Big+Shift!!!!

 


 * **Big Swift Page****

JaeKyung Park EDS 137 Instructor: Chris Halter 12/08/09

“Big Shift Essay”  According to Richardson’s book Richardson’s book __Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms__, his “Big shift” is basically talked about on-line education and how it approaches to students effectively in different manner of actual lecture. There are 10 different kinds of shift and one more shift that Professor Chris suggested us. From those of shifts, “teaching is conversation, not lecture” and “24/7 learning – students can interact with others worldwide by becoming part of global” are really approached to me. First of all, it was my first experience to look k at on-line class. I remember many of other schools in California provide on-line classes but [|UCSD]doesn’t have. Therefore, I had not much background information about on-line classes. However, from the opportunity that I am taking the EDS 137 class, I can have basic and initial experience what is on-line class, how it organized, and what is the future of on-line class. From the Richardson’s Big shift, I really like that 24/7 learning. “24/7 Learning” focuses on the concept that out of the school, but more available school. Students are no longer limit to their professor and school library for instruction. By using any useful web 2.0 tools and Internet service, students can interact and communicate without any time and space limitation. It means that on-line education can be happen in any time, in any place. For example, it is possible that professor gives a lecture in the United States of American and students can be getting the lecture in Korea, Italia, and Cameroon. I’m actually writing this essay in Seoul, Korea. Open on-line sources such as Google and Wikipedia can help to understand the lecture. All on-line sources can be lecture materials. There are so many useful web 2.0 tools. As we have learned from the class, students can share their writing in real time by suing web 2.0 tools such as [|googledoc], they can share their screen to solve technical problem or educational questions by using a [|skype screen-sharing programs]. Likewise, the Internet provides students can be possible "teachers" because everyone can work together by interacting real time. The traditional roles for “teachers” are mostly giving lecture and grading their students’ work. In this case teachers can have authority whether they want or not. However, professors in on-line class seem to have less authority. This is not meaning that teacher’s authority is weaker; it is meaning that the role of teacher in on-line class is more likely to be helper and assistance to guide some line to students. According to Richardson, he said that “teaching is conversation, not lecture”. Therefore, the role of teachers in on-line class is letting students to communicate and teachers will supervise how students are doing. It means that the main lecture in the class is upon by the students not teacher. However, there are some challenges in on-line education for global sphere. First of all, not all the countries are accessible to Internet. Most of students in the U.S are using Internet service and Internet becomes part of their daily life. However, there are still many developing countries don’t have internet service and even though they have, their quality and speed of internet can’t follow developed countries’ one. Also, another challenge is language difference. This on-line education is mostly based on English. It can be challenge to students who don’t speak English. Therefore, to extend on-line lecture to more global sphere, it can be a good idea that providing translating system in the website that students can understand what is the content of the lecture and what are the homework they have to do.

 

 What I have leaned and shifted my personal perspective by taking EDS 137 class is that education has to follow technology. Technology development changes many part of our daily lives. We can drive rather than walk, we can get surgery by electronic hands, and we can write e-mail instead of hand writing mail. However, education seems to stay in traditional way and did not change a lot. What I felt from taking EDS class and by looking at the on-line class system, I realize that more and more education will use Internet service. And in the near future, on-line based lectures are going to be occurred as much as actual school lectures. Students will 24/7 access to Internet and it is going to be educational place. In this point of view, the website Ning was very impressive. The Ning is an educational website, it is a very similar with [|Facebook], but it’s made for educational purpose. Therefore, students can feel familiar to study in the on-line. In the opportunity that I could join[| HTH Ning web site], I could have chance to give e-mentoring. I saw their work they made and I made comment on their work. Sometime, I posted some of related [|youtube] clip to help out their project. As a mentor, I was able to provide an additional level of support and resources for the students. I was very happy to see their comment that the post that I linked was helpful. It was very great opportunity that I can help someone that I never met before. And as quarter goes on, I realized that this kind of on-line education will be success in Korea. It is because Korea has high speed Internet service and so many young people are using internet. Most of them are addicted into playing on-line games but if on-line education is possible in Korea, it would be great opportunity to study for them. To sum up, on-line education is getting bigger and bigger. Since it has open contents that as the most current information on many topics are available in Internet. It can provide 24/7 learning opportunity, and lectures are collaboratively made by interacting students’ work, it also not required expensive text book because all the sources are readily available through Internet. All those are benefits of on-line education. From the EDS 137 class, I’ve learned some of useful web 2.0 tools that are necessary to on-line education. I was able to have chance to interact with HTH students and actually, I was able to help out their on-line project and works they made. In this time that wrapping up the class, what I have learned and done in this class is that I’m pretty sure that on-line education has much possibilities to expand because it has so many advantages and it fits to our current society and education system. Development of technology will develop education system too. But we also should prepare some of challenges such as limited Internet access and English based language. I think this is a transition time moving from accepting on-line lecturing to utilizing on-line lecturing. However, the unchangeable fact is that on-line lecturing is definitely helpful and it can give more opportunities to students who are worrying about expensive tuition.

Thanks for reading my poor English essay.

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