Jan 5, 2010
Bankrupcy of our imaginations..Dr. Gary Stager
I am constantly struggling with what I actually do in education and what we can all do. I sometimes feel very isolated in feelings of worth and contribution when it comes to the very expensive resource of technology. As you listen to Gary listen carefully to hear his message. It is not about technology, it is about everything we are to our children.
Gary Stager Excerpts from NECC ‘09 Keynote Debate from Gary Stager on Vimeo.
Have we made much progress? Why do we constantly hear quotes and keynotes from educators that quote those that are from the early part of the century or even the 1970’s to tell us we are stifling our students imagination and not providing them with the spaces and opportunities to reach their full potential. Do we think we “have it” when a new gadget or piece of technology arrives that might change it all. Is it the same as another sweeping initiative, like open classrooms, that will get us there? I think we need to think deeply about our practices and leave the tools aside. We have to believe.
Thanks for the shout-out Shelley!
I hope your millions of readers will checkout http://stager.tv/blog and http://constructingmodernknowledge.com
Happy New Year!
Gary
It’s tough to really ignore the different types of technology out there right now. It seems whenever a district gets wind of a new toy, they expect all teachers to be using it, flawlessly, and immediately. But the manner in which the teacher is using the technology doesn’t seem to matter, let alone if the students use it or not. It seems a closer, yet different look at what’s actually happening in the classrooms might be the best course of action. Taking a step back to just ask, “Are we just masking the same lessons with new toys?”, doesn’t seem like a bad place to start.
I like this Stager guy.
That was where I was going with this. You are so right. We need to really look at instructional practice and teaching our kids to think!!!!
All too often, as it seems to me, the educational processes that are happening in the school I work in are not really promoting that students learn to think, certainly not think freely. When ever I walk the halls and stop and listen to a teacher instructing their class I hear a very guided one way stream of spoon fed thought. The facts are presented and a conclusion which supports the facts is sought. The real what if and why that is the greater part of learning is typically not explored. This creates a snapshot of learning but does not promote real thinking. A typical math, science, or english lesson is bottled and labled for a quick delivery that has omitted the thinking part of the lesson for the sake of time and State test requirements. If our school was really interested in teaching its students how to think then the subjects being taught would be consistantly interconnected and not taught as completely seperate units. Students are not taught that all learning is connected to thinking and thoughts themselves are not compartmentalized like files in a file cabinet.
I agree with Mr. Stager, online education doesn’t differentiate instruction but honestly I have never seen differentiated instruction on the college level at all. Since I’ve only seen online learning on the college level I will have to assume that’s what he was speaking about. But everything else he has talked about kind of sounded like he is against technology in the classroom. Interactive white board doesn’t just target the students in the front of the room. I try to create interactive lessons for my students because it’s more engaging for the students. When I ask for volunteers almost all of the students have their hands raised to participate. Isn’t that what we need to properly educate students, we need them to be excited about the learning process and want to participate in the learning process.
Sometimes I do play interactive games with my students to reinforce a skill and I’ve learned that there also needs be a worksheet because students don’t learn from internet games. Most of my students just click and click until they get the right answer. What learning comes out of that?
I’ve used voice thread with my students and they really liked it. It gave them a voice without having to put their face to it. They spent a lot of time on the power points and a lot of the concepts were still incorrect. So once again what reinforces learning, worksheets? The more technology I try to use in my room, I find that it doesn’t aid in the learning process. So I am back to videos, interactive white boards, and occasional internet games.
Maybe Mr. Stager can give me some tips on how to effectively use technology in an AIS math class.
When you look at the grand plan with smartboards many teachers would be just as good with a data projector and screen. I am finding they are moving in the right direction to make them interactive but I also have a staff developer and continuum of skills to constantly update them. I am not sure everyone has that luxury.
I think his main point is we are stifling our kids in education. The institutionalization of it prevents us from sometimes letting our students grow.
Stager makes some very valid points in his address. Improving education really has nothing to do with the venue, whether it be in a classroom or online (although personally I have always had a better experience through face-to-face interactions rather than online). And sure, technology opens a lot of doors and creates a lot of possibilities to improve or enhance the educational experience, but only when its capabilities are used in the correct way. I certainly don’t think that a lack of technology automatically results in poor practice. Gaining insight into the abilities, interests, and learning styles is really the easiest way to begin developing a meaningful educational program, but in order to maintain a high level of education you need to be adaptable and flexible because nothing in education sems to stay the same very long.
