ISTE Reflection

As a student myself I feel that it is really important to focus on learning and creativity. Not every student learns from lectures and books, many students are "hands-on" learners. I learn a lot more when I can do things myself and apply myself than to just read it in a book or listen to someone talk about it. It is always a good idea to challange students and get them to think outside the box and have them use resources availble to them so that they can always learn more information. Giving them different activites and letting them work with technology or each other expands thier minds and lets them have a little more fun with the learning process. As a teacher you can give the students certain projects where they have to go online or use other forms or technology to get information that they can't find in a textbook. The world is rapidly changing and there is so much more ways to obtain information now then ever before. A lot of people are scared to use it because they simply do not know how. There is a lot of garbage out there, but there is also some great infornation as well. Letting the students explore certain applications and websites lets them find information within a few clicks instead of flipping through countless pages. Although there is a lot of good information, there is also too much information. You have to address to students that they have to complete thier own work in thier own words. If you let them abuse resources they will find ways around it. As a teacher you have to set boundaries and make sure they know all the legalities that exist. When turning in papers, someone could easy take one from the millions placed online and claim it as thier own. Plagerism happens way too often because it is an easy way to get out of an assignment or a lst minute ditch effort. You have to execute with the rules and place and make sure the students know the seriousness of them. Teachers can collaborate with each other to make rules, give assignments and find positive ways that thier students can obtain information from resources. Teachers can even take a day or two and walk them through certain resources and show them how they work. The web can be a wonderful tool if used correctly but a dagger if you choose to abuse it.