Do we dance to the new tune of the latest technology or not? How quickly should educators plan to integrate new technologies into their lesson plans? What criteria should we use to determine the rate of integration of new technologies? Should we have a scale to judge the possible impact of some technologies and then rate each new technology on this scale?
These are all questions that we currently and will continue to struggle with as educators in the 21st century. It also appears that the rate of new technological breakthroughs may accelerate as well as the need to constantly "re-tool" both ourselves and our students. How, then, can we make wise decisions about what to do in a world that is not only flat, but seemingly racing forward to the next flat area at the same time? We must be perceptively aware and give ourselves opportunities to reflect on the true value of any new technology. Teachers must be allowed the time necessary to work on developing their skills and ideas for integration of many new technologies, if we want them to stay in the profession for any length of time. Now, this also brings up a new point, which is, should teachers remain in the profession for long periods of time without being required to do some "re-tooling"? It appears counter-productive to think otherwise. However, this type of paradigm shift seems extremely problematic when it is so difficult to get quality teachers in the first place and perhaps even more will retire or leave the profession in the near future. Perseverance is, I think, tied to renewal and professional development, yet, many teachers may feel that the lack of time for renewal and the lack of professional respect afforded them are two of the most important reasons to leave the teaching profesison altogether.
What must we do?
It is both quite simple and in many ways a bit complex. Teachers must be given support, proper training, and ample time and incentives to explore new technologies and develop appropriate new types of lessons for their students. The work overload that is often so pervasive for teachers in many schools today must be stopped and re-directed towards higher teacher quality and better student performance. Mandates can not just be given, money directed, and then expectations for higher test scores raised. Teacher time must be MANAGED with the idea of providing both appropriate support and opportunities for exploration to help students perform better. This requires careful goals and planning as well as some leeway for individual teacher goals and interests. Combinations of workshops, seminars, and general teacher to teacher collaboration within both departments and divisions are all key to improvements in these areas. Often teachers would love to implement some new technology, but don't even know of the existence of a program or possible opportunity due to the lack of time to investigate them. Technology coordinators must be reflexive and supportive and keep both a larger view of where new technologies are headed as well as a careful note on how individual teachers are pursuing their own interests. This balance should be a key part of technology support personnel training.
In addition, students may often be more adept at new technologies, so partnerships MUST be made for a community of learners to include student leaders AT ALL LEVELS. Even first graders can be leaders in some new technologies, with careful teacher guidance. This comfort level with being a learning facilitator and providing opportunities for student leadership in the learning process will only become more important in the future. Administrators must find ways to incorporate these opportunities into their goals and plans for their school so that success for some can be translated into greater gains for all.
In the end, those schools that find ways to balance their learning objectives and standards with the opportunities presented by their ENTIRE learning community will have leveraged themselves into positions of maximum efficiency. Will this be enough to keep up with the increasing rate of technological innovation? Only time will tell, but remember we're all in this together. Keep searching for your own answers, and let the rest of us know what you find!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
The "time piece" is huge with practicing teachers. To what extent should teachers be given time to explore, create, and learn? Can a teacher's schedule and required responsibilities be altered to not only think about technology integration but other important professional practices?
ReplyDeleteThe professional divide going on in the teaching profession between the "non-digital natives" and the "digital natives"--a term coined by Mark Prensky in his 2001 article, "Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants" is the main problem that hinders any type of positive integration of best practices of technology in today's classrooms. Yes, time is a problem but it is not the only roadblock toward the move of integrating better technology into 21st learning.To many teachers I have worked with,it is the "technology mindset" that they must overcome. To them, teaching their coveted honors courses in British and American literature DOES NOT NEED to "dance to the tune of the latest technology." These teachers are not complete luddites either--they just don't see the need to "retool" in the first place. We are in the "post-information age" now, yet these teachers have not even joined the "information age." The advances happen so quickly that it is impossible for them to "catch up" and so many of them have tried but reach saturation point and just continue doing what they've always been doing. To many of my former colleagues, they see that the jury is still out as to the benefits of all of this tech integration anyway---many of them see technology like bad television---the "plug-in drug."I worry that these teachers are not going to make it into the 21st century as teacher facilitators integrating good technology into their classrooms. With federal mandates coming down the pike in the next few years for multiple means of representation where they will have to adapt to e-text books in an English class, where their coveted content material will have to meet individual differences as part of public policy,(e.g., with on-line curriculum tools such as Bookbuilder and Voicethread). These mandates are not just for special ed but for helping to meet the needs of student learning preferences in the classroom. No joke...check out the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standards (NIMAS) at http://nimas.cast.org/ which details The Higher Education Act of 2008. Will it be possible for them to change their philosophies of education even if they had the time, or should they be encouraged to be on the retirement track? Many sociologists, media researchers and Education Technology specialists have recognized the crashing of these two worlds that plague schools, teacher morale for both the young teachers who see technology positively and for the older guard who views it skeptically. The professional development initiatives, school districts, and basically everyone in the field of education for the 21st century has become fraught with these issues. The collective dialogue regarding this digital divide needs to center on a simple idea--respect. No seriously, I think that new teachers used to being digital natives need to view the older teachers as sources of wisdom in the classroom and not as techno-phobes or as these malevolent "controllers" of school/societal culture. The older teachers need to view younger teachers as sources of technical and "new ideas knowledge" and efficiency experts to potentially help in their workload. The conversation needs to move away from the silos and "thief-doms" atmospheres that many teachers talk about (especially when they feel unsupported, alone, and frustrated). I think a better mentorship program could facilitate this gap between the non-digital natives and the digital natives better. Why waste the expert knowledge of the ones who have "been there/done that" in the classroom or squander the new possibilities that quality tech ed integration has to offer with the teachers very comfortable with it? Why can't our schools reflect a better win/win approach to tec ed integration? If we don't plan for the realities of initiatives such as NIMAS, of the changes in technology, and with the advances in neuroscience and how kids learn best with certain technologies, then ANY teacher young or old will not make it into meeting the challenges of 21st century teaching!
ReplyDelete