How Much is Too Much?

I am a very conservational girl. I have been reducing, reusing and recycling since I moved out of my parent’s house and into my own, in 1976. However, I have been a huge waste-er of electricity—or so I’m told. Oh I turn lights off, inside and out, and have green star appliances but I leave everything else plugged in—ALL the time. So I ask I’m I really wasting that much energy?

Question: How much energy do my plugged in but turned off appliances use in a day? *

According to the California Energy Commission, 93% of the energy used by a small radio—like the one I have in my bathroom—is consumed during the 23 hours I have it turned off. Well we will see! Luckily I have a meter on my house, and I have looked up on Google how to read it, so here’s what I plan to do:

1. Collect data on how much electricity I use in one day with everything as it is now.

2. For one day I will unplug everything unless I am actually using it.

3. Collect power usage for each 24 hour period day at 7:00pm.

4. Using cost per Kilowatt hour from electric bill, calculate consumption in kW hrs.

*Since this is spring break and I'm hoping to get on top of this project, I am going to collect data over two days. If the numbers are insignificant—as I expect them to be—I will repeat for two-one week intervals after school begins.

Technology: Highway or Roadblock in Education?

There is a declared and spoken commitment to technology at the district and at my school but, as is so often the case—in the case of technology--the application of that commitment is elusive. I have searched the district and school web sites, wandered the building to see firsthand and talked to teachers and administrators in an attempt to ferret out the techno-culture at my new teaching home.

Fundamentally, one technology is only worth the cost if it makes life easier, better, cleaner, etc. than did the previous technology. At my new school, technology is so difficult to access that it is useless. Indeed, I use on a daily bases only that which I brought with me, and even its value is diminished by my inability to interface with the school.

I learned
• For a school that has made the huge investment of installing a very expensive technology in every room, the technology is too cumbersome to use with regularity.
• Management of technology is a dictatorship not a democracy.
• The primary commitment to technology is merely the declaration that technology is important.
• The misconception persists, that technology is an answer to a problem rather than a tool used in the solution.
• If I want to change things, I’m going to have to go outside of the school to fix it.

Sounds a little hopeless, No?

read my full report at http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dc4mjkmb_1hftmvqdr&hl=en

Article Assessment 1-Marla Sanders

Article Assessment


Marla Sanders
binamig@gmail.com

February 17, 2009

Listen to The Natives: Marc Prensky

Overview


The author, Marc Prensky, in his 2001 article “Listen to the Natives” states that, because technology is progressing at an ever increasing rate, adults can, “no longer use either our 20th century knowledge or our training as a guide to what is best for [students] educationally.” Prensky refers to modern students as digital natives because they are not mere users of technology but extensions of technology. He observes that students are so engaged by digital tools—particularly video games and cell phones—that we, as educators, are hopeless to compete for their attention at school unless we learn to include these distractions in the day-to-day academic environment. But, since we--teachers-- are decidedly not digital natives, our only hope to accomplish this task is by collaborating with students in all things curricular, academic and disciplinary; in fact Prensky goes farther and suggests that we should encourage them to “invent technological solutions to, [for example], streamline homework submission and correction, freeing up teachers for more meaningful work”—ostensibly “empathy and guidance.”


Prensky imagines this, new, 21st century model of education a cure for adolescent woes such as alienation, indecisiveness, fear of the future, sloth and disengagement.



Important points

• 21st century students are fundamentally different than are modern adults.
• Current hiring practices at schools focus too much attention on teacher content knowledge and too little on empathy and guidance abilities.
• 21st century students “generally have a much better idea of what the future is than do [teachers]” so teachers should value and honor what their students know, while encouraging decision making among students.
• Since students are engaged, technologically, outside of school teachers need to tap into—rather than shun—that resource at school.
• Students are more capable of solving the boredom problem associated with modern schools so we should ask them to come up with the solutions and be willing to follow their lead.
• Technological solutions exist that could address the scheduling problems at last-century modeled schools, specifically the herding of children from room to room.
• Programming will be the key skill needed in the 21st century.
• One of the most prevalent student demands regarding technology is to keep their school's computer labs open until midnight.
• NetDay (http://www.netday.org/) conducts an annual online student survey of technology use. 200,000 students responded in the 2001 survey.

Reflection and Significance to Me as a Teacher

While I agree with much of the authors assertions concerning what is wrong with modern schools, I’m not so sure that I agree with his faith that the fix is technology. The Idea that 21st century students are different merely because they have cell phones with cameras and text capabilities is, to my mind, wrong thinking; much as my own parents’ belief that my world would be fundamentally different because of TV and long distance calls. If great and old literature teaches us anything, it is that the world does not change. How we get about our day and how we earn our bread will change with the advancement of technology but kindness, focus and hard work will always be important; whether we use paper, typewriter, keyboard or cell phone.

Having said that, I am the most technologically integrated teacher I know and I agree that schools, if none else, should provide and use the most up to date technology in every possible way when preparing children for the future. If only tax-payers, school boards and legislatures felt the same.

Who am I?
To describe myself in nouns; I am a mother, an artist, and a teacher. Everything else I do directly relates to one of these.

Though it took me a long time to become a school teacher, I have been the trainer/educator at every job I have ever held–in every field. I have very strong opinions about parenting and teaching-generally believing that we (in America) are doing it wrong.

When I am not painting, my favorite thing to do is sit on the swing in my back yard on a warm sunny day—with my dogs all around. Clearly, my favorite thing is a rare occurrence, so I also spend a lot of time remodeling my house—that I will one day sell for very much money—then I will retire to tropical paradise! So, you see, am also delusional.