The Henricus

I read Will Richardson’s “Don’t, Don’t, Don’t vs Do, Do, Do” today and instantly had a chicken and egg thought come to my mind.  Richardson’s point as that schools often filter out so much of the Internet, that what the kids are left with is like sugar free, caffeine free, diet soda.  I mean, what’s the point, right?

At the heart of this is the argument between whose job is it to monitor students in the classroom?

Richardson prefers:

“Do use our network to connect to other students and adults who share your passions with whom you can learn.”

“Do use our network to help your teachers find experts and other teachers from around the world.”

“Do use our network to publish your best work in text and multimedia for a global audience.”

“Do use our network to explore your own creativity and passions, to ask questions and seek answers from other teachers online.”

“Do use our network to download resources that you can use to remix and republish your own learning online.”

“Do use our network to collaborate with others to change the world in meaningful, positive ways.”

Etc. (Add your own below.)

So, back to the poultry.  If we are to open our filters more, does that begin with the Technology department, saying something like this, from Bud the Teacher, “What we’ve decided is that we will no longer use the web filter as a classroom management tool. Blocking one distraction doesn’t solve the problem of students off task – it just encourages them to find another site to distract them. Students off task is not a technology problem – it’s a behavior problem.”

Or, does it begin with teachers who believe that the potential of the web is worth the extra classroom management strategies it may take? 

Lately, or Technology Department has been opening more of the Internet, so from this point of view, the trend is postive.  Furthermore, every year I see more and more teachers who want to embrace Web 2.o tools.  But, it’s a slow march forward. 

I’d like to see someone kick it up a notch.