Rules of Engagement

My goal: To engage students in active learning....I have used this verbiage in papers for other education courses at NDNU. What does it mean? Engage means to occupy the attention or efforts of a person or persons. As a teacher, I will not want to stand up in front of a classroom and just lecture. How bored my students, as well as I, will become with a subject that I feel needs to be introduced in an interesting and innovative way. I am not saying that lecture does not hold its place in a classroom, but I do feel there needs to be a balance of delivering the curriculum. I need to tap into the intellectual energy of my student's minds and keep them focused on the task at hand - learning math. This will be my primary role as a math educator. Watching the video clips made me smile as I nodded my head in agreement knowing full well what lies ahead for me as a teacher and pondering the how's: How will I reach all students successfully? How will they learn by incorporating multi-media and technology without getting lost? How will I keep track of all of the student's attention and not fall victim to have students "Facebook" or "Chat" during classtime? How will I have the time to learn all of the technological tools out there at my disposal?

As I watched the opening moments of the "Students Today" YouTube video, I vividly remembered sitting in one of those types of lecture halls at UC Davis with 500 other students and the professor never knowing my name. My daughter goes to Woodside High School and is consumed with Facebook, texting, cyberspace and online music. I am trying to be open minded to the situation that students and young people face today in the technological world all around them. So many things vying for their attention and with only 24 hours in a day, how will they navigate through it all?

Marshall McLuhan is quoted in this same video stating that a child was bewildered entering a 19th century educational environment. That quote is over 40 years old and still holds true even today. Think of the students in large college lecture halls, in elementary and middle schools as well as high schools, who sit in rows of desks or seats, all facing the front white board, listening to a teacher or professor drone on and on while they sit at their desks or tables furiously taking notes. Technology can help us with all of this, but we need to use it correctly. My son was recently in a couple of classes where teachers replaced their traditional teaching by giving the students projects using the computer 100% of the time they were in class. One teacher thought he was using technology correctly, as he felt was the mandate of the school district's strategic goals; while the other teacher had students write their English prose on a computer, with the students never touching pen or pencil to paper. Technology by itself cannot replace traditional teaching but will and can enhance it. Technology should be used efficiently and effectively so that students can feel that what they are learning has meaning in their life. It is our job to show the value of what they are learning and how it can be used by students later on in their lives. It is our job as teachers to be interested in what we are teaching for the sake of our students and their future. We must feel passionate about teaching, and use all of the tools at our fingertips to keep our students interested - that is our job. These are my rules of engagement.