As I discussed in a previous post, my research topic was about the use of technology in schools to enhance students’ global perspectives. In that post, I listed some facts that I came across during my research that were pretty depressing about the knowledge of American students after graduating from the school system. However, it is not just these facts that scare me , but it is also some experiences that I have had in the classroom that make me believe that we REALLY need to work hard as teachers to enhance students’ global awareness. There have been too many times that I have heard kids make racist remarks, that they don’t even realize their making. I truly believe that if students really understood the cultures in question, they wouldn’t have these ideas. I have also heard students say many times that they don’t need to learn a foreign language because “everybody knows English.” While it is true that English is becoming more and more popular around the world, I think this attitude contributes to the lack of motivation that there is in many students and even in many schools to learn more about the world around them.

One quote that really stood out to me in my research was “…for the most part, schools of today are out of sync with the realities of the global world.” When I first read that quote I quickly agreed and thought, yes, our schools do seem to be out of touch with the global world. But as I continue to think about this quote, I want to ask why? Why is it that our schools, the places that have the responsibility to prepare students for their future, are out of touch with reality? This just doesn’t seem right. I really think that it is important for individual teachers, schools and districts continually ask the question : What do we want our students to get from this experience? What is our ultimate goal? And something that I really learned from my research is that the answer to these questions cannot be static and unchanging because society is constantly changing. If we do not prepare our students to succeed in society, aren’t we doing them a huge disservice?

Fortunately, I also found a lot of hope in my research. I read many articles that talked about the way teachers are using a lot of the technologies that we are talking about in class to bring students in contact with their peers in the global community. Teachers are using email, blogs, wikis, social networking tools and videoconferencing software to open up school boundaries and expose students to the world. I talked about this a little in my other post,  but the article that stood out to me the most was one about Eastview Middle School and the way that teachers in this school used technology to truly connect students with the world. Teachers from this school used videoconferencing technologies to allow students to talk to others their own age from other parts of the world. For example, students in a health class talking about the HIV/AIDS epidemic met and conversed with a girl from South Africa whose parents both died of AIDS and who is currently living with HIV herself. She was able to share these experiences with students and make a personal connection with them. This honestly sends chills down my spine because I can’t even imagine the impact this must have had on these students, to hear someone their age going through this type of ordeal. What do you think benefited them more, this experience or reading about this problem and then answering questions on a test?

The amazing thing about this school was that it was not just this one teacher that used these technologies and ideas in the class. Students seemed to be exposed to these things in many different classes and in many different ways. At the end of the article, the authors discussed how students were inspired by these experiences to actually do something to help their new friends in the global community by raising awareness and holding different types of fundraisers. I just really think that THIS is exactly what education should be about. Students weren’t forced to do these types of things after the school day was over. However, the experiences that they had in the classroom caused them to WANT to do something and WANT to participate in the global community.

I really hope that there are a lot of other schools doing these types of things and I hope that I can use technology to bring these types of experiences to my future students. I have had so many people tell me that it is great to think about all these wonderful things now, but once I get in the classroom “reality” will hit. I REALLY, REALLY hope that this is not true. Because to me, reality seems like what is happening at Eastview Middle School. This research has shown me that these things are possible, but that they are also not happening in enough schools. I really hope, for students’ sake, this changes SOON.