This week I watched a presentation given by Adam Bellow about technology in the classroom.
(Here is the link if you would like to watch it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vevGmzmWnI)
His talk was very interesting and made me think about technology in the classroom differently. The first thing he talked about was how school districts are always so quick to "throw money away" when buying the newest tools for their students. Although the district has good intentions, half the time the teachers aren't given the proper training or support to effectively use the tools in the classroom. Also, many of these tools are dated...cameras, computers, recorders; these are all things that students bring into the classrooms daily on their phones, which is of no costs to teachers! I really had never thought about that aspect of it. As I teacher I am constantly thinking of what I can get for my students, when really I should be thinking about what the students already have with them that I can use!
When he mentioned that many teachers are afraid to bring technology into the classroom, I completely understood that feeling. As teachers, we want our lessons to go as smooth as possible, and when technology is used there are many moments that result to be less than perfect...the internet went out, the website you directed your students to no longer exists, the school blocks it, etc. This is so frustrating to a teacher especially when your entire lesson revolved around this specific tool. However, he reminded me that failure = learning. Just like we ask our students to put themselves out there, we must do that as educators as well and not be afraid to learn from failures.
The last thing that interested me from Bellow's presentation was the social education community presence on the internet. I am on Twitter, Pinterest and other social media sites, however I am constantly taking what other people post and very rarely "giving" anything back. I once heard at a conference that being present in a social media community is great, but it's even better when you contribute something to the conversation. I think I shy away from contributing anything to the teaching world because I feel like there are so many great educators out there with amazing ideas, that I really have nothing new to add. However, I want to make it my goal this year to post about a great idea, a new lesson or a question I have and put it out there to my Twitter education community.
(Here is the link if you would like to watch it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vevGmzmWnI)
His talk was very interesting and made me think about technology in the classroom differently. The first thing he talked about was how school districts are always so quick to "throw money away" when buying the newest tools for their students. Although the district has good intentions, half the time the teachers aren't given the proper training or support to effectively use the tools in the classroom. Also, many of these tools are dated...cameras, computers, recorders; these are all things that students bring into the classrooms daily on their phones, which is of no costs to teachers! I really had never thought about that aspect of it. As I teacher I am constantly thinking of what I can get for my students, when really I should be thinking about what the students already have with them that I can use!
When he mentioned that many teachers are afraid to bring technology into the classroom, I completely understood that feeling. As teachers, we want our lessons to go as smooth as possible, and when technology is used there are many moments that result to be less than perfect...the internet went out, the website you directed your students to no longer exists, the school blocks it, etc. This is so frustrating to a teacher especially when your entire lesson revolved around this specific tool. However, he reminded me that failure = learning. Just like we ask our students to put themselves out there, we must do that as educators as well and not be afraid to learn from failures.
The last thing that interested me from Bellow's presentation was the social education community presence on the internet. I am on Twitter, Pinterest and other social media sites, however I am constantly taking what other people post and very rarely "giving" anything back. I once heard at a conference that being present in a social media community is great, but it's even better when you contribute something to the conversation. I think I shy away from contributing anything to the teaching world because I feel like there are so many great educators out there with amazing ideas, that I really have nothing new to add. However, I want to make it my goal this year to post about a great idea, a new lesson or a question I have and put it out there to my Twitter education community.