The last words of Scott McLeod’s words are still roaming around in my head. “Get out of the way and let them be amazing.” He described several instances of when kids used blogging to do amazing things. Martha, with a winsome sense of humor, posted pictures of her school lunch and in the end wound up helping a group called “Mary’s Meals” in Malawi so they could provide food to the community there. It’s true, we need to give up control and trust our students to create amazing work, amazing projects that may impact many people for good. Instead of seeking to control, teachers must instead provide guidelines and quality instruction so that students have they tools they need to work independently, experimenting with and learning about technology as they create their masterpieces. We do not need to be experts in technology, but we do need to be willing to embrace the fact that technology is a part of our students’ educational experiences, and it is here to stay.
Thoughts on Generation Like
After watching Generation Like, respond to this question on your class blog. How does understanding how children use the Social Web prepare us for our instruction in the classroom?
“Generation Like” was a very telling documentary describing how teens use technology and how they in turn are used by corporations that sell their products to these teens. The fact that teens “like” a certain product serves as an endorsement for the product and brings in profit for companies.
Teens are empowered to express themselves with social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook and blogs. They want to be noticed. Companies have picked up on this and have changed their marketing techniques to appeal to the teen pop culture.
The Social Web allows teens to be connected, engaged with one another, celebrities and the world around them. The Social Web allows teens to interact with media in a way that is meaningful to them.
I think the education word can benefit from following the corporate world’s marketing techniques in order to market education to students. Students want to be empowered to learn and have choice in the classroom as much as in other areas of their lives. The Social Web (and technology in general) has the potential to revolutionize the way students learn in the 21st Century.
First blog post
This is your very first post. Click the Edit link to modify or delete it, or start a new post. If you like, use this post to tell readers why you started this blog and what you plan to do with it.
eslgirlblog 