Blog Assignment 4

Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please? by Scott McLeod

I appreciate Dr. McLeod's sarcasm in presenting his opinion of kids using technology. I think it will definitely get people's attention. I feel that the use of technology in schools as well as at home with kids, can be taken too far, but Dr. McLeod presents the other extreme of no technology. The way our world is advancing today students need to know how to use technology properly. Technology isn't bad, kids just need to be taught how to use it for good. Also, I found that Dr. McLeod is Associate Professor of Educational Administration at Iowa State University and the Director of the UCEA Center for the Advanced Study of Technology Leadership in Education (CASTLE). He is also co-creator of the Did You Know? (Shift Happens) videos.


The iSchool Initiative


I think the iSchool is interesting, however, I do have some questions. Knowing people who iPhones and iTouches, the monthly costs for operating those are [pretty expensive. How does the school system plan to pay for that? Also, those devices can be broken fairly easy. Just how much money will students and schools actually be saving when those things start having to be replaced?

On the other hand, I do see the plus side of the iSchool. It would be nice to have so much information in the palm of your hand and to also the great convenience of students and teachers and parents being able to communicate. However, something is missing. What about the personal relationships between the students and teachers? When things start to get too technical the teacher becomes less involved. A teacher A teacher isn't just an educator, he or she is someone that their students should view as a confidant.


The Lost Generation


I LOVED the video The Lost Generation. It was inspirational and it shows how looking at something from a different perspective can change everything. I think it is a video that everyone needs to watch. I loved how when the words scrolled backwards it read something totally opposite of what it originally said, that was neat and a creative.





Eric Whitacre’s Virtual Choir

Wow, that was my reaction to the virtual choir. I was in absolute awe at the magnificence of this performance. Technology is an amazing thing and it was awesome to see it used that way.