School 2.0

I am a very visual learner and I have always liked concept maps and diagrams. The School 2.0 Map and its underlying ideals combines both of these …I think it could use more color though…

I am not sure where, but I have definitely seen this poster before. I was struck by the solid links of communication and the ability to share information and understanding remotely. I see the potential for student explanations of demonstrations and experiments that could be posted and shared on the web or school intranet.

(On a side note, there is a wiki called wikispaces at http://school20.wikispaces.com/)

One possible draw back I see is a lack of doing things, less hands on…more eyes on. For example, on the poster map we see a teacher saying “can you IM that to the virtual whiteboard?” I wonder if we are encouraging convenience and laziness in an effort to use technology. Or rather than do the experiment/demonstration, let’s watch it performed perfectly on the big screen. In the map, some students on the playground are saying “there is a virtual frog dissection going on right now”…rather than doing the dissection in class/lab.

Another potential drawback for many teachers would be time and knowledge of technology resources. The amount of time to set up each electronic lesson would be enormous. For most teachers, it will take time just to learn about the technology as well as stay up-to-date. Certain teachers will not be able to comprehend the vast uses of the technology nor apply them appropriately. Unfortunately, most students will be ahead of most teachers.

I think if the government's Department of Education is serious about this aspect of education, it needs to invest more money in bringing this technology to low income schools as well as paying teachers to be trained to use these great resources.