What I have been learning this past week...

     I reviewed the discussion of, "Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants," by Marc Prensky that I found interesting. Prensky goes on to discuss the obstacle that teachers now are having with their students. The students of this generation are more exposed to technology than the teachers, which makes them the "Natives" to technology. Teachers are the Immigrants because they are entering the new generation of technology with little knowledge on how to cope with it in the classroom. The difference in knowledge causes many problems in the teacher's methods used in the classroom. Prensky mentions that there the teachers and students speak a different "language" because of the difference in skills. The teachers are more adapt to taking the lesson slow and using step-by-step examples. While on the other hand, the students are used to fast pace instruction as a result of high speed technology.The teachers are not fond of the idea of changing their methods to conform to the changing society. It is a big step to take, but it is one that is necessary. Teachers are scared to learn new methods and replace what they have relied on for so long. I was the same way in the beginning of my EDU 315 class, but I am slowly realizing the benefits that technology can bring to the student's academic accomplishments. I do not want to stand in the way of the student's learning processes by being afraid to incorporate new technology into the classroom. Prensky does an excellent job in displaying the gap between teachers and students, and what needs to happen in the classroom to lessen that gap. 
     I have finally begun to really feel comfortable with Blogger and the some other websites. Technology can be pretty scary at first, but once I began to familiarize myself with the tools, I felt more at ease. The websites that I have just begun to play with are the Storybird and Little Bird Tales. I think that these two websites are a great way to let the students open up their imagination. The Storybird website I liked the best because I could look at the pictures and make them mean whatever I wanted. The Little Bird Tales has an interesting feature of the option to add narration. I think that this feature would help the students with their reading skills in the classroom. Some students may get nervous talking out loud in class, but with this website they could present their story to the class without feeling anxiety. Students are also able to work on their writing skills with both websites. I think that by implementing these kinds of websites into the classroom, the students can improve their reading and writing skills in a new and interesting way.