Concept Mapping

Reflection:

After completing my research and created my map, the one thing that surprised me the most was how many hours students actually spend playing video games and watching television. I know that we live in a digital age and there are many different mediums of technology, but spending over 40,000 hours watching TV, playing video games and spending time on the phone is just appalling. I do believe traditional lessons need to stay intact, like reading an actual book, but teachers need to realize the world is changing and technological advances are being made every single day. Lesson plans need to start incorporating more PowerPoint presentations and use of computers, to not only keep up with the rest of the world, but to keep the students' attention. I'm not sure if I personally would change anything on how I conduct searches on the Internet, I feel like I'm on the edge of being a digital native and am very familiar with different search techniques. I am very confident with the information that I've used in the past, I feel like I grew up with most of the technology we have today and am well versed in it.

If we fail to bring technology into the classroom, I believe we would be crippling the students. Technology is present every day in pretty much every thing. From navigation systems in a car to different software packages in the corporate world. The children need to be equipped with the knowledge on how to use these outlets so that they will be prepared for the future. And not even in the real world, but as early as high school and especially college. Students now have more opportunities to go to school on-line, and knowledge of this process will be required in order for them to succeed.

For my social bookmarking tool, I chose to use Wordle. I like how easy to use it is and the format that it creates the information in. There are advantages to using these tools, such as organization and pulling out the important parts of the ideas and definitions. I will use these tools in the future for introductions to new lesson units and also have my students create their own. This will not only build their knowledge on social bookmarking tools but also be able to use their creativity. It should spark interest and get them ready for the unit/plan/assignment.