Before I truly understood how podcasts were utilized in schools, I was had an uneasy feeling about their integration. I was concerned that this new technology would substitute the fundamental skills of research, critical thinking, and effective communication. All of these mentioned skills can be applied to anything students will encounter in the future... whether it is podcasting next year or 3D Virtual Reality Simulators in 10 years. Whereas, if the learning focuses on implementing this new technology, what happens in 10 years when computers and multimedia programs are completely different? The students’ multimedia skills are then meaningless.
The primary focus, the very core fundamental skill should be completely transferable... research, critical thinking, and effective communication. They should be able to do this whatever media is being used to present the information (whether a speech, essay, Web site, drama skit, or podcast).
After reading the our posted article on podcasting, I was relieved to learn that the podcasting was something over and above the original assignment. In essence it was a tool to show off what the students had learned through traditional methods.
In most of the cases cited in that article, these things were done outside of class time either after school or at lunch. In this case, it's no different from a school newspaper or any other club. This is great! It gets kids involved in the school and applies the skills they learned in class.
There's no problem with using technology as a tool to teach the core fundamental skills, but in all cases the focus must be on those core fundamental skills.
The primary focus, the very core fundamental skill should be completely transferable... research, critical thinking, and effective communication. They should be able to do this whatever media is being used to present the information (whether a speech, essay, Web site, drama skit, or podcast).
After reading the our posted article on podcasting, I was relieved to learn that the podcasting was something over and above the original assignment. In essence it was a tool to show off what the students had learned through traditional methods.
In most of the cases cited in that article, these things were done outside of class time either after school or at lunch. In this case, it's no different from a school newspaper or any other club. This is great! It gets kids involved in the school and applies the skills they learned in class.
There's no problem with using technology as a tool to teach the core fundamental skills, but in all cases the focus must be on those core fundamental skills.
No comments:
Post a Comment