Technology has presented educators and students alike with many opportunities and, therefore, much more to manage. From elementary to high school, students remain distracted in virtual classrooms-or completely disengaged as instructors find themselves competing with what youth perceive to be more entertaining on social media, cell phones, or within the comfort of home. Becoming Cage Free in Your Teaching: The Fundamentals of Online Learning Engagement offers educators tools to:
- Incorporate entertainment and social skills into online academic content and,
- Facilitate classroom discussion that yields further inquiry.
The world has changed. How we learn and what we learn has altered significantly with modern day advances in technology. With all of the social ills plaguing young people and competing entertainment and technologies, we need to provide individuals working with youth and young adults, new and different tools that are more culturally sensitive; tools that focus not just on academic content and college preparation, but information that holistically empowers individuals to pursue their interests. Students want to find where they fit and that does not always equate to opening locks to doors that lead to “typical” career pathways but instead, vocations. This presentation will discuss ways to:
- Design and adapt culturally sensitive curricula that brings adult stakeholders and youth into the learning process and;
- Devise and execute plans that encourage reading through the creative arts (spoken word, music, dance, etc.) and technology into classrooms and youth development programs.
Using her own personal stories of abandonment and low self-esteem, Ms. Smithen empowers teens to use tactics that will help them in protecting their emotional and mental health.