During the 21st century, education has evolved to ensure that every student gets an education that will help him or her be successful in the future. Education has transformed to allow students to keep pace with the technology quickly developing around them. Fullan and Langworthy (2014) recognize that machines and computers can do a lot of the work for humans, but that would leave a society of people without jobs (pg. 8). New pedagogies which include digital devices support deeper, more meaningful learning for a generation of students who tend to be unmotivated in the classroom. Digital devices promote "creating and doing" while learning at a level conducive to preparing them for the future. Rogers (1963), a pioneer for innovative teaching, states that, "The compatibility of a new idea, as perceived by individuals, affects its rate of adoption" (pg. 3). New learning is only successful if all teachers and students buy into it.
This new learning environment promotes the teacher/student relationship to progress into a learning partnership (Fullan & Langworthy, 2014). Both, the teacher and the student, become life-long learners as they gain knowledge that helps them both engage in a technology-rich world. New pedagogies take teachers from delivering content, like old pedagogies, to promoting students to take ownership of their learning. The result of this is deeper learning for the students at higher levels of the taxonomy (Huitt, 2011). Students become producers of technology as opposed to consumers, like in previous models. The new pedagogies are designed to engage all learners while connecting learning to real life. Connecting learning to the world around us makes learning more purposeful and engaging to all students.
As a part of the new pedagogies of learning, teachers can use technology to meet the needs of all the students. Kuhn (2008) acknowledges, technology enables educators to differentiate and meet the needs of each learning style in the classroom (pg. 2). Effective use of technology engages learners by using strategies other than traditional drill and practice exercises. Technology is interactive and promotes creativity and application while meeting the needs of different learners on different learning levels.
Hobbs (2011) indicates teachers and librarians are working toward the goal of bringing digital and media literacy to all classrooms. Digital and media literacy allows students to access learning materials, as well as, entertainment (pg. 3). Schools must do more than just purchase digital devices; they must learn to use them effectively in the classroom. Teachers must use data available to make decisions about the correct ratio between traditional learning environments and digital and media rich environments. Through online assessments, teachers and librarians are able to develop best practices for instructional strategies in the classroom.
References
Fullan, M. & Langworthy, M. (2014). A rich seam: How new pedagogies find deep learning. London: Pearson. Retrieved from https://www.pearson.com/content/dam/one-dot-com/one-dot-com/global/Files/about-pearson/innovation/open-ideas/arichseamenglish.pdf
Hobbs, R. (2011). Empowering learners with digital and media literacy. Knowledge Quest, 39 (5), 12-17. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.
Huitt, W. (2011). Bloom et al's taxonomy of the cognitive domain. Educational Psychology Interactive. Valdosta, GA: Valdosta State University. Retrieved from http://www.edpsycinteractive.org/topics/cognition/bloom.pdf
Kuhn, M. S. (2008). Connecting depth and balance in class. Learning & Leading with Technology, 36 (1), 18-21. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.
Rogers, E. M. (1963). The adoption process II. Journal of Cooperative Extension, 1 (2). 69-75. Retrieved from https://archives.joe.org/joe/1963summer/1963-2-a2.pdf
I like that you acknowledge the argument Rogers makes about "buying in" to new learning. It's only successful if learners perceive that it's worth their time. I wrote about Rogers and his theories in my blog too, because I think it's so cool how he takes this super utilitarian perspective on learning, literally talking about getting farmers to use a new weed killer, and he makes it applicable to our discipline of education. Yet, it's just so relevant! Honestly, I think the more we understand about education, the more difficult our jobs become. We have a choice. Either we become the type of educator who is willing to really put in the work to internalize and adopt the new practices technology affords, produce golden learning opportunities, or we stay on easy street, recycling content because it's just easier that way. I can see myself in Rogers' article, weighing the risk vs reward of the challenge that "new" brings. Yet, all these resources point to the greater opportunity we have to become better, and ultimately, I think it's worth it.
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