Responding to "A Silicon Valley School That Doesn't Compute"

I want you to read the following post titled, "A Silicon Valley School That Doesn't Compute" and compose a reaction blog post. How do you feel about their learning environment compared to the learning environment at Burlington High School? Do you prefer a learning environment that integrates technology or one that uses it less? Do you feel a blended approach is ideal? Do you ever feel that technology distracts you from learning? Do you feel the lack of technology in school would engage and focus you more, or less?

How do you feel about these quotes:

“I fundamentally reject the notion you need technology aids in grammar school,” said Alan Eagle, 50, whose daughter, Andie, is one of the 196 children at the Waldorf elementary school; his son William, 13, is at the nearby middle school. “The idea that an app on an iPad can better teach my kids to read or do arithmetic, that’s ridiculous.”

“Teaching is a human experience,” he said. “Technology is a distraction when we need literacy, numeracy and critical thinking.”

And Waldorf parents argue that real engagement comes from great teachers with interesting lesson plans.

“Engagement is about human contact, the contact with the teacher, the contact with their peers,” said Pierre Laurent, 50, who works at a high-tech start-up and formerly worked at Intel and Microsoft.

Eli Pariser: Beware online "filter bubbles" | Video on TED.com

Eli Pariser: Beware online "filter bubbles" | Video on TED.com

Respond to the TED Talk listed above. Also think about this quote mentioned in the talk...

"It will be very hard for people to watch or consume something that has not in some sense been tailored for them." ~Eric Schmidt, Google

Hello World

Welcome to Digital and Information literacy. This course will examine new and emerging technologies in social and digital media. Students will be introduced to current web 2.0 tools and application for learning and inquiry. The course will call upon students to think critically, question, and demonstrate what they have learned using social and digital media applications. Students will learn to leverage connected learning and sharing through responsible use of social media. By the end of this course, students will be able to answer and defend the questions: Why should we care about social media? How is it changing the way individuals and organizations communicate? Where should we begin? 

The students in my fourth period course responded to an article today about how colleges now have the ability to zero in on web 'chatter'. We briefly discussed this piece and then I asked them to respond for their first blog post. This class ranges from 9th grade to 12th grade. At some point, this type of web filtering will affect their future. Our class would greatly appreciate your time to read our posts and provide comments to further this discussion and show them the potential of a network. 


Please follow along with our class blog roll on the left and post comments when you can for students. I encourage you to comment on their content and their writing mechanics. The goal is to teach them how to write for a broad, authentic audience as well as craft a message that is appropriate and well written. Thank you for your time on our blog and please stay tuned as we progress through this course.