My Teacher is an App

This morning while I was eating breakfast I got an email with a link that shared some great apps that you can use on your IPhone even if you don't have a set of IPads or IPods in your classroom for student use.  It was called Teach with your IPhone.  I have used several of these apps and would like to encourage you to check them out.  However, following this resource another teacher on that chat sent this link:  My Teacher is an App.  This link shares information about how more and more learning is being taken online in an effort to get rid of teachers in the classroom.  Remember the old 1950s scare of how machines would take over the world and do away with humanity?  That was followed up in the 1980s with all the Terminator movies.  Well, the reality is that in education this prophecy is coming true.  More and more online learning organizations are touting themselves to be the savior of the students.  They are personalizing education in order to increase accountability on nationwide standardized test scores.  The current low test scores our students are earning are a result of poor teaching by incompetent teachers, according to these online institutes.  
The sad thing is that while policy makers and school administrations think these online organizations will solve testing problems the truth is this online learning will only increase the problem.  The problem with low test scores in our Nation's schools is not the teacher.  It is the test itself.  Research is saying something totally different than greedy money saving policy makers want the public to know.  Smaller class sizes taught by experienced, veteran teachers in face to face classrooms where relationships are encouraged and built between the student-the teacher-the family are the best way to increase student learning.  This should be coupled with fewer tests and more authentic ways of measuring learning.  One test score on one day does not show a years worth of academic understanding.  

Do we want students to really learn?  Or do we just want them to get through school as cheaply as possible?  Wake up folks!  Education costs money but aren't our students worth it?  You will get what you pay for.