 |
| iPad, iLearn? |
How many times have you found yourself in the middle of a lecture that just won't end? So you drift off into a daydream about the spring break vacation you’re planning or the next topic for your blog, only to snap back to class just in time to hear those eight paralyzing words, “You’ll need to know that for the test.”
Thankfully education is changing, it is adapting to the new force that media plays in our lives and reinventing itself to be more beneficial to our changing brains. Things like the Khan Academy and the Worldwide Center for Mathematics are lending themselves to the classroom of the future. Even here at North Dakota State University we are already seeing some of the small changes being implemented; we are using blogs and Facebook accounts to complete classroom assignments. We have many distance education courses, classes that are only offered in an online format.
Salman Khan, was tutoring his cousins who lived out of state, started the Khan Academy. He began by posting the videos he made for them on Youtube to reference for supplemental information or to watch as a refresher to a subject not fully grasped. Pretty soon, many others were watching his videos and were able to understand topics they didn’t comprehend. These lectures have been highly successful and teachers in California are starting to use them as part of the curriculum. The classroom has experienced a “flip”, the teachers are now using the tutorials as homework and what used to be homework is being done in the classroom. This allows the students to have a self-paced lecture at home, and it allows more time for the teacher to interact personally with the student instead of giving a “one-size-fits-all lecture”.
The Worldwide Center for Mathematics is taking education down the same path, they have changed their textbook from a physical book to an online PDF format, and the best part is, it’s free! There are two versions of the textbook the one with the PDF files and a 45-minute video lecture at the beginning of each section and the upgraded model, which includes video solutions to the problems in the book.
I loved your use of multimedia. The videos were great and very interesting. They made me want to keep reading further to find out more information. But make sure you mention in the body of your blog what the video will be telling us or what its purpose is. Also make sure that your photos show up before finishing your post.
ReplyDeleteYour sources were also very good. It gave me more information on things I did not understand or know what they were.
I would have liked to have heard about your personal experiences. Have you taken online classes? Used tutors online? Is it easier to concentrate? Is it better than the in class experience?
Hello relevant topic! I don’t know a student who doesn’t space out during lecture intentionally or not, which is great in that your topic selection provides you an amazing connection with any reader. The information you have posted is helpful (I know where I’m going if I need help with a class now) and interesting (the last video was amazing and powerful).
ReplyDeleteThe video you posted from Kahn was great (who doesn’t love a good TED episode), but it was a little lengthy. Maybe you could choose your favorite bit of the clip or the most important part and instruct readers to be most focused on that. This can only encourage them to stick with your post through the end, allowing them to get the most out of your writing.
Either way, this is a great post with a wonderful topic for both the class and being a student in general. Thanks!
Great post! I really liked reading this blog post because I have heard about this vaguely before but never got the full understanding of it so it was great to read about. I looked back at some of your old blogs as well to see all of the topics you have covered. I think something else interesting that you could possibly consider blogging about is Skype. I think it’s a new “media hype” that a lot of people seem to be interested in. One last thing, I really like your humor you use through some of your blogging it makes your personality stand out as a blogger.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your post. Several times I too have spaced out in class and then heard those dreaded words “you’ll need to know that for the test.” I enjoyed your videos and your links; your picture however I was unable to see (uncertain why). A few of your paragraphs were a bit lengthy; however they contained pertinent information to the blog. I particularly liked how you referenced it back to NDSU. I like Bobbie’s idea of adding your own experience with online classes to supplement the material. An idea for a topic to consider for a blog to go along with Samantha's Skype topic would be about Apple's FaceTime.
ReplyDelete