In the first class meeting of Education 504: Teaching with Technology we completed an activity in which we thought of what our ideal classroom would look like. My ideas were very different than my fellow classmates and because of this I hesitated to share with the class. My ideal classroom was most definitely a classroom of the future instead of a classroom that could be created with today's resources and technology. I believe that in my lifetime the use of technology in the classroom, and in our daily lives, will change significantly. One of the most important goals in education is creating the innovators of tomorrow and John Dewey states in "My Pedagogical Creed" one of the foremost issues with educating people for the future:
"With the advent of democracy and modern industrial conditions, it is impossible to foretell definitely just what civilization will be twenty years from now. Hence it is impossible to prepare the child for any precise set of conditions. To prepare him for the future life means to give him command of himself; it means so to train him that he will have the full and ready use of all his capacities; that his eye and ear and hand may be tools ready to command, that his judgment may be capable of grasping the conditions under which it has to work, and the executive forces be trained to act economically and efficiently."
In this respect I agree wholeheartedly with Dewey. We as teachers, need to move beyond the classrooms of our past, and our current perceptions need to change in order to educate our worlds' future leaders and innovators. The video below shows what I think future classrooms will look like and this I believe to be close to my ideal classroom.
While this entire incorporation of glass technologies into every aspect of our lives is very futuristic and cool, the classroom environment is shown in at approximately 1:50.
This classroom is very futuristic and I have to add that I think balance inside the classroom is important, I think there is no replacement for spending time out in nature and for doing hands-on science labs. This classroom however does give itself to active learning that is student centered, as promoted by Dewey.
When Dewey shared his thoughts on education they were radical and as time has passed a majority of his ideas are being accepted and used by more and more educators as standard practice. I think a lot of educators would see this futuristic classroom as radical, much in the same way. Although the incorporation of technology in the classroom is difficult, I think it is essential to have an open mind to what the future holds.
I also believe that it is important to teach the value of education to our students and that the goals is not to pass a standardized test or to only be trained for a certain job. Dewey stresses that "education ... is a process of living and not a preparation for future living." I feel that even now I have a hard time keeping this goal of education in mind personally (especially due to the fact of being in a program like the MAC program) but it is a key concept to stress to develop lifelong learners in the classroom.
While I agree with most of Dewey's ideas there are some that I find very radical. The major idea that introducing students too soon to special studies (reading, writing, science, literature, history, geography) is a violation of a child's nature and that instead education should only be related to their social life is surprising. I understand the importance of trans-disciplinary education and the intersection of many disciplines, however, I find the idea of teaching with no distinction between different subject materials as somewhat inefficient. I also think some of the argument as school as a social institution that is the extension of the home has not translated well with time. When Dewey first wrote about these thoughts the concept of family is very different. Some students do not come from a traditional family with strong family values and I think this provides some issues when we look at the social responsibility of the family and school in Dewey's arguments.
Dewey thoughts provide incredible insight into education and his ideas seem somewhat timeless but the biggest question is "Do we Dewey?" and how do we completely reform our perceptions of education today?
If you'd like to read "My Pedagogical Creed" by John Dewey click here: http://dewey.pragmatism.org/creed.htm
If you'd like to read "My Pedagogical Creed" by John Dewey click here: http://dewey.pragmatism.org/creed.htm
**As I final thought I'd like to give a shout out to Rachel for the inspiration of the title for this blog post!
Very nice, Ms. Arnholt! My favorite thing you talked about is when you quoted Dewey's "To prepare him for the future life means to give him command of himself." I wholeheartedly agree with this part of his creed, and I think it directly relates to the latter of the quotes you used as well as to your concept of an ideal classroom. Since we DON'T know what the world and technology will look like in even FIVE years, we must prepare our children for anything. But what I find most interesting about this is that our students will be the ones making the stuff of the future! It's very hard to get around, but I think we can also find hope in looking at the past and seeing that is not a new dilemma. People always find a way. So my question for you is, how does a teacher balance the idea of preparing for the future with the social dimension. And I get that education is not JUST preparation for the future, but isn't the future a part of the process of living? I think I'm confusing myself even just writing this, but I hope you see what I'm getting at. What I hope you consider is this: what parts of Dewey will you do, and why? It may not be a matter of reforming the whole system, as you mentioned in your closing question. Thanks for your thoughts!
ReplyDeleteMrs. Arnholt,
ReplyDeleteThis was a great post! You did an excellent job of covering the classroom discussion, your feelings and thoughts about the activity, and John Dewey's Creed. Additionally, your post was very engaging to the reader from the well thought out text, to the video, to the cartoon. Where did you find the Dewey cartoon? Great!
As a final note, I wonder what your current ideal classroom looks like? I think the futuristic idea is wonderful. I agree that no matter how advance and interactive our classrooms become they cannot replace learning in nature or in the lab. But if education is the process of living not preparation for future living how will your class look in the present?
Thanks for the post! I look forward to reading more of them.
Mrs. Arnholt, I think you always have awesome points and you should definitely bring them up whenever you see fit. I think you raise an excellent point in that we should adjust the use of technology in our classroom as the world changes. My question to you is that is there a point where we are too connected within the classroom? Does it any point detract away from the students? Or is it indeed a wave of the future and maybe instead just try to figure out a way where technology is helping to facilitate learning holistically?
ReplyDeleteThe video that showed was also pretty awesome.
Wonderful post Ms. Arnholt! I love that you included a video and a cartoon! Also, I want to say that I appreciate you sharing your concept of an ideal classroom, especially since you mentioned that you were nervous about sharing because your idea was so different from everyone else. There is no wrong answer though, and your idea is very interesting. Though the idea of relying on so much technology intimidates me, I can see the benefits to working in such a space. Also, I love your use of the quote which states "education...is a process of living". Sometimes I think that the content we teach is less important than teaching students how to think about the world (not what they should think, but rather the cognitive processes that can be used to understand, analyze, and connect with the world). If we can succeed in doing this perhaps we can create these life-long learners, students who value education. Thanks again for sharing! I look forward to reading more posts from you!
ReplyDelete