Unlearning Curve

After reading Will's blog, I realized just how much the education field must be changed.

The first thing that needs to be unlearned that I found interesting is "We need to unlearn the premise that we know more than our kids, because in many cases, they can now be our teachers as well." This connects with Warlick's statement " This is a realization that we should impart to our students because they will all become teachers, and for that they will need powerful communication skills"(Warlick 64). These quotations illustrate that everyone can be a teacher and a student. Many children and teenagers know more about technology and communication than teachers. As educators, we must provide students with the opportunity to experiment with technology, so they can teach others.

Another thing that educators should unlearn is " that we are the sole content experts in the classroom, because we can now connect our kids to people who know far more than we do about the material we’re teaching." In Warlick's book, he suggests that students to play around with computers because it is [their] only advantage over [educators]"(Warlick 62). Teacher must learn to use students as a resource. We can do that by letting students suggest technologically oriented assignments that are authentic to them. As teachers we must realize that students can be a great source when it comes to technology. It also takes pressure off teachers and allows students to have ownership in the classroom.

The third unlearning strategy that I agreed with is "We need to unlearn the idea that every student needs to learn the same content when really what they need is how to self direct their own learning." This quotation goes back to Warlick's question "What should students be learning?" If we want students to love learning and education, we must make the learning experience authentic. When we allow our students to communicate with others and use the technology that will have meaning in their lives, we are helping them be more marketable to the global community. Every student may not love English, but if we can incorporate a blog or other form of technology that engages them, we can use that as a medium to produce life-long learners.