Classroom Technology Newbie? Join the Club!!
Makerspaces, virtual reality, gamification, oh my!! Ask a teacher you know what these trends are, and they may look at you with a puzzled expression. Indeed, these emerging trends continue to evolve and multiply, with a myriad of uses in the classroom.
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| blog.ReallyGoodStuff.com
Today's students learn differently than students of the past. Attention spans seem shorter, while the ability to multi-task has increased greatly. Students today learn more by doing, and less by listening to information being delivered. Ben McNeely states, "They expect things to work properly and work fast. They get bored if not challenged properly, but when challenged, they excel in creative and innovative ways. They learn by doing, not by reading the instruction manual or listening to lectures." Interaction is also extremely valuable to these students, not the isolation that we assume happens when we put a tablet, PC or iPad in their hands. They thrive when they interact with their peers in the classroom and online. Arman Assa, president of the MAC users group at NCSU says, "Historically, communal learning has always been the most effective way for educating the student and generating thought-provoking discussion in class. I don't believe technology has reached a point where we can duplicate that effectively on a computer." (McNeely, n.d.)
Are you like me? Have you been dabbling in using classroom technology for some time, or is your idea of technology in the classroom the PC that sits on top of your desk? No worries, either way! Trial and error and research and exploration help to demystify these trends, as well as provide teachers with an electronic portfolio of tools geared towards connecting our students to the 21st century skills they will need for success in our global community. |
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| Hooper, S., & Rieber, L. P. (1995). |
Students of today are definitely more knowledgeable when it comes to certain emerging trends, but they, too, are newbies when it comes to navigating and purposeful use of technology to extend understanding. This is a journey into the not-so-unknown, but no less daunting!
Nice post! Definitely timely on so many levels. I have been using technology in my classroom for a few years now and I still feel like there is so much more to learn, don't you? Your post reminded me of the moment that I personally made the "mental shift" to fully believing in integrating technology in the classroom; the idea that students today expect instant gratification and instant everything. Once I accepted that and realized that there were ways that I could in fact, help them in this area, I was in. Integrating technology is something that takes patience and initiative; I'm in!!!
ReplyDeleteTairen, I'm so glad you commented, and I'm more than excited that you're in with me!! I am hoping that I'll be there in a few more years. It's a tough road to follow, especially when you are a control freak like me! I'm learning to give the reins over to them for some of the time, and I'm willing to admit that I have a lot to learn, so in that regard, I think I'm doing something right. I am always learning from each and every success and failure, and I'm hopeful that my students will be patient, and will benefit from all that we are doing together. Thank you, Tairen!! I'm looking forward to our journey together.
DeleteHeather, I love your blog, well done. Your first entry is extremely captivating, I didn't want your post to end. I really like the poster you included regarding 11 ways to incorporate technology into your classroom. I especially like the idea of creating a blog with students. I think it would be amazing to allow the students the ability to post and to the blog and in away help maintain it. Do you think this would be too advanced for second graders? Great work! Dana Fletcher Alexander
ReplyDelete*** Sorry my first post went through my school email this is my personal.
Thank you, Dana!! I wasn't too sure what to include on that first page, but I do love to talk, so I just poured out my thoughts regarding this whole process. I have to believe there are others like me that need a little guidance and support, and I'm willing to take all the help I can get!! This is the first time I've blogged in all of my years, so the idea of having kids blog is truly an exciting endeavor. They are such naturals at all of this, I know they'll jump right on it and make it amazing!! Even though I am working with fourth graders, I really believe that kids of all ages can manage to blog. I myself have a first grader, and I know, with a little bit of guidance and a tutorial or two, she'd totally rock it! Their postings will be just right for them, just like the three bears! I feel that our apprehensions sometimes hold us back, but nothing holds them back. We just have to give them the tools. As Tim Gunn says, "Make it Work!" Thank you, Dana!
DeleteHeather, Thank you so much. I am going to give it a try. You are so right about kids picking up on technology based applications. I often feel like they are teaching me. : )
DeleteHeather--Great blog! I agree that students today learn by doing more than they do from lecture. And you make an excellent point that technology is part of it. But isolated use of devices is not good. Students learn best when they collaborate with or without the technology.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I like how you posted about FlipGrid. I've been interested in trying out this app with my students, too. Thank you for sharing your grid so we can see how it's done. Very helpful!
Thanks, Mary! Yes, I feel that nothing can truly replace the face-to-face collaboration in the classroom. While my kids are totally loving the access to technology, they also love to talk about all the things they are doing with each activity, and they love to share their ideas. So, while blended learning is the direction I guess we're heading, there is something to be said for the human interactions and their impact on student learning.
DeleteI love FlipGrid, although I'm still trying to figure it out. My plan is to blog about all of the apps that I'm trying in my classroom, and share my successes and failures along the way, with the hope that maybe I'll get some tips from others along the way.
Your blog was awesome, too, so I think we must be learning something along the way as well. Thank you, again, for you post!
Thanks, again, for all of your help. It truly has been a learning experience.
DeleteHeather I really enjoyed reading your blog. You did an amazing job! i am not new to education, but I am new to all of this technology. My husband always gets on me because I never want to download apps to my phone to make my life "easier", but I am just old school I guess. I do love the idea of having students communicate through a blog. I would never think to incorporate that in my lesson. I work with a very academically low special education population and I am not sure how effective it would be for my current group of students. I do plan to try it next year though. I will be changing my classroom role so I do think that it will work out better. I also agree that students learn so much more from hands on and from interacting with the lesson than they do from just sitting down and listening to me talk. I know they get tired of that because I get tired of hearing my own voice! LOL Thank you so much for your inspiration.
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