Blog Post 5 - Conversations with Anthony Capps

What I gathered from these videos was that the general consensus for learning is to teach by example, not just by following a strict curriculum. Teaching children in a classroom is the same as teaching a child how to ride a bike-they have to try it themselves or they will never get the hang of it. You could learn every little detail about how a bike is made, watch YouTube videos on how to ride a bike, or even have conversations with avid bike riders, but you will never figure it out until you try it.

“We learn by example and by direct experience because there are real limits to the adequacy of verbal instruction.” -Malcolm Gladwell

In Dr. Strange's conversations with Anthony Capps, I thought his comment about teaching children about Project Based Learning to learn through their experiences instead of focusing on their (possible) shortcomings was so insightful. I believe it is too easy, as teachers, to draw too much attention to what a student may need to work on for the sake of their grades, instead of remembering that the most important part of teaching is to ensure that your students are becoming independent learners. Don't get me wrong, the content is important...but only to an extent. A student could write an entire paper about the Civil War and have crazy good material and a ton of reliable sources, but if they can take nothing away from this assignment, what good has it done? Will he/she really know anything more about the Civil War than they knew before?

The use of icurio in the classroom reminds me a lot of Dropbox, only with an enhanced search engine feature. There is nothing more interesting than watching a child learn how to use a new form of technology right before your eyes! Most people were terrified of the internet when it was first being used, and Google, what the heck is that about? But, now people are using Google's search engine without thinking twice. No one doubts Google. No one doubt the accuracy of the sources we find on the internet. I believe, along with Anthony Capps, that this is one of the breakthroughs that the education world needed. Teachers need a way to find materials, to show their students how to learn by searching on their own, and a place to save their findings. I think this would be an awesome tool to make use of in the classroom.

In Strange Tips for Teachers, Anthony Capps said that one of the most important thing to remember is to always be a learner! If you can take nothing away from your lesson, yourself, then what good did your teaching methods do for your students? How will your teaching ever impact lives if you allow yourself to stop being a learner as well? I know I love to watch children learn, but I also love to learn new things for myself. Tonight, for example, I learned a crash course on iMovie from my soon-to-be brother-in-law, becaus I used his Mac to do my video assignment. This brings me to my next point about the video Use Tech, Don't Teach It where Mr. Capps discusses the importance of not trying to teach our kids how to use technology, but instead, teaching them BY using technology. I have had a YouTube account for years )mostly because it is linked to my Google account), but I have never uploaded anything to it before-had I not been given an assignment where I was forced to use it, I probably would have never learned how to. The most fun thing I have seen used in a classroom is child interactions with a Smart Board without the constant supervision of a teacher. I am doing field service hours right now and the first grade classroom I am in has a "center" that is typing their spelling word on the Smart Board by using the touch screen on the board. I was so amazed to watch six-year olds use the board way better than I could have! Kids are way smarter than we give them credit for sometimes.

All in all, I learned that teaching is important, but learning is even more important, and that if we allow our children to be exposed to all that the internet and technology world have to offer, they will most likely be better off because of it. Our students want interaction and they want to learn, but they want to feel like what they are doing at school will be useful to them later in their lives and careers. The following picture shows a couple students using the Smart Board in their classroom on their own.