Week 4

Week 4 Reflection

Time is certainly racing.  So much is being uncovered.  Twitter, Facebook, Skype, Sim City, Wordle, Sketch-up, Google Maps, Quest Atlantis, Augmented Reality, Smart Grid, Zooburst,  Layar, Cloud Computing, and much more.  Group assessment is drawing near.  Who am I?  What am I supposed to be doing?  How much do I know?  Arrgh….  I need help.  Please let’s keep the discussion board and Bloggs active with suggestions and assistance.

The Horizon Report.

With the rapid growth of digital tools becoming available, the Horizon Report points out the valid fact that digital literacy is less about the tools and more about the thinking.   We know that students of today are different.  They see the world differently, interact differently and act differently.  Why then are schools still using practices and materials that were developed many years ago?  The report supports the need of a shift to more student centered approaches where learners should have the opportunity to create their learning in more informal educational settings.  It is suggested that we will see changes to our classrooms in the near future that include cloud computing and collaborative environments.   Next would be game-based learning, which has demonstrated an effectiveness for learning, not just entertainment.  Games that involve interdisciplinary problem-solving have shown to develop a wide range of skills.  Further to playing games would be to create them.  This incorporates designing and developing.   ‘Good game design involves research, creative thinking, the ability to envision both problems and solutions, and many other learning skills’.  Educationally speaking, we will probably not see such environments as augmented reality and flexible displays for a few years – what a shame!  Lastly, mobile devices.  The emergence of mobile/portable devices within the last few years are astounding, and are creating great interest within the realms of education.  Dominant arguments regarding potential miss-use is being overshadowed by the projected cost savings and potential learning capabilities these devices have.  All in all, education is slowly changing and will drastically change within the next few years.  Let’s get on board and share our experiences.

References

The 2010 Horizon Report: K-12 Edition.  The New Media Consortium.  Retrieved March 31, 2011 from http://www.nmc.org/pdf/2010-Horizon-Report-K12.pdf