Thoughts on Ch.2

Synopsis

Chapter two begins by describing the 21st century student and comparing the modern student with the "traditional" student. Initially, the chapter delineates how increased access to technology have shaped the recreational and personal habits of the modern student. The author notes that the modern students are spending an substantial amount of their personal time on the Internet in almost facet of their lives. Socially, students maintain their own personal social networking web pages and participate in the social networking sites of others. Academically, students are spending greater amounts of their time researching information for school, and perhaps of greater importance, researching information relevant to their personal interests and curiosities. Furthermore, modern students are using web tools to communicate and collaborate on homework and school projects.

This paradigm shift in students lives has led to divergence between what students want from their schools and what they're actually getting from their schools, which are predominately still rooted in a outmoded, traditional model. Modern students are characterized as innately proficient users of technology, stemming from a changing cultural environment where kids exposed to increasingly more technology at increasingly earlier ages.) The directly contrasts with a traditional school model that emphasis text-based learning and rote memorization. Among the myriad student complaints the author enumerates, the most important remarks center on the lack of access to technology in schools and lack of technological integration in the curriculum. Also, modern students are characterized as the "customization generation"; students value the ability to customize the technology they use - the logical consequence being that they would like to utilize technology to "customize" their learning by modifying instruction to meet their unique learning preferences and interests.

Another critical issue schools now face is that schools are having trouble providing adequate access to the tools that students need. If students are expected to work through the web, schools must necessarily increased the supply of computers, software, hardware, etc. More importantly, however, schools rooted in the traditional mold must extricate themselves from tradition and adapt themselves to new models of instruction and new conceptions of learning. To this end, the chapter notes a revised learning taxonomy based on the Bloom model, a quick glimpse at constructivism and project-based learning, and George Siemens' theory of collectivism. In conclusion, the author notes the merit of each of these learning theories/approaches, and notes that the educational goals of most schools are seemingly opposite
of these approaches.

Reflection

I found much of what I read in this chapter insightful and of practical value as an educator. Initially, I appreciate that the author attempts to characterize the environment, interests, abilities, and habits-of-mind of the modern student. Certainly, educators should be aware of how students think and operate with regard to the technology they use and how it affects their behavior as learners. Why? Because this knowledge will help us cast a wider net in communicating with our students. By understanding how our students communicate, research, and collaborate in their own lives via web based tools, we can utilize those same techniques/tools in our instruction.

Still, I found myself at odds with many of the unquestioned premises on which the author bases his advocacy of technology in education. Thus far, much of this book rests upon an implicit assumption that the world has changed and those who aren't adapting to this change are fundamentally in error. Consider the last sentence of the first paragraph when the author states, "These technologies have always been available to them [21st century youth, a.k.a our students]. Their parents and teachers and the rest of us who weren't born into a technologically interactive world have to struggle to keep up." This, in my opinion, supersedes important questions. Why? Who is serving whom here? Put differently, this statement assumes that we, the anachronists of the technological age, must feel compelled to change our ways and unquestioningly adapt to the technological era, or else face obsolescence. Still what is our end goal? If we accept that we must adapt ourselves, our habits of mind, and the way we communicate with one another, shouldn't we at least be clear about the purpose behind the change. If technology is intended to enhance our lives and serve humanity, is it fulfilling that purpose? If it is, then we do indeed need, "to struggle to keep up." However, if we are in a mad pace to adapt ourselves to the demands of the technological age without reflecting on the necessity of those demands, then we're living without reflection, resigning ourselves to being controlled rather than assuming control over our existence. My intention, at this point in time, is not to answer the question - only to posit that the question exists and deserves to be explored. Technology like Web 2.o tools are undoubtedly shaping the way we life our lives, conduct our business, and communicate with one another. However, we must not refuse to question the role technology plays in our lives or resign ourselves as powerless to shape it.