Module 3 Reflection Post
The internet, which is view as a massive and all encompassing space, due to personalization, is actually closing people in and cutting them off. If we are not educated or if we do not educate our students to break out of the bubble, we will forever be inundated with a personalized lens of the world. We will have a lack of diversity, opinion, information, and talent. I view our own personal “filter bubble” as stated by Eli Pariser, as something that is kind of holding me hostage, or as he said, keeping us in a “web of one”.
This is directly opposed to what, as a teacher, I want my students to have access to. I want them to be challenged, stimulated and required to think through opposing views and ideas. It is crucial that I have a good understanding of how to teach students to be critical of the web and the information that is being pushed in their direction. This is even more of a serious issue, considering that most people/students search online specifically for information- not storytelling. I found another really informative article on the ASCD.org website called Making Sense of Online Text. It has some really good stuff to help students evaluate websites.
I have to do some more reading, but I also found this Critical Web Reader that looked like it might be a useful resource in helping students evaluate websites for credibility and accuracy. It was insightful to read about how polishing these skills not only helps students produce more authentic and relevant works, but it promotes critical thinking. I thought that the description of the process on ASCD website was really thorough. Referring to the reading as “NONLINEAR” paints a really clear picture of what traditional reading compared to online reading.
(photo credit:https://www.emaze.com/@AFLWCWFW/Literacy-Intervention
I so love the idea of total integration. Focusing on one topic and bringing in all the different aspects of education, language arts, reading (digital and traditional), writing (digital or traditional), communication (in a variety of forms or forums) science, math, history, and technology is such an exciting and holistic way of teaching. In life, everything is effected by something else. We do not live or work in a bubble that only deals with science, or art for example. We are required to possess a tremendous amount of different skills that we call on simultaneously. Our assessments should reflect this. Preparing a student to take a standardized test is not effective in real life situations. I liked TeacherVision.com’s definition of an authentic assessment:
“Authentic assessment aims to evaluate students' abilities in 'real-world' contexts. In other words, students learn how to apply their skills to authentic tasks and projects. Authentic assessment does not encourage rote learning and passive test-taking. Instead, it focuses on students' analytical skills; ability to integrate what they learn; creativity; ability to work collaboratively; and written and oral expression skills. It values the learning process as much as the finished product”
I think that by using authentic assessments, students will get a lot more than a letter grade. I think that it would help students realize that they can accomplish real world issues based on the knowledge they are learning in school. It makes learning more important and gives the students more confidence to accomplish real life task. On the other hand, if a student isn't doing well with an authentic assessment, it helps them realize what they need to work on. It is a little more of a wakeup call for students when they are unable to successfully complete real life problems, rather that a multiple choice standard test. I also think that giving the students an opportunity to correct and further understand issues in their assessments is a huge part of learning that teachers miss out on. I know, personally, it isn't until I see my mistake, have it explained and can fix it, am i really confident and ready to proceed in learning. To just move on and start piling more information onto a foundation that has holes in it is just nonsensical.