Comments on: You mean the teacher still matters?

By: Kari

Kari — Sun, 09 May 2010 23:01:26 +0000

The simple fact that children are spending more and more time in front of screens shows that they are becoming more and more acustomed to technology. If we do not integrate more technology into the classroom, we will lose student interest. With this added technology needs to be the support of a great teacher, there to help students every step of the way.

By: Kari

Kari — Thu, 06 May 2010 02:26:27 +0000

I really do believe that the teacher does matter in the end. The technology can be abundant and I am sure that the students will be very effective at using the technology. As Lindsay stated, it is still important to have an expert to be there to support the process. Also, teachers do not just teach nowadays, they are responsible for so much more (counceling, conflict management, social skills, etc.) We should be there to support the whole child, not just the curriculum part.

By: Robert R. Heinrich » Blog Archive » What I am reading today, 2/21

Robert R. Heinrich » Blog Archive » What I am reading today, 2/21 — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 14:12:44 +0000

[...] 2. Jeff Utecht’s post on, You mean the teacher still matters. [...]

By: Lindsay H.

Lindsay H. — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 05:20:23 +0000

I believe that the teacher still matters, even in online courses. Students will always need guidance from a person who is knowledgeable in the subject area. The study is very interesting and is something that all teachers need to remember about today’s students. We must remember that students today learn through different modalities than they have in the past.

By: Ryan

Ryan — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 21:43:32 +0000

Online classes or traditional classes, the teacher will always matter. It’s the teacher that has to find the best way to highlight each individual student’s learning strengths and to incorporate these strengths in the education process. Furthermore, I’ve learned so much from professors that go beyond the course material – life lessons and character traits that have contributed towards both educational and career success and accomplishments.

By: Corey Jackson

Corey Jackson — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 21:45:11 +0000

Interesting about the texting improving spelling. I always hated “text-speak,” but that’s what happens when you get an English degree. I think that the difference between a great teacher and a mediocre one has always been more than a single word’s worth, and it’s my personal belief that the best teachers are the ones that work to find the level that their students learn best on. It looks like this research points directly to technology and online learning.

Seemingly without fail, students are drawn to whatever style of learning uses the best technologies to incorporate it. Look at the Confucius Institute. It uses TVs and computers to deliver ‘distance learning’ to schools across the globe. A local school in urban Kansas City, MO is actually having their 1st and 2nd graders learn Mandarin Chinese with this technology! (Note: Many of these children are Latino, so they now actually becoming tri-lingual before their 10th birthdays.) That’s a big step, especially of US schools.

By: Mark Pullen

Mark Pullen — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 16:26:05 +0000

The last quote comparing three hours per day to one hour per week is unfortunate in that it takes away from the point of the importance of a great vs. a mediocre teacher.