Whew! My head is spinning from hearing everyone talk about their reports on so many of these issues—sexting, censorship, parent responsibility, balancing technology and nature, the importance of relationships...and much more. Some good research into these topics and some excellent sharing of educational implications and what, as future teachers, they can do about it.
I was struck by the fact that most of these topics/issues existed before technology...and while technology has made them more immediate and compelling, it is still the human aspect of the equation that is the key. As Alvin Toffler said a long time age..."high tech, high touch." That is even truer today than in the past.
So, what is the role that teachers and schools must play in making sure that students (and other adults?) use digital tools responsibly?
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Teachers and parents really need to be teaching adolescents about responsible using habits by instilling strong morals and critical thinking skills. I don't really have any set idea about how we go about doing these things, but I feel like if you trust kids and don't try to hide things from them, they'll understand they're being treated like adults and will act more maturely. Then we can teach them how to ask critical questions about the levels of appropriateness and legitimacy of content on the internet or use of a piece of technology. I think the most important thing is to teach our students how to ask questions - meaning what kinds of questions to ask. Then they can better understand what material is appropriate for them and can better understand the material itself.
ReplyDeleteI think it is really hard to control what parents and other guardians do when children aren't in school. This is why I think its so important that children get less technology at school and if they do use it it should structured to help them learn how to use technology outside of school. This way even if their parents use the computer as a babysitter they will have gotten something positive at school.
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