Defining+the+Need+for+Change

= Defining the Need for Change = In the face of the outlined changes in young people, how have education systems responded? Most haven’t! Or, more to the truth, education systems and teachers are only beginning to respond. Some suggest that teachers risk burning out or becoming “obsolete” if they try to keep up to changing student demands using outdated teaching, aging pedagogies, non-responsive curricula and assessment standards, all occurring in “un-connected” classrooms.

When educational practices and classroom activities fail to engage learners, behavioral issues often follow, which create higher levels of stress for teachers, administrators, and students. Research has indicated that student misbehavior, often a result of disengagement, is a major predictor of teacher burnout. Yet, when children are behaving in a socially responsible, rights-respecting way in the classroom, and particularly when they are actively involved in their classroom and school activities, teachers have improved relationships with the students and a greater sense that their teaching is effective.

Several multimedia and technology components of student engagement have been reviewed in the literature. First, students and researchers issued a common call for new tools in the classroom toolbox. These calls sought expansion beyond standard PC stations and overhead projectors to introduce many new forms of multimedia and technology that would help facilitate deep research and learning and build relationships among learners and experts both within and beyond the classroom.

There are various technological tools reported to increase engagement in learning among students. Some technology is quite contentious and hotly debated by educators; however, having students use cell phones, IPhones and Blackberries, and other mobile devices for research, collaborative communication, or social-based learning activities has been shown to increase student engagement by as much as 78%.

Multimedia and technology (cameras, video, and video editing, projectors, SmartBoards, sound recording equipment, animation and gaming software, and the ubiquitous PowerPoint) have proven helpful in engaging students in learning about subjects, in exploring ways to present their learning, and more importantly in helping students control their learning. Kvavik, Caruso, & Morgan (2004) state, “Students recognize a number of benefits of classroom IT. Included are convenience, management of classroom activities, time savings, improved learning, better and more effective communications, and better presentation of their class assignments” (p. 12).

**//We can no longer only focus on the 3 Rs - Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic; we also need to focus on the 4 Cs - critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity.//**

Changing Education Paradigms - Sir Ken Robinson
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