Using computers to teach students is not a bad idea, because all the students in my class would love to learn from computers, and from what I have seen from my computer classes, students actually have exceeded their standards in every region of computer skills. I am a smart student, and I have found those computer skills different to master, but most people, including me have done so.
I really think that computers should be used to teach students in schools.
I completely agree with many of the points that you made in your post. I am a teacher that feels illiterate when it comes to computer programs. Therefore, having professional development to learn how to effectively use new pieces of technology would be needed in order for some teachers like myself to be competent enough to incorporate it into lessons. You mentioned about how it costs money to mandate technology. Currently, my county has made budget cuts and they have canceled many professional development days that we have had scheduled. Hence, you know technology mandating would be a problem right now.
Another point that you made was about children not having access to these programs at home, let alone having a computer. Obviously, not all students come from the same economic status. I have several students in my 4th grade class that do not have a computer at home, which is the minimum of technology right now in comparison to other things. Similarly, I, myself, just got high-speed internet - only because I began my Master's Program on-line.
Although all these points are valid, technology doesn't seem to be slowing down. I definitely feel that children need to know how to use various programs to enhance their educational success. My colleague has a son that is a senior in high school and a daughter in middle school. Both of them are constantly using the internet to complete projects and even submit assignments. Therefore, teachers are requiring students to be computer literate and have knowledge regarding technology. I believe that technology will only become more prominent in the future. So for our students to be more successful, we need to begin incorporating it in their younger years.
I also teach in your district and we have a shared ILS between two schools.
Our ILS does not go into classrooms and show teachers how to integrate technology.
Occasionally she will write an e-mail to everyone about how to do this or that and uses verbage that no one understands etc. They often brag about technology and its benefits in the classroom. As a classroom teacher I can assure you that there is little time for the students to use classroom computers. As a teacher, I do teach whole group through the use of powerpoints and websites as an informational tool. Often there are programs that can be used as interventions for children that need extra practice on specific skills. Overall there is not enough time to cover all subjects and use technology. MOST the time if you do plan to use it,something goes wrong and it won't work and you have wasted all the teaching time trying to fix it.
So I say YES to supplying the technology,and yes to using it as needed or wanted, but no to mandating it.
Also PLEASE quit making up jobs for people who are never in the classrooms helping with students.
I agree that people need to realize that technology is more than just computers. There are so many other options out there for teachers to use. And, always using the same method, though exciting and new in the beginning, if used everyday, all the time would quickly become boring.
It seems that there is still a disconnect between "technology" and "computers."
Technology comes in many forms and by limiting our thoughts to only computers, we are limiting our ability to teach our students. And, it is not a necessity that students have computers at home in order to teach them about their use. If we wait until everyone has the 'ability' to access the Internet or other technologies from home, we will never move forward. (for example: If we waited to teach typing until everyone had a typewriter at home, very few would know how to type.)
I think it is high time that teachers lose the 'technophobe' attitude and take the leap into the world of technology. That doesn't mean that you have to use it every single day, but at least be open to the idea that technology can (and does) make life in the classroom more interesting.
I, too, am a great fan of technology but mandates never work and only cause friction and dissent among the workers. Instead of "forcing" a teacher to use technology, we need to show them the possibilities and offer them the time, equipment and support in order for it to succeed.
I am fortunate to work in the Lake County School District in Florida. I am one of 22 teachers - Innovative Learning Specialists (ILS)- that work at 1-2 schools. Our job is to help teachers integrate technology into the classroom with the use of Staff Development, modeling lessons in the classroom & working with teachers to develop lesson plans. The main stumbling block I have found is that the schools have computers but not much else. Over the past 3 years (since our inception), many of us have found creative ways to bring technology into the schools. It has been a slow process, but slowly the teachers are starting to see that adding technology can enhance what they already do.
ILS's not only help with the teaching aspect, but also act as a bridge between the schools and our technology department. When problems arise, we help locate the issue & fix it without having to wait for someone to come out. This has helped our tech department in resolving more critical issues and not wasting "manpower" hours coming out to a school for a simple 5 minute fix.
Other county departments, i.e. ESE, Curriculum and Staff Development, have become more flexible in working with us to help bring new ideas, software & technology into the schools & classrooms. This has really helped all departments & schools to bring a sort of "standardization" into the classrooms. It's not perfect yet, but it is getting there.
Like always, the critical needs are money & time, not mandates!
