Interview with an onliner

My interview was with a 13 year old girl, who was/is homeschooled. The majority of her learning experience has been online and she is very comfortable interacting in the medium. The biggest take-away for me was the dissatisfaction online learning experience. I know from my own experience, that every course, teachers and peers will be different, some better, some worst. However I believe this is true regardless of delivery system.

Secondly was the issue of pornography, while I know there are filters that can be placed, I also know they can be easily circumvented. While I am all for free speech, I do wish there were more content filters turned on by default on social media. I would rather see an active consent to remove the filters, than to assume everyone is an 'adult'. Especially as we know the majority of people who use social media are younger.

How long have you been 'online'?

 

I've been online for 5 years.

 

What do you do when you are online?

I talk to friends, watch videos, listen to music and post my artwork onto my Tumblr blog.

 

Describe the projects that you make/do?

 

I draw, all the time. I've also been working on game design, coding and concept art.

 

How has your experience been learning online?

 

It hasn't been as good as I'd expected. There is nearly no communication between the classmates and the teacher, and there's no hands on experience. You receive your books in the mail, and the teachers do no more than tell you which chapter to read. And they almost never reply to you or grade your papers in a reasonable amount of time.

 

Do you frequent social media?

 

I use Tumblr and Twitter, and I use them a lot. I check them regularly. 

 

How do you deal with negative people online?

 

Unless they've said something really offensive to me, I normally just ignore them. I've had people try to bully me so many times online, that I've just stopped caring.

 

Is social media a big part of your life?

 

It keeps me from getting bored, but I don't believe it's a big part of my life. 

 

if there was something you could change about social media, what would it be?

 

I'd really, really like it if there was more of a filter on pornography. I can go on Tumblr and look up my favourite anime video game, and see a whole bunch of anime pornography. It's awful, especially since the game is targeted to audiences 16 and under. Thankfully, people on twitter have more sense and make sure that their twitter is blocked to everyone under a certain age.

The benefits of Technology in the classroom

My research paper will be on the emerging role of technology in the classroom. Our discussion on Technology Refusal, really brought to light the division that exists between traditionalists and those who are embracing the newest technology in the classroom.

What I hope to show is that the technology provides more benefits than hindrances and should not only be given a chance, but should be accepted whole-heartedly as a force for good.

 

                                                          Annotated Bibliography:

 

Beschorner, B. & Hutchison, A. (2013). iPads as a literacy teaching tool in early childhood.
International Journal of Education in Mathematics, Science and Technology, 1(1), 16-24.
 
Like it or not, more and more schools are implementing technology into the classrooms at earlier ages than ever before. However there is considerable debate not only concerning the use of technology in the home, let alone in the school environment. Questions such as, how long, how young is too young and what about student's social development are only a few of the questions being asked.

This journal piece provides background into what occurred when iPads or tablets were introduced into the classroom setting for four and five year old children. It seeks to answer questions about viability, learning behaviors and whether or not it was a success.

Stearns, Susan C. (2012). Integration of technology into the classroom: Effects on reading comprehension Research Papers. Paper 248.

This research review compares the effects of computer technology as a supplemental tool to support and improve the reading comprehension of struggling and at-risk readers with equivalent non technological or traditional print based treatments. They feature a wide array of technology being used in an effort to provide support for the student. Their results so that technology in the classroom, provided superior or equal benefits than traditional methods of supplying support for struggling students.
 
Hsien-Chang, T. (2015). A senior teacher’s implementation of technology integration.
International Education Studies, Vol. 8, No. 6.
 
One of the biggest issues regarding technology in the classroom, is technology refusal. We have seen in our reading, that the strongest pushback against technology in the classroom comes from older teachers who are often unable to adapt the their changing classroom environments.
 
This study seeks to show that as long as teacher is willing and able to learn new skills, adaptation to new technology doesn't have to be career changing result.

 

Duygu Erişti, S., Aşkım Kurt, A., Dindar, M. (2012). Teachers’ views about effective use of technology in classrooms. Turkish Online Journal of Qualitative Inquiry, 3(2)

One of the biggest complaints from teachers concerning the introduction of technology into the classroom, is that they are never consulted or asked to provide feedback concerning the success, failure and most importantly, how to improve the technology experience in the classroom.

This paper describes the experience of 21 teachers who provided feedback via focus groups, observations and the researchers own journals. There were two recurring themes: Problems experienced by teachers regarding technology use in class and suggestions for effective use of technology.


Bang, E., Luft, J.(2013) Secondary science teachers’ use of technology in the classroom during their first 5 years. Journal of Digital Learning in Teacher Education, 29,(4) 118-126.

As noted previously, older teachers seem to have more resistance as well as a higher/longer learning curve in regards to new technologies than their younger counter parts. This is true because generational speaking, the younger teachers in general, are more 'digitally native', than their mature co-workers. This study seeks to ask, what happens to the relationship between technology and 'youth', when the younger teachers become more established, more 'traditional'? Do they like their mature peers, turn away from technology and fall into the familiar patterns advocated by the establishment, of which they have become a part of?