Module 1

Course Introduction (January 4-10, 2016)

Course Objectives:

1. Model and promote strategies for achieving equitable access to digital tools and resources and technology-related best practices for all students and teachers (ISTE 5a)

Module Objectives: 

1. Using evidence, reflect upon the ways in which modern students have changed or remained the same.
2. Engage in a discussion surrounding if/how modern students have or have not changed.  

Welcome to Current Issues in Educational Technology!  This week, I would like you to complete the following:

1) Read the course syllabus carefully.  It can be found on Blackboard.  If you have a question, please post it as a comment to this page.

2) If you don't have a Google account, sign up for one.  If you have gmail, then you already have a Google account.

3) Once you have a Google account, go to Blogger and create a blog.  You will use this blog for course assignments.  If you are unfamiliar with how to create a blog, start with Blogger's Getting Started Guide. When you have created your blog, please send me an email with the URL of the blog. I will create a blogroll on the course blog so that you may easily access one another's blogs for future assignments.  This will create a blogging community and will be the primary way we complete assignments and interact for this course.

4) Once you have started your course blog, create an about page (Note: This is not a post, it is a page!  It is also not the same as a profile.).  Introduce yourself and add a picture.  Or, you can create a video introduction (in which case you do not need to write an introduction or add a picture).  Blogger's Getting Started Guide is helpful for this task as well!

5) Finally, your first academic assignment: You will be reading one article and one blog post.  Before you read either one, I want you to write down an answer to this question: Are students today fundamentally different than students in the past?  Once you have written a well thought out response to that question, I then want you to read Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants by Marc Prensky.  Always, always, always, take notes as you read!  I suggest diigo as an excellent way to take notes on things you read online. (Although you may just type notes or take hand written notes.  These are for your benefit only and will not be turned in.  Our course has a diigo group under Helpful Resources on the top right of this page.  Feel free to join.)  You will be writing a reflective post when you are finished reading.  Then, read this blog post written in response to the Prensky article.  Take notes here as well.  When you are finished, create your first blog post, which will be your reflective post #1 (see syllabus, and please title it as such).  In this blog post, share how you originally answered the question, Are students today fundamentally different than students in the past?  Then, either support or revise that statement using evidence from the readings.

6) To earn all of your points for activity #1 (see syllabus), you must then visit the blogs of at least one other class member and engage in a discussion in response to their post.  Ask a clarifying question, ask your classmate to go into more depth, or respectfully disagree with their opinion of the question and the articles.  Dialogue back and forth until you feel that the conversation has come to a close.  *Please note that this requires that you not wait to post your reflective post until Sunday.  Please post your response by Wednesday of this week to give others a chance to discuss.  Then, check your blog and the blog you decided to dialogue with often until Sunday so that you have the chance to engage in thoughtful discussions.