blog post 4

Scott McLeod
Who is Scott McLeod? Scott is one who is technologically advanced in helping K-12 graders further their education in technology. He is an Associate Professor in Educational Administration program at Iowa State University. He is also the co-creator of the youtube videos, "Did You Know?," and he is the director CASTLE. CASTLE stands for Center for the Advanced Study of Technology Leadership in Education. It is also the only place in the nation that is dedicated to helping technology needs of schools administrators.
In McLeod's blog titled " Don't Teach Your Kids this Stuff.Please?" sarcasm was his key to getting the point across. I am a very sarcastic person, so reading something from someone who is also sarcastic made me enjoy the blog post a bit more. I think that students should be allowed to use technology. The world is slowly going to start revolving around technology, and things such as textbooks will not exist anymore. I also think that for internet use that children should be monitored until they reach a certain age or their level of maturity has been reached, but for some that may be in their twenties. The internet has everything any one could ever wonder about on it, and some things that get published that should not be, well we can't help that except to avoid it and MONITOR our students and children.

iSchool Initiative
Fabulous idea. In this video he is arguing that technology can do just as much as school books can do, and if not more. Like I had commented in the blog before, technology is taking over the world. How amazing it would be to see students just carrying an iPod, or iPad to class, and not having their book bags loaded down with school books only giving them back problems because they weigh as much as the student them self. At the same time, many parents may disagree because they were raised in pencil and paper classrooms and may want their children to be taught that way because they feel that may be the only way for their child to learn.
The apps for each different subject seem like a great idea, but what if you cant find the app for free? The cost of apps may rise in your money spending when you thought you switched to the iPad to save money on textbooks. It would be great if schools could slowly make the transition into only using technology and seeing how well students learn and operate on them.

You Can't Be My Teacher
This child makes you wonder and get the point across that technology and internet is everything that we depend on in todays world. From reading the discussion below the video, many people got upset with him for making the video. The maker of this video is just trying to get the point across that teachers should at least know how to use the technology in the classroom. Whether or not the teacher applies the technology to the classroom learning skills is his or her choice.
So many people critiqued the video saying the little boy was a brat. In my opinion it does not matter if he is a brat or not. It is the message that he is trying to get across to people and having technology in the school systems. As a future teacher, technology will be used in my classroom because I think that students will become more involved with the school work. But in the time that I become a teacher which I don't graduate until December of 2012, technology may be all that the classrooms use. I dread to be a teacher that students think is boring because she lectures out of the book, or give you pages and pages of notes to copy down off of an over head projector.

Virtual Choir
I have to say I am not one to sit and listen to opera, but that was an amazing performance. Having made that video just from gathering youtube videos shows that something beautiful can come from small things. When the people posted their video, they were not thinking that it would be combined with 184 other youtubers singing the same song to make a beautiful performance. For these people to have never met and perform that is was an outstanding performance.

Teaching in the 21st Century
To teach in the 21st century means, as I myself am in the process of becoming a future educator and I need to be up to date with the latest technology so that I will be able to teach the students the correct information and how to use the technology safely and efficiently. It is to also show the students that the technology can be used for mainly anything and if the students take the time to apply it to their school work or just their social life they will and can get a lot accomplished.
Education is always changing just as technology is. If we as teachers are not caught up nor will our students be. Students need to be aware of all of the changes that are taking place every day in our lives with technology and improvements. Having our children up to date allows the students to teach others about the positives of technology if they were to not use it.