Case Study: This Suit’s For Wearing
Question: “What do you think it means to be a ‘quality educator’?”
The answer to the question “What do you think it means to be a ‘quality educator’?” is subjective, of course. In this case study it is stated that Mr. Dyer is considered to be a quality educator by his superiors due to his ability to maintain high educational standards. In order to achieve this goal Mr. Dyer uses assessment tools he can apply universally to all students. When reading this in the case study I could not help but to disagree with this measurement of quality. I do not mean to imply that teachers should not hold their students to high educational expectations, because I think they should. But, educators should not hold all students to a single standard. Instead, I think quality educators are those who strive to help students achieve their individual academic and personal potential, the fulfilment of which cannot be done solely in the space of a classroom or in the time period of a school year. Nevertheless, a quality educator uses this time and space to help students understand how they can experience positive personal growth at school and in life outside of it. In doing so, teachers must get to know all of their students as best as possible so they can tailor individualized educational expectations for each of their students in a way that adheres to the curriculum and promotes learning. This practice prevents diverse groups of students from being held to the same standard thus increasing individuals’ chances at academic success which, as a result, will give them the skills and confidence to progress in their overall personal growth; those who do this are, in my opinion, quality educators.
Case Study: The Future is Now
Question: “In this case, Ricardo seems to be experiencing what sociologists call ‘sociological ambivalence.’ On one hand, he wants to be a team player, but on the other, his professional judgement keeps him from joining his colleagues in embracing technology uncritically. How might teachers manage the tensions associated with these kinds of conflicting role expectations?”
The way in which a teacher manages the tension Ricardo is feeling will differ depending on the individual. I do not believe teachers need to strive to incorporate technology into every lesson or aspect of instruction, but I think it should still be used when it will truly enrich instruction. Technology can do this by allowing students to easily access information that would otherwise be beyond reach from the classroom. It can also help the teacher become more efficient and, as a result, allow them to capitalize on the limited amount of instructional time they have in a day. For example, it was mentioned in the case study that Ricardo simply sees smartboards as the newest way to deliver a powerpoint presentation. This is true, but even for the teachers who are not tech savvy, smartboards are an easy to use tool on which information can be pre-loaded before class then quickly accessed when it is needed during instruction. Using technology in this way is not fully embracing it; but rather, it is simply the utilization of tools at ones disposal for the purpose of being a more efficient educator. When doing this a teacher should remain critical and continue to ask questions to themselves regarding whether their use of technology in the classroom is actually helping. To me it seems that in the case study Ricardo is doing less critical inquiry into how technology can aid his practice than he is being cynical or paranoid about the direction his school is heading in. On that note, I do want to side with Ricardo on the issue of the biometric scanners in the cafeteria. I understand the purpose behind the aim to deter students from bringing money to school, but I also feel that money is the unlikely motive behind most instances of bullying. It is less likely to hear of students shaking each other down for their lunch money than it is to hear of bullying on the basis of social status, race and ethnicity, and other factors. Therefore, to me it seems the main benefit of the thumbprint system mentioned in the case study is the shorter wait times at the cafeteria which is a small gain for the cost of students’ privacy and the price installing the equipment to run such a system. Ricardo and teachers like him in a similar situation do not have to take overtly defiant stances against technology, yet I feel it is necessary and appropriate for them to raise their concerns to administration in effort to provide constructive criticism. To sum that up in one sentence, I argue that in order to manage tensions similar to those Ricardo is facing, teachers can find a way to use technology that best suits and aids their practice while also being active in airing their concerns about technology.
Case Study: Brave New World
Question: “How do you think social media will affect students’ understanding of historical events? Explain.”
Major social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter can have various effects on students’ understanding of historical events. Beginning with the positives, I believe social media can bring students’ attention to events as they happen. That is, before events become a thing of the past and, thus, “historical”. In fact, the way social media is spreading awareness of the fires in Australia is a perfect demonstration of how social media influences understandings of events before they become historical. For many, social media is likely the primary, if not the only source of information regarding these fires and as people scroll through networking sites they are shown images, videos, and news about this catastrophe. This is important because it plants a seed of awareness in users’ minds and some might choose to nurture that seed, per se, and learn more of this event through different, more informative avenues.
However, many other users simply scroll on and let the flood of other content they are rapidly observing wash away the information previously taken in. This fact is largely due in part to the the quick, unorganized, and chaotic nature of major social media platforms; their nature is also what makes them a bad place to build a genuine understanding of events, both current and historical. When someone sees a bite of information regarding a historical event on social media there is often zero context supporting it, meaning it is very difficult to construct an informed understanding of the event on that information alone. Unfortunately, more often then not this lack of context is not realized and information is packed up with personal opinion and misconceptions then reshared in an instant. This occurs at a staggering rate with thousands, or sometimes millions of people engaging in this process in a small period of time. Consequently, even students with good critical thinking skills can struggle to sift through information regarding historical events on social media. Therefore, generally speaking, social media negatively affects students’ understandings of events.