Discussion # 13 Chapters 3

Some people say drill and practice is really "drill and kill." What can teachers do to make sure this kind of use doesn't happen and drill and practice can serve a useful function?


If teachers are stated to "drill and kill,"  the reason may be because the students cannot comprehend the information.  Yes, I have "drilled and killed" because I had given a test to see how many terms through out the year the students actually learned.  Majority did not even recall half of the terms studied through out the year.  I had repeatedly discussed the terms in many of our stories read.  I did feel stressed out after almost a whole year of going over the terms and students still did not know the terms.  I decided to do a jeopardy game with them.  It took time to set up the game on-line/power point but it worked at the end.  They thought of it as an interactive game.  I saw it as a new way of learning the information.
 
I have had students that need more than the basic discussion/lecture.  I noticed many of them need to use flashcards and branching drills too.  I noticed when I had them work on the extensive feedback activities with Read 180, they seemed to have learned more because it was constant immediate feedback.  They did not learn the information the wrong way and then taking longer to reprocess it correctly.  I noticed the drill and practice can serve as a useful function in motivating kids to type and learn musical notes.  Also to prepare for test was very helpful.  For example, it can be used as SAT skills.  Our students have not been introduced to that but they can to help them get the feel of the test.  Drill and practice can be done in a learning style where you may place the children in front of the program for 10-15 minutes, so that they don't get bored.

Discussion # 11

Some educators feel that distance technologies will greatly improve education; some feel education will suffer if they are overused. What are factors you can cite in support of each of these positions?

Distance technologies can be a great improvement in education. I feel it is best used for higher education learning. It provides the opportunity to have a student be able to interact with their classmates and professors. It is also convenient because of the mileage, gas, and wear and tear of your vehicle. Also the babysitting issue will be resolved. The student would be able to look after their children and still be able to get a good education. It is designed for the students who are dedicated and motivated to learn on line. It requires commitment. You can take quizzes or test on line as desired or the time would be allotted to finish within a time frame. It makes it easier for the students to access information as needed while on line with professor. If the students have web cams, it would have more interaction because a face would be attached to what is written. I think videoconferencing at this distance technology based program would help in live footage.

Distance learning can also create problems such as students distancing themselves from real life. The interaction with others, the social skills needed to continue on, the formality of just speaking to a live face-to-face person. The issue I see with that is the truthfulness when taking quizzes or completing assignments on line. There can be students that can have others do their assignments for them. Virtual courses can never take the place of teachers. Even though there is technology a teacher must present information in their way. I prefer to bring in technology daily but of course not everything is placed on power points. Teachers can integrate distance learning as a resource available for the middle schoolers.