Question from a community member on our local online education forum:
Are there any means by which the school is going to measure the success of this 1:1 effort? And by that I mean to determine whether the initiative is actually more beneficial to students than the more traditional method of teaching. New tools are always fun in and of themselves.
My answer:
As part of the grant requirements we have hired an outside evaluator from the University of Akron who will be evaluating our implementation of the grant and the effect on student achievement. We are also going to be looking at our student's success on the Ohio Graduation Tests and assessing student growth over the course of the year.
As for the comparison between the "traditional" approach and the move to a more "modern" approach, I am not sure that this comparison can be made without a consideration of the context of each approach. The "traditional" model, in which case I imagine you mean without computers, was created in a world without computers, and therefore was relevant to that world. However, I can't see a way in which learning without computers is relevant to the world that we live in now. Of course, this is not to say that the content that we have always taught is suddenly irrelevant. Shakespeare still matters, American history still matters, Algebra is still important, and the scientific process is probably more relevant than ever. But when we consider the methods by which most of the modern world accesses these materials, we invariably have to confront the fact that most information is digital these days. I didn't head to the library to hit the card catalogue to find research on 1:1 initiative efficacy, I went to Google. Our university classes, over half of which have an online component, require students to participate in forum discussions, collaborate with other students online, and consider texts in digital form. This isn't an issue of an old method versus the new method. It's more an issue of preparing our students for a world that has undeniably shifted to an increased use of digital technology.
This, of course, brings some to think that we are loosing the beauty of such things as the hand-written letter, the face-to-face conversation, and the visceral experience of being awake and alive. I don't think we are loosing those things to the degree that some might fear, and I would never advocate for an education system that goes robotic and automated. Nothing can replace live human interaction and the incalculable value of lived experience, nothing can replace the need for teachers to work with and challenge our children, and nothing can replace the amazing level of nuance and sophistication that comes from having meaningful conversations with one another across a table or desk.
I agree, and yes, we are having fun. However, this has little to do with pizzaz or novelty. The sober fact of the matter is that these new tools are the same tools that our students will need to compete at school and at work for the rest of their lives. Electricity, the automobile, airplanes, and even supermarkets were all once fun and exciting novelties indicative of "the modern world". Now we view these tools as integral parts of life as we know it. Can we do without them? Sure. Can we do without them and still participate in the mainstream world? Not really. (I,for one, can't hunt for my dinner OR start a serviceable fire. -10 on manliness for me, I'm sure
)
Like I said earlier, I'm still learning all of this stuff and definitely share some of the same fears and apprehensions as everyone else. Increasingly though, I'm not sure that i have much of a choice. The world has changed, and our education system has to match the new challenges that are now before us.
I appreciate your input on this. I brought this to the deck because I want to learn from your questions, hear your ideas, and work together to make my classroom worthy of this great community that I am proud to serve. I'm also a parent with kids in the district, so I have a vested interest in this conversation from that point-of-view as well.
I will try my best to keep everyone aware of both our successes and failures as we move forward into this relatively uncharted territory. The key is going to be learning from our failures while we work to repeat our successes.
Are there any means by which the school is going to measure the success of this 1:1 effort? And by that I mean to determine whether the initiative is actually more beneficial to students than the more traditional method of teaching. New tools are always fun in and of themselves.
My answer:
As part of the grant requirements we have hired an outside evaluator from the University of Akron who will be evaluating our implementation of the grant and the effect on student achievement. We are also going to be looking at our student's success on the Ohio Graduation Tests and assessing student growth over the course of the year.
As for the comparison between the "traditional" approach and the move to a more "modern" approach, I am not sure that this comparison can be made without a consideration of the context of each approach. The "traditional" model, in which case I imagine you mean without computers, was created in a world without computers, and therefore was relevant to that world. However, I can't see a way in which learning without computers is relevant to the world that we live in now. Of course, this is not to say that the content that we have always taught is suddenly irrelevant. Shakespeare still matters, American history still matters, Algebra is still important, and the scientific process is probably more relevant than ever. But when we consider the methods by which most of the modern world accesses these materials, we invariably have to confront the fact that most information is digital these days. I didn't head to the library to hit the card catalogue to find research on 1:1 initiative efficacy, I went to Google. Our university classes, over half of which have an online component, require students to participate in forum discussions, collaborate with other students online, and consider texts in digital form. This isn't an issue of an old method versus the new method. It's more an issue of preparing our students for a world that has undeniably shifted to an increased use of digital technology.
This, of course, brings some to think that we are loosing the beauty of such things as the hand-written letter, the face-to-face conversation, and the visceral experience of being awake and alive. I don't think we are loosing those things to the degree that some might fear, and I would never advocate for an education system that goes robotic and automated. Nothing can replace live human interaction and the incalculable value of lived experience, nothing can replace the need for teachers to work with and challenge our children, and nothing can replace the amazing level of nuance and sophistication that comes from having meaningful conversations with one another across a table or desk.
Quote:
New tools are always fun in and of themselves.
I agree, and yes, we are having fun. However, this has little to do with pizzaz or novelty. The sober fact of the matter is that these new tools are the same tools that our students will need to compete at school and at work for the rest of their lives. Electricity, the automobile, airplanes, and even supermarkets were all once fun and exciting novelties indicative of "the modern world". Now we view these tools as integral parts of life as we know it. Can we do without them? Sure. Can we do without them and still participate in the mainstream world? Not really. (I,for one, can't hunt for my dinner OR start a serviceable fire. -10 on manliness for me, I'm sure
)Like I said earlier, I'm still learning all of this stuff and definitely share some of the same fears and apprehensions as everyone else. Increasingly though, I'm not sure that i have much of a choice. The world has changed, and our education system has to match the new challenges that are now before us.
I appreciate your input on this. I brought this to the deck because I want to learn from your questions, hear your ideas, and work together to make my classroom worthy of this great community that I am proud to serve. I'm also a parent with kids in the district, so I have a vested interest in this conversation from that point-of-view as well.
I will try my best to keep everyone aware of both our successes and failures as we move forward into this relatively uncharted territory. The key is going to be learning from our failures while we work to repeat our successes.
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