Now tell me, why didn't we have ebooks when I was going to school? Don't answer, I know, I know.I cannot get over my excitement over what I see as the almost endless possibilities that ebooks, and the creation of ebooks promise. Think of the scope of creativity it could "unleash" yes unleash, if children are properly introduced to it.
I am a strong believer in the authenticity of learning, the social applicability of education is for me,the reason for its efforts .Through etechnology, I can see the school equipping students with skills and abilities that could be personally beneficial while at the same time, useful to the community in which they reside.
When I think of etechnology in the school setting ,in my mind's eye, I see classrooms of excited and motivated children collaborating, thinking, talking, reflecting, editing, selecting,questioning,writing,displaying,applying rules and skills and sharing as they seek to perfect their creation of ebooks .This is where interest is sustained ,this is when the learning takes place.
Now compare that with the traditional classroom where children sit in isolation writing an assignment for the teacher to mark, which would you rather be a part of ? Me? I like to be where the action is, I want to be where I could facilitate learning by incorporating a plethora of skills through active engagement in useful endeavours.
I agree with you Mary, if we had eBook when I attended school I would have been a doctor or lawyer today or maybe a better teacher. I love teaching so I probably would have stayed in the same profession.
ReplyDeleteIf we allow students to design e books to learn vocabulary and motivation students will be engaged and learning will take place. i too is a strong believer in the authenticity of learning, and i believe that e technology is one of the tools we can use to achieve this. We have really come a long way. I hope that we use what we learn to change the school environment and make it lively, excited motivate place, instead of the dull boring place it is now.
I love the classroom that you have described and I envision this for my class each day. I am not too sure about what the technological class that the Ministry is asking each teacher to partake in is all about but I do hope, like us, they can come out with tools under their belts that would make learning a more fun thing to do. I wish that every teacher could be equipped with the skills that we are attaining in order to create classes that Mary described above. I am sure that this would propel students to be more active learners and increase both their reading and writing capabilities. I too am much enthralled with the ebook. I think both the ebook and the concept mapping tools would be permanent fixtures in my classroom.
ReplyDeleteI too am thrilled about e books and I am anxious to design one (or several as the case may be)! I am equally excited to see them used in authentic classroom instruction, and particularly to see the students' interactivity. Imagine seeing the artifacts created by students, not just in literacy but in content areas? It is an educator's dream to see our students motivated and engaged. Perhaps e books will be a contributing factor. I certainly will promote their usage.
ReplyDeleteCollaboartive learning Mary that's the key. So often it seems to me that learning is so selfish and when sharign does take place, its because Miss said so. I too am excited about ebooks and their role in learning. I can envision a room of happy students sharing with each other, discovering the next new thing, showing each other "how to..." and all the while learning and becoming independent learners.
ReplyDeleteI will be using ebooks and after my first experience with creating my own, well that under-utilised computer lab will be busy.