Blog Post #2

Did You Know? 3.0

       This was an absolutely astounding video. This blew my my and made me feel left behind in the technology world. I could not believe that China and India were so far ahead of us and that even though we are one of the largest nations land wise, we are still not one of the most populated countries. It worries me that we are being out done by other countries and that more war is still in our future.
       Although this is not what I would have like to have heard, I am glad to know and hope that more Americans see this video and want to change this with me. The U.S. use to be one of the leading nations and now I come to find out that we are # 19 in how much internet and technology we have nation wide. This makes me as a student of South Alabama wonder what schools could do more to keep their students as current as possible to teach the future of this country the most current and up to date information.

Mr. Winkle Wakes  

        This was a very interesting video. I did not get the point of it at first and was ready to just lay into this Mathew Needleman, but as the video went on it began to make sense and I completely agree with Mr. Needleman.

     I do not know how teachers and principals can send students out in to the world and expect them to do well in a job or excel at college, if they do not give them the tools they need to succeed. I know from personal experience that I would have done a lot better in college if I had been offered the computer and technology classes that now keep me up at night trying to figure out. I had one computer class in high school and it was nothing like what I needed to learn to be a college student. These are life skills and to deny them to us is wrong and setting us up for failure.

The Importance of Creativity

     I loved this video and could not have said what he said any better. The arts are important and the way our education system is set up now, we will continue to fall behind as a nation if we do not give our kids the opportunity to flourish and and express themselves. I know that there have been so many talented people who over the years have been mocked and told they would fail if they did not do what they were told, and give up on their foolish fantasies of being a dancer, a painter, or a musician. These are the people who design our buildings, our bridges, and everything that brings us joy and culture.
     If we do not give young minds a chance to find their way, then all we have done is created a bunch of mindless robots who all know the same things and have no individuality. Creativity is the reason students do not just walk out of schools and give up. If the teachers and school faculty would give students who are artistic a chance to express themselves instead of just sending home notes they were bad or have ADHA, then maybe we could recognize these talents early on and give them what they need to be successful and not tear them down for not fitting in to the mold society has deemed normal and acceptable.

Harness Your Students Digital Smarts

     I think what Vicki Davis is doing with these kids is amazing. These are life skills and what she is teaching them now will in this day and age, help them for the rest of their lives. We are living in a technology based world and this not only teaching them how to use all different kinds of software and websites but  this program is also giving a different way to learn. I think we are so set in the old ways of teaching that it is setting our students back and our generation. These classes also are giving a different way for students to learn and excel.
     It is sad that most schools only offer students one pathway of learning. It would benefit students, the business of the world, and our generation if students were allowed to have different ways of learning than sitting in a classroom and being lectured all day. It gives them a creative outlet and could possibly give us the people we need to make this world a better place for all of us.