What is it that technology actually helps teachers and students to do?
If you ask students you might get answers such as:
*makes learning fun
*makes content interesting
*it helps to keep me focused
(I polled my 9th grade students for those!)
If you ask teachers you might get answers such as:
*organize my lesson plans
*make my lessons more interactive
*expose my students to more content/ideas than I was able to in the past
* have my students interact with experts via live chats/video links and email discussions
*have students create multi-media presentations
While students and teachers have different ideas about the specific uses of technology, they can both agree that it generally tends to improve things in the classroom. The changes and advancements in technology have changed how teachers interact with students and have changed how teachers allocate their time in and out of the classroom (Kashy, Thoennessen, Tsai, et. al. , p 1). When offered the opportunity for electronic submission of homework, the majority of students will choose this option (Kashy, Thoennessen, Tsai, et. al., p. 4). Students being able to hand work in online may help to combat late work. As soon as the student completes the homework all they need to to is upload the file and submit it. Voila! No more lost homework!
Tom Carroll believed that technology would play an important role in shaping the classroom of the future ( Bransford, Lin, & Schwartz 2000, p. 1). I think he was correct. Not only does technology shape the classroom of the future, but it shapes the society of the future. A basic purpose of school is to prepare students to become productive, wholesome members of society. Because technology is everyone, it is vital that it become a regular part of the classroom, used everyday and that both students and teachers become comfortable and familiar with its use. Aside from budget concerns, the only limitation a teacher has is their own creativity in how they choose to implement technology into the classroom.
What can technology do for you? Anything you can imagine it to do, there is unlimited potential here. It is important to note however that technology should not be used simply because it is available (Bucci, Copenhaver, Lehman & O’Brien 2003, p. 39). It needs to fit naturally into the content and the context of the classroom. Technology must have relevance and even then it is vital that the teacher remembers to put the emphasis for the grade on the content of the work rather than on the precise execution of the technology.
References
Bransford, J., Lin, X., & Schwartz, D. (2000). Technology, learning, and Schools: Comments on articles by Tom Carroll & Gerald Bracey. Contemporary Issues in Technology and Teacher Education, 1(1), 145-182.
Bucci, T. T., Copenhaver, L. J., Lehman, B., & O’Brien, T. (2003). Technology integration: Connections to educational theories. Contemporary Issues in Technology and Teacher Education, 3(1), 26-42
Kashy, E., Thoennessen, M., Tsai, Y., Davis, N.E., Wolfe, S.L. Using networked tools to promote student success in large classes.
I really like how you stated advantages for both teachers and students. I also did that because I feel like it's really important to not only mention how much students can be influenced by technology inside the classroom, but also that teachers are just as important when it comes to learning and developing as individuals.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your post. It gave some additional insight as to what students are really saying about how technology helps them in the classroom. While I have heard before that it makes learning fun and more engaging, I have not actually heard students state that the use of technology helps them focus in the classroom. This actually kind of surprised me because I think about how personally I can easily get distracted by the other tasks I can do and capabilities of the technology that I am using.
ReplyDeleteAs a veteran teacher, my dearth of knowledge about the technology used for this post was such that I was forced to seek the guidance of a computer tech professional and one of the seniors in my AP classroom. I still erased my message several times and had to start again. Here I am on Monday, having received lessons from kids I’m supposed to be teaching, forging ahead into uncharted territory.
ReplyDeleteThe very fact that my students comfortably and casually helped me with this problem confirms that they use the language of technology as their native tongue. I will always be the foreigner, speaking with a heavy accent and referring to flash drives as “those little thingies” as I mimic the insertion of the drive into the USB port.
Though kids sometimes laugh at my tech deficiencies, they do engage more when I attempt to make technology a part of the curriculum. In addition to AP seniors, I teach a group of kids dubbed “non-readers.” Though they struggle in the conventional classroom, when my lessons involve technology, these non-readers suddenly become readers and achieve more success!
This post’s declaration that technology isn't just the future of the classroom but the future of our society rings true. Additionally, this post admits that content is always “the meat” of the lesson and therefore most important. It simply points out that technology will help students more readily clean their plates. This both comforts and challenges me. I know my content. I just need to continue to pursue my mastery of tech skills in order to make what I have to teach more palatable.
I’m up to the challenge. Next time, it won’t take me three days to post a comment