EME5404 Example of ways new technologies can improve education in less-developed regions

For this assignment I have been tasked with finding an article, podcast, or video that is a good example of how technology can be used to improve education in disadvantaged areas. The article I found, which I think is a good example of how the proper use of technology and support of that technology can help students in disadvantaged areas is The Role of Technology and Computer-Based Instruction in a Disadvantaged Alternative School's Culture of Learning. In this research article by Watson and Watson (2011) it shows the value of implementing CBI (Computer-Based Instruction) in a responsible way to help disadvantaged youth achieve at a high level.
The first thing that Watson & Watson (2011) show is that CBI has not been shown to make a large change in general student achievement. One study evaluated the impact of a variety of math and reading software products, implemented at four different grade levels...across 132 schools in 33 school districts....found no significant difference on student test scores in classrooms using the software as compared to classrooms not using the software (Dynarski et al., 2007). What is interesting is that one of the schools, an alternative high school for disadvantaged youth, found improvements of up to 60% on achievement standards and pass rates on state exit exams ranged up to 85% in English and 100% in math (Watson & Watson, 2011). This kind of improvement from this school is worth looking into, what this research study found was that along with CBI, having a learner-centered culture, learning environment helped these students to be successful.
When students felt they had a voice and some say in what their education was going to look like, they took more interest in what they were learning and why they were learning it (p.46). Students could choose how they would master the content and what tools they would use to master that content. The most popular choice was the Plato CBI and technology projects such as Power Point presentations, brochures and WebQuests. The CBI platform allowed students to engage in an active, self-paced, self-learning planning process (p.46). This perception of freedom allowed students a safe environment to take risks and explore in their own learning.
Because the school had very few resources they relied heavily on the internet to get information to students. As the principal stated:

We don't have textbooks...so a lot of it is internet-based. I find things for them to learn and read on the Internet. It enables us to do a lot of things that we would not be able to do otherwise (p.47).

Teachers spoke of the importance of technology to realize the learner-centered, self-paced, instructional choices that were a part of the school culture. Most of these students did not have access to computers outside of school. These students were impressed with computer technology in how it helped them find anything they needed to find. They expressed how they enjoyed the interactive nature of the computers, and how technology provided fun in learning while still helping them to focus on their work (p.48). Some students even mentioned that their first experiences with a computer was in that classroom.
Through the technology that was provided to these disadvantaged youth in this alternative school, in the Midwest of the United States, they were able to achieve what they were unable to in a mainstream high school setting. CBI provided these youth with a pathway to success that otherwise would not have been their for them.
This article shows the important contributions that technology can have on disadvantaged environments to help student achievement. This study does need to be replicated in other areas to test its validity but the findings are strong to show that there is a positive correlation between technology and improving education for disadvantaged youth.

 

How do we define who we are, and shape or reaffirm our identity using social networks? EME5404

Posed with this question I spent some time reading a few required readings and a few I found online about social networks and the issues with security I have changed my view about how we define or reshape our identity using social networks. I initially felt that I could self-select my social networks and what was put on those site, or rather the image that was portrayed of myself. While I do think we can define who we are on those social networks, we cannot prevent unwanted content from appearing. What I mean by unwanted content is if we have friends or family who have taken pictures of us or been a part of an experience of ours, they often do not ask our permission to post those things on their social media networks. When those things have been posted it is nearly impossible to get them back. Not all is lost though, we can still shape or reaffirm our identity online even if we cannot control all the social media networks that have information about us.

With the growth of media online culture has come the ability to connect with more people who share our ideas and beliefs. We can now shape the type of news we get exposed to as well as other medias of interest. No longer do we have to conform to the cultural ideas created by others such as large media corporations or even parents (for those who are still youth). While we are inevitably influenced on some level by these large corporations and our parents we now have access to a wealth of information to form our own ideas which create our own unique identities.

We also get to decided what part of our lives we share to others. We can be members of multiple communities while still being our authentic self as Megan Sims mentions in her article in the Harvard Political Review. Megan claims, which I agree with, that there is more transparency as communities online have become safer.

With the move towards transparency, people have found a sense of safety online, and therefore membership in online communities has become less taboo. The move towards online transparency, likewise, increases a sense of Internet authenticity (Megan Sims)

With an increase in transparency people have become more willing to put themselves online. This has been especially true for young people. The ability to identify oneself through such textual and visual means is valuable...they also afford another level of personalization (boyd 2007). We can now share ourselves to a broader audience, while controlling how much others know about us. We can create a persona of ourselves that may show us in a positive light. We can also connect to others who share our interest and are willing and able to provide us more valuable validation.

Through what we post on social media and who we decide to share our information with along with the monitoring of our privacy settings we can define who we are on social media. If I want to be defined as a goof-off who jokes around all the time and rarely takes anything seriously I have the power to send that identity out into the world through social media. Conversely I can change that view any way I would like through the thoughtful way I present myself on social media.

We all can and should take a moment to identify the perception of ourselves online. If you don't know how your are defined, ask a good friend they will tell you.