I first off want to start this blog by saying, I wish I was more computer savvy than I am. I feel like any part of me that is computer savvy comes from pure luck. I hit a few buttons open a few programs and POOF! Something happens. If it isn’t what I wanted to happen, then I go back and hit a few more buttons and open another set of windows. And of course this process could take hours, or if I’m lucky could take five minutes. With that being said, I am only computer savvy because I’m Irish.
This semester I really want to learn more about animation and video. I am really into seeing masking and layering in videos right now, and want to learn how it’s done. I also want to mix animation with video to see what I come up with. Of course I hope that I don’t come up with a lame 80’s music video. I understand that this is, “Digital Media for Art Educators”, but I will pretend that this is also a, “How to Improve my Own Art”, class.
Every once in a blue moon I will get very excited because two days in my week will crash into each other. Not meaning that I fall asleep as soon as I get off work without eating dinner, but that something extremely interesting will come up twice in one week. This past week Selila gave us the article expressing how important it is to have the skills to teach students in a digital age. And I also was talking about how important it is to have a warm body with nurturing capabilities inside of the classroom. As I thought more about this I realized that there is a very fine line that is drawn when referring to digital media in the classroom. Just because students may be using digital media in the classroom, does not necessarily mean that it is implemented correctly.
T.C. Williams High School, as well as many other schools in Northern Virginia and Montgomery County, Maryland, have received new technology for each and every student within the school. In many cases there is a lap top readily available for every student within the classroom. The students also receive their agenda, lesson plans and schedule for the day on that computer. Not to say that this alone can interfere with the student’s learning, but if it’s not used properly it can. Maybe I am just too easily imagining a high school student with learning disabilities, like those I teach every day. But I feel like there is validity in taking a better look at using technology in the classroom.
If using laptops with internet connection, it will be easier for students to chat, and surf the web while lessons are being taught. This even for me is a HUGE distraction. I feel like I have taken a break to check my face book status five times since I started typing this paper. So imagine how easy it would be for a less focused high school student. Having the students physically partake in a lesson is also extremely important for kinesthetic learners. Without those hands on activities it is so much harder for students to actually see what is being created. Smart boards are also an up and coming technology within the classroom setting. But what is the point in having them if the teacher doesn’t even know how to use it properly or is honestly just too lazy to.
I am definitely not saying that teaching the students how to use technology won’t be helpful. I think that the more we help the students prepare for their future, and teach them how to be active members in society the better. But I feel like if you just hand a bunch of students computers nothing will be accomplished. Just like all cases it’s not the tools you use, but how you use them.
jalbano Said:
on September 14, 2008 at 11:15 pm
I made the same comment in “the what I want to learn” section of my blog. I commented only on what I wanted to learn to help me with further projects that I am interested in. However I will say in our defense if we make a great piece it then gives us more street credit! If a professor gives me shit about a piece and I realize they know nothing about what I’m doing or the tools I’m using it affects me less and upsets me more then a teacher I know works in the same media. Or at least has done some work in that media. I trust their judgment more and will take a negative critique better. Because I know they know what they are talking about.
Your point on all technology not being good technology, or at least not always used well is so true! I know in our class last week I saw at least one or two people on facebook. Of cores teenagers would be straying to all sorts of inappropriate and distracting sights. Being a kinesthetic learner myself I can relate to your point of having difficulty’s focusing without tangible objects.
Well thought out! You brought up several good points that I did not even think of! I especially enjoyed reading your opinion on the negative affects of technology in the classroom. I only thought of the positive. However I completely agreed with all of your points!
amandadudek Said:
on September 14, 2008 at 11:39 pm
Kate I definetly think that you are a lot more talented at using the computer then you give yourself credit
Can we all recall your thesis last year and the many movies you made before that 
Anyways you make a good point Kate about kids getting distracted by the easy access to the internet during class if they are each given a computer. I am interested in the fact that your kids have computers during art I can see for research or for digital art, but I cant see why they might use it in the fine arts at least while you are giving an intro. Unless because it is a specialized school there’s a reason for it- I think i’ll get a better idea on thursday when I visit you
Back to the point that it would be difficult to get anything done if they have distractions like myspace, aim, blahblah blah you get the point. Are they ways to block those types of programs online? Could only certain websites in a certain class be available at the time to keep the kids on track in class? I have no idea if any of this is realistic or exists but just a thought.
