Blog Post 10

I'm a Papermate. I'm a Ticonderoga.

Looking at this picture, it is clear that it is a comparison of better and worse. I looked up what Ticonderoga was and I found it was a more expensive type of pencil. In the comments from the author he writes about how he is mocking the PC. Obviously, if you spend the money on a Mac you end up with so many better programs. I experience this all the time since I am a PC owner and I always borrow my brother-in-laws Mac.

Why Were Your Kids Playing Games?

In the blog post Mr. Spencer writes about the conversation he has with the principal. While in the principal's office, the principal tells Mr. Spencer that he can not have the kids play games and he has to teach. Mr. Spencer explains that he was using advanced simulation with his students just like the doctors use in learning how to operate. The principal wants the students to have a "burp back" education, as Dr. Strange puts it, and the teacher is just not going to have it. He believes that students will be able to memorize better by playing games to learn rather than having to memorize text after text. Then, the principal suggested worksheets and algorithms to Mr. Spencer. Mr. Spencer's solution is "we'll create an algorithm factory and integrate it into our conflict-oriented reading and writing project" (A.K.A The Factory Game).

Another post I read was "Remember Pencil Quests?". I thought this post was different and exciting. The teacher leads the students on a pencil quest. I enjoyed that fact that with a simple pencil he was interacting the students and getting them excited. Students were asking questions about where their going or how many pages they will explore. The teacher was determed to get his students excited about learning. I feel as though he is saying that there should be no limit to learning. Even with a simple pencil, a student can go on a quest to reach their destination. Learning should be fun and should interact the students rather than just writing and memorizing with no purpose at all.

Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please?

For starters, I read Mr. Spencer's about me to learn a little more about him. He was an Associate Professor of Educational Leadership at the University of Kentucky. Dr. McLeod also is the Founding Director of the UCEA Center for the Advanced Study of Technology Leadership in Education. Most of all, he is recognized as one of the nation’s leading academic experts on K-12 school technology leadership issues. He is very rooted in technology and all of its benefits.

In Dr. McLeod's post, Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please?, his sense of humor really comes out. He makes fun of parents and educators that are technological illiterate. He tells people to not teach their kids this stuff, because he wants his kids to have a leg up. Our world is centered around technology and if you do not integrate it in your classrooms, they will be behind. As teachers, it is our goal to do what in the best interest for our students, weather we like it or not. If integrating technology in your classroom will help them succeed, then its a must do!