Food for thought

This YouTube video is not new but it certainly opens one’s eyes to the need for everyone to keep up with modern trends. Librarians have been in the forefront of pushing Web 2.0 technology and we hope that lecturers and students will follow suit to help “prepare for the unprepared future”.

Thankyou Michael for reminding us and posting it on your blog

Digital Age Skills

Today’s teachers and students need Digital Age skills. To show how these may be achieved the ISTE, the International Society for Technology in Education, has released the next generation of NETS for Teachers which focuses on ”using technology to learn and teach.”

NETS for Teachers is deceptively simple one-page statement that categorises what a teacher must strive for under 5 headings:

• Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity
• Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessment
• Model Digital-Age Work and Learning
• Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility
• Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership

This follows on from last year’s NETS for Students , another deceptively simple looking document with the following headings:

• Creativity and Innovation
• Communication and Collaboration
• Research and Information Fluency
• Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision making
• Digital Citizenship
• Technology Operations and Concepts

These documents should help you as a teacher or as a learner to set goals for each of the benchmarks and perhaps incorporate new skills gradually so that you are not overwhelmed by all you are trying to do. If you keep a record of your achievements in a blog then you will have already learned one new thing.