digital blog post # C

    While reading chapter 3 there were a few points that stuck with me. The first being about Information and Internet Literacy on pages 55-57. I believe both are extremely important to teach current and future students. Too many times have I personally seen articles shared or posted on the internet that people believe are real or contain true information when in fact they do not. You cannot always believe what you read at face value without further and independent, in-depth research on the subject matter. Anyone with even the most basic knowledge of website or blog building skills can put anything on the internet for everyone to read. It needs to be shown and taught to students that you must question where information comes from, whether its' from a reliable source or a satire type source, or whether it's just someone's opinion or factual information. Too many times people either don't seem to know where the information originated from or how to distinguish the information's source. This will be very important when finding research and statistical evidence for papers in school, college, and even in the work environment.
     The next topic that stuck with me was the concept of Digital Citizenship. Maloy, et al (2013 pp 65-69) I think this is also a very important concept to teach all students to actively practice daily. Quoting resources, avoiding plagiarism and conducting oneself in a respectful and non-harmful manner are all skills or personal traits students will need to master and showcase for their entire school and career lives. Students need to understand that the internet can make people feel more secure and they may post writings or drawings online that they may not feel confident enough to do in a face-to-face situation, but they need to make sure they use that for good and it is never supposed to be used to harm or exploit anyone else in any fashion. Used in those ways can be considered digital bullying or pirating and are harmful to those on the other end of their actions.
     The third topic that stuck with me was about the research on the science or learning and the outcomes of that. "The contemporary view of learning, what the editors call 'constructivism', is that people construct new knowledge and understandings based on what they already know and believe." Maloy, et al (2013 pp 47) I believe in that statement. I also think it holds very true in subjects like math, which I plan on teaching. It is very hard to introduce the concept of trigonometry to someone who has no knowledge of algebra or geometry. That would be very hard for one to grasp without prior information or practice. I also believe this can apply to almost every area of our lives. Without prior use of technology like a computer or software I do think one could normally use a computer for the first time and write computer code. At the very least you would have to do some research of some type to begin a task you have never encountered before. This is just like the scaffolding concept, which I also believe is very important to use with students and to try and relate more undesirable subjects, like math, to more real-world applications to help expand the understanding, retention, and active engagement a student may have pertaining to the concept being learned.

Citrino, J. Sept. 19 2015. Via Bitstrip.com Via facebook.com app
Maloy, Robert, Verock-O'Loughlin, Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.