Blog Assignment #10

I'm a Papermate. I'm a Ticonderoga.

I believe this cartoon is symbolizing the different types of technology. The Papermate would represent the old fashioned pencil and paper type of learning, and the Ticonderoga would represent all of the new types of technology. I think the cartoon tries to make the point that using paper and pencil is a cheaper way of learning. However, the learning is not very efficient and is often slow because the pencils are always breaking. Ticonderoga, on the other hand, represents all of the new technological devices. They cost much more than pencil and paper, but they provide a better quality education. I think the cartoon is trying to make the point that it is better to spend more money up front because in the long run, it will be more beneficial to you.

John Spencer

I enjoyed reading John Spencer's blog post Why Were Your Kids Playing Games? This post was about a conversation between a teacher and the principal. This principal was upset because the teacher was playing a game in his classroom which goes against his no games policy. The teacher tried several times to explain to the principal that the game was educational. The students were engaged in the learning process and were having fun at the same time. However, the principal failed to see the teacher's point. Instead, the principal wanted the teacher to focus on teaching his students memorization skills. While it is important to follow the rules, I think it is important to have rules that are student focused. Creativity should be encouraged in schools because it allows students to have fun while learning.

The next blog post I read by John Spencer was Remember Pencil Quests? In this blog post, Spencer explains that in his sophomore year the teacher told the class that they were going on a pencil quest. He explained that this pencil quest would be like a moving textbook where each site they visit will have a page to read as well as questions to answer. The student was confused and asked the teacher what conflict was driving the quest. The teacher simply explained that they were going on an adventure and the goal was to finish the quest. Spencer then explains that the students were very excited to be going on this quest and happily ran from site to site. He also said that his students are now excited about the projects, problem-based learning, and pen pal networks they are doing in his class. I think it is important to create projects for your students that will get them excited about learning. As a future educator, I hope that I will be able to incorporate projects into my lessons so that my students will have something to look forward to.

Scott McLeod

Scott McLeod is a blogger and professor who is very inspiring. He is serving as the Director of Innovation for Prairie Lakes Area Education Agency 8. Scott McLeod is also recognized as one of the nation's leading academic experts on K-12 school technology leadership issues.

I enjoyed reading Scott McLeod's blog post Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please? I enjoyed the humor and sarcasm present throughout the poem. He uses sarcasm to explain just how important technology is. I agree with McLeod's argument. I think technology is very important and should be incorporated into classrooms. We live in a world that is constantly changing, and technology is now a very important part of today's society. Allowing students to blog and create their own personal learning network exposes them to a type of learning that pencil and paper cannot provide. While technology can be used inappropriately, this does not mean that we should ban it from our schools. The use of technology should be encouraged in schools because it allows the students to enjoy learning.