Should We Blog?

Over at Teach Paperless, Shelly Blake-Plock, in his post, 'Why Teachers Should Blog', argues:

Because to blog is to teach yourself what you think.

Take a moment and read his post and come on back here and share your thoughts, regarding blogging for teachers, and more importantly, for our students.

Transformative?

Watch the following student-created Animoto made in a US II History class. As you watch, consider if the use of the song falls under tranformativeness. Do you believe that the use of the song is acceptable? If so, why? If not, what would you recommend the student do?

Try our video maker at Animoto.

The Death of Creativity

At the time of Sir Ken Robinson's 2006 TED talk, "Do Schools Kill Creativity?", web2.0 tools were in their earliest stages, and in truth, a niche concept that had yet to pour over into schools. Robinson contends that we are born to be visual and kinesthetic learners. He states that education is at a cross-roads, an intersection where the direction chosen will have a profound impact on future generations. Robinson believes that creativity is best nurtured through the arts; programs such as dance, theater, and art.

Creativity promotes critical thinking, problem solving, and analysis. Therefore, web 2.0 tools provide a level ground for all students to enhance their creative thinking powers; especially to those who can not, quite literally, dance or sing.

I believe that if Robinson offered in 2011-2012 the same topic as he covered in 2006, he would include web 2.0 tools.

And he would be excoriated.

It's easy to win a crowd over by referencing all the subjects they experienced as learners, but to contend that web 2.0 deserves a spot on the shelf next to venerated programs such as art and dance would be an act of recklessness and irresponsibility.

Do They Think Differently?

Please provide a thought-provoking response to the Prensky article. Please use the following questions to help guide your response:

• What assumptions of the text does the author hold?
• What do you agree with in the text?
• What do you want to argue with in the text?
• What parts of the text do you aspire to?

Insure that your post provides integrated quotes which are meaningful and purposeful to your position.

Additionally, avoid spelling and grammatical errors. I recommend composing in MS Word if needed, and then copying and pasting your response here.