Journal 3: Who Are Today’s Learners?

Greenhow, C. (2008, September). Who Are Today's Learners? ISTE, 16-17. Retrieved October 7, 2008, from http://www.iste.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=September_October_No_2_1&Template=/MembersOnly.cfm&NavMenuID=4107&ContentID=21638&DirectListComboInd=D

In this article, Greenhow reviews a study performed on 4,000 middle school students about their “technology conditions, skills and use for communication, collaboration, productivity and entertainment” (Greenhow 2008, page 16) as well as their school activities preference. The study shows that, contrary to popular opinion, lower economic status does not necessarily mean less technological savvy. The author suggests getting to know the technological habits of your students by asking them a series of questions about their technology usage if this information is not already collected by your school. She then returns to the research and reports that students are more likely to use Internet technologies other than just email to communicate. Students are mostly using cell phones, communication technology such as instant messaging and social network sites, and computer games outside of school. The article goes on to tell the reader what the students themselves recommend to teachers in regards to technology and learning. Students stated that they want to be able to use technology in the classroom more, and that activities involving technology rank among their favorite things about school. They also would like to see school look more like an internet café, with more room to sit comfortable and work with portable electronic devises. The students in the research understood that strong skills in technology will help them with future jobs, and hope that their schools will incorporate more of those technologies that will likely use in the workplace. Finally, the author briefly suggests that schools and districts make a move towards incorporating more technology into every aspect of schooling in order to keep up with the times and reach the students.

Question 1: How can we incorporate more student-friendly technology into the classroom without sacrificing content standards?
Allowing students to turn work in via websites, blog sites, and the like will bring technology into the classroom without sacrificing standards. Additionally, all content teachers can incorporate technology through research projects, presentations and other projects that are designed around the content standards.

Question 2: Instead of incorporating “work-place” technology into the classroom, would it be better to have an entire course dedicated to preparing students for the future of technology use?
Technology is not going away anytime soon, and therefore it is important that we train our students for this technology-filled future. While it is important to use technology in every content area and in every classroom so that students feel comfortable with it and are exposed to the great variety that it allows, having an entire course to get to use technology and learn about new inventions would also be beneficial, especially to students who know that they do not want to pursue higher education.