The article below describes reasons as to why technology can be used as a tool for learning....not education....LEARNING!!! It states that people are often taught, and at the end of it they might know things without actually understanding them. We are taught to remember and know things, but we might not fully understand why that is the case. So an experiment in learning with using technology was done. Boxes of tablets were delivered to an Ethiopian village. No instructions were given, just boxes lying around. The children, within minutes, had figured out how to open the boxes, turn on the tablets, and start playing around with them. Within months, these children had learned their ABCs. So with that knowledge, can these children with the gift of technology teach themselves how to read and write?
"If they can learn to read, then they can read to learn."
The article goes on to elaborate that we need to engage children in learning rather than talk at them. They will not learn this way. So now research is being done alongside professional video game companies such as EA to hopefully better understand the influence of "play" in learning.
I personally loved this article. This is mainly because I have always had the mentality of play being the most important aspect of a person's social learning process. Not only do we have fun while we play, but we learn behavioral skills, become aware of and adapt to our surroundings, learn about how to interact with various objects and organisms, and really connect with the world around us. What better lessons can you get from just reading a book or being lectured at? We need to make learning more engaging and interactive for students. Technology can be a tool for this, but mainly the teachers are who need to take the tools at their fingertips and implement them in their classrooms in a way that will inspire the students to actually want to learn. I was very impressed to hear that pro video game companies are starting to see the value (even if it is monetary) in doing research to produce games that offer educational inspiration to our kids.
What type of game do you think might be educational? Is any game that a kid picks up educational in some way?
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/educating-players-are-games-the-future-of-education/
As many of us know, there is a large difference between learning and memorizing. Students of all ages memorize when the information is crucial to know for upcoming assignments and or tests, but after all is said and done most of it isn’t retained due to lack of interest in the subject. Information is retained and knowledge is gained as a result of learning. The experiment with the children in Ethiopia is great because is illustrates their curiosity and desire to learn and tinker. As individuals when something sparks our interest, our desire and motivation to learn and work towards the discovery of knowledge is heightened. Children from an Ethiopian village aren’t used such an abundance of technology, thus it’s a luxury that sparks curiosity. But the new generation of children in the US have grown up with technology as it’s a part of their culture. So could two very different cultures have a similar experiment results, or would they be completely different? The impact that books once had on a child’s imagination, curiosity, and desire to learn is dimming. Technology has captured the attention of our youth in the US. As teachers it’s good to blend technology into everyday learning as it mixes traditional teaching with technology thus enhancing child interests and hopefully engages learning not memorizing.
ReplyDeleteOn A side note, I agree with you that using games as a source for learning in general is a great idea, just like my post on the escape room.
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