Barr and Tagg’s, From Teaching to Learning; A New Paradigm for Undergraduate Education
discussed how the college learning environment is changing. Instead of
providing direct instruction, colleges are switching to a method that will
foster learning. The new approach emphasizes “discovery.” Students are expected
to explore and discover as opposed to listening to a lecture for a given period
of time.

This approach reminds me of when
the school system at the elementary level switched from phonetics to whole
language. Whole language didn’t introduce phonics nor letter sounds. However,
after a period of time, the specialists twitched to integrated literacy which
is sort of a combination of both.

Nevertheless, the new paradigm
seems to keep parts of the old. For example, it will still have lectures. This
reminds me of my anatomy class. The class had a combination of lectures and
labs. This enabled the student to hear the theories and then take the theories
and put them into practice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6sOn7mGNzO8

Above is a link explaining phonics and the whole language
approach. Sometimes change needs to be

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMG5dvhEzyo

The above link discusses how students learning in the 21^st
century.

Henry Jenkins article,  Confronting
the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media Education for the21st Century discussed
participatory cultures. These cultures are using the new media to work together
to produce new forms. They also work together to solve problems.

Some scholars suggest that this is
a good thing. Students are working with peers; they are acquiring skills that
are beneficial to the work place. However, there is a downside to it. First,
some people don’t have the available technology. This will leave out people who
lack the funds.

Therefore, it is becoming more and
more the role of the educators to give students the opportunity to work with
technology and social media. This reminds of one of the reasons every ninth
grade student at Bayside High School is supposed to be receiving (I believe) an
IPad. The school system wants to make sure that these students are acquiring
the necessary technological skills to succeed in the 21^st century.

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dgGy4JmAcA

The above web YouTube discusses how to use social media for
teaching and learning.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOXPBYx5AOU

Another You Tube presentation that discusses social media in
education.

According to the article, working with social media helps
student acquire a multitude of skills, ranging from “play” to “Negotiating.”
The article expressed the importance of everyone getting involved.

1. Kevin Norris