GeoBlog » Technology

2020 Vision

rothl — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 16:57:29 +0000

The same model of delivering instruction has survived since schools began in the United States, but the end is near. By 2020, schools will be radically different than they are today. Schools will exist as educated citizens are the foundation of our society and public schools lay that foundation. However, public education will be a more apt term than public school as the time for school will expand to all 24 hours in the day and the place will expand to wherever there are people. Technology will transform the way students learn.
Many children were homeschooled when our country began, and homeschooling has regained popularity in recent years. That trend will continue as people continue to want what they want, when they want it. With more and more available online, more parents will opt to pick and choose the education they want their children to receive. Traditional schools will have no choice but to respond to the altered demand for their services. Some parents will continue to want their children in school all day due to child care issues, but others will choose more flexible schedules.
In elementary schools, students will learn visually, auditorily and kinesthetically. Groups of students will meet throughout the day, but they will gather based on common interests, similar abilities, or preferred learning styles. The composition of these groups will be fluid throughout the day. Many schools will close. After a time during which school boards reassess their missions, school buildings will reopen as learning and community centers. Kids will meet for art classes. They’ll make music together. They’ll play sports. They’ll meet to participate in clubs based on common interests such as books, photography, games, and gardening. They’ll see academic teachers, too. Instruction will be almost completely individualized as computers will analyze students progress and offer just the right level of instruction. Every student will have a laptop (and keyboarding skills will be taught in a fun way from a very young age), and every classroom will have an interactive whiteboard. Online learning at the younger grades will often take the form of virtual games in which students “win” by mastering concepts. Students will gather to get started on new projects and to share completed ones with peers. Students will continue to read and discuss books. They’ll communicate with students around the world. Group projects will be common, and they’ll include students from many countries. Schools will be green with mostly paperless spaces and solar panels. Much of the food at lunch will come from gardens on the school grounds which students maintain. All students will learn a foreign language (often Chinese or Hindi), and they will learn it from a young age and in a way that mirrors how they learned their first language. Their second language will be used throughout the day at school, on their listening devices, on their computers, in songs, and in books. They’ll communicate regularly with native speakers of their second language.
As students get older, they’ll spend less time in school, and more time exploring the world. The old fashioned concept of field trips will occupy much of their time. However, their field trips won’t be an extra, they’ll be an essential part of their education. By exploring the world, they’ll learn what their interests are and develop them. They’ll learn onsite about businesses and factories. They’ll visit zoos, parks, and museums. All students will be required to volunteer a significant amount of time during what used to be known as the middle school years. They will choose how to volunteer their time and many will learn more about their future profession at this time. Students will perform a multitude of jobs from hospital worker to campaign aid to house builder. Whatever it is they do will not only teach them skills they are likely to use as an adult, but will also give them a lifelong awareness of the larger world, the issues in it, and their role and responsibility in helping improve the world.
Students in their middle to late teens will participate in apprenticeships. They’ll do real world work to learn about their interests. Businesses will partner with schools and government to create these opportunities for children. Many children will choose to enter the professions of their parents, and they’ll work side by side in training. Many will choose to try one field and then another. Students will train as artists, software designers, doctors, city planners, and engineers. The memorization of facts will largely be a thing of the past. Instead, education will focus on real world work and teaching children how to find, use, organize, and create information, how to solve problems, and how to make connections between information and people.
