TASK 1

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1. What are three important things you found out about the brain and the learners we are teaching? How do you think Web 2.0 fits in?
There are so many interesting things that I found out about the brain that it’s hard to name just three. But perhaps the three things I found out that caught my attention the most were the following:
1. Research indicates that “…the eye processes and interprets images 60,000 times faster than it does words. This is because the brain is much more suited to processing visual information than anything else.” In a study where digital natives were presented with 100 photographs, they were able to recall 90% of the images. Digital immigrants on the other hand were able to recall only 60% of those same images. Alarmingly, digital dinosaurs were able to recall only about 10% of those same images. Interesting enough, many educators prefer to provide text before pictures, sounds and video. However, digital learners prefer to process pictures, sounds, color and video before text. I must confess I am one of the guilty teachers who tends to provide the “visual” stimuli after the text. I have been doing it, thinking it’s the “best” way for my students to learn and have found out it’s quite the contrary. I am glad to find out this information so I can “shift” the way in which I present material for my students to more effectively engage them and meet their needs. Perhaps showing an “animoto” video prior to a unit vs. showing it at the end of a unit. Thereby using the video images as “conversation starters” to get students to predict what the unit will be about.
2. Another very interesting fact about the brain is that “…while Digital Immigrants typically find it distracting to read text of different colors, specific colors attract and repel Digital Natives when they’re reading. Blood red or pink (depending on gender) draws their attention first, followed by neon green and burnt orange are skimmed- and unless highly motivated, black is ignored completely.” In my opinion, this finding not only has implications for strategies used in developing reading materials, but rather in all printed material us teachers provide to our students. A web 2.0 tool that I will use which supports this finding is “wordle”. Interesting enough, this is a great tool since words appear in “different colors.”
3. Another shocking statistic I found out is that “…at least 87% of students in any given classroom are NOT auditory or text-based learners. Increasingly, because of digital bombardment, because they think graphically, because they’ve grown up in the new digital landscape, they’re either visual or visual kinesthetic learners.” For information students must acquire that are very “hands on” this is a true blessing. They are able to recall such detail, that I have been impressed by many students who recall information presented on video and such which I didn’t pay attention to while I watched the same video for the first time. On the other hand, this sometimes poses a challenge for teachers when they try to convey to students a more abstract or complex concept that is hard to illustrate. Literally every web 2.0 tool engages students “visually” and as teachers we should strive to implement their use in the classroom.

2. What are some 21st Century skills that are relevant to your teaching? Which ones do you think are most important to equip your students for tomorrow using today's tools?
There are many 21st century skills that are relevant to my teaching. A couple of the 21st century skills that are important to equip my students for tomorrow using today’s tools are the following: Information Literacy: teaching students to be “…able to evaluate information across a range of media; recognize when information is needed; locate, synthesize, and use it effectively; and accomplish this using technology, communication networks, and electronic resources.” In today’s world it is so important for teachers to teach/train their students “information literacy.” There is a wide range of information available to our students like never before and we need to teach them to distinguish between credible sources and rubbish. Another important aspect to my teaching is: Multicultural Literacy: As a foreign language teacher, it is my responsibility to expose my students to the “multicultural world” we live in. It is also important for me to instill in my students an “appreciation for similarities and differences between the customs, values, and beliefs of their own culture and the cultures of others.” The world has become a melting pot in which we celebrate all different cultures and customs. Children are exposed at a much younger age to multiple languages and cultures other than their own. As teachers we encourage our students to embrace and celebrate cultures, customs and languages other than their own. I would say the most important 21st century skill related to my teaching is: Risk-taking: teaching and showing my students that they need to be “…willing to make mistakes, advocate unconventional or unpopular positions, or tackle challenging problems without obvious solutions, such that their personal growth, integrity, or accomplishments are enhanced.” It seems we have all been taught to “be right” and to “do things right.” This advice is valid, but when learning a foreign language we have to teach our students that it’s ok to makes mistakes. If they don’t venture in the second language and are afraid to make mistakes, it will take them much longer to learn the language. Often times, students are terrified to “venture” in foreign language learning because they are afraid of the “unknown”. The web 2.0 tools are wonderful resources that should be used to encourage students to venture into foreign language learning. It allows them to interact in the foreign language and perhaps even connect them to native speakers of the foreign language who are learning English.

3. Spend some time exploring educational bloggers. Find at least three to add as a blog roll gadget on your blog. Adding the blog roll is worth one more point.