This article (http://hybridpedagogy.org/digital-ghosts-modern-classroom/ ) talks about the dangers of only implementing ‘drag and drop” type assignments in the classroom, such as worksheets or pre-formatted applications that allow students to enter a specific answer to receive a mark, with little room for creativity. I believe this linear “standardized” model forced students to get used to a routine and reduces their opportunity or desire to take a risk for a greater reward. I believe this way of thinking has been reinforced to the point where students aren’t looking to educate themselves, they are looking for the easiest pathway to the correct answer. I also find this ironic because the format I chose for this artifact was in fact a drag and drop format. I think this comes from a sense of security in staying in our comfort zone and being afraid to fail. From my standpoint, we often are not given the opportunity to try, make mistakes and try again. Often teachers have so much on their plate that they won’t accept a second attempt because they simply do not have the time to mark all of it. I really enjoyed the part of the article that said “try, fail and revise,” because I think that’s what education should mean. Being allowed and encouraged to explore, take chances and fail miserably without worrying about bad grades, and instead being marked on our progress, not just the final product.
Now I chose to create a Powtoon because I did want to step outside my comfort zone with something new and exciting, and even with a new format I still stuck to a premade template rather than creating something from scratch. I could blame this on a lack of time and knowledge to create something from scratch, but really I worried it wouldn’t be good enough. This is definitely an attitude I need to fix, so that I can show my students what it looks like to believe in yourself even if you don’t know what you’re doing and how satisfying the end result can be when you created it yourself. Unfortunately with Powtoons, it was not until the day before uploading it that my artifact decided that it required a premium membership, which would not allow me to download my Powtoon and of course why it looks the way it does with the watermark all over it. In order to get this final product I had to screen record the video on the web browser, record my narrative using multiple snapchat filters for a more “unique” voice, download royalty free music for the background and edit it all together. This was very frustrating since I did not have time to create a new visual from scratch but instead has to problem solve a way around it to have a somewhat finished product.
To further this discussion, what is something that you currently want to work on to become a better role model for your students?
Click the link below to view my artifact (because it decided not to upload as a video)
Paige Godin