As in the past, policy makers will struggle with finding a balance between giving every student a broad, balanced education, and letting every student find and build on their strengths. The goal will be for students to have enough exposure to see the possibilities in the world and in themselves, but then to be allowed to focus on what is best suited to them.
School will be more equitable. The enormous amount of time, money, and effort which went into the legislation and implementation of No Child Left Behind will be remembered, but the law will no longer be in effect. While it was beneficial in shining a light on neglected populations of children, it was unable to live up to its name and children were still being left behind. However, teachers learned to use technology to bring them along. This, coupled with President Obama’s new, more equitable policies of the early 2010s made a difference in the lives of many children. More equity in education meant that students who needed more got more. Resources were poured into poor, urban areas. Racism and other forms of discrimination were dealt with head on. Expectations for all students were raised and support was given so children could meet those expectations. With students being able to focus on areas of strength, work at their own pace, pursue their passions, and make meaningful connections with their teachers and peers, achievement became attainable for students of all races, income levels, ethnicities, religions, linguistic groups, and nationalities.
Most college work in 2020 will be done online as rocketing tuition costs made brick and mortar schools out of reach for most families. The elite schools with huge endowments will still exist for a minority of students. Many students and teachers will never meet. Students will take classes by using a portable media player, and they’ll do so while working out at the gym or riding the bus to a job. Students will take classes on their phones while traveling. School will come to them. Expensive textbooks will have been eliminated. All students will have an electronic reader, and they’ll download their required texts at the start of each term. Heavy backpacks and their accompanying back problems will also disappear. When students do meet for a face to face class, they will bring their laptops. Teachers will send students their presentations. In addition, students will record teachers’ voices which will be coded into text on students’ computers. As students add their own thoughts and connections to their notes, links will automatically pop up, directing them to previous notes, real world applications of their learning, and other online information dealing with the same subject. Assessment will often consist of the creation of content.
At home by 2020, people’s cars charging in their garages will talk to their computers to let them know how much power the cars have. People’s computers will talk to their refrigerators and automatically compile a list of the groceries they need. Everything will be monitored in their homes, cities, states, and countries. The information will be compiled, used, and shared by a multitude of organizations. For example, when many people Google “flu symptoms,” the Center for Disease Control will be notified, and people in the area of the outbreak will be sent a warning and given precautions to take. Their daily dose of self-selected music, programming, and news will be waiting for them on their computers each morning for them to read, view, or listen to whenever they choose. Computers will be scattered around the house like the televisions of today, and all of their electronics will be connected and controlled by any of them.
All of this connection will be the only way of life that graduates of 2020 know. These digital natives will expect their adult world to be similar, and when they find ways that it is not, they’ll change them. Some of these graduates will become teachers, and they’ll continue to create and share with their students the connections they’ve formed that have made them successful citizens in 2020. They’ll teach their students how to create and share their own connections. As the digital immigrant teachers retire, some doing so more quickly than they anticipated due to the fact that they weren’t able (or possibly willing) to keep up with the rapid changes in education, the digital native teachers who replace them will become the majority of teachers. They’ll bring their lifelong experiences with them into the classroom, and they’ll expect and demand that their classrooms be without walls, be connected, and be relevant. Education in the United States will finally look, feel, and be different than it was at its conception.

