Blog Post #3

Michael Wesch: A Vision of Students Today
I think this video is a good way of showing what students go through. One of my literature professors told us that a university is a place to go to for higher learning. She said that we should be going to college to continue our education to become educated members of society. I think that many of us don't come to college because we want higher education. We came to college, because we want to get good jobs. We know that without a college degree there is hardly any chance to get a job that will allow us to be thriving members of our society. We made that choice, and we knew that it would be hard.
I thought the quote about how technology will save us was interesting. Some of the signs talked about how much people get on facebook or talk on their cellphones a day. The more technology we get, the more distractions come with them. It is our responsibility to not get distracted. We knew what we signed up for when we applied to college. It is hard, but how many great things in life aren't hard to get or achieve? I think it is worth the trouble we have to go through.
Kelly Hines: It's Not About the Technology
I completely agree with this article. As teachers, we need to be perpetual learners. I thought it was interesting how she pointed out that all the teachers in our building all learned in different time periods. Even though their time has technically passed as students, they should still be, in some ways, students. They should be learning as they go about new technologies and new ways of teaching. Also, I love how she pointed out that there is a difference in teaching and learning. If students aren't understanding what we are teaching, it's not completely their fault. Not everyone learns the same way. It would be easier if we did, but that isn't the case.
I firmly agree with what she said about technology being useless without good teachers. If technology alone could teach students, there would be no need for teachers. However, no matter how much technology you have, it would be useless without a good teacher. We can't rely on technology alone. We have to be those teachers who are dedicated to the education of our students. If we aren't those teachers, it's not we who suffer. It will be those students who suffer.
Karl Fisch: Is It Okay to Be A Technologically Illiterate Teacher?
I think there is a good point made here. I think that it is getting harder and harder to go through life being technologically illiterate. I agree with the statement that being technologically illiterate today is the equivalent of being a teacher 30 years ago who didn't know how to read or write. Our world is advancing, and we need to be advancing along with it. I don't think it should be something people are proud admit if they are technologically illiterate. Some people don't care, and they won't try to learn more about technology unless they are forced to learn it. I think that, as educators, we should want to learn more about how to use technology if it will help our students. After all, isn't that the reason we are pursuing a career in education? We want to help children learn, and if technology can help us help them, I think it is our obligation to learn how.
Gary Hayes Social Media Count
I thought it was amazing how quickly the numbers kept rising. We don't realize these numbers until they are put in front of our face. After only being up for about five minutes, there were billions of emails sent globally. These numbers are only increasing. They won't be decreasing. There are only going to be more and more people learning about technology and how it works. We can't let ourselves be passed by, because we don't want to have to learn more about technology. If we don't learn how to use these amazing tools, somebody else will be more than willing to do it. We are lucky, because we actually have the opportunity to learn more about technology. We might not want to do it all the time, but it will be worth the trouble if our knowledge of technology can help others learn.