Believe it or not, one of the most challenging pieces of multimedia to learn from is television, movies, etc - anything on a television screen! I never understood why my teachers made us watch a movie while simultaneously taking notes. It was kind of like, "Okay. What would you like me to do? Pay attention to the movie or to my notes?"
In no way am I saying that a movie or screening of a video is a bad way of instructing, but I think there are more effective ways of using this technology. For example, did you ever hear of the saying "Too much of a good thing is a bad thing"? That's how I feel about this. If you overuse this multimedia tool, the students' attention span will continue on a declining road. Unless you're in a total rut with absolutely no lesson plan to teach, then I feel that you shouldn't show a movie (unless it was a reward or whatever) the entire class period. I think it is best if combined with other pieces of multimedia, such as news websites (CNN.com or BBC.org). Even more so, youtube.com can be educational (if pertained to the lesson) and has just about everything in its archive.
Personally, however, I'm looking to learn more about using programs on the computer. As I have discussed in a previous blog, I'm not really a techy person - I'm not bad, but I'm not great either. Also, I should probably note that I'm capable of learning both audibly and visually. So I'm really looking to incorporate both aspects in learning more about the computer programs. In my high school, going to the computer room was rare. As most of us can attest to, every student will probably have a laptop probably sometime in the near future. And programs, such as the one demonstrated to us in our last class (making a web of notes using a computer program), can help students in many ways. The internet, along with other common multimedia sources, are tools that students are already becoming familiar with.
But I think that if there is a way to incorporate both the internet (and other sources) with the computer itself, students will be golden. They will be diverse and they will be learning. Why watch a video on the internet then go back to your seat and take notes? Why not just do both at the same time? That's what the education will be like in the future...that's why it's best to learn about it now.
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3 comments:
Carla,
One of the points brought out in the Process of Education by Jerome Bruner is just to your point. He states that a steady diet of the best educational films in the world can lead to "bench-bound" passivity in students. Basically, we end up with students who are used to being entertained (at best), interact indirectly, and who don't really now how to get engaged, physically active, and directly interact/interface face-to-face with a group of other people in actually doing things and taking charge of their own learning. You are correct on this as I see it.
What, when and how you apply the technology, as another aid to teaching, makes all the difference. The way it was applied in The Last Lecture delivered at Carnegie-Melon (on YouTube), I thought was well-done. At no point did his use of video clips and other media get in the way of the lesson or usurp the teacher-student connection. If you are interested, I included a couple links for "The Process of Education" (Bruner) in my blog posting at CJS77ATDU.blogspot.com
I feel the same way about when we have to take notes about a movie. Eventually, I get caught up in taking notes and trying to figure out what my teacher wants from the movie that I can't concentrate on the storyline.
I think you made some good points. Video made things better for visual learners - but they are passive - you can only watch what they show you. Computers and other multimedia are better as you point out. They can be good for visual learners, but also active learning as well - you can change and do things with them.
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