Open High School

Wow! This is next generation learning at its best! I was very impressed with the model. The students get individualized instruction that can be customized just for them. The teachers are more like facilitators which is so much more engaging than the traditional models. Students learn to investigate and build critical  thinking skills which is a huge void  in today's traditional educational models.

We have to find ways to expand the minds of students and the Open High School is doing just that. I don't know about you, but I saw students that looked so engaged and excited about learning. The flexibility and the use of innovative technology is ideal for this generation. Kudos to the forward thinking administrators in Utah that are preparing students for the 21st century.

I am sure that this might not work for every learner or every teacher but it should definitely be an option. I do wonder why there are so few open high schools in the U.S. This model seems to be very successful so why can't this be replicated. Hopefully, as we work to revamp the current education system we can use this model as a benchmark.

Wikipedia Page Attacked

As we learned in Chapter 3 of our textbook, Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia, is the most famous wiki out there and was created by users around the world. It's a great place to start the research process. Apparently, users aren't only using it for research they are also using it to express their strong feelings of anger and dislike.

After the winner of the Best New Artist award was given to Esperanza Spalding at the Grammys, Justin Bieber fans attacked Esperanza's wikipedia page. They were adding statements like, "Who the heck are you anyway? and "Justin Bieber deserved it go die in hole."  They even changed her middle name and altered her biography. I thought it was interesting that they chose Wikipedia to voice their negative opinions but then again why not, it's so easy to do. Users can add, remove, edit or change information quite freely and sometimes without even registering.

The lesson learned for me was that even though Wikipedia can be a valuable place to start research and a great tool for collaboration in the classroom, I need to always question its reliability. How can you trust the information when anyone has access to change it. It's actually quite scary.

Boomers, Gen-Xers, & Millennials - The New Students

The article, "Boomers, Gen-Xers, & Millennials - Understanding The New Students,"  that was posted by Dr. Mosley completely echoes the discussion topics that are always present within the Adult education program. How do you cater to the needs of all students? This article not only discussed the generational differences and their unique needs, it also talked quite a bit about technology and the millennials which I found quite interesting. I never really thought about the fact that those born in or after 1982 don't view a computer or the internet as technology, it's an assumed part of life. They have never known life without it. They also consider themselves to be more Internet-savvy than their teachers and find the teachers use of technology "uninspiring." As educators, we are really going to have to do a better job of incorporating all types of technology in the classrooms to keep our students motivated and eager to learn. Of course this will require us to step out of our comfort zone and be open to learning new ways to use technology. It will also require us to question the status quo and be willing to confront administrators when the technology is lagging behind at our schools. We have to appeal to the information-age mindset and we can't do that by doing what we have always done, that simply doesn't work for this age group. I am ready for the challenge and I hope you are ready to jump on board with me.