What is the Internet of Things: One of my best friends came to me the other day so excited that he could control his thermostat, his porch lights, and his front door lock all from his smartphone. Last Christmas, I saw lights that could shine in what seemed an infinite number of colors, all controlled by a smartphone as well. I see daily, people comparing and competing to be the one who has taken the most steps. I don’t understand these things. They creep me out. They are invasive and unnecessary. However, I do understand the need for data in education, and honestly many aspects of my own life as well, so I understand the need for the IoT, and for informed and safe decision making when it comes to it. I read about the IoT in the forecast we read during Week 1, and just put it in my notes with a big question mark! Lee’s definition, that the IoT consists of “devices other than a computer that talk to and send information over the internet to give us data, data, data” (Graham, 2016) was very helpful. Kobie, 2015, expands on this definition: “At its core, IoT is simple: it’s about connecting devices over the internet, letting them talk to us, applications, and each other” (Kobie, 2015). The IoT can inform manufacturing, farming, city planning, energy conservation, healthcare, and eventually can and will be used to manage people too (Kobie, 2015). According to Meyers, 2014, “connecting people directly to digital networks may have the greatest potential to shift our social experience and even alter traditional institutions.” IoT & Security This type of technology is definitely problematic. Security and privacy issues walk a fine line between helpful and creepy. Not only does it feel weird when someone knows too much about you, but this type of technology is also vulnerable to hacking. According to Kobie, 2015, "Security experts argue that not enough is being done to build security and privacy into IoT at these early stages...so far not enough is being done to ensure IoT isn’t the next big hacking target." Eisler & Ross, 2014, assure that "The market demands that these devices and sensors have a multilayered security and data management approach to ensure they are properly identified, secured, and trusted and that the data they produce remains private, managed, and analyzed."
My New Classroom Object My biggest struggle is teaching grammar to my high school students. I don't believe that it is effective to teach grammar as an isolated subject, so I currently teach grammar through the following methods: editing sentences for warm-ups, small group and whole class editing using GoogleDocs, and rewriting papers using my comments and edits. Unfortunately, I don't know how effective these methods really are. I would like to see an object that gives some sort of positive feedback or reward to students when they use correct grammar and a ding or something when it's incorrect. (Kind of like a dog ecollar I guess?) I would also like this object or software to track the grammar of my students so that, if a student is doing a particular convention incorrectly, it could connect him or her to another student in the class who is good at that convention and then peer teaching could take place. It could also collect holistic data for me to know what conventions I need to teach whole group. This would be part of the IoT because it is collecting and processing data and it would inform student collaboration and self-monitoring, like a grammar FitBit. I believe it would be fairly safe because it is not quantifying any valuable student information. The only issue I see with this is that it will have to read what students write and it could then learn private things about students that should not be made available to the public. However, this is also the case when students write assignments in GoogleDocs, isn't it? The only problem I can think of with this tool comes from a parent interviewed in the NPR Marketplace show, "A day in the life of a data mined kid" (2014). This parent is concerned with his children getting a label that will follow them forever, a permanent data trail. While this is a valid concern, I also think it's an excellent way to track and recognize growth. UPDATE: I thought of a new and way better object. It would be like the airplane mode for education. As I sit here on my laptop trying to get school work done, I am constantly distracted by texts, the desire to do a little online shopping, anything that can distract me from my school work. Our students are the same way. I work in a BYOD school and I love that we can make educational use of our students cell phones, tablets, and laptops, and I rely on them to have devices because we don't have enough to provide one for everyone. However, as a smartphone user myself, I understand that when a text comes through or a notification pops up, it is in our nature to check it. If we had a device at the school that could just block all that unwanted distraction, like airplane mode, during school hours, students would be able to use their devices for academics without the distractions. References:
Eisler, V., & Ross, R. (2014). Secure Development of Internet of Things Products for Education. Retrieved July 07, 2016, from http://www.educause.edu/blogs/vvogel/secure-development-internet-things-products-education Hill, A.. (Narrator). (2014, September 15). A day in the life of a data mined kid [Radio broadcast episode]. In Marketplace. Washington, DC: National Public Radio. Retrieved July 7, 2016, from http://www.marketplace.org/2014/09/15/education/learning-curve/day-life-data-mined-kid Kobie, N. (2015, May 06). What is the internet of things? Retrieved July 07, 2016, from https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/may/06/what-is-the-internet-of-things-google Meyers, M. (2014, December 03). Can the Internet of Things make education more student-focused? - Government 2020. Retrieved July 07, 2016, from http://government-2020.dupress.com/can-internet-things-make-education-student-focused/ Shukla, G. (2016, March 22). 5 Ways the Internet of Things is Changing the Game for Education and Learning. -Digitalist Magazine. Retrieved July 07, 2016, from http://www.digitalistmag.com/iot/2016/03/22/5-ways-internet-of-things-is-changing-game-for-education-and-learning-04084635
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EDET678Emerging Technologies Archives
August 2016
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