Technology Is a Blessing

What is a model digital citizen?  That is a question that my class and I have set out to discover.

We started out with some basic tenets:

It is respecting yourself, others, and the law. (Teaching with Tools Kids Really Love by brooks-young) It involves respecting and protecting yourself, others, and intellectual property. (The Digital Diet by Churches, Crockett, Jukes)

My class pulled it together with a few key themes:

Who you are online needs to match who you are in real life! You need to be AWARE of your participation and contribution to the digital world.  Will you choose to be a passive consumer of content or will you (and your students) work hard to become a producer online using technology to not reinvent life, but instead of other traditional methods or strategies to learn and live.

It also needs to be something that you TEACH the next generation. Citizenship comes with rights and responsibilities with that freedom, you choose how you will use it.  Will you be a model citizen or will you be a rude, flaming one who steals blindly from those around you? Will you be intentional in making choices about online participation to reflect who you want others to see you as?

Stay tuned for how we define it more directly!  What would you say it means? or HOW do you teach/model  it to your students?

They looked at 9 tenets of Digital Citizenship:

http://www.digitalcitizenship.net/Nine_Elements.html

They used these resources to present on this topic:

character education
http://www.21stcenturyfluency.com/blogpost.cfm?blogID=1742

http://sites.google.com/site/digitalcitizenshipresources/main_page
a wiki with TONS of resources on all the dimensions of D.C.

http://www.digitalcitizenship.net/

http://www.nisd.net/digitalcitizen/

http://www.teachersfirst.com/spectopics/safety.cfm

a list of sites to help think about safety- a pro/con list, some sites to use to teach kids about it, etc…

http://www.cyberbully.org/

http://www.stopcyberbullying.org/index2.html

http://www.brainpop.com/spotlight/digitalcitizenship/

http://www.commonsensemedia.org/educators
curriculum for digital literacy and resources…

www.growing-up-online.com
digital footprint article, teaching kids to surf safely, …

wayback machine (a govt sponsored archive of the internet)
http://www.archive.org/index.php

I was published– I am proud- not that I really know anything at all, but that I found a way to give back. I feel as if I have not been me the past year of learning to navigate all that is Web 2.0 and to grow a PLN.  I’ve been this lurker, this person who just seeks other peoples content, and uses the best.  So here it is for whatever it is worth:

http://teacherchallenge.edublogs.org/2011/06/27/pln-challenge-4-making-time-to-build-your-pln/

That has changed some this fall with my course starting with 10 students following me to learn how to navigate a course in Digital teaching and learning, but even then, I’m the facilitator of knowledge, not the producer, I’m just pushing them or motivating them to become digital natives who want to create learning for 21st century learners.

http://michaelhyatt.com/anatomy-of-an-effective-blog-post.html
helpful ideas– and many, many posts about being a professional blogger…

A bit overwhelming and makes me think, I’m a blogger who is blogging to enhance my profession but not AS my profession, so I think I will selectively follow the rules…

Of course the jury is still out on how many followers I am looking for and who I want to appeal to…thus far, I’m happy starting out small!

“The most important thing for teachers is to be comfortable with what they are using. It doesn’t have to be super high tech,” one told us. And another: “Teachers shouldn’t be afraid of technology. Understand that it’s how we live our lives.”

http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/feb11/vol68/num05/Screenagers@-Making-the-Connections.aspx

I started reading Educational Leadership today- the new issue with everything oriented to my renewed passion- Technology in 2011 education…  anyway the above quote I think needs to be my motto…

I’ve been gradually embracing this concept over the past year as I’ve pondered my role in training future teachers to enter the world of education with cutting edge, best practice experience and knowledge… it’s a task that seems way too big or too much for me to take on. I’ve wanted to be afraid, to bury my head and run away!

After all, I’m the person in my family who is technologically challenged- or so I’ve believed most of my adult life.  My Dad one time held my alarm clock in his lap for a few moments, plugged it in and it worked again– it hadn’t worked for me for weeks no matter what I did!   He just teased, it needed comfort from a someone who gets gadgets.   I’ve never gotten gadgets… they are not me– hardware is not me, buttons are confusing, using all the control keys and function keys on my computer– too much for me, but click and point, right click, those things that don’t require memory or challenge- those I get.

However, in the past few years, I’ve been told I’m likely one of the most tech savy instructors at my college. (scary!)  My department colleagues make statements like-  you can do it, but you are so advanced…   Apparently I’m a great actor!

All I know is that I am not advanced, I don’t do everything fast, I don’t have a clue how to ‘do’ most of the things I do on the computer. I’m not alone– and I’ve trusted God to lead my personal life and my professional life….I’ve claimed this scripture in all of life’s overwhelming moments and it fits my personality and helps drive my passions in teaching:

“Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid or tremble at them, for the LORD your God is the one who goes with you. He will not fail you or forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6 (NASV)

Apparently I’m too ignorant to be afraid. I just jump in and try it.   Early on in my technology training (in 1996!)  I was taught my kids in 5th grade would get technology faster and better than me, and I didn’t need to be the expert. I just needed to be the facilitator.  So I chose that role, I am a faciliator of technology, by no means an expert.  I just choose to use technology, it’s a great motivator and when it works a real blessing and because I know that, even if I will stumble and struggle to share the best, I must try. It’s my job to pass on my knowledge in whatever ways I can…to motivate my students to excel in areas that are challenging to me… to learn and grow with them…

I need to be reminded of this MOTTO- because now my students are young adults and they don’t even remember typing on a typewriter, they think out of date is not purple mimeo paper, but desktop computers and dial up internet.

I don’t have to know it all, I can just help them ask the right questions and find great tools! We’ll do it together.

tags: facilitator, fear

Well, here goes.  I’ve created a tech blog.  I’ve chosen a name.  I’m in the game for real now.

Goals of my blog:

• to gain experience as a blogger
• to have a place to save links and to remember tools that seemed worthy
• to reflect about my learning of technology
• to prepare to teach a tech course for pre-service teachers
• to contribute to my PLN, not just lurk!
• to remember to use technology as a tool for engagement in learning, not as the learning itself– I want technology to be a blessing to help students learn and grow.

tags: goals