Instructional technology - teaching using any tool or machine to enhance or enable someone to gather information quickly using graphics and sound
To me technology (within the school system) consists of computers, televisions, my elmo projector, and even MP3 players that are accessible to check out by the students. In my situation I see a wide range of technology usage. I have students on the computers every day researching a topic or publishing a piece of writing. On the other end of that spectrum, I see teachers that have never been to the computer lab.
Here's an example of varying student experience with computers at my school.
Last August, at the beginning of the year, I asked my students to go to google and search for "layers of the rainforest." I noticed that none of my students knew how to begin. They had never researched anything on the computer at school. I was shocked and sad. At that point I had a beginner lesson on what google and yahoo were and why we use them. Within 2 weeks, my students were researching on their own and switching back and forth between the internet and their word document. I was a little mad that teachers before me weren't using computers. Technology objectives are a part of our North Carolina Standard Course of Study.
While all teachers are different with their teaching styles, the goals we teach each year are the same in our core subjects. Why is that not the case for technology? The computer experience each student receives relies exclusively on their teacher's confidence and knowledge of how to use the computer. That just doesn't seem fair to the students.
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10 comments:
I agree with you. AS a high school teacher, I work every year with the students that have not passed the computer skills competency test--I am shocked that as of 9th grade so many of them do not know the basics. I especially am sad because I know there is a SCOS/blueprint for the teachers to follow every year since kindergarten.
The sad reality is that many teachers do not even know about or acknowledge that a technology SCOS exists. There is so much emphasis placed on Reading and Math, that everything else is thrown to the side. With the state not requiring teachers to show evidence that they are using technology, they elect not to.
In today's technology driven world, students are introduced to technical tools and techniques beginning in elementary school. In my opinion, any teacher that will not embrace the concept of implementing technology into the classroom is demonstrating incompetency in that area. In this case I agree that it should be mandated that teachers be made to pass a computer-based test preceding employment. How can an educator expect his/her students to excel in a world that is based on the skills that they (the educator) don't even possess?
Shaneir
The struggle with implementing technology is time. Implementing technology in a way so that is actually increases learning is tough and takes a lot of time and planning. Lecturing off of a powerpoint, is not very effective, but it is easy, and sadly many think this all there is to IT. When I was in the classroom, I tried my best to incorporate technology as best as I could. But due to lack of time and resources it was nowhere near what it should have been, and I am a huge advocate for technology in the classroom. As the new TF I am seeing that I am going to have use a great deal of my time creating things for the teachers and modeling lesson, so that I can make it easy for them. They already have a million other things to take care of, so how can we make technology not one more thing that is thrown on their pile. It's easy to say that teachers should just know how to use it, but the reality is, many do not. So as we do with our students, I think we need to teach them where they are at so that the students can benefit from better teaching.
I work in the corporate world, but it does seem to me that not following the established computer competency requirements is really selling students short, especially those students who are less fortunate than others and may not have access to computers in their homes and are relying on the schools to keep them where their peers are.
On a side note, when using web resources such as Google or Wikipedia (both of which I love), how do you ensure the students are vetting the information they receive on the web?
If I am not mistaken beginning teachers are required to take a basic computer competancy test before receiving certification. However it is very basic. I agree with Mr. Gwynn that is important that it not be another thing piled onto teachers' plates. I know in my class I have two computers in my room for 24 students. The computer lab has to serve the entire school so scheduling time in the lab is not easy. We do not have a teacher in the lab so all lessons are up to the classroom teacher. Which for some of us who are fairly computer savvy might not be too demanding. But for teachers who struggle with technology it is daunting.
"I have students on the computers every day researching a topic or publishing a piece of writing." This sentence struck me in that I thought what a great way to motivate students to write - with technology they can actually be published. On the other hand, when they are researching on the internet for their writing, as Mike points out, are the students scrutinizing their sources?
I feel pretty passionate about teachers having their students using computers daily. It is their obligation to get their students computer literate before leaving elem school. Technology isn't a separate entity, it's an enhancement of our lesson. I have 4computers in my room so I guess I am lucky. I asked a student to look up something for me on google and she looked at me like "really? I can?" It was sad.
I found a pretty cool website on YouTube about today's students and the use of technology in the classroom.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_A-ZVCjfWf8
It goes along with what you were saying. An alarming number of teachers still want to teach the same way that they learned. This is unfortunate in that students aren't being prepared for today's world.
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