EDCI 5825 Week 6 Reading Reflection

Blog/Reading Questions:
What is your reaction to the 10 Big Shifts in Education? Which shift(s) will be easier and harder for your to integrate in your future teaching/classroom? Please explain.

Our ever-changing relationship with the internet will constantly influence the way we use technology in our classrooms. The 10 Big Shifts truly emphasize this change and how as teachers, we should understand this relationship. I will probably use this new knowledge of the Big Shifts when I add strategies to use technology to enhance my units, lessons etc. Inevitably, it is reality that this changing relationship will define the way we teach in the future.
I think the Big Shifts # 4, 8 & 9 will greatly influence my teaching.

Teaching is Conversation, Not Lecture # 4
"Ideas are presented as the starting point for dialogue, not the ending point" (Siemens, 2002)(Richardson 2010). In the English Language Arts classroom dialogue is the key to developing understanding and inspiration.

Writing is no longer limited to Text: #8
In my classroom I will have to focus some projects to include writing in the planning BUT focus more on media projects to incorporate learning. Students can 'write' in "audio and video, in digital photographs, and even in code such as JavaScript, we can publish all of it easily for extended audiences." (Richardson 2010).

Mastery is the Product, Not the Test # 9
Because of technology, assessment in the English classroom will change for the better I believe. For example, in my podcast I describe a class project that incorporates the students understanding of Latin American Authors into collaborative Myspace/Facebook pages that demonstrate their knowledge. Normally, I might give a quiz to assess their understanding of the importance of authors social context or culture and how that might influence the writing we analyze in class. Because of technology, I am able to assess this in a different manner. Consequently, in a manner that connects with students interests and youth culture. Technology allows us to master content area information in a challenging yet engaging way.