Today’s learners are digital learners. These learners are accustomed to technology because they use it all the time whether it is a cell phone, computer, television, gaming system, or some other form of technology. Due to this familiarity, which is on the verge of dependency, today’s learners learn better using, to the point of need, technology in school lessons (mwesch, 2007). Unfortunately, many teachers are very far behind with implementing technology into lessons on a regular basis. 63% of teachers never allow their students to create something new using technology (bjnesbitt, 2007). In a world where students’ lives revolve around technology, this is unacceptable. Teachers can use these tools to enhance and expand upon students’ prior knowledge so that the tools can be used in an educational rich environment in any field.
Students want to collaborate. They want to be taught to think and to create. They need to be able to know how to find, analyze, critic, summarize, and share information (KnowclueKidd, 2009). Web 2.0 tools allow this to happen. These tools allow people to share and collaborate on opinions, photos, the playing of complex games, informational and how-to videos, sounds, creating radio and television shows, and presentations (NikPeachey, 2008). There also Web 2.0 tools designed for teachers. There are sites that work on developing vocabulary, sites that foster peer-teaching, sites that allow teachers to teach from their home in a studio capacity, sites that can create online classrooms, and even sites that can help make textbooks interactive (NikPeachey). There is an amazing amount of sites and tools available and waiting to be utilized. The task is now for the teacher to go out and use them.
Today’s students are charged with facing and solving tomorrow’s problems. Those same student’s do not feel that sitting in a room and taking a multiple choice test will prepare them for their task ahead. Some feel that the answers will involve technology, but, oftentimes, students do not use technology in class (mwesch, 2007). Technology is not going away. The point of school, above all, is to prepare students for the world. In order to prepare students for today’s technologically rich world, teachers must use technology in the classroom. Web 2.0 tools can help.
References
Bjnesbitt. (2007, November 28). A vision of K-12 students today [Video File]. Video posted to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_A-ZVCjfWf8
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