The Future is on the Horizon

My thoughts on education have grown since beginning this course in September, especially concerning technology. Before I believed that technology had a small role in the classroom, but I have come to realize that that role is changing and needs to be addressed in classrooms. The future of education is one that is highly involved with technology. Students now have never known a world with no Google let alone no computers. These students are 21st century learners and teachers need to find a balance in their pedagogy to meet their needs. The best way is seen in integrating technology in the classroom.

With the incorporation of technology in the classroom teachers need to re-adjust how they address specific issues. One of the big factors that teachers need to address and teach students, which was pointed out in the Horizon report, is "sense making and the ability to assess the credibility of information". In one of my sessions at the BYTE conference someone brought up the idea that kids have digital ability but not digital literacy. Most kids can grab a device and automatically start using programs on it but it is a matter of whether they are using it appropriately or not. Students need guidance of where to go online and what sources are credible. They need to be shown productive ways of using technology and specifically the internet.

Technology also changes where and when students can learn. As we learned last week in class students have the chance to learn online wherever and whenever they want. The Horizon report also points out that technology makes learning mobile which is beneficial since many activities related to learning "take place outside the walls of our classroom". This touches on the idea of transparent walls in the classroom that has been mentioned before. Students in Canada are able to Skype with students from Australia. To me if technology is used appropriately the learning opportunities and experiences will grow and be endless.

I think that technology is emerging in our classrooms and that it is inevitable. Time needs to be taken to properly educate teachers and students on appropriate use in the classroom and ways to maximize use in the classroom.