Читать книгу The Movement and Technology Balance - Traci Lengel - Страница 13

There is an abundance of quotes that define the importance of having balance in one’s life. Many people are familiar with the common saying, “everything in moderation.” What about balance and moderation in the classroom? These concepts should also exist in teaching and learning. As educational leaders, we tend to overuse technology and underuse kinesthetic teaching strategies to optimize learner success. We fail to consistently deliver curriculums with multiple teaching techniques to meet the needs of a variety of learning preferences. In your own classroom, would you say that you engage students physically to improve their learning state for greater cognitive output? Often, students sit for too long as educators deliver content through traditional means and digital resources. What are your concerns when you look at your current students and the ways in which you’ve seen children changing through your years of service?

The reality is that children and adolescents devote much of their time, at both school and home, to technology and digital resources. In later chapters, statistics and detailed information will be shared that illustrate the significance of this, along with the damaging effects it is having on our youth. The younger generation is spending too much time watching television, playing video games, texting, and interacting on social media. At a quick glance, these outlets may seem harmless. However, as digital addictions grow, children and adolescents are becoming sedentary people with an increasing collection of physical, social, and mental/emotional health problems. The time for concern is now! As educators, we’ve made a commitment to care for the well-being of the whole child, and the overall wellness of our students cannot be ignored. Educational facilities are encouraged to look for active means to reverse these damaging trends. Implementing more movement and kinesthetic teaching methodologies into schools and classrooms is a step in the right direction to combat these technological dependencies. Action must be immediate, persistent, effective, and ongoing.