In Retrospect

Good course, eh ?

Indeed, the course has offered a lot for me and a new perspective on the way education can be intertwined with an array of complex situations. through out this class we  picked up on a few major topics that have stuck with me through out the the entire term. our class had a lot of really interesting perspectives and i enjoyed listening to different students experiences.  The appreciation for education seems to be on the rise, but does the stigma of un apperciation exist in the united states ? do students really value education ? or are grades the only important facet ?

Ive been playing around with the idea of what schooling would be like with no grades. i believe the system would much different than the one we can witness today. Students might not be as concerned with getting the grade. The value has left education. the required works are the only element students invest themselves in. But do the grades keep students  focused on success.
This class has brought education into a new light for me by giving me a perspective that is on an international level. some powerful images continue to be played in my mind about children being prevented from schooling due to poverty. The compasion for the youth is high in our class and i know alot of student believe in a brighter future for the education systems around the world.

Next for most of us in the class, education has been developed as a way to increase a persons capabilities as well as empowerment. As a class we all realized that the model we are all used to in the united states may not be the best answer for every other country. culture is the true signature of the land. education system need to the figure this out,  but surely our class has.

Although heavy critiquing can take a toll on the spirits of a student, our class has learned that change be positive.  the common saying “you dont know until you go” applies in all aspects of implementing education policies. the final note i have taken away from this class is that at least our communities are making step towards progress and equity.  Education for all is a theme that many in the world would support. many would believe in the thought of education for all, but now is the time to participate through action.

Traditional or Technological?

With technology rapidly advancing, the ways in which our people communicate changes as well.  Technology has been continuously evolving but educators and students are at a stand still about the ways in which technology should be interrogated education.
In the “education for all blog” a blog caught my interest that was addressing how high poverty stricken countries should utilize the growing technology of the growing world.  With cell phones, laptops, and projection monitors in almost every classroom of the developed countries.  As this blog entry has made clear to me, most developing countries are struggling to even get electricity in the classrooms.  Therefore, these less developed countries are in a interesting position to decide how the improving technology can be utilized.

I have been looking into the structure of schooling around the world and the complexity of education and teaching became really apparent to me. The structure of schooling has not been changed in over 100 years.  The system of all chairs facing forward, one teacher, all students sitting quietly attentively listen to the teacher lecture has become standard.  One factor that has dramatic changed the system is technology.
Access to broadband and Internet has been one of the most dramatic changes in the way students are educated, but the digital dived continues to grow.  In an era where the answer to a question is on a Google search away, students have been granted access to knowledge like never before. This blog, created by, Mary Burns, looks to address alternatives to the rapidly growing technology industry.

She ultimately suggests that connection to broadband can improve the education of student’s dramatically.  Furthermore, she found that showing direct results of improvement is extremely difficult.  Burns states, ” There is lack of research showing impact on learning, and there is still the issue of broadband connectivity, and most important, access to electricity (Burns, 2013).”  This has caused a huge struggle for teachers and students to argue for the use of technology.  The importance and relevance of technology is obvious but with out definitive signs, like test scores and standardized grading, the true benefits are overlooked.

But many places with often problematic broadband access—like India, many African countries, and Indonesia have excellent cellular networks and phone calls are extremely cheap. Across the globe, we are seeing more and more initiatives using cell phones for student learning.

Some of the largest global educational initiatives currently use feature phones as the essential component of their technology interventions. For instance, the core of Bangladesh’s  English in Action initiative involves personalized phone-based instruction in which English-language learners (both adults and students) can follow the course at their own speed. The mobile phone lessons recognize the learner’s phone number and pick up where the learner left off the next time they call in.

http://www.educationforallblog.org/education-and-technology/what-are-the-technology-options-for-low-income-countries