I’ve seen awesome teachers use little technology, and I’ve seen really horrible teachers try to use technology. Technology won’t make and educator suddenly great, it’s the use of it. Anthony has it right when he states we must be flexible. But how flexible are we? if it’s true schools are ‘chaining’ down laptops, and only have designated ‘technology’ time, we really are not being flexible and are not properly using technology. Online classes are great and horrible for me. Great in the sense they are usually cheaper and less time consuming; horrible in the sense that I feel I don’t learn as much.
I like your comment about technology will not make an educator great. Again it is similar to what the video said – instructional practice
I see what Gary Stager was saying is that we can not use technology just for technology’s sake. It is not the technology that is going to change education, it is the teachers that have to change education. Technology is a great tool to help us do that. If we are not willing to change, the technology is useless. We have to create experiences for the students and if technology helps us do that then great, but a trip to the fire house is still a really educational experience as well. What power do teachers have, though? We always have to follow rules, and produce test scores so there is data to analyze.
I definitely agree with most of what that Sager is saying. We think that we can automatically make education better, by adding a new piece of technology to our teaching; this is not the case though, if it isn’t used correctly. I’ve found that the district that I work in, is really pushing the use of technology, however it is not readily available to the teachers. The teachers that do have Smartboards in their classrooms do not use them to their full potential. Like Shelley said, many teachers would be just as good with a projector and screen, because most of their lessons do not involve the students manipulating the board. When I do have the chance to work with technology, I make it so my students are actively engaged and it meets the needs of all of my individual students. The great thing about technology is that we can have our students become autonomy thinkers, and have them discover things on their own; unfortunately it is not always used in that way.
The use of technology often motivates the seventh and eigth grade students that I have. This past semester was the first time that we had a Smartboard in the math department at the high school. I found that the students are much more engaged if I use the interactive board. Even the students that do not usually participate, are excited to get the chance to come up to the board. The Smart Response System is also being oimplemented into my lesson plans now, although I have still not mananged to set up the classs lists, so that I could use the tool out of the anonymous mode. Even using it in the anonymous mode is a great help in letting the teacher see where students need more practice.
I was not able to get the video to work at home or on the school computers. Therefore, I am going to respond with what I have read from the other posts.
I agree that there is a lot of technology out there and schools sometimes adopt a certain technology and say that all the teachers will use it. However, teachers do not always get the training they need in order to use that technology in a way that is useful for their classroom and their students.
Sometimes it seems that teachers are made to use technology just for the sake of using it. How is that helpful for the teacher or the students? Instead, there needs to be a purpose for using a specific type of technology. Teachers need to reflect on their lessons and decide if there is technology that will help to enhance the learning experience. If creating a powerpoint is just going to be busy work then why have your students create one?
I like to think that we differentiate for teachers like students. The conversation we had the other day was an example of it.
Doctor Stager makes a valid point about technology being implemented in a quick fashion. While I agree that new technology needs to be implemented on a routine basis to keep up with the changing times, I think further testing and operational guidelines should be addressed. I work in a school that almost seems to pride itself in rolling out technologies to the entire staff before even adequately testing them, instead they just hear through the grapevine that it might be something valuable and push it out to everyone as quickly as they can. The situation caused by this is simple… teachers try to learn a new technology that even the person training can not operate fully themselves. This makes it harder for us to do our jobs, especially if we do not get a full breadth of knowledge on that specific technology. After all, we are here to teach these students, and technology can certainly help – if we can learn everything we can about how it works first.
Stager makes a lot of valid points in his speech. I agree with him that technology is great when used correctly, but when it is not used correctly it is not benefitting anyone. It is difficult for teachers and administrators to keep up with all of the new technology because they are changing and improving very quickly. When we make use of technology in the classroom, we need to make sure that it is used correctly and benefitting the student.
I agree that improving education has nothing to do with the venue. It has everything to do with substance and sensible delivery. I preferr a face to face experience but am open to the idea that an on-line experience could be as valuable. If I simply imagine myself having access to the latest and greatest of educational software and equipment I can envision a really profound educational experience.
