The New Wave of Education

Education is currently evolving everyday.  There are new exciting ways to educate our children.  With the modern technology in today's society it is not good to continue with the conventional way of education.  So now what's new?  What can we gain from this new exciting techno world?  We have facebook, blogs, RSS, iPhone, Twitter, (Mason, 2011) and many more media avenues as in Figure 1.  Now we ask how we can incorporate this explosion into educating our children?  Many businesses today utilize the web for many of their day to day activities: virtual meetings, chat rooms, job announcements, networking, and public responses.  Teachers now have to be creative in their teaching and learning skills.   



Fig1. On-line media.

 I can remember sitting in a classroom where the teacher just lectured all day.  I was uninterested in the topic as well as feeling very sluggish and weary.  Can you imagine sitting in a classroom for 2 hours reading and listening to lectures?  Well this is what many students do on a daily basis.  In order to keep up with the demands of this competitive society, students have to be skillful in the modern technology.  Educators and Instructional Designers have to teach using social media sites as guides for learning new material. Our students need to be aware of what is on the web and what our organizations are using.  Most students are technology savvy anyway, but there is still a need to instruct students in areas where the demand is not visible.  Students have to be aware of all of the different learning tools available for them.  Instructional Designers need to be aware of learning theories "a source of verified instructional strategies, tactics, and techniques" (Ertmer & Newby, 1993 p. 51), in order to effectively teach.

In this blog there will be links to other blogs where technology is the focus on learning.  You will explore how Internet sites make a difference in a child's learning.  These skills are essential for students to succeed in the workplace and more corporations use digital collaboration on a daily basis (Ferriter, 2009, p. 37).  You will also look at how more instructors are using unconventional ways of educating our children.  Please leave feedback on your intake of technology in the classroom and how you think education should be moving forward.

References

Ertmer, P. & Newby, T. (1993). Behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism: comparing critical features from an instructional design perspective. Performance Improvement Quarterly, 6(4), 50-71. Retrieved from http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/courses/72033/CRS-CW-5693692/6115%20Readings/Wk1_Ertmer-Newby-beh-cog-const.pdf 

Ferriter, B. (2009). Learning with blogs and wikis. Educational Leadership, 66(5), 34-38. Retrieved from  http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/ehost/detail?vid=3&hid=8&sid=0b697fe4-1fdb-4dff-b415-744151c59833%40sessionmgr15&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#db=a9h&AN=37007618              

Mason, K. (Photographer). (2011). What is social media marketer assistance. [Print Photo]. Retrieved from http://residualincomepsychiatrist.com/2011/09/04/social-media-marketer-assistance/