Social Media and technology are things that have changed the landscape of modern education. There are a lot of good and interesting ways that social media and technology can be used in the classroom, as well as many negative ways. Never before have the lives of the average person been broadcasted to every other person. With a new issue such as this, it is no wonder that people are struggling with privacy issues and what is acceptable online. Every action that you take online is never truly gone, and people did not understand the implications of this when it all started. Bullying has become much easier, due to anonymous accounts. While there are benefits to this technology being available to students, such as interesting apps that support education, the cost might be higher than the payout. Screen time has become a significant issue for teachers and parents to deem what is an appropriate amount of time in front of a screen. When I am a teacher, I don’t think that I will have cell phones allowed in class as they distract from what the students should be paying attention to. I have included a YouTube video where teens discuss the impact that social media has had on their lives and mental health.
Category: Weekly Reflections
This is the category to apply to your Weekly Reflection posts from the course.
We watched a documentary for class titled “Most Likely to Succeed”. This documentary begins in a public school where a young student is struggling to excel in the current system. After this, the documentary crew interview a group of high school students who shock their teacher with their answers when asked if they would rather ace their test or actually learn. The students would rather ace their test than truly understand the work they are doing. The beginning of this film demonstrates the failings of the American education system. The way the education system works means that success looks like an aced test to get into the university of their dreams, not learning things beyond memorization.
In contrast to the regular schools, we are introduced to High Tech High, a school that has a unique curriculum. This documentary discusses the idea that most schools have not evolved with the times. However, High Tech High is different from those other schools. Together, the teachers and the students create their own curriculum that demonstrates the learning of the students in a new and inquiry-based way. Having a hand in their own learning teaches the students soft skills that are integral to their own life skills.