Affordance Analysis - Post 3

I have learned a great deal about what an affordance analysis is the past week. When I first recevied the assignment, I had no clue what an affordance analysis was because I was not thinking about it in the right context. After reviewing the course documents and articles, I finally figured out that an affordance is a benefit or what that object allows you to do. My analysis was on the library and internet. At first it was hard to think about the affordances of a library because they are rarely used today by students and myself, although I do not agree that it is a good thing. Students need to know how to look up information in a card catalog and look up books. They also need to be able to research topics with books rather than just the internet. Although the internet has made our lives easier, sometimes it is not all relevant or correct information and it is hard to teach and deciper what is important and what is not! I know growing up we had internet but it was no where near what it is today. The internet serves great purposes, but should be used in conjunction with tangible resources.
Also, while reviewing other group members analysis I also learned a lot. I did not think about many of the affordances that many of them discussed, especially that paper and pencil helps with grammar, spelling, etc.; but now it makes sense. Some students spend way too much time depending on the spell and grammar check rather than relying on their own abilities. They also use the thesarus on the computer rather than looking it up or using a word wall with good Tier II words.
Therefore, it is imporant for us to think about the affordances of technology and use technology when it is necessary because just becaues it is available does not mean it needs to be used in all aspects of the classroom. Some technology lends itself better to certain tasks and it should be used effectively in all classrooms.