Checking the list of web sites used in classroom settings, I cannot help thinking computers must become a core part in today's daily instruction. I have been lately found myself creating interactive tests with my notebook applications in my SmartBoard. I know, just like any other honest teacher on Earth, that our students are twenty first century students and therefore, they are more used to being "entertained" by television programs, by videogames and by movies, all media resources that use image, sound and sometimes movement ( sometimes, just the fidgeting of controls or the jerking of vibrating and wireless game divises. Schools, of course cannot compete with all these resources right now. Very often they have very old computers, neglected networks or just uninterested administrators.
I experience day by day, a school where due to budgetary constraints, one out of three computer science teachers, was transfered to another school and now her laboratory is empty, and shut...It is also sad to see that there are two other computer labs that are computer cemeteries ( parts, keyboards, cables and mice, all over the place in a most apalling condition...Not cool, right? Well, I, however , do not surrender and try to keep my students in contact with interactive computer activities on a regular basis. I am always looking for video clips that are related to the reading selections I used in classes with my students. I have them do research and explore the internet. I feel priviledged to have a computer which is not the best ( deck does not open, of course, It does not play video from any disc ) but I have an Internet conection and is my "Master" computer from which I can manipulate and plan SmartBoard Activities. I encourage everyone to utilize computers in class, to let students experience multimedia to the fullest, but guided. I am forcing myself to explore the net and look for meaningful materials and classroom usable websites. I recommend you do the same!Teach students to be responsible with the use of internet and enrich your lessons with meaningful videos, explanatory clips, music and beauty through computers! Thanks
It is good that amidst all the negative as it relates to the use and availability of computers that you have not given up.
ReplyDeleteYour use of the limited resources that you have must be commended. Keep up the good work!!
The digital divide is no longer about boxes and wires, but rather access to the web. Rural areas have unique challenges, yet many students are finding their way onto the web even when neither homes nor schools have computers. The cost to access continues to drop, with smart phones becoming more available and netbooks costing a fifth what laptops used to. So I think we should begin looking at our curricula and teaching approaches with a view that more and more students will have access in the near future...and we need to be ready for that.
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