At the crossroads of tradition and technology

As the rapidly growing popularity and availability of computer all over the word, Internet has become to such an indispensable part of our life. Internet is so powerful that just as the video “Social Media Revolution” shows that 1/5 couples in the word meet on line and 3/5 gay couples know each other through the Internet. Although the video says that China does not welcome Facebook, Twiiter and Youtube, I should say that government forbid these website out of consideration of politics，actually many people in China still use those websites through some private designed softwares. Moreover there are many social media like Facebook and Twitter in China, therefore social media revolution happens in China just like in other countries. From my experience, all of my friends use social media, both of my 9 yeas old cousin and my 50 years old college professor use “Weibo” --- Chinese Twitter. Internet has become to the main way for most people to obtain knowledge, to share their life with friends and to meet new people.

Nevertheless, few teachers take the advantages of Internet and social media to optimize their teaching just as the video “AVision of K-12 Students Today” shows that 60%-70% of teachers do not use Internet, computer or other technology in their teaching. Since new technologies will become to important tools for students to use at work in the future, it is really necessary to bring the new technologies into class. Indeed, new technologies can also serve as efficient tools of learning, however although students may use those technologies frequently outside class, they do not know how to use them in learning without teacher’s assistance. If teacher can really combine learning with technology, the process of learning will be more attractive. In addition, teaching students to think critically is also one of the most important goals of teaching. Nowadays, Internet can provide numerous materials for students to use. For example, when twittering students can learn about different opinions from different people towards a same topic, they need to judge which one is more convincing by themselves. In this process, students need to apply their knowledge to think and judge; therefore Internet can be a really helpful tool to student’s improvement and growth. 

To sum up, new technologies should be an important part in teaching. But the fact is that few teachers utilize them in their real teaching. Why are teacher reluctant to use it? How to use new technologies and social media appropriately in class? These questions still need to be answered.