2- If you haven't already, look over the Horizon Report because it is actually useful and encouraging.
3- Here is my summary of Da Report:
The Horizon Report is basically a summary and analysis of the developments in technology for use in the classroom. This year's report includes a K-12 section which was our reading for the week. It is a well written article about the exciting findings in technology as well as the challenges we face everyday to include technology effectively in the classroom. The "Advisory Board" identifies five trends and five challenges to the world of technology in education. Then they focuses on six types of technologies for implementation over the next five years.
The five trends are (in order of decreasing importance):
a- Technology is a vital part of everyone's life. Okay Duh.
b- Technology is increasingly empowering students both in school and at home.
c- The web is becoming more and more personal (i.e. iGoogle).
d- Our ideas about learning environment are changing.
e- "They" are seeing creativity and innovation as increasingly important.
The five challenges facing schools for incorporating technology:
a- There is an increasing need for assessing new skills such as computer literacy.
b- Students are different, but schools are not changing the way we teach. [I'm not sure if students are changing biologically, but they have more technology knowledge.]
c- Teachers are not emphasizing real-life examples in class.
d- We recognize that "new technologies" should be incorporated into the classroom, but it slow to happen.
e- Resistance to change in the education system is great.
The six forms of technology and a description of each:
Collaborative Environments (Less than 1 year to adoption)
This technology is one that we have talked a lot about. It includes using websites like Blogger or a Wiki to create a community that can work together to complete an assignment or as an on-going part of the class. The report gives other examples like using Facebook or MySpace to set up personal accounts or using a virtual meeting ground like Second Life to meet up with students from across the globe. This technology is easy to implement and can huge payoffs in terms of teamwork and asking higher-level questions for assessment.
Online Communication Tools (Less than 1 year to adoption)
This is another type of technology we have used quiet a bit in class so far. Online communication includes instance messaging, Twittering, Skyping, and any combination of text, video, and sound communication. This technology is being used currently and will be highly prevalent in your students' lives weather it is in the class or not. Teachers should use these technologies to develop students interests and to allow for experts and other adults to be involved in the learning process. It also allows students to learn outside the classroom when there is a "teachable moment" in their daily lives.
Mobiles (2-3 years to adoption)
The mobiles the report refers to are cellular cell phones and smart phones. The implications for these devices are almost endless. They are already used as a cheap way to have clicker systems by using Poll Everywhere. The third-party apps can be used for a variety of classroom situations and are very useful as cheap alternatives to expensive equipment. The only problem is how many students actually have mobiles and how expensive the application you want to use is.
Cloud Computing (2-3 years to adoption)
Cloud computing refers to the innovation in internet processing where data is stored cheaply on a conglomeration of computers without having to store or process data on your own hard drive. Websites like Flickr, Google, and Blogger use this technology. These websites are already used in classrooms, but new websites that can process large amounts of data in an instance are becoming more and more useful for studying trends and laws in science or social studies.
Smart Objects (4-5 years to adoption)
Smart objects are sensors or devices that "knows" its place in the real world, but also communicates or exists in the virtual world. Most smart objects are used as a way to track objects or to determine how something changes over time. The smart object can communicate with other smart objects are can be harvested for data. This technology is far off, but is getting more affordable by companies like Lego and LeapFrog.
The Personal Web (4-5 years to adoption)
This is not new technology, but it is in policy development and could take some time to be useful. Teachers can make an online community for their class to find only what they need for the class. Websites like Portaportal would be an example of this, but the idea is to have many features with multiple uses. This technology will allow for better research from students and a more central database for classes.
4- My analysis of Da Report:
The report does a good job of giving both a detailed description of each technology and then two comprehensive lists of applications in the classroom. This will be very helpful in the future when I find a topic that could use a technology, but I'm not sure how to use it exactly. My questions for you are:
a- How useful do you think The Horizon Report is to teachers?
b- Why do you think they look as far ahead as five years? Are those technologies even practical?
c- Is the report tilted toward the schools with resources and do they take this into consideration?
5- I found the Mobiles section very useful because I think that we will be using cell phones in the classroom almost everyday in the future. Students cannot continue to be bombarded with technology and then expected to keep it out of the schools. Why not use what is already there? I know not everyone has cell phones right now, but soon that may change drastically. The section on cloud computing seemed to narrow for me and it seems that teachers would have a hard time implementing that into schools. I can see teachers moving away from data collection already in favor of online simulations and this will only draw the students further away from really experience research and laboratory work.
6- Have a good weekend Techno Beets.
