Blog 2

Nada Sakr
ID 260192100
January 16th, 2008

2. Do carpenters learn from their hammers, saws, levels, and other tools? Can they learn anything about them without using them? Do they learn about carpentry with their tools?

Carpenters learn theory then put into practice. They apply the theory. Just like when technology is used, students apply what they have learned onto the computer; “students may externalize their internal mental models using a variety of computer based mind tools” (Jonassen et al 1999, p. 83). The tools that the carpenter uses facilitate the learning and the meaning making processes (Jonassen et al 1999, p. 83).

4. Recall the first time that you had to teach a new topic or skill. How well did you know the topic before you taught it? Did you know it better after you taught it? Should learners become teachers without using technology? Recall that we have argued that learners should be teaching the technology.

It is very important that a teacher knows what she will teach the students, therefore before teaching a topic; I make sure I know the topic to the best of my abilities. However, after teaching a specific lesson to my students, I gain a different perspective on the topic because of my student’s insight. Technology should not be teaching the students but the other way around as Jonassen et al states. Learners should use technology to become teachers. It should, however, be used the right way; in a way which would facilitate the learning process. Computer models helps learners construct better mental models. Therefore, after using technology, the learner has a better insight on the topic at hand and technology used will help the students retain the lesson (Jonassen et al 1999).

14. We argue in the conclusion that Mindtools represent intellectual toolbox that can help students learn. We do not believe that these are the only kinds of intellectual tools that students should have. What other nontechnological intellectual tool should students have or develop to help them learn?

Nontechnological tools that can be used to help students in their learning are hands-on activities that will help them retain more information. For example, in mathematics, students can use base 10 blocks, cusonary rods, etc; these nontechnological tools will serve as visual aids and they will also help retain the arithmetic. Also, interacting with their classmates is an intellectual advantage to the class as a whole. Children as well as adults learn from other people’s insight. Therefore this can be used as another nontechnological toll for learning. After all “the more ways the learners can represent their conceptual understanding, the better they will understand” (Jonassen et al 1999, p. 83).


Week 2: Reflection on lecture, course pack, and textbook

Graphic organiser/ Modeling with technologies

Graphic organizers and especially Inspiration are new to me. I have used word to graph and organize information, however I find that Inspiration is definitely much simpler and as said in the course pack, it is very user friendly (Anderson-Inman & Ditson 1999 p.20) .
I agree with the course pack when they say that concept mapping facilitates learning and teaching. Also ``concept mapping by teachers help students understand, whereas concept mapping by students help teachers understand what is being learned`` They see misconceptions and correct them (Anderson-Inman & Ditson 1999 p.18) . It is a great tool to use in the classroom because by brainstorming or revising a concept, the students and teacher can easily see the knowledge that the students have of a specific concept.
Also, compared to hand written mapping, technological mapping can be easily expanded, modified, and they are much clearer (Anderson-Inman & Ditson 1999 p.20). We witnessed that in the classroom when we were changing computers and adding information to other students’ work. We were able to easily modify and add things, and we didn’t have to erase any of the other people’s work.
I completely agree with the argument in the textbook that ``using the technology to teach students does not exploit the capabilities of the technologies or the students`` (Jonassen et al 1999 p. 82). Therefore technology should be used as a complementary source, and not eliminate the job of a professional teacher. I would use these programs in my classroom for brainstorming, revision and the way we used it in class this week.
Students learn in different ways and need different tools to help them remember what they have learned. I remember having to memorize pages and pages of notes for my high school history exams. As soon as I finished my exam, I completely forgot what I had learned. However as stated in Jonassen et al 1999 `` building models of that content will help students better comprehend and remember what they are learning``.