O.k., on to videos. Despite the fact that my partner occasionally goes storming around declaring me a technophobe after I've admitted that I've ignored yet another one of his emails with a link to some fill-in-the-blank (witty, hysterical, horrible, informative...) YouTube video, I have seen a few. I liked this week's lesson because it puts sites like YouTube into a manageable and educational context for me. And, as a visual learner, I found some items that I really liked. I was excited to read the article about iCuek but then found the site to be in need of more development. Some of the sites also turned me off due to all of the advertising and due to the fact that a lot of them seem to count on viewers being ADHD, which I am not. This is to say that I do much better with fewer, more in-depth pieces than lots and lots of short, quick pieces.
Once again, I've learned a new term: Net Generation, presumably to discribe those younger than Generation Y.
What else? I checked out 100 YouTube videos for educators and plan to go back to explore further and use this list as a reference. I also checked out two of the videos. The first, "The Day the Music Died (American Pie)," was fun to watch. While watching, I was thinking about how the internet has created a new version of philanthropy, given how much time and effort people put into these pet projects that net no income (but perhaps feelings of fame?). At the end, however, the credits looked as though the piece had been produced professionally, which raised interesting issues of how much overlap the web allows between professionals and everyone else. The other video I watched was "How to Make a Mummy," which I cannot reccommend but which highlighted the fact that learning can be not just fun but funny.
How could PS use YouTube or other sites that have been showcased in these activities for 1) development purposes and 2) a course for teachers? I'm sure it's possible. Do any of the usual suspects- Jennifer H? Maggie? Julia?- have ideas for turning PS staff from technology learners to technology teachers/implementers?
There you have it. I'm ready for week 11. My own professional development has been a bit thin in recent years and I am finding 12 Things to be quite interesting.
1 comment:
You raise some very important questions here, Anna. I think that videos on YouTube can definitely have a place in our programs. I also hope that someday we can encourage teachers to shoot and post their own videos as part of a learning experience.
PS staffers can and SHOULD become technology teachers/implementers - connecting to the world has become exponentially easier through the Internet and Web 2.0. We need to be able to show teachers how they can connect their students to the world as well as encourage the development of skills like collaboration across cultures!
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