Module 6 Blog
I experience the digital divide everyday at school. I work in a low socio-economic area where unemployment is very high at this time. 80 percent of the school that I work at is on free/reduced lunch. We also have the highest percentage of special education students which is another group of students that will be on the “wrong side” of the digital divide. As a leader in educational technology I do my very best to provide experiences within the classroom to my students that they would never have access to at home. I am required to take my students to the computer lab once a week to work on math skill on StudyIsland.com. They really enjoy using it and when they found out that they could access it at home they were very excited. My students that have a computer and internet access are using it at home. They come in telling me what they worked on and if they got on the Top Score Boards. These students had been playing on entertainment sites, now they are working on math skills to win their blue ribbons and receive their rewards for their hard work. I have three autistic students that absolutely love the gaming style of Study Island. They work very hard to be able to play the games. If they were asked to do a worksheet they would not be as excited about practicing what they had learned. Though this site is not new (in relation to date of invention), it is innovating to my students because they are playing games and learning at the same time with the added bonus that the skills line up with the Georgia Performance Standards that they will be tested on in April.
Another technology that I use with my student is Power Point. As with Study Island, it is not new in terms of date, it is new to them. All of my students have seen power points in use by their teachers but very few of them have ever created on. Each year I have my students create a power point during the last nine weeks that describes what they have learned during the year. I take pictures of many of the activities during the year that the students may us in their power point to illustrate their new learning. We complete this my booking time in the computer lab for a minimum of 5 sessions. Some students work on their projects at home if they bring a jump drive to take it back and forth. For students who do not have a jump drive I email it to their parent’s email account for them to have the document at home to work on. I could have them create a poster however this would not be preparing them for what they will be exposed to and be required to do as they progress through their school career. Learning how to use what they have access to prove valuable in and of itself. If they do not know how to use accessible technology it will never be valuable no matter how new it is.
I do agree totally that “The future has arrived; it just wasn’t evenly distributed.” My school is fortunate enough that all our classes have 21st century technology. This is largely due to the fact that we used Title 1 funds to purchase extra equipment. This is one time that being a Title 1 school afforded our students more than other students in schools that are higher on the socio-economic ladder. We are also fortunate to have a computer technology paraprofessional to help our students when they go to computer lab (the class).
Hi Tabitha,
ReplyDeleteYour recount of StudyIsland.com made me curious enough to click on the link. I am glad that your students are motivated by it. I suppose that there are similar sites one can access if one does not live in the US. I guess there are many levels of digital divide to consider. Your thoughts?
Tabitha
ReplyDeleteMy school is also a Title 1 school and we have used Title 1 funds to create technology equipped classrooms. I love using PowerPoint with my students. At the beginning of the year, my students and I created PowerPoints about Integers. I agree that giving students the opportunity to use technology is the most important want to help them see how valuable it is. I wish my school had Study Island, but we purchased Classworks instead.
As I think about strategies for closing the digital divide, I realize that my school does not have the support for adopting new emerging technologies. For example, Soloway (n.d.) mentions “Linux is a very powerful tool – open source software, but schools cannot use it because we do not have the Linux experience to implement it.” To help disadvantage students overcome the lack of Internet access, I think schools should offer more computer lab time for students to complete projects or research. According to Becker (1994), “American students report using computers an average of 40 minutes a week.”
To solve the digital divide issues, I think we must remember the quote: “If you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. If you teach a man to fish, you feed him for a lifetime.” Giving students computers or smartphones will not make kids smarter. To close the digital divide, students will still need teachers to guide and teach them how to use technology effectively.
Becker, (1994). Challenges and Strategies in Using Technology to Promote Education Reform Retrieved from http://www2.ed.gov/pubs/EdReformStudies/EdTech/approaches.html
Chinese Proverb. (2011). Retrieved from EDUC 7108 Emerging Technologies Course Resources Module 1.
Soloway, E. (n.d). The Digital Divide: Leveling the Playing Field. [Vodcast]. Laureate Education, Inc.
I at first thought that you may actually be at my school. We are alo a Title I school. We also use the program Study Island and we use Education City. My kids love the "play live" version of Education City where they compete with other students who are logged in from all over the country and race to compete to see who can answer the most math facts questions in an aloted time. They love it. Just like you said I could have given them a worksheet but the intrinsict motivation is not there. I also love the idea that you have your students create a PowerPoint to prepare them for the future. Great blog!!!
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