Web Applications

rothl — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 19:18:14 +0000

I have just learned about a variety of on-line office suites. I teach a class for students who have trouble being successful in school. One student in particular really struggles with keeping track of all of his work. Crumpled papers constantly fall out of his binder, but rarely are they the ones he needs. Those papers are usually lost. He is quite smart, however he rarely finishes and turns in work. I would recommend ThinkFree to him because it offers everything in one place. He could create documents, spreadsheets, or presentations on-line. He wouldn’t have to remember to bring materials home; he could just turn on his computer. He wouldn’t have to remember to bring his finished work back to school. Again, he would be able to simply get on-line at school. In addition, his handwriting is atrocious. Being able to use a word processor would probably allow him to more efficiently record his ideas. Ideally, his teachers would put all of their assignments on-line as figuring out what he has to do and how to get what he needs currently takes up far too much of our class time. However, even if that didn’t happen, it would still be advantageous for him to use this tool to help himself stay organized.

Paperless Spaces

rothl — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 03:19:41 +0000

A paperless class would change my role as a teacher in many ways. (My husband would like me to first mention that a big advantage of paperless spaces is the total elimination of paper cuts. Such a sense of humor this man has.) As I just gave my first paperless assignment, I have given a bit of thought to this topic. When I gave the same assignment in a folder two years ago, I spent hours finding articles and creating assignments and then copying, collating, hole punching, and loading the papers into the folders. When I put it all on-line this year, I had to rethink what I wanted students to do. I couldn’t ask them to fill in the blanks. I had a lot of large and small writing assignments which I think were beneficial, but were too numerous. Instead, I decided them to do ten activities and then write one comment about each one. In addition, I learned that if I gave up some control of what they saw or read, they could learn more. Thus, while I did include some required reading and viewing, I also included some “go explore” type activities. My role changed from the one provider of information to a facilitator of information sources. Students are now able to access far more information than I was able to put in a folder.

Their learning changes because they are more in control of which direction they want to take their learning and they are now more likely to teach each other as well as me. This week, there have been the inevitable technical glitches, and I’ve enjoyed being able to say to them, “I don’t know. Let’s figure it out,” or “What do you think we should do next?” or “We’re all learning together.” After beginning only the first assignment of this project, I’m hugely impressed by how much they seem to have learned. Learning has also changed because on-line learning is great for both auditory and visual learners. The videos and pictures I’m able to share with students are quite powerful. It is also helpful that students can read each other’s work.

Learning could still be measured in traditional ways with on-line tests, but what would the purpose be when there is a record of authentic work which documents learning? In the first assignment of my paperless project, students had to read two articles and watch a video. Then they had to summarize the important parts of what they’ve learned and give their opinions. They wrote descriptive, insightful responses. What more information would I get about their abilities and knowledge from a test?

Clearly, a paperless space makes it easier to build a learning environment as all work takes place in public. Looking at someone else’s work is no longer called cheating, it is called sharing ideas. I am thrilled when I am able to share work with my colleagues. Students, too, benefit from learning from each other. We’re social creatures. This interaction not only helps us learn in the moment, but motivates us to continue learning. Once a bond has been established, we’re more likely to return for more help in the future. My students have explored the Internet and brought information back, but we haven’t yet experienced an outsider coming into our world and sharing information. Just seeing the dots on our ClustrMap excites my students. I can only imagine what an actual comment would do.

Skype Reflections

rothl — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:57:22 +0000

Though my colleagues at school might not know it as I am vocal and outspoken when passionate about an issue, I am shy. Writing an e-mail is easier than making a call for me. So, I thought that I might not get around to using the call function of Skype. I thought just the texting might be all I’d do. Then Evan called.

My family is currently in Arizona to attend a wedding and visit my in-laws. I’ve had a hard time finding time to complete homework this week, so I got up early and started working. (With the time change, it was easy.) I’m in the bedroom trying to complete some assignments, when Evan calls. We begin to chat. Suddenly, my husband (who has been trying to keep the six kids entertained while not waking his parents as they are not experiencing a time change) appears to see who Evan is and why he’s in the bedroom with me. It was amusing.

Actually, the first calls didn’t work. We tried to text. First, I couldn’t figure out where the text box was. I clicked on all the icons, but none worked. Then I noticed it at the bottom. Then I typed, but had no idea how to send. It’s not the same as e-mail. I called my husband in and he looked at me like he might look at his grandmother trying to learn how to use a cell phone. To him, it was beyond obvious that I needed to hit enter. Yet another humbling experience for me.

However, progress has been made. I can now talk and text on Skype. And have actually done so! I have to admit that learning about a new tool is not the same as using it. It’s pretty cool to be able to talk using my computer.

In the future, I could see using Skype first as a way to bring experts into the classroom. It seems like a fairly easy way to start using this technology. I think another doable first step would be to connect students to a classroom of other students who are learning about a similar topic. With more experience, the ideas which most appeal to me include using Skype to help me learn a second language, working with another teacher to co-teach a class, and having parents use it to see student presentations.

