When students go on a field trip, they enter a “new classroom,” where their minds are unlocked, ideas become tangible, and curiosity is stirred. As I was growing up, I loved when my classmates and I went on excursions to see firsthand the artifacts and/or live objects that we had learned about in our textbooks. Now that I’m a teacher, I strive to find ways to make abstract components of a curriculum more concrete for my students. I want them to internalize the material, not just memorize it. As I read the articles regarding virtual field trips, I became amazed at the endless possibilities that technology can offer teachers! As Bob Coulter pointed out, children who live in urban or suburban areas may be unaware of a rural lifestyle, since they’ve never experienced it before. When I was student teaching last year, I actually had the opposite situation; I was teaching second grade children, who lived in a rural town of Pennsylvania, two stories which were located in NYC’s Chinatown and Italy. None of the students had traveled on an airplane before and many had not visited this area of Manhattan. By using the Internet, pictures of my study abroad trip to Florence, and the SMART board, I was able to supplement a first-hand experience by using technology as a guide. In turn, these tools provided my class with personal connections to the material so that they could actively participate in the stories and use this knowledge to question characters’ actions.
Even though there are many technological resources available in the education field, I agree with Lilian that Bob Coulter raised a valid point: “the key is for inquiry to drive the technology implementation and not vice versa.” Often, I discover a technological tool and think to myself, “that is fantastic! I would love it in my classroom.” Yet, it is important for me to first look over my curriculum and then decide which additional aides could enhance my students’ comprehension, provide text-to-world connections, and help break down the information in a way that is meaningful.
As I glanced through the comments section on the edutopia site, I came across a recommendation from another teacher, which I’d like to share with you. On www.stratalogica.com teachers can see clips of the features offered through the program and download a free 30-day trial. I’d recommend this since the packages offered for a five year license cost around $499-$899. However, the resources were incredible; you can see 3D buildings, reference maps, and age appropriate atlases that can enhance any virtual field trip. It is definitely worth checking out! I would have loved something like that during my student teaching semester!
No comments:
Post a Comment