Photo Credit Brad Flickinger creative commons.org
At Spring Hill Elementary, there have been a number of recent changes that lead us to consider, What is your vision for technology integration?
This school year, SHE is fortunate to have a 1:1 student to mobile device ratio in grades K-5. What does this look like in the elementary classroom? There have been a number of studies which claim that providing each child in a school with a computing device will not only increase academic achievement, but has become an absolute necessity due to the nature of an ever-changing technological society (Sutton, 2015). Sutton (2015) shares our understanding that simply providing children with digital devices does not guarantee academic improvement, but it is the way in which teachers themselves embrace and utilize these resources that is the ultimate variable of success.
One argument for 1:1 initiatives in public schools is to foster experiences for students that have an authentic engagement with their learning that could take root through inquiry, be organized through project- or problem-based approaches, and be tailored to their own unique interests and experiences (Office of Educational Technology, 2019).
The Office of Educational Technology (2019) reports that this concept requires teachers to reconsider their role in the classroom to include risk-taking, the biggest of which is stepping back and becoming a facilitator of student learning. At the same time, they must also integrate new tools to empower learners as problem-solvers and risk-takers themselves.
For more information on What Is Successful Technology Integration? Visit www.edutopia.org.
Sara,
ReplyDeleteThe last paragraph in your post really resonated with me. In order for technology to be truly effective in the classroom, students have to be utilizing it themselves. I often find that teachers perceive their own integration of technology while teaching to be sufficient; they do not find ways for students to interact with the technology themselves. In my experience, teachers do this because they are afraid to step back and allow students to learn on their own. In my own classroom, I try to incorporate lessons where students learn new content individually and collaboratively in groups without my help. This is usually to their own dismay, as they have spent most of their academic careers being told what to learn instead of trying to learn on their own. However, in the end, working through new concepts on their own with the help of technology always seems to improve their learning experience. They learn more, and the information stays with them for much longer.
Kiersten Potter