We should use technology moderately because technology alone will not meet students needs. School needs more moral teachings (the fear of God is the beginning of knowledge). Technology will not do the function of the moral values that comes from knowing the living God. Students will become more pride if we teach things beyond their requirements and ability. What America lagging behind now is not technology but moral degradation that swallows its economy and wellbeings.
Hi,
I recently read your article on the technology you used in your classroom. I'm a firm believer that technology is needed for students to progress in their current and future educational experiences. My question, do you know of any grants or programs that would help me (for myself and my campus) get ELMO's and projectors for our classrooms?
Yvonne
I am a great fan of technology as a tool in the classroom. However, when it comes to mandates in education, remember that they must be funded. Current problems with technology integration that I experience either directly or through observation of my fellow teachers are many.
1) Teachers are very often not given enough time to learn how to use the technology. A 1-3 hour training session that ends with "play around with it" is not suficient. Who has time, when we have several new programs, new pieces of equipment as well as lessons to plan and students to teach? Oh, and family obligations.
2) Adequate technology support is an absolute must. Develop the lessons, prepare to use them and then have something go wrong. Then wait from days to weeks and sometimes months for the problem to be dealt with within your organization's system. Or, get most of the components for a system and then be told you are out of money until next year. My personal favorite is when they don't order cords longer than 10 feet or a piece of furniture for the equipment to sit on. Or how about an extention cord? Speakers? Headsets? Mice? And what about bandwidth. Try having 22 8-year-olds in the computer lab and the response time within a program is minutes.
3) Not all teachers, much less all children have access to affordable high speed internet.Those of you who live in metropolitan areas, please remember that there are those of us in rural areas that have to suffer with dial-up. I have students who can't afford a t.v., much less a computer and peripherials. And theiir parents are not able to troubleshoot for them.
4) Virtual manipulatives do not give the same experience as real manipulatives. Virtual worlds do not yet appeal to more than two senses. Our students need to experience the world through all five.
These are just a few of the problems facing teachers I know. We all want to do more to prepare out students for life in a world of technology, but I'm afraid that not everyone is looking at the problem from the same angle. We have come very far, very fast, but we still have a long way to go.
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21st century education
21st century education requires 21st century tools.
Computer Learning.
Using computers to teach students is not a bad idea, because all the students in my class would love to learn from computers, and from what I have seen from my computer classes, students actually have exceeded their standards in every region of computer skills. I am a smart student, and I have found those computer skills different to master, but most people, including me have done so.
I really think that computers should be used to teach students in schools.
Mandating Technology
I completely agree with many of the points that you made in your post. I am a teacher that feels illiterate when it comes to computer programs. Therefore, having professional development to learn how to effectively use new pieces of technology would be needed in order for some teachers like myself to be competent enough to incorporate it into lessons. You mentioned about how it costs money to mandate technology. Currently, my county has made budget cuts and they have canceled many professional development days that we have had scheduled. Hence, you know technology mandating would be a problem right now.
Another point that you made was about children not having access to these programs at home, let alone having a computer. Obviously, not all students come from the same economic status. I have several students in my 4th grade class that do not have a computer at home, which is the minimum of technology right now in comparison to other things. Similarly, I, myself, just got high-speed internet - only because I began my Master's Program on-line.
Although all these points are valid, technology doesn't seem to be slowing down. I definitely feel that children need to know how to use various programs to enhance their educational success. My colleague has a son that is a senior in high school and a daughter in middle school. Both of them are constantly using the internet to complete projects and even submit assignments. Therefore, teachers are requiring students to be computer literate and have knowledge regarding technology. I believe that technology will only become more prominent in the future. So for our students to be more successful, we need to begin incorporating it in their younger years.
ILS not all the same
I also teach in your district and we have a shared ILS between two schools.
Our ILS does not go into classrooms and show teachers how to integrate technology.
Occasionally she will write an e-mail to everyone about how to do this or that and uses verbage that no one understands etc. They often brag about technology and its benefits in the classroom. As a classroom teacher I can assure you that there is little time for the students to use classroom computers. As a teacher, I do teach whole group through the use of powerpoints and websites as an informational tool. Often there are programs that can be used as interventions for children that need extra practice on specific skills. Overall there is not enough time to cover all subjects and use technology. MOST the time if you do plan to use it,something goes wrong and it won't work and you have wasted all the teaching time trying to fix it.
So I say YES to supplying the technology,and yes to using it as needed or wanted, but no to mandating it.
Also PLEASE quit making up jobs for people who are never in the classrooms helping with students.
