I
believe there are many advantages of a networked classroom. Today, I attended
the Classroom Instruction that Works (2012)
professional development. The presenter, Howard Pitler (@Hpitler) repeated a
phrase I had heard for the first time this morning – “none of us is as smart as
all of us”. After the professional development session today, I went home and
read chapter 3 of Personal Learning Networks (2011) and it was stated on page
62. The phrase was also highlighted in the lecture, so I stopped to think about
what that phrase meant in an educational setting. Students gain more insight they could have
without networking with curriculum resource sites, audiences or experts afar, and
peers afar. Networking allows students to collaborate, problem-solve, and make
connections to the real-world. The disadvantages that come with a networked
classroom are the same disadvantages students could face at home which consist
of cyber-bullying, internet safety issues, etc. (Richardson & Mancabelli,
2011, p. 75). I would rather the students run into these issues at school, so the students can
learn a systematic, ethical way to go about these issues and then apply the
ways at home. This site called, “Not My Kid” addresses these
potential issues and offers parents a peace of mind when they think about
online tools used in school. http://notmykid.org/internet-safety/
To slow
transition my classroom into a networked classroom, I may start with simpler,
free online tools to connect with the parents. Teachers could use blogs, eNews,
Remind101, and Twitter to send updates about upcoming classroom and school
events. Later, the teacher could give this “classroom news” job to a student
and then take on something more involved. In the text, the authors state that
it starts with the teacher and they should start with simpler tools (Richardson
& Mancabelli, 2011, p. 81). It was overwhelming when I tried to wrap my
brain around all the possibilities of Twitter use in the classroom and the
Twitter vocabulary, search engines, protocol, and more. If I start slow, I am
sure my efforts will reflect quality and not quantity.
I think
a networked classroom would benefit diverse learners, especially students who
visit resource rooms throughout the day such as ESOL, gifted, and Sped resource
rooms. These special area teachers can often be out of the grade level loop
despite PLC efforts and collaboration days, so a basic information/resource
sharing site such as Twitter could easily inform them. Students who are pulled
out often may feel they are not learning the same material, so a disconnect
from the classroom could develop. The disconnected feeling could affect peer
interaction on a daily basis. Diverse students may need extra motivation to
meet learning objectives and networking with experts in the field can be one
way to make this happen. The article, “Service Learning in Special Education”
emphasizes the power of real-world connections. http://education.jhu.edu/PD/newhorizons/strategies/topics/service-learning/special-education/
I totally agree with the quote "none of us is as smart as all of us", I feel we need to depend more on networking and building off of one another more than the old fashioned way of independent thinking. We must not be afraid either to admit we don't have all the answers. I think some teachers are still in that mindset that they ( singular) must have all the answers when teaching a class. I also like Clarence Fishers quote "Leaning is only as powerful as the network it occurs in" . I believe this sums up the rational of networking, without full use of it ( correctly!!) we have nothing.
ReplyDeleteI also find it interesting you teach technology to teacher in your school. That is great they have someone to help implement technology into the classroom. I will have to visit some of the sites you recommended as well. Thanks for sharing!! Janet
I do think every school has a few teachers would do not believe that "none of us is as smart as all of us". These teachers cannot fully process through new items such as Common Core, math curriculum, and technology. I am finding that these teachers seem to be giving up and retiring because the thought of change frustrates them. "Change is the only constant in life", so why not process it with other professionals to gain extra support and insight. The more I think about Professional Learning Communities, the more I am glad my district requires weekly PLC meetings.
DeleteThank you for sharing the "Not My Kid" site. I have looked at lots of sites that deal with internet safety and can't believe I haven't seen this one before. I think it is definitely a good resource to share with parents. I also thought your statement about quality vs. quantity was really important. I think it is easy to want to implement every tool you come across, but we have to look at our classrooms and teaching styles and find what works for us and take steps rather than try too much too fast.
ReplyDeleteIt does matter which tools and the time taken to process the tools before incorporating them into the lessons.
DeleteI love that quote "None of us is as smart as all of us." It is so true and sometimes it's hard for the veteran teachers to understand that. I use Remind 101 to keep parents informed and it has worked very well for me. Thank you for sharing the website "Not My Kid." I hadn't heard of it and after browsing I have found it to be very informative and useful.
ReplyDelete