It is clear from the web links that were provided for this exercise
and my familiarity with the Montgomery County School System (as I'm a
parent to a 3rd grader to be at Glenellen Elementary) that 2.0 digital
education has transformed the context and dynamic nature of teaching.
Specifically, I found the Horizon Report very insightful and far ahead
of where the technology resources were at the time (2008). It spelled
out in many ways what was around the corner regarding emerging
technologies in the classroom and how to utilize them. I also believe it
was a genuine wake-up call for teachers, informing them very clearly of
what was to come.
But as all the reports state, such as the
"Web 2.0 is Not About Version Numbers or Betas" and "Web 2.0: A Guide
for Educators", digital applications for educational purposes are only
as good as the educators and teachers who use them. Or if they use them
at all. In other words, School 2.0, as a vast environment of experimentation, successes and failures, won't teach students by itself. It takes a knowledgeable
teacher to investigate the resources, fashion them to fit their
educational plan/curriculum, and make them work as effectively as
possible. And it truly behooves those teachers to be up to speed,
trained and most most importantly, unintimidated with all the options
that 2.0 offers. At best, School 2.0 keeps today's students thinking
digitally in an educational sense. It creates a seamless transition from
their life away of school, which is already inundated with technology,
to the classroom itself, where that very technology is continued to be
applied for teaching their minds. My biggest concern is that teachers begin to rely on it so much, they remove themselves from being teachers all together and become merely technology facilitators instead. I don't want to see 2.0 resources take over the meaningful roles and relationships that teachers have with their students.
I found this interesting link while perusing 2.0 sources: "School 2.0 in South Africa: How can Web 2.0 transform teaching & learning?"
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