Technology is more than computers
I agree that people need to realize that technology is more than just computers. There are so many other options out there for teachers to use. And, always using the same method, though exciting and new in the beginning, if used everyday, all the time would quickly become boring.
Computers are not all there is to technology...
It seems that there is still a disconnect between "technology" and "computers."
Technology comes in many forms and by limiting our thoughts to only computers, we are limiting our ability to teach our students. And, it is not a necessity that students have computers at home in order to teach them about their use. If we wait until everyone has the 'ability' to access the Internet or other technologies from home, we will never move forward. (for example: If we waited to teach typing until everyone had a typewriter at home, very few would know how to type.)
I think it is high time that teachers lose the 'technophobe' attitude and take the leap into the world of technology. That doesn't mean that you have to use it every single day, but at least be open to the idea that technology can (and does) make life in the classroom more interesting.
I, too, am a great fan of technology
I, too, am a great fan of technology but mandates never work and only cause friction and dissent among the workers. Instead of "forcing" a teacher to use technology, we need to show them the possibilities and offer them the time, equipment and support in order for it to succeed.
I am fortunate to work in the Lake County School District in Florida. I am one of 22 teachers - Innovative Learning Specialists (ILS)- that work at 1-2 schools. Our job is to help teachers integrate technology into the classroom with the use of Staff Development, modeling lessons in the classroom & working with teachers to develop lesson plans. The main stumbling block I have found is that the schools have computers but not much else. Over the past 3 years (since our inception), many of us have found creative ways to bring technology into the schools. It has been a slow process, but slowly the teachers are starting to see that adding technology can enhance what they already do.
ILS's not only help with the teaching aspect, but also act as a bridge between the schools and our technology department. When problems arise, we help locate the issue & fix it without having to wait for someone to come out. This has helped our tech department in resolving more critical issues and not wasting "manpower" hours coming out to a school for a simple 5 minute fix.
Other county departments, i.e. ESE, Curriculum and Staff Development, have become more flexible in working with us to help bring new ideas, software & technology into the schools & classrooms. This has really helped all departments & schools to bring a sort of "standardization" into the classrooms. It's not perfect yet, but it is getting there.
Like always, the critical needs are money & time, not mandates!
Should schools require students to use technology?
We should use technology moderately because technology alone will not meet students needs. School needs more moral teachings (the fear of God is the beginning of knowledge). Technology will not do the function of the moral values that comes from knowing the living God. Students will become more pride if we teach things beyond their requirements and ability. What America lagging behind now is not technology but moral degradation that swallows its economy and wellbeings.
Regards,
John Cyrus
Finding funding for technology
Hi,
I recently read your article on the technology you used in your classroom. I'm a firm believer that technology is needed for students to progress in their current and future educational experiences. My question, do you know of any grants or programs that would help me (for myself and my campus) get ELMO's and projectors for our classrooms?
Yvonne
Technology Mandates?
I am a great fan of technology as a tool in the classroom. However, when it comes to mandates in education, remember that they must be funded. Current problems with technology integration that I experience either directly or through observation of my fellow teachers are many.
1) Teachers are very often not given enough time to learn how to use the technology. A 1-3 hour training session that ends with "play around with it" is not suficient. Who has time, when we have several new programs, new pieces of equipment as well as lessons to plan and students to teach? Oh, and family obligations.
2) Adequate technology support is an absolute must. Develop the lessons, prepare to use them and then have something go wrong. Then wait from days to weeks and sometimes months for the problem to be dealt with within your organization's system. Or, get most of the components for a system and then be told you are out of money until next year. My personal favorite is when they don't order cords longer than 10 feet or a piece of furniture for the equipment to sit on. Or how about an extention cord? Speakers? Headsets? Mice? And what about bandwidth. Try having 22 8-year-olds in the computer lab and the response time within a program is minutes.
3) Not all teachers, much less all children have access to affordable high speed internet.Those of you who live in metropolitan areas, please remember that there are those of us in rural areas that have to suffer with dial-up. I have students who can't afford a t.v., much less a computer and peripherials. And theiir parents are not able to troubleshoot for them.
4) Virtual manipulatives do not give the same experience as real manipulatives. Virtual worlds do not yet appeal to more than two senses. Our students need to experience the world through all five.
These are just a few of the problems facing teachers I know. We all want to do more to prepare out students for life in a world of technology, but I'm afraid that not everyone is looking at the problem from the same angle. We have come very far, very fast, but we still have a long way to go.