1.4. What does this mean for education? This theory advocates hands on and experiential learning. This can be intimidating to some teachers who are comfortable saying rather than doing. This somewhat flies in the face of traditionalism; students aren't retaining much by rote memorization, they need to get up out of their desks and EXPERIENCE things to truly learn.
2. Connectivism
2.1. Learning is cultural, a difference of opinion, social, and a product of technology.
2.2. Very pertinent to our modern era; social networks like Facebook and Twitter are transforming how we receive and process information into what is pertinent and what is disposable. One buzzword that comes to mind is BREVITY!
2.3. http://www.connectivism.ca
2.4. What does this mean for education? This is a relatively new theory as it can only truly be appreciated when one considers how the aforementioned social networks have permeated EVERY aspect of our lives. Essentially if one were to ignore our inter-connected nature they would be left in the dust when it came to connecting with students.
3. TPACK
3.1. This is an acronym for Technological, Pedagogical, and Content Knowledge.
3.2. Each letter can be combined with any other to form different types of knowledge. For example, TC would be Technological Content knowledge.
3.3. The idea behind TPACK is that it provides a basis for all types of knowledge required to be an educator. It also allows teachers to consider how their lessons address it's various components. It can show you where your strengths and weaknesses exists in a given lesson so that you may do extra research or educate yourself.
3.4. I understand the thinking behind using such a model to check one's lesson plans but I refer back to cognitive load; I think overanalyzing is very much a possibility if one tries too hard to consider every permutation of the acronym!
4. Philosophy of Teachnology
4.1. A teacher's personal philosophy on how to use technology in their classroom.
4.2. This may range of fear and non-implementation of technology or it may be completely embracing technology (even to one's detriment).
4.3. https://twitter.com/TeachnologyNews
4.4. My personal philosophy is that it should be an INTEGRAL part of my classroom but used responsibly which means educating myself and being selective in my implementation (or not using new technology for the sake of using technology!)
5. Use Cases & Templates
5.1. Personal Todo List
5.2. Vacation Planning
5.3. Meeting Minutes
5.4. Project Plan
5.5. more...
6. Media Ecology
6.1. The idea that technology controls all aspects of life.
6.2. http://media-ecology.org
6.3. ''the medium is the message''
6.4. What does this mean for education? Regardless of whether the content is the same, the vessel or media by which it is relayed has a significant impact on how it is received. One must remain literate in technology to understand how new types of communication are used and perceived by students.
7. Cognitive Load
7.1. Your mind is a COMPUTER. It can only process so much information at once. Utilize it efficiently!
7.2. Our brains like order, as in 'chunking' http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chunking_(psychology)
7.3. What does this mean for education? Just as we are aware of preferences for learning styles (kinaesthetic, visual, auditory, etc.) we need to be aware of the clash that can occur when too many styles are implemented to accommodate everyone. This also applies to technology as the purpose of the technology might be wasted upon a mind that is over loaded trying to find out how to use it properly!
8. Social Construction of Technology
8.1. Human action shapes technology, not vice versa!
8.2. Technology CANNOT be understood without a social context.
8.3. http://www.umsl.edu/~keelr/280/soconstr.html
8.4. What does this mean for education? To me, this overwhelming amount of new technology (software, apps, etc.) needs to be put through a sieve. It's pointless for a teacher to try to become literate in all of these new items but rather to understand what is necessary as dictated by the social setting. Find out what's pertinent, what's effective, and how the youth/students are utilizing it so you can do the same. 99% of what is out there technology-wise is 'fluff', it's essentially unnecessary!
