If students had the choice...

It's the day before Spring Break and so it's relaxed here in the computer lab today. The student's spent the first half of the period reading and commenting on student blogs from around the world. The second half I've allowed them 'free time' to explore and do a little research.

- A student found this video which is now slowly working it's way around the room. (Could this be used in Science?)

- 3 girls are discussing the layout of their blog

- 1 boy is playing a flash game

- 2 boys are talking, and trying to figure out how to beat a different flash game

- 3 girls and a boy huddled around one computer watching a YouTube video.

- 1 student writing on his blog

- 3 students watching a "How To" soccer video on YouTube

- 1 student reading a discussion board on cheats for a video game.

- 2 students playing with Google Earth

It's interesting to take a step back and just observer what our students would choose to do if they were just given time. If you reread the above again while thinking of learning, are these students engaged? I would argue most of them are, they are learning on their own. It might not be what we consider worthy of time in school, but at the end of the day they are learning. Reading how to beat a game, having a conversation about a video, or watching and learning how to do the perfect header in soccer. One student is watching a music video and actually sitting in his chair trying to learn the dance steps. There is learning happening, it's just not learning that we value, that fits nicely into a standard...but it's there.

[tags]YouTube[/tags]

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