Author Archives: eddypaslowski

The Rise of Productivity Suites

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This is an interesting topic since, as I am a little older than most students, I can vividly remember the beginnings of technology like Office and how groundbreaking it was at the time. In my old career, when these came out or when Microsoft Word was being widely used, the efficiency was amazing as opposed to old ways of information processing.

In education, if teachers and students are taught how to properly use these tools, the same efficiency can be achieved. I , myself, predominantly use Google products such as Slides, Google Meet and lately I have explored some of the uses for Canva as well. In our Overview of Productivity Software video this week, we had a chance to see how many of these tools have evolved since the 1980’s. Many of these tools are useful in the teaching setting, but they are also useful for students to gain an understanding of what is used outside of school as well. Companies want employees that can handle many types of software and know the appropriate time to use them. This is where it is vital, as educators, that we do not drop the ball here. We can provide the guidance students need in this area.

The possibilities are endless as technology grows exponentially with the next generation just beginning to emerge for educators; AI. If we learn how to us AI ethically, we can open up so much more in not only education, but for students as they head into the workforce. Guidelines and policies will have to be put in place, but the reality is, whether we like it or not, AI is here and I don’t see it going away. Pandora’s Box may have been opened.

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My Evolving Teaching Philosophies

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Over a career, most educators evolve with what works at the time, the subject they teach and the group of students that they teach to. The first word my father-in-law told me to remember when I told him I was going into Education, was “adaptability”. This came from a retired ex-teacher, with 35 years of experience. By the time I reached university as a TC or teacher canditate, I knew how valuable that advice was. This was where I realized the value of students needing to buy in to what we are trying to teach in order for it to be effective teaching. In my opinion, my strongest belief is in the constructionist philosophy. I enjoy designing inquiry projects that allow students to go in directions that interest them. This, I find, not only helps with engagement, but also goes a long way to helping students reach complex thought, where they can express to me what they have learned in a wide variety of ways.

This does not mean that there are not aspects of my teaching that do not represent other philosophies. Any teacher of math or science knows that there are times for lectures, formulas , and equations that have to taught in this objectivist view.

The point I am trying to make is that each teacher probably has one main view and then likely has areas of their teaching in which other philosophies are more prevalent.

Photo by Tracy Le Blanc on Pexels.com

As we head into more new technology every month, it seems, this may alter some teacher’s views on how students learn and therefore how we teach. AI is a perfect example, Constructivists, like myself, see this tech as an opportunity to see how students use it if they are taught how to properly. This is similar to when computers came into schools. Now, they are invaluable.

My Understanding Of Ed. Tech.

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When I first thought about educational technology, I naturally came up with things like chromebooks, Smartboards, and computer labs. My second level of thinking then went to Google Classroom, which I have used in my teaching practise for several years and other related technologies. I also think of things like alternate seating, fidgets, and noise cancelling headsets as technology that help the learning process.This is where I sort of stopped, until I read the readings for this week. It never dawned on me that the chalk board was innovative for the time and made learning easier for students to learn, or for that matter, how written language was a major leap in education.

In today’s society, I believe most people think of educational technology as computers, cell phones,( which are now a hot topic), and online speakers that come into the classroom as a few examples. This is becoming more contraversial as the trend in education, it seems, is to be going back to basics. All you hear about is ” Why are we not teaching the 3 R’s instead of all of this other stuff?” This is the divide in education. Even if we know that technology can help students, as we read this week, there is a tradeoff. Where we gain in one area, students will loose in another.

As a person who joined education a little later in life than most, I have had to change my thoughts on technology a little more drastically than most. I went to school in the 1970’s and 80’s, so I can recall the first computers that came into school. For me, it was the Commodore 64, moving a white dot across the t.v. screen. Everyone was in awe. Then we shifted to high school and the Apple 2C and the programming we had to design to get a two dimesional rocket to go across their own monitor. The internet was introduced just as I graduated, and th it exponential growth to where we are now. I had to grow with it and quickly if I was going to become an educator just a few short years ago. Now with AI and all that this could bring us, we are set for more massive growth. Maybe soon, teachers themselves will become outdated, just like the Commodore 64?