Edutopia - August/September 2008 - (Page 7)

Feedback “Teachers are interested in using games in the classroom, but they are hesitant to do so without guidance.” DISTRACTIONS 2.0 WHAT WORKS IN PUBLIC EDUCATION ONLINE EXCLUSIVES Readers’ Survey Results Are In! Put Our Videos On Your Site Free H^d]V <X]Sb 5Pbc edutopia.org Jazz Up Your Lessons With A Wii All The Right Moves: The New Phys Ed Garrison Keillor Gets Poetic Put The Heat On Cheaters Join Us! Becom An Edu e to Membepia r edut opia.org + Yes, students are bored. Yes, they have always been bored. No, it’s not different. There have always been distractions; today it’s called “technology.” In my day, it was called “dinosaur attacking the village.” Part of school’s mandate is to teach students skills that they don’t already have, such as focus and self-discipline. And, yes, we old folk do try to engage students. I teach chemistry. We do labs and demos and work with models. Low tech stuff, admittedly. I’m open to suggestion. Every year, we evaluate our program and try new things. Rather than castigate us old folk, lead by example; give us some ideas that work. Tim Ridgway via online forum Education (NASPE) would like to thank The George Lucas Educational Foundation for shining light on today’s physical education programs (“All the Right Moves,” June/July 2008). You did an excellent job of capturing the development of knowledge, skills, and teamwork taking place in today’s physical education class. The NASPE has tremendous resource materials. Paula Keyes Kun Reston, Virginia GOOD IN CLASS I’ve taught special education and general education K–12. I have a doctorate in curriculum and instruction and am a part-time adjunct professor at three Oregon universities. Your e-newsletter is exceptional! I use it in all my classes. I recently received an email from a former student who thanked me for sharing the Edutopia.org Web site with her class. It’s a great blend of cutting-edge multimedia and text-based resources. I teach a research class, and a group researching effective sex-education practices was intrigued with the Midwest Teen Sex Show (”Serious Fun,” April/May 2008). Doug Herman Eugene, Oregon How tech-obsessed iKids want to improve our schools 4(% '%/2'% ,5#!3 %$5#!4)/.!, &/5.$!4)/. s *5.%*5,9 s CX\Tb WII BIT OF EXCITEMENT I was excited when I picked up the June/July 2008 edition of Edutopia and read Laila Weir’s “Wii Love Learning.” Ecstasy! I’m almost positive my heart skipped a beat. As both an educator and researcher, I’ve been living and breathing the educational use of video games for some time now. Just a week prior to reading this article I had completed a study for my doctorate on the use of the Nintendo Wii with a group of third- and fourth-grade classrooms. Weir’s article sparked a ⇒re within me. My research, like the cited statistics, suggests that teachers are interested in using games in the classroom but that they are hesitant to do so without guidance. As a remedy, I developed a curriculum (see EduTechGirl.com) to work with the MySims Wii game as an aid in reviewing geometry concepts. Dawn Hawkins Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Bravo, Marc Prensky (“Young Minds, Fast Times,” June/July 2008), for insisting on bringing student voices into the conversation about education. So many proffered solutions to the problems of education ignore the fundamental truth that learning requires student assent. Top-down, coercive solutions may encourage conformity, but they will not improve schools, or students’ experiences in them. Andy Hoffman Boston, Massachusetts STRONG VOICES I enjoyed reading the most recent issue of Edutopia (June/July 2008), especially the views re⇓ected by the quoted students. I hope each teacher, each staff member, and each student in our country feels he or she has a strong voice in shaping education. As we cannot forget to teach our students, we must also ⇒nd ways to help teachers learn as well by allowing and supporting staff members to take risks with technology. However, the power of a great teacher does not rest solely on technology. A great teacher will ⇒nd multiple areas of student interests to tap! Kris Maleske Mattoon, Illinois “Young Minds, Fast Times” was excellent! As a new administrator, I am looking for articles to stimulate such collaborative discussions. This will be the ⇒rst one I use in informal morning chats with my staff. I love the quote about teachers continuing to use lectures and worksheets as “justi⇒cation for the failure of those teachers to change how they teach.” I have been saying this for years. Thanks for this great offering. Judy Munsey via online forum ALL THE RIGHT MOVES On behalf of physical education teachers around the country, the National Association for Sport and Physical FEEDBACK is a vital part of the conversation. Comment on articles at Edutopia.org or write to letters@edutopia.org or Edutopia, P Box 3494, San Rafael, CA .O. 94912. Please include your name and contact information. EDUTOPIA.ORG EDUTOPIA 7 http://Edutopia.org http://edutopia.org http://EduTechGirl.com http://Edutopia.org http://EDUTOPIA.ORG

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Edutopia - August/September 2008

Edutopia Contents Up Front Feedback Dispatches Sage Advice Ask Ellen Head of Class Cool Schools Design: Building on Disaster What's Next Full-Service Schools In the Trenches Moral Aptitude Serious Gaming Behaveyourself.com Media Is the Message The Way of the Wiki A Match Made in Cyberspace Hail to the New Chief Rise of the Robots Disrupting Class As Others See Us Heart & Soul Pop Quiz: Moby

Edutopia - August/September 2008

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