In the video, the author makes a very valid point. The central message of the video is that it is nearly impossible to learn how to do something if you cannot put it into practice. You can take all of the notes possible, but in order for the student to completely understand it and know how to do it, they have to do it for themselves. The author makes a case for this conclusion simply by putting a scenario in front of the viewer. Professor Dancealot told the students how to do the different dances, but they were not able to do them correctly by the time of the final. This is because they were not able to put their knowledge into practice. I completely agree with this conclusion. There have been countless times in my education career where I had absolutely no idea how to do something until I could put it in practice. For example, I was on color guard in high school. Learning the choreography for the routines was difficult (especially at the beginning) until I had someone show me which way to twirl the flag in my own hands. Even then, it took me a few times to get it right. The "Professor Dancealot" video makes a very good point that you have to practice what you study in order to gain a complete understanding of the subject.
"Teaching in the 21st Century"
Roberts's presentation makes it very clear how teaching has changed in the 21st century. He said that teachers are no longer the main source of knowledge. There are so many different ways people are able to look up information nowadays. But that does not make teachers useless. Their job just changes a little bit from providing all of the knowledge to filtering it. By filtering it, Roberts means that teachers need to teach students how to identify reliable sources and how not to plagiarize, etc. After all, what good is having the world at your fingertips but not being able to handle it? In the presentation, Roberts also compares entertainment to engagement. He makes points such that entertainment is very short-term, whereas engagement is long-term. He also makes the point that entertainment is usually meaningless, but engagement is meaningful. Because engagement is so powerful and important in the world of technology, it had to be meaningful and powerful. Otherwise, what's the point? I agree with what Roberts has said about how teaching is changing. Students now literally have all the information they could ever want at the push of a button. Education has become completely different to where teachers are there to teach the students how to properly USE the information they have.
"The Networked Student"
My first reaction to this video was, "Wow. That teacher kind of sucks." But the more I listened and watched, the more I realized that she did not. It is exactly what I have discussed on this blog. Although it is daunting when a teacher expects so much of you, it is all for the better. They know that the information is there for you, but they are there to help sort through it. Although students always have that professional outlet when they need it, they have the chance to become their OWN teacher. So please, go ahead and start calling me Ms. Medlin. I'm ready to teach myself about all that information at my fingertips (with my real teacher there to guide me, of course).
"Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts"
The thesis of this video is that students can teach just as much as teachers can. If you get students engaged and interested about what they are learning, then they are able to learn the material better through teaching it to other students. It goes back basically to the first and third videos we watched. You have to present the students with opportunity to learn and to teach others.
"Flipping the Classroom"
The idea of flipping the classroom is a new idea for me. I am not entirely sure how helpful this program could actually be towards instruction because I have not participated before; however, I definitely think it could help certain students. There are a few reasons I am skeptical about this idea. The first is simply time. Teachers already bring their work home with them (which is completely understandable), but I feel as though this may really be overkill. The second reason I am skeptical is student participation. Whether it is because they do not have the means of getting to a computer or the motivation to basically learn things on their own, I doubt kids will want to do this. I understand the teaching yourself idea, but I do feel that most of that should be reserved for older students that have a better understanding of what's going on around them. I think at the elementary level, it would be difficult to check for understanding because students could be embarrassed if they are the only one who did not understand the material from the night before. I think this method could be useful to an extent, but maybe it should be more geared to the older kids.
Thanks for reading!
Jennah Rose