For me, however, that is not the problem. Educational delivery becomes problematic when it lacks planning and clear direction. It stops making sense when, whatever the topic, it becomes seperated from the thinking process. Rote learning is a great method for teaching a tape recorder and a parrot but really does notihng for a student other than teach them to repeat what they practiced memorizing. There is no thinking involved and when the rote learning is required to become assimilated and synthesized into higher learning skills, higher understanding reveals the futility of memorization and its failure to truely help a learner to make sense when problem solving. For a student to really learn the learning itself must be meaningful and serve a greater purpose than merely establisihing itself as a recollection of facts.
Unfortunately I see my students using the Internet much like they would use a calculator. They want to press a few keys and find a quick answer to whatever they are searching for. If their searching process requires several different attempts they abandon the search. They have not learned process they have learned to press keys. The technology has not helped them it has handicapped them. They have mastered rote key pressing and have come to conclude that thinking is painful and time consuming. This has led me to believe that there is something very wrong with this picture.
I agree that improving education has nothing to do with the venue. It has everything to do with substance and sensible delivery. I prefer a face to face experience but am open to the idea that an on-line experience could be as valuable. If I simply imagine myself having access to the latest and greatest of educational software and equipment I can envision a really profound educational experience.
For me, however, that is not the problem. Educational delivery becomes problematic when it lacks planning and clear direction. It stops making sense when, whatever the topic, it becomes separated from the thinking process. Rote learning is a great method for teaching a tape recorder and a parrot but really does nothing for a student other than teach them to repeat what they practiced memorizing. There is no thinking involved and when the rote learning is required to become assimilated and synthesized into higher learning skills, higher understanding reveals the futility of memorization and its failure to truly help a learner to make sense when problem solving. For a student to really learn the learning itself must be meaningful and serve a greater purpose than merely establishing itself as a recollection of facts.
Unfortunately I see my students using the Internet much like they would use a calculator. They want to press a few keys and find a quick answer to whatever they are searching for. If their searching process requires several different attempts they abandon the search. They have not learned process they have learned to press keys. The technology has not helped them it has handicapped them. They have mastered rote key pressing and have come to conclude that thinking is painful and time consuming. This has led me to believe that there is something very wrong with this picture.
Yes, yes yes. We need to change instruction and make it relevant
I found this to be a very interesting video to watch. First of all, the level of passion and conviction held by Gary Stager is one that that I hope I can show each day to students! There is so much available to us, as far as technology goes, and we need to use discernment to decide when it is truly a best practice. I have observed many teachers using a Smartbard as a way to present their notes many many times. Some are shocked when they see a Smartboard being used interactively. For many, the introduction of interactive white boards into their classrooms did not change their methods of teaching at all. Instead, their practices are the same, just more expensive.
As educators, we need to make educated decisions as to how we can include technology. We need to insure that the technology chosen is truly benefiting our students.
Wow! I love it!
I battle with these concepts daily and I find myself feeling a little hypocritical because on the one hand it is my job to be proactive and push Technology use in schools and on the other hand, I see much of the use of it being superficial. I never want to appear negative in front of my peers, but I can’t help wonder sometimes is this all worth it? The battle is neverending and as long as technology changes on a daily basis, there is no end in sight! I am expected to be a 21st century thinker, when my heart wishes kids spent more time outside hiking the fields behind the school and collecting wildlife samples for analysis, not with ELECTRONIC MICROSCOPES, but with their eyes! As a parent, i spend very little time pushing technology at home as it is more important for me to take my kids, camping, fishing and hiking and hunting. The Technology is impossible to ignore and they will get it shoved down their throats whether I bring it home or not.
It is very comforting to hear this speech as it puts a lot of my own personal thoughts into words. Where are we going with all of this? I do on the one hand feel it is important to make Technology available to our staff members, but is technology the answer to EVERY situation? I don’t think so. Why does the school needs to spend 2 thousand dollars a year for an inventory program for the custodial department to track the number of bottles of bleach and where they are stored? Can’t that be done on paper with a pencil? Is this what we are teaching our kids? That any task we deem time consuming can be replaced with a web or IPHONE based applet that does it for us? What happened to sweat and tears? I remember my Father’s hands were dry and cracked from working all day. This generation will only complain about THUMB cramps from texting eachother every time they have a thought.
If someone brings a lot of new technology into your school district,
and doesn’t provide staff development, the only thing
that will change is your electric bill.”–David Thornburg
Isn’t this what we were talking about tonight? I swear I hadn’t read it first.
