Hi everyone! So apart from being a senior here at CSUN, I am also an L.A. City lifeguard and a synchronized swimming coach for a U.S. level club team. In my “free” time I also teach private swimming lessons at private homes. Needless to say, I spend a large majority of my time in pools teaching kids ranging from 3 to 17 years of age. I am challenged every day to engage the kids in the lesson and to keep their attention for 30 to 60 minutes at a time.
I know that this challenge is the same in the classroom setting. I’m sure many of you would agree that kids these days are overwhelmed with technology and media on a daily basis. So in order to maintain a teenager’s attention, different mediums are needed to engage students. This can be both a problem and an opportunity. Teachers should not feel oppressed by conventional teaching norms and should utilize media such as websites, movies, video clips, music, powerpoints etc. in their lesson plans. But the “tried-and-true” methods should not be replaced by new technology. Television should not replace the reading of a good book. Therefore, it is up to teachers to instill a love of literature in their students in such a way that television cannot substitute the joy that reading brings!
Perhaps I am an English major idealist, but reading a good book can be so much more rewarding than having a television show constantly spoon-fed into my brain! I think the best way to integrate different media outlets into a classroom would be to find a balance between conventional and new materials. The way that teenagers process information is changing. Therefore, teachers need to adapt their methods to meet the needs of the students while continuing to impart a love for traditional literature.
