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Use the Technology Available to You
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Mrs. Kelly Tenkely
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Kelly Tenkely | Teaching.monster.com
There is a myth, a common misperception, that teachers’ use of technology is a relatively recent phenomenon. However, the great teachers in my life have all had one thing in common; they all used the technology of the time to encourage and enhance learning. When I was growing up this rarely meant computer use—computers were still relatively new to education at that time—but meant using a ditto machine, VHS videos or slide projectors, comb binding for books that we created, chalkboards, notebook paper, 3×5 note cards, crayons, or legos. These tools were the technology of the time. Though they seem common and ordinary now, when I was young these tools were considered the latest and greatest innovations in education.
Today our technology options are ever expanding, we have computers, GPS, Wi-Fi, iPods, cell phones, clickers, Google, document cameras, interactive whiteboards, and the Internet. Any one of these technologies, when embraced by teachers and used effectively in then classroom, has the potential of greatly impacting student learning. Yet in many classrooms, we are still teaching with the technology that I grew up with. We are teaching today’s learners with yesterday’s cutting edge tools. The old technologies certainly have a place in education, but to effectively educate today’s students, we need to be utilizing today’s technology.
The old technologies remain common in education not because they’re better, but because they’re familiar and relatively easy to teach with. Lessons plans have already been created and taught. It feels comfortable to stick with what we know because it has worked in the past. The problem with this is that by relying on yesterday’s tools, we are preparing our students for a world that no longer exists. We are teaching for yesterday. Our students need to be prepared to think and learn using today’s technology.
So, how do we get started? We take a first step. We make a decision to teach our students to the absolute best of our ability using technologies that will prepare them for their future. This may be a step out of our comfort zone, but it is a necessary step. Choose just one tool to integrate into your classroom and you will soon see a domino effect. One change will lead to another, that will lead to another. It has been my experience that when technology is integrated appropriately into a classroom, student learning begins to change. Students start asking more questions, digging deeper into learning, seeking their own answers, collaborating, and teaching themselves and each other. Classrooms are transformed into more active, engaged, and collaborative learning spaces for both teachers and students.
So start by asking, “What technologies are available to me?” Choose one and make it your school-year mission to learn how to use the tool and how to teach with the tool. Find something that you can be passionate about using with your students. If your goal is increased global awareness, consider wiki’s, blogs, or e-pals. If you want your students to be more involved and engaged in learning, find some great interactive whiteboard resources to use with the whole class; invite student participation in lessons often. If you want more authentic assessment, use clickers and response systems in class during teaching; adjust your teaching on the fly according to students needs. If your goal is better differentiated instruction, use classroom computers or a computer lab to tailor instruction and practice that meets individual students needs. If you are up at night thinking about ways to help out your struggling readers, consider using iPods as reading buddies.
The key to properly employing technology in the classroom is to choose one, learn it well, discover how it can be used to transform learning, and build a network of other educators who can support you in the journey. Subscribe to some RSS feeds of educators who are taking steps of their own into technology and documenting their journey in blog form. Sign up for a Twitter account and start following educators who are using technology. Need some guidance for a place to start? Try these first:
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