesson, hopefully fostering more engagement. The numbers of technologies I can use are virtually limitless but will most assuredly include such things as Power Point presentations and web quests. When I asked my 14 year old daughter about what she liked to do with technology in class her reply was, “Anything you can do on a Smartboard!! Smart boards are awesome! Smart boards help kids focus. You learn more because you know if you get the right answer you get to go up and right on it and everyone wants to write on the Smartboard.” Here’s to hoping my first classroom has a Smartboard.

Differentiation in the Classroom

mmiller25 — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 23:23:14 +0000

As I think back to my education it was of a time and era very different than that of today. Mr. Appleton most represents the approach I received throughout my entire education. Although teachers did incorporate such things as slide shows and 16mm films to enhance the material the wide majority of it was delivered in Mr. Appleton’s fashion without any differentiation of the curriculum. The only real differentiation of the time was separate classes for “gifted” students. These were generally only offered in Math or English and allowed students to progress at their own pace with individual instruction when the student needed assistance.

My 7^th grade History teacher Mr. Brazleton stands out to me when I think back on my years in school as the most outstanding. He demanded the most of his students and conveyed a sense of seriousness to education using strong discipline, a widely accepted practice of that era. Reading and lectures were common place in his class as well as instruction on note taking using his passion for the subject matter to help drive home the information he was trying to convey. I found his approach and the educational approach in general extremely helpful when moving on to college where information is primarily delivered in this method.

This article has shown me how the approach to education has changed in the over 20 years since I have been in school. I can see now that I will have to prepare and think of information delivery in different ways. Advancements in technology and changes in content to be delivered make differentiation a necessity in today’s classroom. While reading assignments and lectures of old are a great way to prepare students for higher education they do not meet the needs of today’s education system that is all inclusive. It further displays the constant need for the educator of today to be able to adapt and vary the content to reach a wide variety of competency levels. I can see through this article that applying differentiation to classroom will be one of the greatest challenges I will face in my teaching career.

The Wonder of the Whiteboard

mmiller25 — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 21:04:10 +0000

The possibilities of the electric whiteboard seem only to be limited by the imagination of the instructor. I can see how this technology could be used across the entire curriculum to illustrate anything from a complex math problem to diagramming a sentence. As an aspiring History teacher this technology will be able to help me show things to my students that I would not have imagined. Lewis and Clark’s mapping and exploration of the west comes to mind as a prime example of a particular topic that this could enhance greatly. Now, instead of just telling the students where they went and what they found in the traditional boring manner with maybe the aid of a crude map, you could bring up Google Earth and actually detail their route inserting facts along their trail allowing the students to get a visual picture of exactly where they were and the magnitude and importance of their journey.

I want an electric whiteboard! When I asked my own 13yr old daughter what she thought of them her reply was, “Smartboards are awesome!” I can see how this could be an incredible teaching aid. The ability to hold the students attention during the entire lesson is crucial and this technology seems as though it could go a long way to helping a teacher achieve this by presenting information to students in an electronic medium that they can interact with. In today’s world of ever changing technology the electronic whiteboard seems to be one that will have a lasting and positive effect on the classroom and the delivery of information for years to come.

My thoughts on “Students: No Two are Alike”

mmiller25 — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 00:31:40 +0000

As I read Brenda Dyck’s article “Students: No Two are Alike” I found it to be an insightful and progressive approach for tailoring teaching methods to fit a current class of students. Her recognition of needing information on both her student’s different strengths in the various intelligences as well as their preferred learning style I feel gives her a well rounded view of her students and how to address their educational needs.

I thought the author’s use of the Multiple Intelligences Inventory and the Learning-Style Preference Questionnaire was an excellent way to glean the information needed to implement her approach to education. I do differ with the view of providing this information to the students. My concern with providing this information is that some students might see their low score in any particular category as an inability to succeed in this particular genre or even worse use it as an excuse for not trying to improve in areas in which they struggle.

Her particular reference to the “learning disabled” and how they are…”very often creative in other ways”…struck a particular chord with me. After spending the last twenty years of my life working in manufacturing I have seen evidence to support this. Time and again I would meet people who were labeled “learning disabled” during their school years that would for example struggle with a simple math calculation or filling out a required form, yet could look at a complex piece of machinery and know how it worked and how to fix it within a matter of minutes. Had educators taken a more progressive approach recognizing the strengths of these students and playing to them I am convinced their time in school would have been much more productive.

After taking some time to reflect on the article I can identify three major challenges that will await me once I begin my teaching career. The first of these is the need to get to know the students as individuals that respond to, and require, different approaches to education. Secondly I must be able to take this knowledge and use it to adjust my methods as warranted throughout the year. Finally, and I feel most importantly, is the need to devise my own plan as how to best relate to the students and then stick with this plan no matter what outside pressures I might encure from my peers.