While reading the 6th chapter of Anthony Picciano's text my attention was drawn to a little section at the end of the chapter (pgs 108 & 109) where he discusses the issue of technology and curriculum integration. Cost, training, and planning are all issues that Picciano regards as obstacles towards effective integration of the two. Cost is associated with the costs of purchasing, maintaining, and updating whatever new technology a school may want to integrate. Training relates mostly to the concept of teacher professional development and the time/costs associated with bringing people up to speed and gaining buy-in. Additionally, planning is addressed due to the requirement to develop a plan that allows for continuous updating and flexibility.
I wonder if there need to be new approaches beyond simply trying to retrofit our already out of date educational process. Perhaps the founders of schools like the Harlem Success Academy could lead us to imagine a new school founded upon an integrated approach. No retrofit, just the best practices in educational technology brought to life by educators who were trained and on board with the approach. This take on the problem negates a lot of the issues and allows for a ground up approach. Negated are the issues of training and planning as these are dealt with from the onset. Children enter an entirely new school system that has never known a world without technology.
On a smaller scale I wonder if the entire process is just not organic enough. It's almost as if we are trying to reinvent the wheel. How do people already use technology? I think that may be as important a question as how does a specific technology relate to learning theory. The best new ideas are the ones that integrate seamlessly into people's lives. The problem with new ideas in educational technology is that we seem to try and create new things based on research, but fitting those things into people's lives is difficult. An example of a more organic technology for education would be something along the lines of Edmodo. This system piggybacks off the idea of social networking, but is structured in such a way that best practices can still be utilized.
Overall the question about how to integrate technology into the curriculum is one that needs to be addressed. Is there one answer that we can create an institutional model from or gone is the day of an industrialized system where everyone does business the same way?
It does seem like because of all the research that is always being done that these researchers want to create a solution to every problem based on what they think they have discovered. I don’t think we need to “reinvent the wheel.” I agree with you that it is important to be able to integrate new ideas seamlessly into people’s lives. Many people do not like change. In fact, many be are very hesitant to even the idea of having to learn something new, especially in regard to technology. I think technology leaders/teachers have before them a great privilege to be able to help share what they know with other administrators, teachers and students. I don’t know if there is one model to follow. Having one model to follow would create better collaboration, but is there a problem with leaders who feel that their way is better and think that is the way everything should be done?
ReplyDeleteIn my years of teaching I have encountered teachers who embraced new technologies, teachers who were insecure with technology but willing to learn, and teachers who were resistant to technology integration. Teachers who embraced technology would devote extra time to learn skills needed to implement the new programs. With the teachers who were willing to learn, the districts did not seem to provide enough support for the teachers or time to create lessons. It seemed they would be just getting into building a lesson as time ran out for the training or the end of the day arrived. Some of those resistant to technology had been around education for some time and seemed to resist any change.
ReplyDeleteI believe districts that implement new technologies best are the one who provide in depth training for a pilot group of teachers and administrators from within the district first. Then, there are resource people available to support others as the district as a whole transitions.
One caution I have is that the pilot group needs to be the best of the best with learning new technology and assisting others, too. Just because the former principal had selected a "buddy" to be the lead teacher does not mean that person is the best person to utilize. We have to select leadership teams carefully.
I do agree that we need to look at content and at the way people actually interact with technology in everyday life to find practical ways for technology integration. One model may limit us too much with the various content areas we teach and the needs of our learners. A case in point is the use of PowerPoint in my son's school. The teachers were trained to use PowerPoints for student notes. They were all trained to have students copy specific information onto a handout and to have students fold back the "note" side of the sheet to recall information for tests. While this method my work well for some students, it does not work well for all of them. In addition, only one of the teachers he and my daughter have this year are implementing the training. This particular teacher is grading students on whether or not they go home and print out the handouts from her website to bring to class for taking notes. In addition, she is giving no credit if student have taken their own notes in a notebook with more detail. Students without Internet access or printer access at home must go to the library and pay to get the pages printed. I find this a ridiculous requirement and overbearing micromanagement. This teacher has obviously integrated technology to a certain extent as the PowerPoints are available online, yet there is a lot left to be desired. It's a "my way or the highway" attitude when a bit of flexibility may be needed. While we should be unwavering on Biblical principals, we need to be realistic and reasonable with our students.