I was going to blog about the first chapter but then I found this video of Bill Gates on TED.com. It’s a bit boring at first but when he starts talking about education he hit on some points that give some concern. He seems to be a personality that people tend to listen to. Gates feels as though technology is the solution to teaching quality. His proposal is to place cameras in classrooms of in an effort to spread good teaching practices. On the other hand it will weed out ineffective teachers. I feel that cameras in the classroom will produce a debate in education in the very near future. See the link below.
http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/bill_gates_unplugged.html
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Wow! I watched the video and my first reaction was absolute fear. It is not that I mind being observed, I’ve actually invite administrators in both when the student’s are doing something really cool but also when I’ve had a particular issue I can’t seem to get a handle on. I don’t think I could function if I knew a camera would record me blowing my nose, or bending over to pick something up off the floor. The mention of putting video online also worries me. Once it’s published people could possibly alter it, opening up huge issues.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with Gates that it is unfortunate that teachers don’t have more time for collaboration. I’m curious as a technology teacher do you see anyway that video could be employed to share ideas and techniques among teachers without making us vulnerable? How would you feel if it was an option for administrators instead of classroom observation?
Greg,
ReplyDeleteI would be an absolute wreck if cameras were on me at all times during my class. I love for people to watch me teach but the thought of ever having to watch myself teach would play havoc on my nerves. Everyone makes mistakes, but teachers are held to a different standard. Our mistakes are magnified in many situations. I think a camera in the classroom may cause a problem for many eduators.
Good Job,
Blaire
Very interesting video! I would have to agree with the other responders that I would not like being video taped while I was teaching. It has nothing to do with being watched but more the idea on what will they use it for. The idea of using it to weed out ineffective teachers would be great but would they realy do it. I can think of three teachers right now in our district that are ineffective teachers and I'm 95% sure that our administrators know it too but nothing is done. I think our jobs at teachers are almost too secure. It takes drastic measures to let go of a teacher. I think teachers should be evaulated more often and things should be done for ineffective practices. If I was doing an office job and I wasn't getting my job done or reaching the goals set out for me then I would be fired, why shouldn't this be happening for teachers? As far as using the video to share ideas or strategies I would prefer meeting time to visit face to face with teachers and share ideas. Our district is trying this for the first time this year and I think it will be great. Now if they were to video tape teaching, I think it would be nice to use this to show misbehavior in the classroom but I'm afraid that may not be very proffesional. I have had a few conferences or IEP's where the parents just can't believe their child would do something wrong and in the teacher's lounge we always say if we could only video tape them but that is another issue all together! Great blog Greg, it will be interesting to see if something like this comes about.
ReplyDeletePrivacy comes into mind when we start discussing video cameras in the classroom. I know that I would be stressed out almost every minute of every day if someone could be watching what I do in the class. Now, this does not mean I do inappropriate things or slack, but a video can lie. On the other hand it could show the very ineffective teachers, the students who need to be in a padded room, and the students who really need to be in a gifted program. But which of the evils do we take? Privacy or Assurance?
ReplyDeleteGreg,
ReplyDeleteGreat video. I think the whole concept behind the video is that we need accountability as professionals. We work hard for 3 years to get tenured and then can sit back and coast for the next 27. I don't see a lot of innovation and push to get better and be the best. I thought it was interesting that master's degrees did not improve test scores. In order to foster this, I feel tenure should not have the total weight when letting teachers go. Maybe they should have a rubric with different weights. One being test scores or student improvement. I also think that if your students are performing well and you are a good teacher, you should get bonuses. Another thing, I do think we need more time to become better teachers. What if our contract days were 220 instead of 190 and the added 30 were for professional development, collaboration, and curriculum design. This would improve teaching and test scores, allow for mental recouping away from students, and make teaching a little more financially sustainable as a profession.
Philip
I feel that Gates is pushing the corporate culture into the school system. In the end he will end up opening up a new market for electronics technologies that he would be more than happy to sell to every school district in the country. The ideas are interesting should be talked about but I really see this as a nanny camera approach to teacher quality. I do feel as though some ineffective teachers could get weeded out with technology. Video technology could be used as a great teaching tool as a tech teacher. Students could demo projects as a record them and edit the material into an instructional tape. This way the kids could see things being done by other students as well as demonstrated by the teacher. I have also used a camera to view myself teaching like a game film. I could see myself how the kids see me. It was a bit scary but in the end helpful. Teachers should have a hand in defining how cameras are used in the classroom. If they don't than Bill Gates will.
ReplyDelete