Brad Flickinger

This is a photo on Brad Flickinger's website

Brad Flickinger’s Educational Technology Bill of Rights for Students is both realistic and unrealistic.  I agree that students should be able to use their own technology if they already own it (like many of the VCSU students already owned a computer before being issued a school computer) and being able to use WiFi at school for academic reasons.  Students should also be taught how to use technology in the classroom setting because this would be extremely helpful for the students in the future.  Instant feedback is also a plus; Flickinger has a point when he says that grading by hand can be extremely slow and frustrating for students.  It is also a good idea for students to be taught how to be safe online.  Although Flickinger has made some valid points, there are still some areas that I do not agree with.  I do not believe that students should use Wikipedia to find information; there are plenty of other more reliable websites for students to use for research.  Teachers could provide students with a list of possible websites to use for certain research projects.  I also do not believe that it would be a wise decision to allow students access to facebook during school, as this would prove more a distraction than an aid to their learning.

There was both positive and negative feedback to Flickinger’s Educational Technology Bill of Rights for Students.  Some thought his list was spot on and agreed with what they believed, while others were quite angered by his statements.  Among those who were angry with Flickinger’s Bill of Rights were those who commented on his grammar.  I do believe that he should have proof-read his article before posting it on the internet.  One comment stated that students providing their own technology would make the classroom more unequal, which is something that I had not thought about.  If there is a student who has less money than the majority of the class, this would become apparent if students used their own technology.  Someone else wrote that education is not a right.  I totally disagree, because up until high school, education is a right and required of every U.S. citizen.  It amazes me that someone would even think that education is anything other than a right of the people.  Another comment made a suggested change from Flickinger’s original statement, “I am smart enough to verify what I find online to be the truth.” to her revised statement, “Teach me how to verify what I find online is from a reliable source.” I think this person is making a good statement because children do not know if a website is reliable or not unless they are taught how to determine that.

Brad Flickinger is working to make a difference in students’ education.  He has created the Badge program which helps students learn at a more effective rate.  Flickinger says that instead of him teaching the whole class at one time and waiting for students to try to follow along, he records the lesson in a step by step program in which each student can follow at his/her own pace.  Students receive badges for completing lessons and once they receive a badge they can move on to the next lesson.  The last lessons are elected badges (i.e. movie making), which provide students with motivation to complete the required badges.  He also has different stations with equipment for the students to work with, this way he does not have to purchase 30 microphones, 30 video cameras, etc. but can teach effectively with 5 or so of each set of equipment.  I think that is a good way to save money and not harm the effectiveness of the program itself.

http://www.schooltechnology.org/



Use stations to maximize use of minimal equipment.
Let students learn at their own pace.
Do not make a quick learner wait for the rest of the class; let them move on to the next assignment.