Technology in Schools Click on the link and read through the article. There is also a short video I want you to watch.
Answer the following questions:
1. Do you agree or disagree with these 14? Defend your answer….this should be more than 2-3 sentences.
2. How do you think Conway stacks up against this list? Provide examples.
3. What do you think we need to do at Conway to join the 21st century schools?
lampekblog 
1. I do agree with these fourteen statements. America’s school system could expand far beyond the level in which it is currently if it were to stop restricting itself with ideas that once fit the needs of students but no longer do. All of the points made are valid points that are only holding back the American school system. If the country were to join together to eradicate these “old-school” ideas, our education levels could possibly reach those of Asian countries, like China.
2. For the most part, Conway has rid itself of the ideas on this list. The school has its own Wi-fi system, encourages the use of cell phones and tablets for the purpose of learning, has a Facebook and Twitter, and even allows grades to intermingle instead of forcing grades to be separated, as the article states in statement 12 we should avoid.
3. The school system should look into providing healthy food (particularly the idea of growing our own food) and starting school at a later time. Being rid of isolated classrooms by allowing parents to sit in on classes does not seem to be a necessary change, but expanding resources beyond a textbook and a teacher’s knowledge does appear to be potentially beneficial. We have begun to do this though. The school does have computer rooms, but it is much more likely for a class to use the laptops, iPads, or Chrome books provided than for the class to visit a computer lab. The library at this school does need to be changed drastically to fit needs that have arisen more recently, as the article suggests.
Well said! If you get a chance read the comments below the article. The comments bring up valid concerns and in theory this is great, but sometimes we have to be realistic (unfortunately). Changes mentioned in the article take time and many people have to be on board.
1. I agree with these 14, especially #9. School should start later and also have all the technology needed to be efficient.
2. I feel Conway is doing pretty good in most of these categories but could do better like being able to open windows to let the parents know they are welcome.
3. Follow these steps.
I agree! I would love for school to start later, but what comes with that is ending later. It would be great if we could try it a year and see if it does have an impact on tardies and attendance. I do think you can add more to your responses especially #3. You have a voice and I want to hear it!
I agree with the 14 because all the students shouldn’t all be treated the same because they might me the same age but could be at different levels of learning. Also the cafeteria food isn’t the most healthiest you can get. In Conway half the time the library is closed or you have to have a note to go check out a book in your spare time. Conway to join the 21st century schools I think we shouldn’t have such isolated classrooms in certian classrooms learning from each than just only the teacher
1.I agree with most of the fourteen. I can’t quite relation to professional development yet. I don’t quite agree with the isolated classroom one. I don’t feel like the schools should allow any visitors into class rooms. It is a safety concern. Not everyone isn’t violent.
2. Conway does have computer rooms (which I like), but it also has laptops to share between most classes, or chromebooks, or iPads. We have access to tablets and cellphones for educational purposes. We have a Facebook page online. We stack up about half way with the list.
3. Conway could incorporate a healthier lunch program. The agriculture classes could help to grow vegetables and fruits and herbs for the cafeteria. Students could run a garden where all the crops go to help students. Conway could update the library. They could have a small area to sit and plug in your electronic devices and use them for educational purposes. Conway starts fairly early at 8:10. I personally wouldn’t mind if school started later and ended later. I think that I would actually prefer it. I think that if we have standardized tests, that they should test more than just fact based literature and mathematics. They should test creativity and individuality and moral growth. I believe that Conway could do some improving, but they are also higher up compared with many Arkansas schools when it comes to being a 21 century school.
1. I agree with the 14, reason why is schools banned all the good things about cellular things and the other things. The just don’t understand that it helps us with homework and projects and assignments that teachers give up. Technology is big in our lives now and we should be able to use it for educational purposes at school.
2. I think Conway stacks up by saying all the rules and we can’t do this and that, but in my opinion it is hurting us not being able to really use of phones and technology freely. Conway schools are just to strict about little things. Like now we can really only use of cellular devices at lunch and when we get in class, we have to turn it off and put it up. What if you need our phones to do certain work or assignments in class.
3. Be more open and let the students be more free and interactive. That’s the main way for Conway schools to join 21st century schools.
1. I agree with all of it. I think the 14 things are very much correct and relate-able to our school and many schools. I noticed how some of it I already see in our schools, like how the school has a twitter page to keep students informed. But, I also noticed that we do have semi-unhealthy foods and that we do have Wi-Fi but students do not have access to it.
2. Other than what I just stated I think we are on a good track to be a no obsolete school. There are some things we still need to work on, like how a library is not a place where students feel free to go or even welcome to be there.
3. We need to notice that we are not meeting all the needs of our students and but that into work and change things about our library and our lunch foods.
1. I strongly agree with all 14 of these things. I think it is important to give students the chance to use technology and computers, schools should provide wifi so students can access the internet and phones and tablets are just another way that students can access this information. And for the classrooms to not be isolated off from the outside world. students need to know about current events that are going on outside of school walls. Schools also need a website or way of letting students and parents know what is going on. Starting school later than 8 is a great idea, it will give students more sleep and more would show up for their classes.
