Way too long of a video! Grant there are a lot of interesting points he makes, within the first few minutes the speaker states that "Learning is the hallmark of Humanity" which I agree with completely. We are born with curiosity in our heart and we always want to know more. One of the issues the speaker is trying to address is why do students hate school but enjoy learning? The length of this video is one of reason I feel. It's over an hour long. I don't have a day job and was bed ridden for most of the week with food poisoning and I still found this impossible to sit through in one go. I had to break it up into section in order to watch it. If I wanted to take a lecture I would have signed up for a physical class. In the first five minutes the speaker shows pictures of students in his class holding signs that state what they do during class. I am no stranger to wandering off into cyberspace to find something more engaging. Somewhere done the line we lost our way when it comes to teaching.
".01% of information in 2008 was on paper" - That is scary and comforting at the same time.
Not all classes are going to be interesting, and chances are there will always be someone bored in the class. The next step in education needs to be interactivity and get the students brain mojo working. Easier said then done. Small steps can be taken like in the video, the speaker uses every application which are common to the younger crowds. Twitter, Facebook, and Skype are a good start but aren't anything to prefect because they give students the chance to wander off into cyberspace. You don't need technology to make a classroom more engaging for students. One thing I can say is that this video does a poor job of making a point because its an hour long. You have to sit for an hour, only listening to one man drone on. The worse part I think for students beside the droning is where a teacher drones on with big words and concept that can be simplified to one quick statement. I know I hated that in high school and college. I'm not saying txt speak it to me, but add a lot less fluff to that moon pie!
So I ranted a bit about how school can be boring, but what can I say about making it less boring? Technology is a good answer because it simple and everyone is doing it. If I haven't state it yet I am a computer scientist and I find that technology isn't the cure all of the education world. I don't believe you need the biggest and newest technology out there to be up to par, because it doesn't work like that. I'm not saying old school stone and chisel is the right way to go either. Technology is a tool and should be treated as such. If you over use a tool it becomes dull or even broken and thus no longer useful to you. Simple answer is moderation. Facebook application are going to let students stray off into Facebook land. Twitter can be useful to updating students on assignments and classwork, maybe even discussion if students can handle it. Wiki's and many other websites are great entrees but aren't the main course. You have information on them, assignments, resources, and even multiple ways to communicate between peers and the teacher. You can spice up the curriculum with brochure, videos and many other activities! Doesn't mean someone won't be bored. I take classes now where we have range of presenting material, doesn't change the subject matter thus doesn't make it any less boring.
My point is boredom comes with the territory and the best way to prevent it is to make material engaging and keep their minds moving. Don't do a straight shot of an hour of talking at them, do like 15 to 30 mins then give them an activity to do which allows them to process information and apply it. After that get them into a discussion where they can analyze and critically think about what just happened.Always switch up the media you use, throw them for a loop. One day use a whiteboard, next day use a smart-board next day use some interpretative dance! Notice how I don't throw new techno ways at you, that is because its not what makes every lesson less boring. It chances the pace and allows students to be engaged differently and even on something they may consider their "ground" or "level".
This blog has some good links on it! - Check it out!
Point taken. I agree, maybe chunking the video is best. Maybe you didn't need to watch the entire thing to get the jist of it. I think the point you made is how lecture style is boring. Lecturing to students is not the best teaching practice you can use. Students can only keep their attention on the lesson for about their age. So if they are 12 years old, you have their attention for about 12 minutes. It is very important to switch it up and "hook" the kids with many different types of media as you suggest. Yes, I agree, it is not all about the technology and it is just a tool. School is sometimes boring, but do we need to still teach fact memorization or can we show what we know through project based learning? Does not even need to be technology driven, but interest driven. Thanks for the reflection and I will suggest to my upcoming students that they may need to take breaks throughout the video!
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