Blog Assignment 8

This is How We Dream Part 1 and 2 
By: Dr. Richard E. Miller





In this two part video by Dr. Miller, there was further confirmation in my faith with technology taking over "old school" paper books. There is so much that is possible to do online now or at your computer without ever opening a textbook or newspaper. It is "going green" at its finest. Dr. Miller wrote an article on the one year anniversary of the Virginia Tech shooting and he didn't have to even touch a book or newspaper for information. The power of this is in our fingertips. We just have to figure out how to use it to its full potential.
I think this needs to be taught. Teachers nowadays are trying to keep up with this ever-changing technology and that's not an easy thing to do. I think it is important for the teachers of today and the future teachers to learn this. I want to be educated further on this so that I can teach my classroom this. Realistically, in 5 years or so technology will be completely different than it is now. I don't want to be left behind without this knowledge
Teaching this would require someone who is up to date on all of this to come in and maybe teach a workshop or two to a few different schools at a time to just get a general knowledge of the available technology and media out there. This wouldn't be difficult to do at all. Then from there, the workshops could become more specific to subject matter and schools. I just have this desire to learn all about the technology that is constantly advancing and changing around me!
Before I took EDM 310 I absolutely was dreading it. Even the first day of class I thought I was going to hate it. Is it a lot of work? Heck yeah. Do I sometimes want to hurl my computer across the room? Absolutely. Have I learned some of the most valuable information from all of my college years combined within a few months that makes this all worth it? Without a doubt. I want to take this yearning that I have for learning more and transfer it to my future classroom and students.

In The Chipper Series and EDM 310 For Dummies, it definitely got my wheels cranking for some ideas that I could use. The videos were great and informative even though they were silly. I think that I would like to keep along the lines of this. As silly as they were, they kept my attention and the messages in each were very clear. I think that is one of the most effective ways of teaching. I am not sure of what the video would be about yet if I were to make one, but the formatting would be along the silly lines for sure.



In the video Learn to Change, Change to Learn, it was sad to see how many people don't value education and technology. We need to know that technology is always changing and advancing and we can't be stuck in the past in classrooms. I think the classroom needs to mold with the new advanced technology. It can only benefit the classroom! Why be left behind if you are given the chance to advance? We need to apply standards if we are to have standardized testing in the classroom like they stated in this video. Students don't need to just memorize facts, they need to know what to do with it, how to apply it, etc. I'm glad we were shown this video. I am definitely more aware of the problem now, and I as a future teacher will do everything in my power to make my future classroom a true learning environment.




In this video, The Secret Powers of Time by Philip Zambardo, it shed light on the situation of how hurried we must do things nowadays. Everything is down by the second and not the minute. One that I am guilty of is getting mad over my computer rebooting or downloading something. I bet I could clear up some serious acne if I would just chill out for two seconds and be patient. This whole video was great. That part was one part that particularly jumped out at me because I am guilty of doing that very thing all the time. We should absolutely take technology as far as we possibly can, but I do think that there is a point that it eventually comes to that we need to take a step back and just take a deep breath and remember that the world isn't going to end if my computer doesn't reboot in two minutes on the dot.



In this video, Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, goes to show how we will do anything if we have an incentive. We are driven by rewards. Money is a huge motivator. If we take money out of the equation so that the workers can focus on the work. It leads to autonomy, mastery, and purpose. It's kind of sad that we have to have money to make us do things. We are extremely purpose-driven. This can be a good thing, but it is almost too overpowering. Money is the center of most things for most people. This can get dangerous in my opinion. No wonder the economy is so down. We can make the change! We can stop doing a good job for money and we can start doing a good job just because that's the right thing to do! We are so purpose-driven. I'd like to see this change in many of us!