2. I think Conway does a good job at meeting these 14 things. We have a school website and twitter and facebook but they could be a little better about posting information. Some teachers do post their ideas and share them with others but I feel like not every teacher does. Also, our cafeteria does provide healthy food but we still have the not so healthy choices as an option too.I think having more students make and design posters for classrooms would be a great idea to start at Conway since the students are the ones that are suppose to benefit from these posters.
3. I think to make conway more close to the list we could post more on the social media sites,give less standardized tests and give more of a way to test students on their knowledge and not just facts they can remember for a test. Also, make school start a little later so students could get more sleep and not be so rushed in the mornings and more students would show up on time.
1. No this is ridiculous. While I agree technology is on an incline in society technology is just like reading a lighter more information filled textbook. The duty of a teacher is to give students experiences and other things to relate information to so they can learn and remember new things. Make students use a computer for everything causes to RELY on technology. Technology is not advanced enough as of now to do everything the average human needs to do on a daily basis.
In the article i found this: ****Andrea Schleicher (2010) said: “Schools have to prepare students for jobs that have not yet been created, technologies that have not yet been invented and problems that we don’t know will arise.”**** Saying that we must prepare the future of our state, country, and world on assumptions of what the future may or may not be like is a gamble not NEARLY worth the risk! 30 years ago people thought we would have time machines and flying cars…. If we prepared our now historians then on how to travel through time (which would have been impossible since it has never been invented so no one could possibly know how to teach that) we would have few historians as the real ones died off due to old age. Then we could lose parts of history we will NEVER get back!
2. I think we stack up well against the rest of the nation. We cannot possibly fit these demands cause they are too drastic of changes to make for no known reason other than these people like technology and believe in its growth. There is also people who believe in aliens so…..
3. I think we have done all we have done correctly but we cant go shooting in the dark trying to hit a bulls-eye for technology. We have to ease in to this process but technology is still just a tool, not a way of life.
I agree with the majority of these fourteen obsoletes. I feel like sometimes isolated classrooms could be a more effective learning environment for students, but I don’t think it should be isolated 24/7. There should be a designated time frame where parents and other visitors can cone in and visit. These may be when there are projects to be presented or other artifacts completed that they have to show, I know I wouldn’t want to be taking a test with all of my peer’s relatives in the room breathing down the back of my neck.
On technology, I don’t like when it is forced into every subject, I feel like it should be there for the teachers to use, but if it doesn’t NEED to be used, then the students shouldn’t feel obligated to use it. Wi-fi should be in all schools. Period. Just in case. Having a tech person on campus all the time is a great idea, and I love how friendly ours are, but trying to educate EVERY teacher on technology related things is not what should be done. Not every teacher is going to know (or need to know for that matter) how to use Google Drive. (Art teachers for example).
I know teachers are busy. But I do agree with the statement in number six where it says, “if a teacher is no longer learning, then he shouldn’t be teaching other people.”
Conway has a Facebook and a Twitter which I think is fantastic. They’ve done really well with that one I feel, because I actually find it very useful.
On the food; you can’t MAKE people eat healthy, but there should always be healthier choices for those students who would like to eat better.
Starting school later makes so much sense to me. As a working high school student, I know that the measly five or so hours of sleep I got last night did nothing for me. I didn’t get off until eleven, and then I had homework. If I got to sleep in some more, I would be so much better in the academic aspects. This is fact.
The standardized tests are ridiculous, but unless we find a better way to assess every student effectively, I feel like that’s all we have to work with.
1.no i do not agree because if we did not have most of that stuff we would not be at half of the levels we are now,and it would make it real hard on teachers because that means that they would have to provade everything because we just couldn’t look it up on our own any more.
2.we have most of the things on this list and use on a daily basic in class to do our work and if we had to give it up a lot of things would be harder to do without technology.
3.they have it to wear you can be on your technology in class to look up things that you maybe going over and they have wifi so you don’t have to use your data
1. Not giving it much thought before but after reading the 14 obsolete things in our schools I realized that I do agree with these 14 things. Schools don’t help us grow in our stronger areas but instead have us focus on what we lack in. Though i understand why they want us to work better in our weakest fields but we need to really focus on our strongest of points so we can use it as are advantage in the future. The things like lunch and coming to school later would improve all of the students. Not just a few but every single student would gain so much from little changes such as a healthier lunch and starting school a bit later. Though I do disagree with its statement that school lunches are cheap. Our schools lunches are not cheap based off what they give us. It’s barely a lunch that is unhealthy. Though this world is slowly becoming more and more overrun by technology we use it in everyday life but we never actually pursue it and not all students have technology at home so we need to take advantage of technology but use it for the right reasons for the right lessons.
TO BE CONTINUED!
Question 2 & 3 coming soon!