Technology Teaching Teachers

Students are not the only people that need to learn in school. Teachers need to continuously keep up with the growing world and evolving society in order to best serve their students. One way to do this is by using technology. Not necessarily to teach the students, but to have the teachers learn a few new things. For example, imagine having a Skype conference call with teachers from all over the country. You can exchange ideas, lesson plans, and activities with people from all over the world. It is similar to a teaching workshop but you can do this with little to no cost. Now imagine teachers listening and collaborating with other great ones and becoming even better! It can be a great way to infuse new ideas into a different environment. This can even extend into a classroom. Students can meet other peers in different schools and countries. 

Teachers can also learn from their students. Having them do blogs, or ask questions in a class forum will give the teacher an insight to the minds of the kids. Seeing their personal responses will give data that a teacher can organize and look at for gaps in understanding. In having students use technology for school assignments, they are not only learning the lesson but also competent job skills. They are learning on how to meet deadlines, collaborating with others, and researching and analyzing data. Having this information be tangible and available to the teacher can help them focus on what the students' weak points. Simply giving students a computer or a tablet helps them better their abilities, as soon in, "The School in the Cloud" video. Kids will learn on their own if given the opportunity. This can be a valuable and shocking premise to present to teachers. Now they are not teaching them brand new ideas but more so, facilitating a better understanding of topics the kids know about.

My only knock on the use of technology is that not all students have access to it. I my personal experiences in dealing with special education students, I know that if they do not finish the computer assignment in school, there is no hope in getting them to do it for homework. The availability of the resources are scarce for them or they do not know how to get access to them. That is why the "The School in the Cloud” concept seems so interesting. The technology was given to the children and they figured out the rest.

Flipping the Old School

A Flipped classroom is an innovative concept. I know, from experience, that classes where the teacher lectures for an hour and then gives out homework, is not the best way for students to learn. Students get bored, they fall asleep, they zone out, and the worst outcome is that they do not learn a thing. 

This is where the flipping occurs. Simply put, teachers give the lesson outside the classroom while the students are at home. They can do this through videos or screencasts of a lesson, or any other interactive module that students can access online. The kids would watch the video/presentation at home and then the classroom time would be used for intense discussion and for help in understanding the lesson. 

From what I have read, the best argument for a Flipped classroom is that students become active learners. They are no longer being lectured into boredom and sent off to do homework. The students have way to slow down or speed up the learning process. Having the ability to pause the teacher, and then replay a part of the lesson is invaluable. Instead of spending classroom time going over a lesson over and over again, the students can do that in their home. Then, in the classroom, the teacher can have the students discuss the lesson. Since their understanding is better, they can have more in-depth discussions and can analyze the subject better. Furthermore, a teacher can focus on the students who are still having a hard time understanding the material, while giving harder topics to the ones that are excelling in the class.

Is this a perfect strategy? No, I think there are flaws to it. Students may have a hard time accessing online content if they are without internet or computers at home. I can also envision students simply blowing off the assignment since it is basically homework. I do see this being a valuable way to change up the dynamic of a classroom. It can keep the students from getting bored of a classroom routine and the interactive model can keep the students engaged more so than a traditional lecture classroom. 

Let me tell you a story...

It is no surprise that telling a story can hold the interest in students. A good story has interesting highs and lows, an easy to follow narrative, and a personal connection to the people listening to it. When reading about how a story "activates the brain," I can attest to actually seeing it. During a class, the lesson for the day was to read over an article that describes money saving tips for teenagers. The regular teacher was out so a sub was there instead. The lesson plan for the sub simply said to read and go over the article with the students. The sub began reading the article and a minute into reading, the kids' attention was lost. Seeing this, I resorted to reflecting on my personal stories on issues with money. I began to tell a story on how I ended up being in debt very quickly out of high school due to college tuition and expenses. As soon as I related the lesson to a personal anecdote, the students immediately became engaged. They then starting to ask me questions on the other tips that we had been going over. I saw how they began to react to the story. The words that they were reading suddenly had another meaning. They were more than just words being read by a teacher.

Using stories in a classroom can be an effective teaching technique. Whether the story is told orally or shown as a digital story, it captivates the students. A good digital story is colorful and appealing to the eyes. It can describe subjects in new and interesting ways through words, pictures, and music. Not only that, when you ask students to relate a lesson using their own story, they seem to understand the lesson better. Now they see a connection from the material to themselves. Letting the students use their imaginations is a good way for them to care about the work they are doing. Having them express themselves is a great way for students to get engaged in their own personal way.

Talking Techs

The use of technology in a classroom can have many different implementations. It can be as simple as using a computer to Google a research topic or it can be to help students communicate in a way they couldn't have before. The bottom line is that technology is a wave of progress that cannot be slowed down. Even with all its pitfalls, technology has too many positives to not use it. Students will always use technology for their own personal fun. They are young and they do not know any better, but if teachers can implement technology in a positive way, then students will have learned that the internet is more than just images and games. Having the practice and knowledge early on in life, students will have relevant skill sets when it comes with dealing with technological issues and problems. There are kids in my classrooms now that can troubleshoot a computer or SmartBoard better than the majority of the school staff. They are such quick learners because they have been dealing with these devices for the majority of their lives.

Assistive technology is another great implementation in a classroom. In students with severe disabilities, the assistive technology that exists today opens up a brand new world for them. I have personally worked with a student who uses an assistive device. The student has Down syndrome and she cannot talk aside from one to two word phrases. She has a tablet with a computer program that lets her "talk" to those around her. It is through this device that she can express herself whenever the staff has missed her point and we are lost as to what she wants to say. I have found that she enjoys it when people can understand her better and there is less frustration on both ends. The technology is the thing that is slowly helping her connect more to the world around her