5364+Week+4

=Week 4 Reactions=

**The Teacher Teaching the Student, or the Student Teaching the Teacher?**
The readings and video for Week 4 centered on //**Designing Student-Centered Learning Experiences with Technology**//. I was particularly drawn to the //**Web 2.0: New Tools, New Schools**// reading from Chapter 5 on professional development. I find it interesting that even though our state keeps throwing money at technology, no real progress is being made. Teachers are still not moving over and giving some control to the students using student-centered learning, due to (ironically) the state's demand for students to pass the TAKS test. I see this every single day in classrooms at the school I teach in, and as a 5th grade science teacher, I'm beginning to live it due to adminstrative expectations for student performance. My district wants to see equity across the district, they don't want to see teachers doing things too differently on one campus compared to another. So if the state really wants to see a return on the money invested in the technology they have given the schools, they are going to have to invest in professional development to help teachers and schools change their teaching philosophy to a more student-centered approach in the classroom.

The Edutopia videos really brought this student-centered, project-based approach to life. I have learned so much from the Edutopia site and I incorporate as much as I possibly can to my teaching. Watching the last video //**Team Teaching: Two Teachers, Three Subjects, One Project**//, really brought the project-based approach home. Watching the teachers learn from the students was so refreshing and helped me remember to not be afraid to let the students take control of their learning. Our goal as educators should be to guide students to the answers, not give the answers to them and expect them to regurgitate the answers back. This also encourages the critical thinking and problem solvign that will be necessary to compete with global markets. Hopefully someday sooner than later the state will start putting together that the answer isn't buying and giving out the technology, but investing in teacher professional development to put student-centered, problem-based learning at the heart of every classroom.

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