This also brings up an interesting idea about multitasking – and just how kids today are programed or can think with 5 things happening at once. Is this good? bad? or just a new way of doing things? Should teachers keep this in mind and promote it or discourage it? I wonder if younger teachers might understand this better then older teachers who never grew up in a technological culture that many things could be done at once?
Does anyone else have any ideas about this multitasking culture of teens and kids that are being raised, and how it can effect the classroom?
Randolph Said:
on September 15, 2008 at 12:37 am
For me (as an artist) the internet has been a valuable research tool. While it does offer a multitude of distractions, it can be managed with proper goal setting. While I’m not a scholar on the subject, the studies I’ve read in regards to the everyman and multitasking seem to all say that multitasking is generally less productive. In a learning environment it is probably harder for students to stay engaged with the lesson when surrounded by so many distractions, including each other. Like any other tool I think students should be taught how to use all of the classroom technology properly. I think in this case it might be more important to know HOW students are using the technology, instead of WHAT they are using.
Randolph Said:
on September 15, 2008 at 12:48 am
Something else that may be of importance, is the students ability to problem solve within, and outside of the technology. Many times technology becomes a crutch, and the student might be lost without it, if you need an example of this look no further than you, and your cell phone. We live in a society where the more you are connected to the world at large, the less you interact with the people around you. Students may lose the ability to find answers outside of google and wikepedia, and feel intimidated by tangible media such as books. Although the internet provides a wealth of information, it is may be more valuable for students to know how to differentiate between fact and fiction. We all know how easy it is to get derailed and drown in a sea of misinformation.
moanamaxson Said:
on September 22, 2008 at 6:38 pm
“Just because students may be using digital media in the classroom, does not necessarily mean that it is implemented correctly” True that! I am cheered to have such thoughtful and caring teachers as yourself among my ranks as an educator. You make me to want to learn new ways to talk to students about digital media.
Hmmm…. I agree, if the teacher sucks, the students certainly are getting short changed. Few students learn proactively. The teacher is like a guide, a cheerleader and a compass.
As for the allure of face book, there will always be things that provide opportunities for distraction. the difference is knowing when to allow ourselves to tap in to those things or when to tune out. It is no different than the kind of focus required to get things done when you dont want to or not giving up when something gets difficult.
In response to Amanda’s comment about the multitasking culture of teens, i have similar questions. I don’t think it is bad that teens are comfortable doing more than one thing at once. I see many places where this type of thinking could be used to create a more balanced perspective from which to base opinions. That being said, the way people manipulate and process data is a reflection of how they see the world. I think the trend of people seeking information and it being expected to be delivered instantaneously has potential to make for some very impatient people. People want their Starbucks now! They go HONK HONK!! when they get angry about traffic. Where is the contemplation, the allowing of our brain to parse things out and find new ways of thinking that are not influenced by outside information???
I like what Randolph said about being careful to not use technology as a crutch. Interaction is good. It tells us who we are as we see reflections of who others present themselves as. I like hands on. I like the scientific method. Have a question? Do research, build a model. Try it see what happens…
noraaa Said:
on September 22, 2008 at 7:51 pm
I know this comment is a little late, but it’s not too late cuz class starts in a hour. I liked what you had to say about being irish and the feeling of luck when things work out for you digitally. I am, believe it or not, like 1/8 irish or 1/16 and I gotta agree with you that it helps me when I am working in digital media
I don’t agree about this lucky twice commentary. The magic number is three, its biblical, its organic, its more aesthetically pleasing than two. So, maybe things are happening thrice in your week and you are just not looking. De La Soul said it too, Three is the Magic Numba.
I also wanted to draw a corollary to the lacking “warm body” in place of a computer. I just thought it was kinda interesting that computers get very hot, like my lap top rite now is warm. Not warm body, but warm computer. Maybe they could design computers in reference to the human body??
Lastly, I care deeply about what all this means to students with learning disabilities, and i know the possibility for it to work is out there, i just can’t see it now. Just as you mention, how is the supposed to serve impulse control kids? or worse yet, kinesthetic learners? it just cant be that they are not a part of this digital movement. I think computers are really going to move in the direction of Wii’s wherein they are interactive. And I’d love to see a human shaped, interactive computer. Robots are back.