Teaching and Learning in a Digital Age

  Google Docs is a powerful collaboration tool, especially useful for group projects and remote teamwork. One of its features is the availability of three editing modes, editing, suggesting, and viewing which support various stages of the writing process. A document can be shared with peers for editing, proofreading, or feedback. Collaborators can leave comments or suggestions, which the document owner can choose to accept or reject. Once finalized, the document can be prepared for printing or submission. The built-in version history allows users to track changes over time, providing a clear view of progress and accountability. Another valuable feature is the "Explore" tool, which supports collaborative research and content creation. It allows team members to search for information, images, or resources directly within the document. In group work, roles can be assigned based on individual strengths. For example, one student might gather images or conduct online research, wh...

  Group projects can be both a rewarding and a frustrating experience. When they work well, group projects can use and develop important 21st-century skills such as collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and problem-solving. Through these tasks, students learn how to share responsibility, listen to perspectives from others, and contribute toward a common goal. These skills are important in both the classroom and the wider world. One project students were engaged in was to create new packaging for a chocolate bar. The task was to design how the packaging will look and how to ensure the dimensions were correct to fit a specific size bar. Additionally, they were to cost the project to produce x amounts of the final product. Students were split into teams where they could design their own product and present their ideas to the class. Students really enjoyed this type of activity and were really engaged in the different process involved in completing the project. However, ...

  When Chromebooks first entered the market, they weren’t seen as serious contenders by many Windows users. From a functionality perspective, they were underpowered and had significant limitations in terms of the software and applications they could run. For example, users with Microsoft accounts couldn’t install desktop versions of Microsoft Office which remains widely used in the computing world. While web-based versions like Office 365 are now available, they often lack the full functionality and responsiveness of the desktop apps, especially for more advanced users or tasks. Chromebooks rely heavily on an internet connection since most of their functions are web-based. This becomes a major drawback if students or teachers need to work in environments without stable internet access. Additionally, Chromebooks are not upgradeable, users can’t add more RAM or increase storage capacity, which limits their long term use. Windows based computers are often modular. You can upgrade ...

 For this task, I created an account on Feedly and spent some time exploring its layout and features. I often use browser bookmarks to organize websites I regularly visit. However, using an RSS feed is beneficial and allows you to stay updated on content you follow all in one place, especially if you want to ensure you’re receiving the latest information on a particular topic or development. I found Feedly to be user-friendly and was able to set up my feeds and start following blogs and podcasts with ease. One blog I discovered was Cool Cat Teacher, which features interviews on a variety of topics aimed at bridging the gap between educational research and classroom reality. This blog is run by a technology teacher, and I found many of the posts relevant to our area of study. Apple Podcasts offers a wide variety of content in the education sector. I also explored Shambles Blog by Teachers, which includes a comprehensive list of blogs and podcasts. One podcast I found particularl...

  David Warlick's article “A Day in the Life of Web 2.0”, presents an ideal for the future of technology in education. He describes the learning environment where technology is seamlessly working between departments and all the intended parties are instantaneously connected. There are several barriers to this scenario, for example, not all having consistent connections to the network and limitations in technical ability. The idea may sound ideal but would be complex and challenging to achieve. Web 2.0, according to Berner’s-Lee is really what the internet was originally designed to be – an interactive network where communication and collaboration could take place. It appears that we are headed in that direction. We are already there with social interaction, but can it be done consistently in the classroom? The SAMR model - Substitution, Augmentation, Modification, and Redefinition—offers a framework for integrating technology into the classroom for specific tasks in ways that c...

One of the 21 st century skills I believe has not been well developed is collaboration, especially across subject areas. Subjects are mostly taught in isolation, but they leave little room for interdisciplinary skills. In my experience, students often would become confused, surprised or have a look of disdain when teachers introduce other subject skills into another subject. It seems like they are saying, “I didn’t know you could do math in art” or if they disliked math, “Why do we have to do math in art?” In my previous school we did try to explore ways to help students not to compartmentalize their learning and to see that many of the skills they are learning are embedded in all subjects, and it is for a rounded education experience necessary for life skills. Technology can certainly help to facilitate collaboration as we have seen. We have tools that can help in project planning, creative design, online cross curricula resources that show the connections between various subject...

 When looking at the components of 21 st century skills, it appears that they have existed for a long time. Jay Matthews in his article “The Latest Doomed Pedagogical Fad: 21st-Century Skills” said Young Plato and his friends worked together creatively and collaboratively; just to name a few of those “modern” skills. If they have been around for many years, why are they being labeled as new? It could be that 21 st century skills are old skills that are needed more today due to the rapid change in technology. The world is getting “smaller”, more interconnected. Facts are so readily available and as a result the need for analytical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving are more in demand. Automation can only accomplish so much, it cannot replace the need for human ingenuity. It seems that the issue with technology and its place in society is the speed at which it is being rolled out and the lack of training and thought in how to effectively incorporate it into teaching. A f...

 In this eye-opening video, we follow the journey of an elderly man who wakes to a future he doesn’t recognize. From high-tech offices with global video calls to hospitals filled with life-saving machines and body-scanning tools, every place he visits leaves him in awe and confusion. But then he steps into a school and instantly feels at home. Why? Because it hasn't changed. This powerful short film raises a simple but important question: Why has education stayed the same in a world that has changed so much?

I really enjoy using technology and have been mostly self-taught. Learning new technologies through trial and error and through intensive research has helped me gain new skills and become more comfortable and “native” with many tasks that require technical knowledge. However, I find that as I age, I become less inclined to learn new technologies—technologies that, in my view, are for the younger generation. These new technologies can include new social media apps or software designed to create and organize work schedules. Sometimes, I see them as toys or fads that require a lot of effort to implement. They may seem “silly” or purely for entertainment, but I do agree that they can be useful for someone who puts in the time and effort—just as I did years ago. I think my lack of enthusiasm may be due to the sheer number of tech tools that seem to be emerging so quickly. It’s hard to keep up. It can feel overwhelming. I found the following quote to be a good analogy for a digital immigran...

  Going through the course materials in the order that they were presented for this first week. I eventually came across the next video featuring Mr. Winkle. As I started to watch, the story quickly became comically predictable - So far, we have learnt that technology is desperately missing in the classroom - Therefore, when Mr. Winkles wakes up from his 100-year slumber and starts going from one place of employment to another it dawned on me that he would eventually enter a school and find that nothing had really changed in all those years. And that is exactly what happened. A sense of sympathy emerges with the story and highlights the mismatch between the level of technology we have today that is widely accessible to young people who are very skilled in it and more able than their elders and the level of technology used in the classroom. This leads to a broader point. I think cross-curricular understanding in schools need to be developed, meaning that students need to know th...