Sometimes I wonder where virtual reality will take us. Will all this technology lead us into a future filled with problem solving wonders or will it plunge us into fear and darkness? I think about some of the movies that I have seen and many of them paint a very disturbing image of the future. The machines have gone way beyond human control. The people have become slaves to the authority and control of the absolute power of machines. Could are future become as terrifying as the one portrayed in the Terminator movies? Will mankind create a mechanical god and in so doing create a hell on earth? Or could our future possibly be a bit more subdued such as the one portrayed in the movie Wally? Could mankind pollute the entire planet in search of the cozy comforts of a lazy existence that has given every possible task and chore over to a technology designed to do all the work? Is it possible for technology to gain enough momentum to ultimately declare it self a supreme power by virtue of its own creations?
I remember having a discussion in Foundations 1 where the question was,” Would you take the time and expend the effort to learn if it were possible to gain all the knowledge you could possibly wish for through a simple brain implant? Where could this kind of technology lead us? I would rather smell the roses while pricking my fingers on its thorns before I would subject myself to the same experience virtually.
I to fear that one day robots will become self aware and consider humans subclass and try to eliminate us. Not really, but those types of movies do make us think. A calculator may help us add 2 + 2, but if we don’t have the calculator, would be still be able to do the work? I survive perfectly fine in my classroom without a smartboard because I realize that what I do does not need one. I teach science, and it feels like the more ‘technology’ we throw at our kids, the less these kids get to explore the world around them. I teach Life Science this year and when the weather cooperates, I take them out. I can use all the worlds fanciest technology to teach ecosystems, but why bother when I can take them outside to explore the local ecosystem. By the way, I have to say the Terminator franchise is way better than the Matrix franchise. Though I don’t think machines will become self aware anytime soon, I do think megavirus could hit our computers. That would probably be just as devastating.
Education needs to be more about the contact time and the actual learning process than the technology we use. We should use the technology to help the students enhance and gain a deeper understanding of the curriculum. We should focus on helping the students to grow and gain a full, well rounded education. If we can help them accomplish this by using different forms of technology, then that is what we should do. However, if we are just using technology to mask poor teaching, then we should rethink our motives for incorporating technology into the classroom. Like it was said, anyone can use technology; but it takes someone with skill to use technology as an enhancer instead of ’something else’ that needs to be used in the classroom. Technology is great in the classroom, when it is used properly!
I really liked what this video has to say since it is so true. I feel we teach to get students to meet a universal goal (regents) knowing this knowledge does not get carried on. We teach information to be retained for 6 months then complain when the students pass the test, and enter into a new school year as if they returned to a blank state. As the video suggests technology is sometimes the blame, but only because of the way it is used. Technology is not the end all solution, but rather a tool to allow the students to translate and review things at their own pace, but even then the video gives the problems school have. We teach students how to use technology in what we seem is “most productive” and beneficial, rather than surrendering control and allowing the students to manipulate the tools themselves to realize their own answers. Just because students are using technology does not mean good learning is occurring. Should technology be used in and out of school? Certainly, since it is our job to prepare them for the future. How much they should rely on it or even how it should be used is still in question. My personal feelings on the issue is that technology is not the solution or the problem, but rather then mentality of the teachers and students towards the devices.
What does perfect integration and use of technology look like? To me it’s a 1 to 1 program where students take the technology home and are presented problems in class that they have to solve on their own. We don’t need to teach technology since they are light years ahead of us. By doing this we stunt them. Teach them the basics and allow them to explore on their own, then when they are presented with a problem they will be able to devise their own solutions and make a deeper connection to the content.
You couldn’t be more on
Much of what is being proposal here falls under the constructivism approach or sometimes called “discovery learning”. I do believe it is more complicated then were willing to admit. While I support this approach the obstacles are many and of course this comes off as looking like a “naysayer”.
1) Students who are condition to learn through teacher-centered learning. If you want to challenge students, stop asking questions and waiting 5 seconds only to give the students the answer. I often tell my students, “you have my permission to think, its okay”. If we truly want our students to think they must be exposed to this way of learning throughout their academic career. You can’t expect a student who only knows one way of learning (teacher-centered) and out-of-the-blue walks into a class where the teacher challenges them to think on their own.
2) What happens to the students who are frequently behind in their subject area? I know in math if your foundation is not strong the problems with the current material will only worsen. Can we expect them to be “active learners”?
3) Let’s teach to the digital learner? I’m all for that, somehow the message did not get through to the students. When students ask to use their iPhones for the purpose of using a calculator I often catch them texting rather than doing their work.
