Ecology of Educational Technology
Working with our group on this topic was great. Our members all participated and did a professional presentation. Our presentation can be found at Ecological Perspectives.
OUr conclusion to the week’s activities is found below:
“Give up Technology for a Day”
• Examples of technology that was given up: iphones, lap top, iPod, projector, smart board, Youtube
• Reactions ranged from realizing just how dependent we are on technology to “it didn’t really impact” their day
• However all who participated acknowledged that technology makes our lives easier and preferred to not give up technology for more than a day
• This activity gave us an opportunity to reflect on our use/dependence on technology in our personal and professional lives
• It gave us all pause to think about the importance of having a balance in our lives and, for some, spurred a renewed focus on family time or other quality time sans technology
Garden of Eden & Global Ecological Crisis
• Poll results: 38.1% believe that technology can help return our environment to a Garden of Eden while 61.9% believe that technology will hasten its decline
• Everyone was in agreement that something should be done, but did not agree that technology would be the positive or negative acting agent (e.g. “Technology is neutral. It is people who are good or evil and use technology in good or evil ways.”)
• “Technology can help with this but it is somewhat of a double-edged sword. ” and “I think that in spite of the good intentions behind technological innovations, these devices and gadgets keep us away for the Garden of Eden state.”
• Ecological obstacle: “problem may lie with the use of the technology and what we as individuals/society do with the technology that we have at our disposal”
• A call for changing lifestyle: “And to be honest, how many of us are willing to give up things that might be bad for the environment, over our own ease and comfort? In the end, money, greed, and personal comfort will always be the loudest voice crying out in the wilderness.”
• Inspiring our students to be more engaged and active was a goal/objective for most
• Most felt that our students today are disengaged from the global environmental issues and needed to reconnect and “appreciate” nature
• As educators we can help our students connect with nature and take an active role to remedy the damage done, starting with the immediate school environments
• Our role would also include using technology to research current problems, find current solutions, review and acknowledge public opinion, and create individual awareness to our positive and negatives contributions to the earth. Our role includes the use of technology as a forum to educate and promote an active role in our “Garden of Eden”.
DLG 10
Andrew, Kirnjeet, Jodi, Michelle, Doug and Valerie