C4T #1

C4T #1

Jeff Utecht opens his blog post, You Can't Drive Using Your Rearview Mirror, by sharing what he learned while driving in Saudi Arabia; Look where you're going and don't watch what's going on behind you. He describes how reflecting or "looking behind you" is a great way to learn but if you don't look forward you're going to run into some problems eventually. He ends the post by applying this analogy to education: "We cannot drive education forward by looking in our rearview mirror all the time at what used to work, what used to be good, and what we used to teach. Driving through your rearview mirror is never a good idea."

I commented on Mr. Utecht's blog stating that I enjoyed his way of reflecting, taking the past and the future into consideration. His message is one that is frequently repeated in EDM 310. Teacher can no longer rely on what worked in the past. We must turn our eyes to the future and focus on the new possiblities for education.

C4T #2

The second blog post I commented on by Jeff Utecht was What Does it Mean To Disconnect? In his post, Mr. Utecht ponders what it means to disconnect and provides what he believes is the answer. His answer is not that we need to disconnect or limit our use of technology, it is that we should evaluate how we're using technology: Are you a user or creator? Furthermore, he asks readers to think about the amount of time students today are given to create and problem solve compared to the time they consume. "what if we created....creators? He urges readers to think about the their time spend with technology and if they're spending it wisely.

Again, his message is one that keeps popping up in EDM 310. How can we turn away from old methods of teaching a use technology to positively effect a student's education? My comment stated my initial definition of disconnecting as physically turning off technology and spending time to clear my head. However, I also wrote that while being a college student and taking classes like EDM310 it's almost impossible to truly disconnect from technology. I agreed that society should adopt Mr. Utecht's view of "creating" and contributing to society with the help of technology, not just consuming it. I truely believe that every student currently taking EDM 310 should read, not only What Does it Mean To Disconnect? , but also the comments left by other readers.