Collaborative Learning

Looking at sites with collaborative learning projects was very interesting. It took me a little while to get going on an idea for my own classroom, but I think I have a few decent project ideas that I can try next year. One of most exciting things that happened today was an email reply from a business teacher in Regina, Saskatchewan about wanting to do a collaborative project with one of my classes. She also said she could put me on contact with other teachers. I also received emails from several teachers all over Nebraska that are interested--this is going to be challenging, but very interesting. I am ready for change.

Teaching for Tomorrow-21st c

More and more technology is available for students, but it is secondary to the importance to problem-solving skills. We don't want to become a "highly educated useless person," skilled in doing school-related tasks, but lacking the abilities necessary to solve problems independently in a real-world environment. We need to shift in the way we present material students. We still need to teach the content necessary within a new way to learn real-world problem solving skills.

Six Word Story

In school forever and always learning.

Engage 21st Century Learning

After skimming the document “Engage 21st century skills,” I am beginning to understand how important it will be for teachers and administrators to change the way we have been teaching. We need to gain knowledge in the latest technologies so that we can prepare students for jobs we may not even know will exist in 5-10 years. There is so much more to being literate in today’s world than it was in the 1900’s (Reading, Writing, and Arithemetic)—students today need all those plus scientific, technological, global awareness, multicultural, economic, and information literacy. Students with lower income may be at a disadvantage with those students who have more economically. In return after high school many of the IT jobs pay 85% higher wages than others. It really made sense to me about the science and technology fields requiring many of the same skills. Science and technology is continuously changing and we as students and teachers need to adapt and be problem solvers. I have always known that I didn’t just teach software programs, but students needed to gain the knowledge of what a program could do for them and then be able to change every couple of years to updated versions or different platforms. Students should still be able to carry their skills over to any software and adapts. Many IT jobs pay 85% higher wages. Students with lower income may be at a disadvantage with those students who have more economically.

google for educators

Google for educators will be very useful. I found some new online typing sites that will be useful for the junior high students. The Google Calendar may also be nice for my family so we can be more informed on what each other has going on. I have used Google Earth before in class last year, but I need to download the Google Earth Pro since it is free to educators.

Century21Learning1st post

This is my first blog on 21st Century Learning. I am taking a class from Doane College and hope to be more informed on how to prepare my students for the future.