From this technology, I could gain expertise from others who can “visit” my classroom via Skype, personal and professional connections, free access to people around the world, a way to engage and motivate students, the ability to eliminate the barrier of geography, and yet another tool in my technology toolbelt.

Flickr Possibilities

rothl — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 18:43:04 +0000

Flickr has many applications in a geography classroom. I could take students on virtual field trips by creating slideshows of pictures from places we are studying. I could ask students to create the virtual field trips. I could use a picture as a discussion prompt. We’re about to study Darfur. I could find a picture of a burned village and ask students to comment on it. I could also ask students to take pictures to represent topics we are studying, have them upload them to Flickr, and then have them sent to my website. I’d definitely like to try using the Geoblogger feature of Flickr in my classroom.

I just used this picture on my Enough Club! blog to show how the $5000 we are trying to raise will be spent in Sierra Leone.

Image Citation: Dominik Bartenstei. (2008, January 16). Flickr. Dominik Bartenstei N’s Photostream. Retrieved October 23, 2008, from http://www.flickr.com/photos/bartenstein/2198137158/.

Podcast in the Classroom

rothl — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 02:15:27 +0000

“The True Cost of Coffee” is part of the Volunteer Voices series created by the Peace Corp. I would use this podcast in my classroom for several reasons. It is a firsthand account of a woman’s work in Honduras. It touches on a great number of the issues we discuss in class throughout the year. Some of the issues in this less than ten minute podcast are deforestation, clean water, pollution, coffee farmers, short v. long-term goals, government help/intervention, roles of men v. women, economics, poverty, and survival. This would be an effective way to introduce students to the idea that issues are complex and without easy solutions. I could see using this one podcast as a starting point for a class wiki. Small groups of students could further explore one of the issues mentioned and create a wiki page about it. At the end of the podcast, there is an invitation to request a match between a classroom and a volunteer working in any region of the world. This seems like another incredible opportunity to get personal, current account of life in a place we are studying.

Using RSS

rothl — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 20:50:07 +0000

For my on-line class, I needed to look at my classmates’ blogs. My first instinct was to find my teacher’s post with all of their blog addresses in the “Facilitator’s Forum” part of Blackboard. I went there and discovered that only one was hyperlinked. It seemed like too much trouble to cut and paste all of the addresses every time I would need them, especially since it seems like I’ll need them a lot. Then I remembered Google Reader. Hurray! All of their addresses in one place and just a click away. My first practical, real-life use of RSS. I can certainly see how RSS would similarly be helpful to me if I ask all of my students to create their own blogs.

After I finish this class, I hope to continue using RSS to keep me informed about issues of concern to me. I’m already getting news feeds, and I just created custom feeds about topics I’ve been interested in for years. I’m excited about news coming to me. I’m unsure how it will be significantly better than my just doing a Google search when I’m interested in something, but I’m open to the possibilities of what those better things might be. My students will benefit in two ways. First, when I know more about the topics I teach and about better ways teach those topics, my students tend to learn more. Second, when I know how to do something of value (such as go to one place to get a lot of information from a lot of sources), I share it with my students.

Getting My Feet Wet

rothl — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 00:29:57 +0000

I teach seventh grade geography, and I lead a student social action group called the Enough! Club. I would like to use technology creatively, efficiently, and effectively. My goal for myself and my students is for my participation in Building On-line Collaborative Environments to give me practical, immediately-usable ideas and tools to help me incorporate technology into my classroom practice in meaningful ways which can be used by all students. I would like to better understand the power of Web 2.0 technologies, so I can share them with my students. I would like to use Web 2.0 technologies to engage students who might not otherwise become engaged. I would like to work to close the achievement gap through the relevancy of the WWW, the empowerment it gives students, and the motivation it inspires. I would like to raise awareness of issues of importance to me through the accessibility and collaborative nature of Web 2.0 technologies.