Blog Post 6

The Networked Student
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This was a very intriguing video. It described a way of learning that is rapidly growing in today's online society. The idea is that a teacher would, instead of directly teaching students, show them how to find accredited online sources about their subject and use them to create their own network of learning. They would build a blog-network and establish connections with experts that would help them build knowledge.

The most glaring problem with this idea is that it's lack of appeal to enough different kinds of students. The internet is a giant confusing place and even with the best advice a student could spend hours traveling down the wrong trail when looking for the information they need (trust me I have done this many times). This quickly leads multiple students to frustration. This system also doesn't appeal to non-visual learners. In an ideal situation students would have access to video's and audio clips about every subject in the world, but in reality the availability of accredited sources of that variety are difficult to find in my opinion.

A question was proposed "Does a networked student need a teacher?" The answer is a glaring, yes. Without a teacher there is no driving force behind a students learning, no assignments, no direction, nothing to do but "learn" about a subject. In a traditional classroom, all the students are literally on the same page, they get constant reinforcement that they are headed in the right direction towards learning the material, and they do not spend hours heading down the wrong path.

I guess I am just old fashioned but I like to have a teacher to help me and tell me when I am doing something wrong or when I am doing a good job. I think technology is important, but that human connections are so much more important. I believe we still need teachers there to help students learn and want to learn. In some way children have to want to learn themselves but I still believe teachers are the motivators behind the scenes.

A 7th Grader's Personal Learning Environment
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This student shows us how her class teaches students. It shows how her assignments are posted daily and how she has been taught to use online tools and her personal blog to complete assignments. This is actually very similar to the way EDM310 works. We both are allowed to do out work on our own free time, but have a constantly updating assignment list that must be checked regularly. Both systems promote effective time management and responsibility. I really like being able to do my own work on my own time but in a class like this it is easy to fall behind. These classes do not have room for excuse when sometimes excuses are actually legitimate. For example I was sick a couple of weeks ago and I am still struggling to catch back up. Of course, I still really like the structure of the class and I will get caught up because I am a determined student and that is the kind of students classes like these create.

The Machine is (Changing) Us: YouTube and the Politics of Authenticity
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This long presentation was a long exploration into the culture of Youtube and the way the current generation expresses itself. Dr. Wesch examines how Youtube has created a way to be altogether anonymous and glaringly public all at once. He describes how our modern technologies have made being famous just as unobtainable as it is desirable, and how Youtube allows anyone to become insta-famous for the most mundane of acts. Dr. Wesch explains that people have become independent and self-centered to the point of narcissism and that Youtube can be used to break down these walls and bring everyone onto the same level. I thought it was very interesting and really did show how our culture has really shifted in the past couple of years. It is kind of sad to me that someone can become super famous by doing something so silly.