Blog post: Week 3- Technology/ No technology

                This week is my favorite week of the year at my school. It is the week of the 10^th grade trips. For 3 days, the entire tenth grade chooses to hike, bike, or canoe (or a combination of the three). For the past 2 years, I have co-lead the canoe trip, paddling 25-30 miles from Antietam Creek to Point-of-Rocks Park via the Potomac River. It is a great way for the students to be out of their comfort zone and to bond with each other and the faculty leading the trip. This is an interesting experience for us as faculty. There are some teachers that complain that it wastes valuable class time and does not contribute to students’ learning. Others, including me, argue that it is a unique experience that teaches the boys something that most would not be able to experience. Very few of the students have experience camping outside of car camping, if they have camped at all.

                What does this have to do with Technology? It doesn’t. That’s the point. It was three days of unplugging students and getting their hands dirty. Oftentimes students are so plugged in, they forget to look up. This canoe trip was a perfect way to get them to learn about themselves and each other. While we were on the river, students asked about geology, the history of the area, and why certain plants grew in certain places. They learned about the invasive and destructive Blue Catfish, and that they should try to fish for them as much as possible. They also learned that going without a shower for 3 days is not the end of the world.

                We have learned about DOK this week, and what better way for a student to bring context to something learned than to have the students find it in nature and ask questions about it. Or, if there is not a planned curriculum, find ways to take that experience and tie it back into the topics you cover after the trip. Sure, I am biased because I love the outdoors, especially when I can make students enthusiastic about being outside. But I believe this is one of the most important aspects of learning that a student can experience.