Do You Have a Favorite Technology?

As I thought about this week's post, I started drawing blanks. I've come to realize that in my many years of being in public institutions with up-to-date technologies, I cannot think of one technology that I truly enjoyed or even benefited from. I remember having a SMARTBoard, which we never used, and we frequently utilized the COW (Computer On Wheels) in gradeschool, but there was never a technology that made me think "Wow, I've learned so much." Even today as a senior in college I have not yet found a course that fully utilizes some form of technology that has helped the learning process.
Is this bad? Am I not giving technology enough slack?
Don't get me wrong, I do appreciate a good PowerPoint presentation, but most of the time I feel as if I'm just copying down the notes instead of actually paying attention to the lesson. I've heard of excellent technologies that actually record lectures as you take notes, but I've never actually seen one distributed in the classroom.
I want to love technology in the pedagogical world, but I truly cannot think of one form of technology that I've loved other than film. I cannot think of many technologies that I would want to bring into my classroom. Am I too old school? What do you think? Can you think of some of your favorite technologies that you would use in your future classrooms?

Unit Plan Canvas

Happy Sunday, everyone!
This week I made a lesson plan on a PLAYground Canvas regarding to my post from two weeks ago on Shakespeare's Hamlet. Without being repetitive, I just want to stress the importance of reading and fully understanding Hamlet, or any Shakespearean play for that matter. My canvas is an introduction to Hamlet's soliloquies. During my lesson, we will learn what a soliloquy is, what it does, and what Hamlet's soliloquies reveal about himself to the audience. The hardest part for me was actually making the canvas! I wasn't sure where to put what item and how big to make it. I wanted it to have some sort of flow, so I made the video (which is a great commentary video) quite large so hopefully people will understand that they should watch the video first. I also provided supplementary videos/links below to video, so again, hopefully people will understand.

Music in the Classroom

When browsing through other classmates' (including my own) blogposts, I've seen some postings about integrating film into the classroom. While I think this is a great idea, have any of you thought about bringing music into the classroom as well? If film is considered a technology, why not music? Music is something that is part of everyone's life, whether we listen to it or not, and I think it would be a great cross-curricular vehicle to utilize.
Music is the kind of audio poetry that opens our eyes--and ears--to the outside world. It brings forth memories as well as deep conversation. I stumbled over this artcle by Johns Hopkins University that emphasizes the utilization of music integration in the education system. The article opens up a discussion on how and why music can be utilized. "Music helps us learn because it will:

• establish a positive learning state
• create a desired atmosphere
• build a sense of anticipation
• energize learning activities
• change brain wave states
• focus concentration
• increase attention
• improve memory
• facilitate a multisensory learning experience
• release tension
• enhance imagination
• align groups
• develop rapport
• provide inspiration and motivation
• add an element of fun
• accentuate theme-oriented units"

Music can be about anything from current events and social awareness to even the basics such as the ABCs. You might ask, "It's easy to use music in the English and History classrooms, but what about Math and the Sciences?" Well, think back to when you were a kid: did you ever learn a song about numbers? I remember learning a song about how to count to five that I'll never forget.
Music is something that we take with us outside of the classroom. I think bringing some form of music would not only interest and engage our future students, but it is something that can be taken away and remembered outside the classroom and, hopefully, for the rest of our lives.

"Music is the electrical soil in which the spirit lives, thinks and invents." - Ludwig van Beethoven

Technology and Pedagogy

I think the hardest lesson through out the high school and college experience (for English classes) is learning--and most importantly understanding--Shakespeare. The reason why I chose this lesson is because Hamlet is one of the most taught Shakespearean plays, yet a very small percentage of students actually understand it. I believe Hamlet is a wonderful play full of great lessons, and it is an injustice to students when those lessons are not taught properly. The lesson plan can be found here. I believe this lesson helps students get a better understanding of what Hamlet is really saying and the importance of a soliloquy. Although I found this lesson to be rich, I did see gaps between the lesson, strategy, and the technology. The only technology used is YouTube, which is a fantastic source, but did not really delve into other forms of technology that might help the students better understand the text. To be honest, I think it's a little hard to find multiple forms of technology when it comes to looking into drama and plays. Yes, a SmartBoard could be used, but will that really help the learning process? I believe watching a YouTube or film representation of a text is sufficient, and even necessary, in helping a student physically see what is happening in a given text. Along with close reading and classroom discussions, a visual representation of Shakespearean text will definitely give students a better understanding of the tough language that turns students off to begin with.

