Ice Cream or Toppings (thanks to Jeff Utecht)

It's time to get back to school--for all of us!--and what better way than finding a thought-provoking blog: http://www.techlearning.com/blog/2007/08/do_you_offer_ice_cream_or_topp.php Jeff Utecht asks the provocative question: Do we offer ice cream or toppings?

In short, our students all get free ice cream--the free Internet resources that abound. But it's our job as educators, particularly media and technology personnel, to make sure that we provide the toppings--the educationally sound ways of using the technology to support teaching and learning. We add the toppings--the value--to the technology. That, of course, is the hard work. Finding educationally sound ways to integrate all these tools and resources into our daily teaching practice takes time, energy, and lots of faith. Every time we bring in a new tool or teaching strategy, ask another essential question for our students to answer, or collaborate with others and hand off part of our responsibility to them, we are taking a risk. It's scary stuff. But truthfully, isn't it a greater risk not to add the "topping" value to our ice-cream craving kids?