Ava

My little girl

Gardner's Multiple Intelligences

As the web finds it's way into more and more homes, one day hopefully into all homes no matter the economic background, we as educators are gaining a tool that could become invaluble to each one of our students. As many students feel, sometimes multiple things get between them and their understanding of topics presented in the class. A few of the many are time, in that they feel like class time is too short to really absorb the information or ask questions. Questions are another area where I think students are uncomfortable, in that they feel embarrassed to ask what they see as a question that everyone has the answer to but they don't. The point is this, as the web becomes more and more prevalent in the education of our students, it is a great opportunity for us to reinforce our lessons with the web. We will have the opportunity to say to our students, btween class meetings, "If you didn't understand my explanation, try this web site, they have a great visual of the science concept that I was talking about". I talk about science because that is what I teach, but I am sure that with all subjects, whether it be math, art, or music, being able to view the concept that is being discussed, even if the visual is exactly what was done in class, the reinforcement of being able to view the concept multiple times in a row and at ones own pace, can only serve to enhance any class lesson.

Mobile Labs

As the school I work at is finally moving into the modern age, we finally have our mobile lab up and running. With that in mind I think that the question we need to ask ourselves how important are computers in the classroom? As with anything the idea has it's pros and cons. To start this conversation here's a pro and a con:

Pro: Not all students have access to a computer at home for either research purposes or simple word processing. Having access to not only a mobile lab in the class but to also having access to a larger computer lab, levels the playing field in regards to student learning tools.

Con: The downside to moving more towards a paperless class, is the upkeep. We all know in the real world, computers may seem to make life easier but always find a way to cause the students stress. It seems to be that trouble shooting and general maintainence of the computers once they are in the schools is majorly lacking, turning a great tool into more a great hassel. This mostly comes from the lack of funding for a full IT staff, thus leading to obsoleate machines.

What are your Pros and Cons?