Blog Assignment 7

The Networked Student

Before doing this week’s assignments, I did not have a clue what “PLN” stood for, much less what it meant in the teaching world. After watching the Networked Student video, I was amazed by the number of websites this “student” used in his PLN. I find it interesting and frightening that our society is getting more and more dependent on technology, like computers and the Internet. This student uses many different helpful websites and organizes them all together in one place, making them available to others, like me.

The major question asked, towards the end of the video, was, “Why does the networked student even need a teacher”? Well, this is an interesting question. This video points out a few answers for this question. The first answer is that the teacher “teaches him how to build his network and take advantage of [the] learning opportunities”. Other answers included: guidance, advice for communicating properly, navigating through good and bad information, assisting in turning a web search into a scavenger hunt, and teaching the student how to organize.

I find all of these answers true, but I do not think these answers are the only reason educators are still needed in the classroom. I feel like this video describes an educator as more of a coach than a teacher. I definitely agree with the idea of using technology in the classroom, like smart boards, but I think that educators are still needed to teach lesson plans and curriculum and guidance. For some students, the only parenting they receive is from their schoolteachers. I have taught in day cares and tutored in elementary school, and honestly some of those kids would not survive without their teacher. I have heard 3^rd graders say things that I had never heard before, including curse words and other phrases. Sure, you might say, “well, they do not know what they are saying, they just heard it from somebody else”. Well, when a 3^rd grader shouts a dirty word across the room and does a gesture with it, I know for a fact they know what they are talking about. This child did not know that the word and gesture were unacceptable in the classroom. How would he act in public as an adult if he were already acting like this as an elementary school child? I do not think he would know how to act with out the guidance of his teacher because obviously he was not receiving guidance at home. In conclusion, I agree that educators should teach students to learn how to use technology, but I also think that teachers are needed for guidance about socially acceptable behavior and for teaching the basics, like grammar, math, and science. I am a little scared about what the future holds for educators. I know that keeping up with this technology will be difficult for me. Hopefully, educators will still be needed for teaching the basics and not just for guidance on how to use technology. 

A 7th Grader’s Personal Learning Environment (PLN)

I thought this was an awesome video. This student has really learned how to use technology. By using Symbaloo, this student was able to organize all of her important websites and personal websites in one place. She is able to reference these at any time. She says, “I really like learning this way because I get more freedom… I can choose how to do it and when to do it”. Learning like this teaches a student responsibility, which is a great characteristic to learn at a young age.

When comparing my PLN to hers, my PLN is not as vast. I am still discovering important and useful sites that will be added. I hope one day my PLN is this useful. I found this video helpful; I now understand what a PLN is and how beneficial it can be.