With approximately 30,000 combined views from a variety of video sharing sites, Mr. Winkle Wakes, has had the largest audience of any movie I’ve made. What’s cool about having a mini-viral video is that from time to time, the movie is rediscovered and its popularity spontaneously increases.
Recently, thanks to Google Alerts, I found out that the movie was being used in Dr. Strange’s teacher education course in Alabama. Students were asked to watch the movie and comment about it on their blog. I had the privilege of Skyping in to say hello to some of his students.
I read most of the students’ posts on Mr. Winkle and commented on a few. While most of the students put a rubber stamp of approval on the movie (probably thinking this is what their professor wanted them to do), I was most impressed, frustrated, and flattered by the students who decided to disagree with my point of view in the movie.
The movie, for those who haven’t seen it comes form a story that I didn’t write, imagining (Rip Van) Winkle waking up after a hundred years to find the world has changed in all places except the local schoolhouse.
Staci, a student in the class, writes:
I thought what was being said was simply not completely true.
Schools today are steadily increasing the amount of technology they use with the children. When I went to LSU, I tutored at a local public school, and it was full of computers for the teachers and children to use, as well as SMART Boards for the teachers to use to teach the children. Schools are realizing that students’ need much more stimulation that a chalkboard to get and keep their attention.
I know more schools would use technology if they had the funding…overall, I was not thrilled with the video Mr. Winkle Wakes.
The movie, of course, uses humor to make its point and is an example of hyperbole (some of the students’ misreadings of the movie make the case for better media literacy teaching in schools since in some cases they simply misunderstood the tone of the film). Certainly there are some newer technologies in schools. While we once could only photocopy in blue and white, now we can photocopy in black and white, for example.
Yes, some schools have SMARTBoards. But Staci still sees the use of technology as teacher centered. In focusing on how teachers need to use technology to “keep their attention.” Staci misses the point of the movie. In the movie, technology is shown as a tool to connect people to other parts of the world and venture outside of the walls of the classroom.
Yes, SMARTBoards are nice but installing them in a classroom does not necessarily change the structure of education.
What we need is for students to create, to discuss, to lead classrooms. And while funding is an easy excuse, how is it that I was able to have my students create their own films using a single Mac computer but some schools that have entire computer labs use their computers only to provide students with electronic flashcards?
The problem of integrating technology goes beyond funding. It’s a question of teachers first giving up some control and stepping off the stage for a moment. Then it’s a matter of providing training and support since things do go wrong with technology now and then. But most importantly, it’s about a re-imagining of the classroom, not simply replicating classrooms we once attended.
How do we change teacher education programs to address this?