It is my belief that students embrace technology for the purpose of leisurely activities when it comes time to utilize the technology for educational purposes they become ignorant in their knowledge. This is true with our global village account. When students are absent I tell them they can access any missing work through the global village class site. Often students will give me the excuse of, “I don’t have internet access at home” to “the site freezes up on my computer” the worst part of this is that I cannot verify whether or not the student’s excuse is valid or not.
Mike, I totally hear what you are saying!
I agree that the idea of constructivist teaching is great, especially for those students that are self motivated to learn. I also believe that if we are going to embrace such an idea, we have to do so fully. By embracing the idea fully, we must start at the ground level. This would mean an entire change in the way we do teach, starting when a student first enters a learning/classroom environment.
I also agree with you that students take advantage of the ability to use technology, and can then are able to come up with excuses when it involves working for the purpose of education.
I believe that our students are the products of their educational environments. Educational environments are any setting where an individual learns something. Given that any location can be an educational environment at any time there are simply too many to list but I will mention a few.
When one of today’s upper middle class wunderkind complete with helicopter parents has some time off from their fully scheduled day and gets to spend some time with a classmate at a lower socioeconomic house hold, i.e. not very structured environment, they can become very interested in the amount of freedom their friend has. The complete lack of structure can be very appealing compared to the constant structure of the wunderkind’s typical day. It would not take very long for the wunderkind to learn how to withdraw from all their forced structure and begin to learn how to sabotage their helicopter parents’ constant planning. It’s simple and easy to become a screw up and it’s even easier to stop trying so hard to please those parents who actually believe they are raising another Einstein. Going to therapy and taking proscribed drugs creates an entirely new game plan for the wunderkind. The wunderkind is now free to create a way to control their life and at the same time created a whole new world filled with deliberate failures and excuses. Helicopter Mom and Dad will fall all over themselves trying to play along.
Another influential learning environment could be the neighborhood park where Billy chooses to hang out every day after school. He quickly learns the language of the park dwellers, which is so necessary to assimilate into the group. He also quickly learns how much more fun it is to hang out and get high than it is to sit alone and study. Billy’s learning takes a sharp turn when he begins to see how easy it is to become a problem student. Billy is taught how to gain immediate release from class and then is rewarded with a few days of suspension. His friends from the park are not only Billy’s favorite teachers but they soon become his family. School becomes the place for Billy and his gang to socialize. Billy’s Mom is at home waiting for the dealer to stop by to trade drugs for sex and food stamps and Billy’s Dad has been dead for most of Billy’s life, murdered by a rival gang when he was sixteen.
Then there is the learning environment that I try to create in my classroom. It’s a small overcrowded room where I try to create the desire to ask questions and feel comfortable doing so. It’s a place that changes its mood and personality depending on those persons occupying it for that class period of the day. It is a place where I try very hard to challenge the notions of freedom, respect and personal pride in trying your best. It is a place where everyone who comes in to learn learns that the words ‘I can’t’ do not exist. Those words only mean ‘I do not want to.’ It is a learning environment that I try to bring to life every day. If technology can help me with this I am trying to learn how.
I guess the only avenue of success is for the school to become the students family so there is a safe place to be. How do we capture them before this happens? I agree and not sure kids can really know what is the best path for them at such a young age. They can’t determine whether the easy way out is the right or wrong way out. It sounds like we are doomed Claus.
This just in, (Reuters inc.): Good News for Americans! We are not doomed just yet!
Although it is true that literacy rates have dropped substantially among Americans since the American Colonies were first established and Americans have become exponentially dumber than their colonial counter parts Congress has developed a plan to ensure Excellence in Education for their immediate families. This plan will also ensure that all Congressional Families will have the best housing, dental, and medical health plans. Congress has banded together with all members of the Senate to ensure the likelihood of their survival in the face of any potential National Catastrophe. Congress along with the Senate has dutifully placed themselves above all other humble Americans to make sure that their Royal Positions will be fully funded.
It is completely understood that all Congressional members must given free reign to operate outside and above the law to ensure that the illusion of Democracy continues to be in the hearts and minds of the uneducated masses. Of course Congress has determined to include loyal supporters of their noble causes and has recruited all wealthy Americans that are functioning in the top 5% of annual income and assets. This brilliant strategy will insure adequate representation for all Royal Members of the American Elite when China officially takes control of all United States Lands and Territories that it has purchased beginning on January 1, 2053.