Lesson Plan Spreadsheet.

Technology Dependency

This is your first year teaching and you've worked all week long on the perfect presentation: You found an inspirational, yet informative, video on YouTube, your PowerPoint presentation is absolutely beautiful, and you finally figured out how to utilize the SmartBoard and all its functions.
Today is the day of your presentation and you couldn't be any more excited. You get to class early with just enough time to prepare for your oh, so wonderful lesson. The adrenaline courses through your veins as you walk up to the podium and begin to set up. Your students start to file into the classroom-- some groggy with a Case of the Mondays, some eager to learn, and others indifferent--yet you greet them all with a cheery smile. The second bell rings as you hit the "power" button..
Nothing happens.
Taking a deep breath, you hit the "power" button a second time with just a little more force. Nothing. You can feel your control of the classroom start to slip through your fingertips as you once again hit the "power" button...

-------
This is the kind of situation we've seen being played out over and over again, mostly amongst our classmates. But these are the classmates who will someday become teachers, just like you and me.

This is the kind of situation that we can also learn a very valuable lesson from: do not become dependent on technology. You can have the most state-of-the-art computers, SmartBoards, and every other new and innovative technology made for the classroom, but we have to remember that these are just tools for learning, NOT the basis of learning. I feel like many of us, especially the younger generations who plan on teaching later in life, have become very dependent on technology and won't know what to do when the technology fails on us. Our first thought it to panic when we should already have a Plan B--or even a Plan C, D, and E.

Although integrating technology in our future classrooms is very important, I think that it is even more important to always, always, ALWAYS have a back-up plan that does not involve having to use any form of tehcnology. Nothing is scarier than the thought of losing control of your future classroom.

Looking Back on Technology in The Classroom

One technology I truly could not stand during high school was the SMARTBoard. For those who may not know, the SMARTBoard is an electronic interactive touch-screen whiteboard. One may think, "An interactive whiteboard? How neat!" Oh, on the contrary. I do not believe SMARTBoards aided the learning process--or even made class any more interesting--in any way possible. Here are a few reasons why:

1. Most teachers weren't taught how to use the SMARTBoard so they weren't able to reap the full benefits:
There weren't many features to the SMARTBoard; all there was was an electronic clicker (so that you didn't need to be in front of a keyboard when presenting a slideshow) and a "save" feature for saving notes that were taken in class... All of which I believe can be done with out a SMARTBoard. Even so, many, if not all of my teachers had no clue how to use it. Over the summer, our school installed SMARTBoards in every classroom but never gave teachers a guide on how to use it! The few who figured out how to use it became frustrated with the new technology. It glitched, constantly froze, always needed reconfiguration, and usually distracted the class from getting the lessons completed in a timely matter. By the time I graduated, I did not know any teachers who utilized the SMARTBoards in their classrooms.

2. There is nothing "new" or "innovative" about the SMARTBoard:
The SMARTBoard only combines two useful technologies: the computer and the whiteboard. While I do believe that the SMARTBoard is a cool idea and that it does make the user a little more media savvy, it does not make learning any easier or any more fun. To put it simply, it does not bring anything new to the table. It's a touch screen whiteboard with a clicker; all it does is replace an already very useful technology with an even more expensive one. I don't believe that teachers who choose to utilize the SMARTBoards in their classrooms are any more progressive or effective than teachers who choose not to.

3. I feel like SMARTBoards are better for younger grades, not high school students:
I was first introduced to SMARTBoards during my sophomore year of high school. To be honest, I wasn't at all impressed. Yes, things could be moved around on the whiteboard, but I did not find it useful. In fact, I thought it was a little childish. I think SMARTBoards would be better in the elementary grades; kids love seeing things move around on a big screen. As far as high school goes? I think the students are a little too old for that.

I haven't seen or used a SMARTBoard since high school, so maybe the technology has proved to be more useful and successful in all classrooms. For now, I am not a fan. Don't get me wrong, I'm very open to trying new technologies in the classroom; I just think there's such a thing as too much technology...

History of Technology in English

The Mass Production of the Pencil (With an Eraser): Making English Classes More Productive Since 1900.